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Agriculture

Ag Department resists changes in laws

Rep. Jean Wagenius is not the only legislator who's tried and failed to change pesticide law. State Rep. Mary Ellen Otremba, a DFLer, owns a farm near Long Prairie. Last year she proposed opening pesticide records for public inspection. Otremba says the Ag Department and the agribusiness lobby moved swiftly to kill the proposal.

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Investigating human exposure

Minnesota law says it's illegal to apply a pesticide to a person by direct spray or overspray, commonly called drift. But one case from Detroit Lakes calls into question the enforcement of that law.

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The state law on pesticide regulations

Excerpts from the state law which regulates pesticide use and sale.

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Clouds of Doubt: Questions about enforcement of pesticide laws

Millions of pounds of pesticides are used in Minnesota every year. They're used on a variety of farm crops across rural Minnesota. Pesticides are also commonly used on lawns, parks and golf courses. And every year some of those chemicals are misused. Sometimes people and animals are exposed to pesticides, which is illegal. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture is responsible for enforcing those laws. But an MPR investigation finds violations of the law are often unpunished, and sometimes ignored.

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Bush's plan for the Mississippi River

President Bush's request to increase funding for the Army Corps of Engineers' Mississippi River environmental restoration program is encouraging to environmental groups. But some are wary of the Corps' intentions.

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New herbicide debated

Minnesota corn growers are waiting to find out whether they can use a new herbicide this spring. "Balance Pro" is used in 17 states. But not in Minnesota, Michigan, or Wisconsin. Critics say Balance gets into rivers and lakes too easily, and it could hurt wildlife or even humans.

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A tough year for dairy farmers

Dairy farmers say the past year has been a tough one. For more than a year, the payments farmers receive for their milk have been less than it costs farmers to to produce the milk. Analysts say the low prices are caused by a supply-and-demand problem, and they don't think relief will come for months. The low prices have forced farmers to become smarter business owners.

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The ethanol debate

The House is set to take up a budget-balancing plan Monday that preserves most of the state's ethanol payments. Gov. Tim Pawlenty's suggestion that the subsidies should be eliminated to balance the current budget deficit met with cries of protest from farmers and producers of the corn-based fuel. Critics of the program say ethanol producers would survive without state assistance, but supporters say profits vary from year to year and plant to plant.

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Sviggum downplays conflict of interest talk on ethanol

House Speaker Steve Sviggum is trying to quell talk that he has a conflict of interest by voting on bills containing ethanol subsidies. Sviggum farms with his brothers near Kenyon in southeastern Minnesota. The brothers are partners in an ethanol plant, which receives state money and helps boost the price of the family's corn.

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Rural vs. Metro split on display in budget-cutting dispute

Gov. Tim Pawlenty's short-term budget fix is moving quickly through the Legislature, but not without some adjustments. House Republicans oppose Pawlenty's proposed ethanol cuts, while Senate Democrats want to restore several proposed cuts, including ethanol and an Iron Range fund. Pawlenty says he worries some lawmakers may not grasp the magnitude of the deficit Minnesota is facing.

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