Mississippi River Basin Water Resource News for the Week

Appropriations and Supercommittee Update: Senate moves farm spending measure ahead
The Senate is poised to approve a package of three spending bills at the end of this month, including the USDA spending measure, after Senators worked into early Friday morning on most (although not all) of the numerous amendments to its first of three contemplated "minibus" spending bills and finally agreed to limit further debate.  The appropriations bill would set the Fiscal Year 2012 spending levels for not only the USDA, but also set science spending levels and those for the Departments of Commerce, Justice and Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development.

Amendments approved by the Senate included setting new limits on farm subsidies for wealthy farmers (those with average adjusted annual gross incomes more than $1 million; see link to news article below) and adding funding for watershed conservation programs (transferring $8 million from USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service administrative account into the Watershed Rehabilitation Program). 

With respect to the farm subsidy amendment, Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, argued that her Agriculture Committee had already started to work on that very issue, noting, "Give us the next ten days to come forward with the new approach that we will be offering."

Senate leaders discarded dozens of other amendments proposed for the bill.  A vote on final passage on the bill is scheduled for the week of October 31, after a week-long Senate recess. It is expected that the bill will pass then, since Senators agreed last night to cut off debate on the measure.

In the meantime, bargaining by a joint special deficit-reduction committee ("supercommittee") has reportedly entered a more intensive stage, with a top budget official indicating that detailed analysis of several savings ideas is currently underway.

Notable @UpperMiss Twitter Postings for the Week 

Agriculture -

• Sen. Cochran (R-MS) points to shortcomings in federal agriculture disaster assistance program http://bit.ly/oplBkr
• USDA to discontinue/reduce wide range of agricultural survey programs in light of budget cuts http://1.usa.gov/qR69qa
• Sens. Kirk (R-IL) & Shaheen (D-NH) op-ed: Halloween filled with "tricks" for US consumers: rigged US sugar policy http://bit.ly/o4PfCS
• Ethanol Producer Magazine: bull’s-eye on corn ethanol could fade if industry is more environmentally friendly http://bit.ly/q7NtQq
• Senate "minibus" 2012 spending bill amendment denies farm subsidies to those with ave. adjusted gross income >$1M http://politi.co/qrHOQb
• Growing corn, soybeans or wheat in 2012 will cost producers much more than it did in 2011 http://bit.ly/qXcT62

Farm Bill-

• Op-ed: Reform the farm bill, agricultural regulation at the same time http://bit.ly/ogXStw
• House & Senate Agriculture Committees Offer Recommendations for to Debt Reduction Supercommittee http://1.usa.gov/o5gwnw
• Overview of farm program debt-reduction cuts recommended by Congressional Ag committees, Obama, Paul Ryan & others: http://bloom.bg/q56Fy4
• Sens. Lugar-Stutzman recommendations to supercommittee would cut $40B from Farm Bill programs over 10 years http://bit.ly/nASWfs
• Sens. Thune & Brown Farm Bill plan replaces direct payments with another commodity crop farm subsidy nyti.ms/qmvG0C
• RT @DonEWG: DeMoines Register editorial: farm subsidies shouldn't encourage destruction of soil and water quality http://bit.ly/qL7nTA
• NPR Food Blog: Farm Subsidies Birds And Fish Would Choose http://n.pr/qjK1ZH

Water Quality -

• MN DNR on CRP cuts: Ability to reduce soil erosion and provide clean water will be further reduced http://t.co/eWxkwpYJ
• Senate Harmful Algal Blooms & Hypoxia Research & Control Amendments Act introduced http://bit.ly/p3cFeL & http://1.usa.gov/phnP2I
• Watershed Research Station & U of MN study: Farm drainage choking Mississippi River's Lake Pepin, Gulf of Mexico http://bit.ly/nJHl89
• EPA Administrator Jackson signs proposed NPDES concentrated animal feeding operation reporting rule http://1.usa.gov/oYVKui
• USEPA will develop rules for shale gas industry's disposal of wastewater http://reut.rs/njyhOL
• More Minnesota cities ban coal tar-based driveway sealer cited as water and air pollutant http://bit.ly/o1vYhH

Water Resource Management (Floodplains, Dams, Navigation, Flooding, etc.) -

• Senators press Army Corps to redo Missouri River management manual & stress human safety more at Committee hearing http://bit.ly/qsH1Um
• Midwestern governors seek Missouri River flood investigation (PDF of their letter to Congress: http://bit.ly/pWh3j1)
• New US FWS report: Status of Trends of Wetlands in Conterminous United States 2004 - 2009 http://1.usa.gov/mQWeT0
• Pacific Institute: The World's Water, Vol 7: stresses sustainable water use & management in face of climate change http://bit.ly/79MypD

In the States -

• EPA asks IL attorney general to take enforcement action against railroad for Tiskilwa, IL ethanol spill http://trib.in/qLIJSm
• Tennessee Riverkeeper files lawsuit over over Lake Guntersville Clean Water Act violations http://bit.ly/mTuHwM
• 10 years of cleanup bring Ocoee River (TN) back to life from impacts of copper mine runoff http://bit.ly/ndoJgk
• $1.7 million restoration project brings Big Darby Creek (OH) "back to life" http://bit.ly/n6Mo1U
• New report: Endocrine-disrupting chemicals found in several TN surface waters/water supply sources http://bit.ly/qyGd3e
• Man sentenced to 3 yrs; fined $80,000 for Evangeline LA water pollution violations http://townta.lk/rq7dzx

Biodiversity, Wildlife and Invasives -

• Coalition of Great Lakes states & cities proposes controversial plan to re-reverse flow of Chicago River http://trib.in/o9eqej

Federal Budget -

• Senate's draft 2012 FY Interior-EPA spending bill released http://bit.ly/pDIGwH but next steps unclear http://bit.ly/oR0KB9
• Most debt cutting recommendations to supercommittee culled from legislative recycling bin, freshly rewrapped & regifted http://bit.ly/pkUfnL
• Deficit-reduction supercommittee will hold its 4th public hearing next Wednesday on discretionary spending http://bit.ly/rcVidV

Gulf Coastal Area-

• Editorial: Will latest Gulf Task Force report finally spur action along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico? http://bit.ly/niLiSZ

Resource extraction -

• Environmental groups sue to block West Virginia mountaintop coal mine permit issuance http://buswk.co/qqGdrt
• OH House Bill 345 and Senate Bill 213 could delay shale gas/oil fracking in the state http://bit.ly/o5scUE
• WV citizens' groups intend to sue re: coal company Clean Water, Surface Mining Control & Reclamation Act violations http://bit.ly/o0AXnn
• TransCanada offers NE $100M performance bond; other oil spill protection measures to reduce oil pipeline opposition http://reut.rs/qrDfM5
• ND oil patch swelling into South Dakota, amid speculation that it could contain millions of barrels of oil http://on-msn.com/ogMU7J

Events -

• Upper Mississippi River Basin Association meetings; Moline, IL; Nov. 14-16; bit.ly/3zQb40

e-Newsletters, Publications and Journals -

• The Horinko Group's monthly "sustainabulletin" now published http://bit.ly/pAnNMo

Other news-

• New report on impacts of forest management in carbon and climate mitigation http://bit.ly/nE2zcg
• Wisconsin Wetlands Association hires Tracy Hames as new Executive Director http://bit.ly/rpBLiO (pdf)

Political Scene -

• KY GOP establishment poised for another loss in next month's Governor's race; Sen McConnell (R-KY) remains unscathed http://bit.ly/nc8o05
• Former Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) has endorsed Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D) for US WI Senate seat http://bit.ly/raXx8Y

Last Word -  Dust storm rolls into Lubbock, Texas

on the same day (October 17) that the leaders of the U.S. House and Senate Agriculture Committees announced their willingness to reduce federal Farm Bill Programs, including conservation programs, by over $23 billion as part of the effort to balance the federal budget.