Major Environmental Developments Affecting Agriculture By Alan Hahn
THERE WAS A TIME, NOT TOO MANY YEARS AGO, WHEN THE MENTION OF ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND, IN PARTICULAR, COMPLIANCE WITH ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS MEANT “SMOKE-STACK INDUSTRY.” WHEN I GLANCED AT SOME OF THE COVERS OF MY TEXT BOOKS LEFT OVER FROM GRADUATE SCHOOL, THEY ALL INCLUDE PICTURES OF SMOKE STACKS, INDUSTRIAL DISCHARGES, AND FUEL TANKERS. ONLY ONE OF MY TEXT BOOKS (AN ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMISTRY BOOK) INCLUDES A VISUAL IMAGE OF A FARM FIELD ON THE COVER.
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Fall 2015 — Partners
Times have changed. There have been major lawsuits against agriculture for “pollution,” political debate of the applicability of environmental regulations to agriculture, and environmental activist groups increasingly opposing (in some cases rather loudly) modern agriculture. In the last several months alone, major (final) environmental legislation relating to regulating water discharges has been met with significant opposition by several agriculture groups.