Trump Administration wants to revive the coal industry, including mining on federal land and reducing regulations

Photo by Dominik Vanyi on Unsplash

The Trump Administration’s plans to revive the coal industry include leasing 13.1 million acres of federal land for coal mining and reducing the royalty rate for coal, Brad Plumer and Lisa Friedman of The New York Times reported.

Additionally, regulations that “curb carbon dioxide, mercury and other pollutants from coal plants” will be repealed by the Environmental Protection Agency, Plumer and Friedman wrote.

This has led to concerns from environmental groups, activists and politicians about the harmful impacts of coal mining on the environment and its contribution to climate change.

Yet a surge in American electricity needs was already threatening climate goals, due to the inability for renewable and other sources of energy to keep up to demands.

The rise in usage of artificial intelligence has led to the construction of data centers that consume enormous amounts of electricity. More than 50 coal plants that were set to close have remained open to meet this demand.

Doug Burgum, Secretary of the Interior, cited China’s expansion of coal plants and the threat of losing the “AI arms race” as reasons that the United States needed to invest in coal.

However, unlike the U.S. which is boosting coal while rolling back renewable energy efforts, China is also investing renewable energy and as a result has managed to sink carbon emissions by around 1% despite its usage of coal.

Community journalists can help hunters avoid chronic wasting disease risks

Chronic wasting disease distribution in North America as of April 2025. (USGS National Wildlife Health Center map)

As deer and elk hunting seasons open across the U.S. and Canada, community reporters can help prevent the possible spread of chronic wasting disease, which has affected 36 states and four Canadian provinces, writes Joseph A. Davis for the Society of Environmental Journalists. "Journalists can do a lot to help hunters understand how to minimize any risks."

Chronic wasting disease is caused by the replication of abnormal brain proteins, known as prions, that clump together and cause brain damage. All hoofed ruminant mammals, such as mule deer, white-tailed deer, red deer, elk, bison and moose, are susceptible to contracting the disease.

So far, no humans have contracted CWD, but scientists haven't been able to prove or disprove whether the disease could be spread to humans by direct contact or by consuming meat from an infected animal.

"Many states have programs of one sort or another to help hunters safely handle the animals they kill," Davis adds. 

Community journalists who investigate and report on the disease in their community and publish prevention tips can also help reduce CDW risks, according to Davis. His story ideas include:

• Has CWD been found in your state? Where, how and how often? Contact your state wildlife agency for more information.
• Are there captive deer populations in your state? Deer farms are often available to hunters, and CWD incidence seems to be higher in such areas. Visit some and talk to managers, hunters and neighbors.
• There are businesses that process killed deer into specific cuts or frozen meat. If any are near you, discuss CWD safety with managers and customers.
• Are there labs in your state that check deer carcasses for CWD? Discuss with them how to mitigate the risk of CWD.
• Find local deer hunting clubs and discuss CWD with them. 

Davis also makes the following suggestions for sources:

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Although compromised under the Trump administration’s Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the CDC is supposed to track public health threats. It still offers levelheaded and science-based info on CWD.
• USGS National Wildlife Health Center: This important lab in Wisconsin exemplifies the U.S. Geological Survey’s expertise in sound science, with extensive resources on chronic wasting disease.
• State wildlife agencies: A good place to start looking for local facts and advice, as well as safety programs. For a list, start here or here.
• National Deer Association: This hunters’ group advises people about how to minimize CWD risks.
• USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service: The job of this unit within the Agriculture Department is to identify and control animal diseases, such as CWD. 

Opinion: Annual harvests in Ohio turned into a 'mess' by trade wars, low prices and sky-high input costs

China hasn't purchased a single soybean from
the U.S. in 2025. (Adobe Stock photo)

 

Despite better weather and decent crop production, many American farmers face extreme financial distress due to tariffs, sinking commodity prices and the lack of trade with China. 

For row crop farmers in Ohio, the tariffs and expenses have turned their annual harvest time into a "mess" riddled with financial loss and insecurity, writes Marilou Johanek in her opinion for the Ohio Capital Journal.

"Some growers have called the fallout from President Donald Trump's chaotic trade war, and the reciprocal tariffs it provoked, a 'farmageddon' that could ruin what made rural America great," Johanek explains.

While some U.S. farmers were not surprised that China's response to American tariffs was to snub U.S. soybeans, the pain is being felt by farmers nationwide, including those who don't trade with China. Johanek explains, "Farmers felt the same creeping despair with the tariff debacle of 2018 when Trump first slapped punitive tariffs on crucial exporters of American crops."

Ohio farmer Chris Gibbs, who left the GOP after 2018 tariffs caused China to increase its farming trade with South America, told Johanek, "We’re back in the same situation, but only worse. In the major commodities, corn, wheat, soybeans, sorghum, rice, cotton, prices are below the cost of production, so there’s built-in loss."

Beyond too few trading partners, farmers face soaring input costs. Johanek writes, "Senseless tariffs on fertilizer, steel, aluminum, and lumber just sent the cost of doing business through the roof. . . . Trump tariffs are especially painful for family farms that make up about 87% of all farms in Ohio."

Farmers and the agricultural industry impact job and business sectors throughout the U.S. and contribute roughly $9.5 trillion, or nearly 20%, to the national economy.

Rural communities build 'resilience hubs' designed to prepare for emergencies through interdependence

Resilience Hub Collaborative map

Working to address immediate needs following a natural disaster or emergency event, several rural communities are building "resilience hubs as a model for a quick and reliable first line of defense and relief," reports Kim Kobersmith of The Daily Yonder.

"People are awakening to the fact that neighbors are the real first responders, and thinking ahead is vital," Kobersmith writes. "The hubs provide some level of preparation and support for residents in a disruption and beyond."

Every community hub is a little bit different, and "can range from a mobile solar energy source to a central building able to feed community members in a crisis to a community center offering year-round services," Kobersmith adds.

A spirit of community interdependence is at the heart of each hub, where community members commit to preparing for, rather than reacting to, emergencies. The action-focused nonprofit Resilience Hub Collaborative can help communities plan and build their hub.

Ki Baja, an experienced hub organizer with the collaborative, told Kobersmith, "Studies have shown for decades that connectivity, social cohesion, is the number one indicator for successful recovery from disruptions."

Iowa Trappists incorporate land stewardship and casket-making into their spiritual vocations

An aerial view of a creek flanked by prairie buffer owned by the
New Melleray Abbey. (Photo by (Nick Rohlman, The Gazette)

Trappist monks living at New Melleray Abbey in Peosta, Iowa, fulfill part of their vocation through land conservation efforts, such as dam and prairie restoration, working with timber and crafting sustainably made caskets," reports Olivia Cohen for the Gazette, which serves central-eastern Iowa.

The New Melleray property encompasses approximately 1,400-acres of land, which includes numerous creeks. The Abbey’s full-time forester, John Schroeder, and volunteers have made several dams that "mimic a natural beaver dam, slowing the water, tapping sediment and fostering a healthy wetland habitat," Cohen explains.

The monks have also built prairies "throughout the property, which act as a buffer for the nutrient runoff that comes from their neighbors, who farm the land with more traditional agricultural practices," Cohen adds. The prairies have brought ring-necked pheasants, turkey vultures and bald eagles back to the area.

The monks use the timber from their land to craft handmade caskets, which are shipped around the world. "Since its inception in 1999, Trappist Caskets has produced about 2,000 high-quality, handmade wooden caskets built from sustainably harvested wood from their forest each year," Cohen reports. Casket sales are the group's primary source of income.

Schroeder said that "forestry and monastery labor work well together because they are both 'focused on the long term,'" Cohen writes. "It 'makes forestry a natural fit for the Trappists.'"

Flora & Fauna: Chunk, the Fat Bear Week winner; learning bird songs; deterring wolves; nabbing feral pigs

Chunk's broken jaw didn't stop him from feasting on sockeye salmon and gaining hundreds of pounds this summer. 
(Photo by Christine Loberg, NPS)

During this year's Fat Bear Week, many Alaskan brown bears made the salmon run at Brooks Falls in Katmai National Park the place where they packed on the pounds eating as much sockeye salmon as possible. But there was one bear that was more dedicated to getting his unfair share of salmon: Chunk. "A bear weighing in at over 1,200 pounds — with a broken (but healing) jaw — is the 2025 Fat Bear Week champion," reports Ava White of NPR. "It’s the first time number 32, or as he’s aptly nicknamed Chunk, has been dubbed the fattest bear in Katmai National Park and Preserve."

An unlikely union between two plants created the potato, affectionately known as the spud. "The origin of the potato has long puzzled scientists. Genetically, it is a close relative of the tomato. But in appearance, it resembles three potato-like species found in South America known as Etuberosum," reports Aylin Woodward of The Wall Street Journal. "The problem is, Etuberosum don’t have tubers — the parts of the potato plant that grow underground, and that we eat baked, mashed or fried. . . . An examination of these DNA sequences revealed that between eight million and nine million years ago, Etuberosum and an ancient tomato exchanged genes." And today's spud was born.

Watching and listening to birds is a delightful hobby that can be enhanced by learning to identify birds by their songs. "Learning bird songs is the difference between 'hearing' and 'listening,'" writes ornithologist Chris Lituma for The Conversation. "Listening requires full attention and limiting distractions. It means using your ears to pick up different patterns in the sounds that birds make. Every person has the capacity to listen and learn patterns in sound." Read all of Lituma's tips for learning bird songs and sounds here.

In this remote arctic town, it's too cold for trees, but strawberries grow by the dozens. "A high-tech greenhouse brings fresh produce to Gjoa Haven, an Inuit hamlet in Canada’s Arctic whose residents have little experience growing plants," reports Norimitsu Onishi of The New York Times. "The greenhouse, researchers hope, will eventually provide an alternative to perishable goods flown in at great cost from southern Canadian cities — and a healthier diet for the Inuit, the only people who have lived in Canada’s Arctic for centuries."

The wolves have learned to associate the drones
with people. (Illustration by A. Dixon, Offrange)

In most states, gray wolves are protected, which means livestock owners have had to find creative ways to keep wolves from preying on their cattle. While human presence and voices remain the most effective wolf deterrent, it's often not feasible, so some ranchers are experimenting with drones combined with human voices from speakers to deter wolves from grazing cattle, reports Rose Garrett for Offrange. Dustin Ranglack, predator project leader for the National Wildlife Research Center, told Garrett, "The wolves in this area have had exposure to the drone, and they will often already be moving away when we approach them. They’ve already come to associate the drone with people, and we’re not necessarily having to use the human voice."

When feral pigs invade the countryside, they go hog wild, eating farm crops, tearing up the ground, prolifically reproducing and spreading diseases. States have been under pressure to find ways to oust unwanted swine, but few have been as successful as Missouri. "Alan Leary, the feral hog coordinator with the Missouri Department of Conservation, says since 2016 the state’s population of feral hogs has dropped 80%," reports Chris Six of Farm Progress. The state formed a multi-agency partnership that "uses traps, drones, helicopters and more to find and eliminate the feral hogs."

Reporter Bill Estep wins Al Smith Award for community journalism, recognizing 40 years of Appalachian stories

Bill Estep

Bill Estep, who chronicled the stories of Appalachian Kentucky and its communities for more than 40 years, is the 2025 winner of the Al Smith Award for public service through community journalism by a Kentuckian, given by the Bluegrass Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and the Institute for Rural Journalism at the University of Kentucky.

Estep retired this summer from the Lexington Herald-Leader, which he joined in 1985 after working at the Tri-City News in Cumberland and the Commonwealth-Journal in his hometown of Somerset. He spent most of his career covering Appalachian Kentucky, but was also a projects reporter and Frankfort Bureau chief. He worked on the Herald-Leader series “Cheating Our Children,” which helped lead to the Kentucky Education Reform Act; “Prescription for Pain,” which led to stronger anti-drug efforts in Appalachian Kentucky; and “Fifty Years of Night,” a 2012 look at the region in the 50 years since Harry M. Caudill published "Night Comes to the Cumberlands." 

The Herald-Leader’s Linda Blackford, who worked with Estep and John Cheves on the “Night” series, noted “Bill’s kind, patient, laconic way of asking questions, and truly listening to the answers. Thousands of Kentuckians trusted him with those stories because they recognized he was one of them.” His work also won praise from Gov. Andy Beshear, who said “Bill dedicated his storied career to lifting up the voices of his neighbors.” State Senate President Robert Stivers of Manchester praised his fair, factual reporting and said, “I consider him the Walter Cronkite of Kentucky.”

The Al Smith Award is named for the late Albert P. Smith Jr., who was the driving force for creation of the Institute for Rural Journalism, headed its advisory board and was its chair emeritus until his death in 2021. He published newspapers in Western Kentucky and Middle Tennessee, was founding producer and host of KET’s “Comment on Kentucky,” and federal co-chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission. He was the first winner of the award in 2011.

SPJ Bluegrass Chapter Secretary Al Cross said many journalists might not think a reporter for a metropolitan newspaper could be a community journalist, but Estep was. “Community journalism has been called ‘relationship journalism,’ in which you rely on closer ties to subjects and sources than the typical practitioner of metropolitan journalism,” said Cross, who was founding director of the Institute for Rural Journalism and a regional and political reporter for the Louisville Courier-Journal. “You may not be a resident of their communities, but you want to be seen as a friendly neighbor, or at least a friendly acquaintance. You care about them, their communities, and their reactions to your reporting, writing and presentation in much the same way as their local community journalists do – if you are doing the job right. Bill is the best I’ve ever known at that.”

Institute Director Benjy Hamm said, "For decades, Bill Estep incorporated the best qualities of a community journalist into his work at the Herald-Leader. His powerful reporting has changed laws, lives and communities – all for the better."

“He’s been the voice for a community of communities that is often overlooked or even ignored nationally,” said Peter Baniak, former executive editor of the Herald-Leader. “He’s told stories that matter for an entire region and its people, and he’s told them with great care, empathy and honesty that news coverage – especially national news coverage – of the region often lacks. Time and again over the course of 40 years, his thoughtful, fearless on-the ground reporting in this region has made a difference and led to change. And his care, compassion and passion in doing his job has earned the trust of both readers and the people he’s covered, regardless of their politics or position in life.”

Herald-Leader Editor Rick Green, a former editor of the Courier-Journal, said of Estep, “He was a journalistic treasure, someone who knew the heartbeat of the commonwealth didn't emanate from the large cities of Lexington or Louisville.”

Estep, 65, still lives in his native Pulaski County. He is a 1982 journalism graduate of Western Kentucky University. When he retired, he said that he had seen many changes in journalism, but “What hasn’t changed is the mission. I see that as finding good stories, helping people understand what’s happening in their world, including what their government is doing for and to them, and holding power accountable — and doing all of it fairly, accurately and thoroughly.”

Estep will be honored at the annual Al Smith Awards Dinner Nov. 13 at The Campbell House in Lexington. He will be joined by Lisa Stayton of Inez, owner and co-publisher of The Mountain Citizen, the 2025 winner of the Institute’s national Tom and Pat Gish Award for courage, tenacity and integrity in rural journalism, along with winners of chapter scholarships. The keynote speaker will be Dee Davis, president of the Whitesburg-based Center for Rural Strategies.

Besides Smith, previous winners of the Smith Award, and their affiliations at the time, are:

2012: Jennifer P. Brown, Kentucky New Era; and Max Heath, Landmark Community Newspapers
2013: John Nelson, Danville Advocate-Messenger
2014: Bill Bishop and Julie Ardery, The Daily Yonder 
2015: Carl West, The (Frankfort) State Journal 
2016: Sharon Burton, Adair County Community Voice and The Farmer’s Pride 
2017: Ryan Craig, Todd County Standard, and the late Larry Craig, Green River Republican 
2018: Stevie Lowery, The Lebanon Enterprise 
2019: David Thompson, Kentucky Press Association 
2020: Becky Barnes, The Cynthiana Democrat 
2021: WKMS News, Murray State University 
2022: Chris and Allison Evans, The Crittenden Press 
2023: Ben Gish and Sam Adams, The Mountain Eagle 
2024: Bobbie Foust, The Lake News, Calvert City 

Rural families worry that Head Start will die a 'slow death.' Many parents can't afford to work without it.

Head Start participants are disproportionately rural. 
(Photo by Jackie Mader, The Hechinger Report)

For six decades, the federally funded Head Start program has helped low-income rural parents stay in the workforce by providing free child care and early education programming. But suggested cuts by the Trump administration have some families worried the program is slated for "a slow death," reports Jackie Mader of The Guardian. The program was earmarked for elimination in an "early draft of President Donald Trump’s budget proposal."

Although Head Start programs are found in communities of all sizes, its participants are disproportionately rural. "Nearly 90% of rural counties in the United States have Head Start programs," Mader explains. "Almost half of the 716,000 children Head Start serves live in rural congressional districts, compared with just 22% in urban districts."

Head Start has survived so far, but its services and employees have been reduced through staffing and funding cuts that began this past spring. "In early February, many Head Start programs were caught up in a federal funding freeze. Then the Trump administration fired about 20% of the program’s federal staff," Mader reports. The loss of support forced some programs to close, while others cut staff to stay open.

Head Start reductions have left communities and parents feeling uncertain about the future. Most parents who participate can't afford to work if they have to pay for child care, and the program employs several local people and small businesses.

Even though the Trump administration's 2026 budget proposal doesn't reduce Head Start funding, it did not increase the program's funding to allow for inflation, which "effectively amounts to a cut," Mader adds.

Laurie Todd-Smith, who oversees Head Start at the Administration for Children and Families, has not pushed for an increase in Head Start funding. Instead, she suggested that programs look for ways to be more efficient by eliminating Head Start offerings that other state programs already provide.

National Weather Service has hundreds of vacancies, 'exhausted employees'

The National Weather Service was created to protect people and property. (NOAA graphic)

On any given day, the National Weather Service deploys staff to research, predict and issue warnings for weather activity across the United States, which covers a total of roughly 3.8 million square miles. However, after losing 600 employees this spring, the agency is now stretched thin and may struggle to meet the demands of fall weather, which includes a busy hurricane season.

"Exhausted employees have maintained weather monitoring and forecasting almost without interruption, staff said. But many are wondering how much longer they can keep it up," report Hannah Natanson and Brady Dennis of The Washington Post.

Despite receiving an exemption from the federal hiring freeze and working to replace lost staff, the agency still has hundreds of vacant positions, an active Atlantic hurricane season, and a possible government shutdown to manage.

Tom Fahy, legislative director for the National Weather Service Employees Organization, the union that represents the agency’s workers, told the Post, "We have a strained and severely stretched situation. . . .There’s a breaking point.” 

A spokesperson for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration offered reassurances that the Weather Service is “'equipped to meet its mission of protecting American lives and property through timely forecasts and critical decision support services,'" the Post reports. "But even before this year’s losses, the Weather Service was considered understaffed."

Since NWS shortages have been extreme, the Trump administration gave the agency permission to "list and hire 450 positions," Natanson and Dennis add. "But it won’t be an immediate fix. . . . Federal hiring is often slow. . . .Government work may seem like a bad option, since Trump has stripped away the guaranteed job stability that once made up for the lower pay."

Agriculture economists say farming recession, trade without China causing 'severe' financial squeeze

Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor graph

Agriculture economists share a bleak outlook for American farmers."The financial squeeze gripping row crop agriculture is only growing more severe, according to the latest Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor. As of September, 91% think the U.S. crops sector is in a recession, which is an all-time high for the anonymous survey," reports Tyne Morgan of Farm Journal.

Without orders from China, low soybean sales continue to be the "biggest drag on the farm economy," Morgan explains. "In fact, 77% of economists surveyed say current U.S.-China trade policies are hurting farmers." More than half of experts surveyed think China will eventually purchase U.S. soybeans.

Morgan writes, "Ag lenders in some regions, such as the mid-South, warn farmers are experiencing the most financial stress since the 1980s."

Graph by Lindsey Pound, Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor

Looking ahead to next year, agricultural economists are divided. Morgan writes. "Fifty percent say it will be somewhat worse off or unchanged, while the other half expect the situation to slightly improve."

The Department of Agriculture plans to release its farm aid package sometime over the next two weeks. Morgan adds, "Sixty-two percent of surveyed economists said government direct payments benefit crop producers."

Farm Aid turned 40 this year: U.S. farmers still need the concert to raise public awareness and financial support

John Cougar Mellencamp performs at the first Farm Aid concert in Champaign, Ill., on Sept. 22, 1985.
 (Photo by Seth Perlman, The Associated Press via The Daily Yonder)

Farm Aid began as a mega-concert event in 1985, featuring the likes of Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and John Cougar Mellencamp, who performed to raise awareness and funding for American farmers in crisis. The musical event, which turned 40 this year, spurred a homegrown tradition that recognizes the struggles American farmers face to stay afloat. "Farmers need just as much support now as they did 40 years ago," reports Claire Carlson of The Daily Yonder. 

Held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Farm Aid 2024 provided an opportunity for farmers and their families to connect with others who are also trying to survive the "difficulties of competing with large-scale agriculture, the disconnect between producers and consumers, and the vanishing federal support as some of the most pressing challenges facing farmers today," Carlson writes.

Jesse Womack, a policy specialist at the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, told Carlson, "This is not a favorable economic time for producers, period. We are watching a lot of our leaders in this country totally ignore how difficult producers have it right now and really neglect their duty to make tools and services readily available and easy to use for producers."

In addition to this year's performances, a "separate corner of the arena hosted booths for farmer advocacy organizations that spoke on topics like factory farming and regenerative agriculture," Carlson writes.

During the concert, Farm Aid T-shirts and food sales highlight all things American-grown and made in the USA. Carlson adds, "The sales of these items and the festival tickets go to Farm Aid initiatives like their Distressed Borrowers Assistance Network and Family Farm Disaster Fund."

Many U.S. producers are anxious for Congress to pass a new Farm Bill, but "farmer advocacy organizations have been critical of the proposals they’ve seen," Carlson reports. "The Farm Bill, which authorizes federal spending on agricultural and food programs, is two years past its expiration date."

Farm Aid photos, swag and information about performances can be found here. 

Trump administration cancels household food security report

Photo by Austin Kehmeier, Unsplash

The annual report on household food security produced by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) will be discontinued, Dan Frosch, Patrick Thomas and Andrea Petersen of The Wall Street Journal reported.

The 2024 report is set to be released on Oct. 22 and will be the last of a series of reports that started in 1990 as a result of a 10-year comprehensive plan that was developed in accordance with the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act (NNMRR).

A press release from the USDA stated that the reports were “redundant, costly, politicized, and extraneous,” and “subjective, liberal fodder.”

Despite concerns from researchers, policy analysts, academics and others across the nation, the USDA states that it has other “timely and accurate data sets available.”

You can read more about how the USDA defines food insecurity and the survey questions they use here.

Trump announces plan to use tariff dollars to fund U.S. farmer bailout checks

Many U.S. farmers are harvesting crops that don't 
have a buyer. (Adobe Stock photo)

President Donald Trump announced plans to use tariff dollars to help U.S. farmers facing extreme economic strain due to high input costs and poor trade opportunities. Grace Yarrow and Meridith Lee Hill of Politico report, "Trump said he will use tariff revenue to offer cash bailouts for farmers who are struggling with trade uncertainty and other economic headwinds."

Trump told reporters, "We’re going to take some of that tariff money that we made, we’re going to give it to our farmers, who are, for a little while, going to be hurt until the tariffs kick into their benefit. . . .So we’re going to make sure that our farmers are in great shape, because we’re taking in a lot of money.”

Some Republicans share Trump's preference for tapping tariff dollars to help farmers, but other GOP lawmakers worry the plan "could run into roadblocks if the Supreme Court decides Trump’s tariffs are not legal," Politico reports. Several Republicans also cite what Democrats might ask for in return for agreeing to use tariff dollars to fund farmer checks.

While the Trump administration has promised to deliver better trade deals, American farmers are still waiting. Meanwhile, lobbyists and lawmakers from farming districts are pushing hard for a farm aid package to be passed soon. 

Cotton field project helps farmers and students learn how to outsmart bugs while saving money and time

Pests are identified by AI as they fly through a light sensor
inside this trap. (Photo by D. Mcgee via The Conversation)

Researchers working to introduce precision agriculture practices to farmers and agriculture students made progress during their recent project, in which AI was deployed to outsmart cotton-eating bugs in Jenkins County, Georgia.

Jenkins County, with a population of roughly 8,700, is "among the top 25 cotton-growing counties in the state," write Debra Lam, Atin Adhikari and James E. Thomas for The Conversation. The area's farmers rely heavily on expensive pesticides to defeat "stink bugs, cotton bollworms, corn earworms, tarnished plant bugs and aphids."

The project aimed to help farmers determine when to spray their crops by combining "AI-based early pest detection methods with existing integrated pest management practices and the Georgia Cotton Insect Advisor app," according to the report. By integrating those tools, researchers learned how to "improve pest detection, decrease pesticide exposure levels and reduce insecticide use."

The project's outcome demonstrated that AI tools could reliably predict where and when pest infestations would occur, providing farmers with the knowledge they need to save money and labor costs by applying pesticides only where and when necessary.

Through the use of AI sensors, the research provided farmers with practical and intuitive ways to plan and protect their crops. According to the report, "Even after the sensors are gone, farmers who used them become better at spotting pests. . . . AI dashboards and mobile apps help them see how pest populations grow over time and respond to different field conditions."

The project was part of Georgia's ongoing effort to train more farmers and students on how to integrate precision agriculture into their farming or pest management practices. According to The Conversation's report, "The same tools could help local governments manage mosquitoes and ticks and open up more agtech innovations." 

Opinion: Farmers don't need bailout checks; they need to make money by selling their crops

U.S. farming income ratio in 2024 was negative.
(Photo by Betty Haynes, Farm Progress)

Many U.S. farmers are already struggling to make ends meet as costs for equipment, labor and fertilizer remain high and crop income continues to drop. In her opinion piece for Farm Progress, Holly Spangler writes, "Grain prices are down, input prices are up, and not enough folks are buying U.S. products." Spangler shares insights on what Congress and the Trump administration can do to help farmers without sending bailout checks.

The National Corn Growers Association just "released a survey of U.S. corn growers, and nearly half — 46% — believe the U.S. is on the brink of a farm crisis," Spangler writes. "More than 75% are very or moderately concerned about the farm economy. . . . The average 2024 farm operating income ratio was negative for the first time in 30 years, and well below the five-year average of 18.2%."

Action from policy officials and Congress could help corn farmers access improved markets and better prices. Spangler explains, "Congress needs to pass the Nationwide Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act of 2025, which would remove an outdated provision in the Clean Air Act that restricts summertime fuel sales with 15% ethanol blends, or E15."

Soybean farmers also need robust market development since China is purchasing its soybeans from South America. Spangler notes, "The only deal to come out of last week’s U.S.-China trade talks involved TikTok, not soybeans."

While the Trump Administration and the Department of Agriculture may have plans to send farmers bailout checks, Spangler points out that this approach isn't a long-term solution. She writes, "Another bailout just produces money that flows through the farmer’s hands and back to landowners, input suppliers and equipment companies. Nobody has to lower prices when farmers can afford it."

Spangler believes farmers need to demand action from the Trump Administration and the USDA that fixes the E15 issue, passes a Farm Bill and secures trade partners. She adds, "Farmers need to make money. But they need to do it by selling crops — not by cashing another government check."

How to talk to your kids about current events

Finding out what a child knows about an event can 
help parents know where to start. (Adobe Stock photo)

The frequency and extremes of today's news and online media can leave parents and guardians wondering how to help their children process what's happening in the world. Eepti Hajela of The Associated Press outlines how to talk to your kids about "what’s going on."

First, be willing to talk about it. "It’s a basic parental impulse to want to protect kids from harsh realities or complicated situations," Hajela explains. But when it comes to national or world events, "information is EVERYWHERE." Shielding children is not realistic.

When approaching difficult or violent events, it's helpful to gauge how much your children or young adults know. "Don't assume they know everything," Hajela writes. To help kids process news or visuals, it's best to know what they know or might have consumed on social media before jumping into a conversation.

Parents and guardians who have processed their own responses first can better help younger people interpret events. They are their children's role model, so if possible, getting to a level of calm about any situation helps kids feel safer, even when discussing disturbing events or images. 

Make it an ongoing conversation, rather than a one-time discussion. Parents and guardians can't stop the world from turning to protect their kids, but they can provide a safe space where kids can ask questions and learn tools to process their emotions.

Clinicians in rural Idaho brace for Medicaid cuts that 'are already creating hurdles'

Pregnant women in Idaho often drive hours for
prenatal care. (Adobe Stock photo)

New rules for Medicaid have Idaho clinicians predicting more emergency visits, fewer residents with health care coverage and more maternity care deserts, reports Madeline de Figueiredo for The Daily Yonder. The systemic Medicaid changes will be the hardest on rural residents who tend to be more reliant on Medicaid.

Many Idaho medical providers see new Medicaid work requirements, income checks and possible co-payments as "changes [that] are already creating hurdles and could lead to major coverage losses and reduced access to care," according to the article. 

Coverage losses often increase emergency room visits because people delay care until their symptoms are so severe that they have no choice but to go to the emergency room. Individuals can be left with costly ED bills for care that could have been affordable if it had been sought sooner.

Idaho is already facing rural hospital closures and provider shortages, both of which impact prenatal care for expecting mothers and their babies. Figueiredo reports, "Bonner General Health, the only hospital with OB-GYNs in Bonner County, closed its obstetrics services in 2023. . . . All four OB-GYNs from Bonner County told NBC that Idaho’s strict abortion laws influenced their decision to leave."

The lack of obstetric care throughout the state means pregnant women often have to travel hours for care. Many are told to purchase insurance for emergency medical flights. Amy Klingler, a primary care physician assistant in Stanley, Idaho, told Figueiredo, “We encourage everyone, really, in our community to have that [coverage]. . . . Helicopter rides are probably anywhere from $25,000 to $50,000."

American farmers worried about lack of soybean sales to China; trade war could wipe out a 'generation of farmers'

China usually buys 51% of U.S. soybeans every year.
(Unsplash photo)

A North Dakota soybean farm is expected to lose $400,000 this year due to China’s boycott of American soybeans because of tariffs President Trump placed on Chinese goods, Alan Rapperport of The New York Times reported.

That farm is just one of many being hurt by the tariffs and trade wars. “Are we going to lose a generation of farmers because of the trade war? I think that’s what we’re fast approaching,” Justin Sherlock, a farmer and president of the North Dakota Soybean Growers Association said in an interview with Rapperport. 

China has used its status as a major consumer of American agricultural products since Trump’s first term to strategically pressure the administration toward more favorable trade deals. This year soybean farmers have taken a major hit, but China has also scaled back purchases of other products as well.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) has considered rolling out aid for farmers impacted by China’s pushback against tariffs.

“Farmers tend to live in Republican states that voted for Mr. Trump, so harming them economically threatened a core constituency,” Rapperport wrote. In other words, the livelihoods of American farmers have become bargaining chips in the U.S.-China trade war.

Farmers in North Dakota are increasingly worried that a deal will not be made in time for the nearing soybean harvest season. And for an industry that is already struggling to stay afloat, that could mean more farm closures.

New World screwworm detected roughly 70 miles from the Texas border as USDA efforts intensify

New World screwworm was found roughly 70 
miles from Laredo, Texas. (USDA photo)

 

The New World screwworm and its flesh-eating larvae have made their way through Mexico to hover fewer than 70 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border. "The case was reported near Sabinas Hidalgo in Nuevo Leon," reports Joshua Baethge of Farm Progress. "That city is close to a major highway connecting Monterrey, Mexico’s second-largest metro area, and Laredo, Texas."

Screwworm larvae were discovered in "an 8-month-old cow that was moved to the area from southern Mexico, which has active NWS cases," Baethge writes. Concerned lawmakers and livestock owners would like Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins to persuade the Mexican government to restrict cattle movement to contain the pest.

While NWS larvae will eat the flesh of any warm-blooded animal, female screwworm flies most often lay their eggs in the open wounds or scratches of sheep or cattle. The larvae are considered a threat to U.S. livestock and rancher economies as well as the U.S. food supply.

Rollins said "protecting the U.S. from New World screwworm is a 'national security priority," Baethge reports. Rollins added that "U.S. farmers and ranchers should know that the U.S. 'will not rely on Mexico' to defend the cattle industry, the food industry or 'our way of life.'"

State of Nuevo León within Mexico
(Wikipedia map)

The USDA and Mexican authorities have been working together to push the NWS away from both countries' livestock herds through sterile fly releases, animal surveillance and fly trapping and testing work. 

Since July, the USDA and Mexico "have been monitoring almost 8,000 traps across Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico," reports Jennifer Carrico of Progressive Farmer. "Currently, all the 13,000-plus screening samples have detected no NWS flies."

While the latest detection in Nuevo Leon, Mexico, appears to be limited to one cow, the USDA is still investigating. "Rollins said the U.S will be 'taking no chances,'" Baethge reports.

Fat Bear Week has arrived: Fans can vote daily, and the website provides materials for classrooms

What's big, brown, hungry and loves salmon? Alaskan brown bears in Katmai National Park, Alaska. The bears and their voting minions are gearing up for Fat Bear Week, beginning Tuesday, Sept. 23 and chowing down through Sept. 30.

Wait, what? "With the help of this playful competition, Fat Bear Week aims to bring Katmai National Park and Alaska’s brown bears closer to the people who may not be able to visit the park in person," reports Emese Maczko for Forbes. "Anyone can vote daily for which bear advances in the bracket to determine the eventual champion, Katmai's bulkiest brown bear."

Bulk is the aim, and salmon is their game. "To make it into the bracket, bears must first be visibly fat and appear at Brooks River in both early summer and fall, criteria that not all of the park’s bears meet," Maczko explains. "Bears in the brackets often have a compelling storyline that showcases the challenges of survival in Katmai."

No need to vote to join the fat bear fandom. "Voters can follow eight bear cams that provide live video feeds from different locations around the Brooks Camp area of Katmai National Park, Maczko adds. "Anyone can join the live chat, where Mike Fitz, resident naturalist at Explore.org, Christine Kliesrath, ranger at Katmai National Park and Naomi Boak from Katmai Conservancy will answer all questions."

The bears are here to eat and teach. "Classrooms can bring Katmai directly to their students. Teachers may request a virtual program with a park ranger to discuss the bears, the park and Fat Bear Week," Maczko writes. "The park also offers numerous free printable materials for classroom use, available online."