Environmental Information for the
California Almond Industry

Almond Industry Headline Environmental News  Aug. 8, 2008

Air Quality
 

  • Diesel Truck Incentives. Funds Support Diesel Truck Conversion to Lower Air Quality Emissions - - Almond haulers and other heavy duty diesel truck operators have until Sept. 5 to apply for new funding available to help upgrade heavy-duty diesel engines or trucks to lower emissions technology through Proposition 1B. Prop 1B, the Goods Movement Emission Reduction Program, provides incentives to upgrade to cleaner technologies through truck replacement, engine replacement, or filter retrofit. These available funds could help almond haulers and other transporters of goods on the state’s highways transition to lower emissions technology in advance of proposed new state rules on-road heavy-duty diesel truck engines. <read more> Aug. 8, 2008 California Almonds Newsletter
     

  • Have You Registered Your Stationary Ag Engines? - - Regional air districts set March or September deadlines to comply with Air Board rules for registering diesel irrigation pump engines. <read more > Aug. 8, 2008 California Almonds Newsletter
     

Water Quality

  • Eastside SJV Almond Growers: Manage Spray Drift to Avoid Exceedances in Sensitive Waterways - - The Eastside San Joaquin Water Quality Coalition hopes to prevent a repeat of last year's July water sampling exceedances for chlorpyrifos by encouraging almond and alfalfa growers who farm near the area to employ best management practices to reduce drift. <read more > Aug. 8, 2008 California Almonds Newsletter
     
  • Water woes worsen - - New issues arose at the brink of the peak irrigation season that reduced and continue to threaten the availability of irrigation water for California. First, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced that Central Valley Project deliveries this year will be just 40% of contract amounts, compared to the 45% announced earlier this spring. This affects growers in the Sacramento Valley and on the West Side of the San Joaquin Valley. For some growers in the Westlands Water District, pumping may be an option, but high boron levels in ground water can damage almonds. <read more> Aug. 8, 2008 California Almonds Newsletter
     

  • Irrigation scheduling optimizes water use - - Increasingly dry conditions and court-ordered restrictions on some water deliveries will be taking a serious toll on California agriculture this season, emphasizing the need to optimize available irrigation water to bring home what promises to be another record-breaking almond crop. Deficit irrigation strategies were discussed in the June issue of California Almonds. These and other water-saving techniques for almond growers, developed through research supported by the Almond Board of California, are discussed at a UC-Davis Web portal. <read more> Aug. 8, 2008 California Almonds Newsletter

Environmental Stewardship

  • Survey of Target Almond Consumers Reveals Global Interest in Sustainability

    Consumer surveys in major markets for California almonds show that target consumers are becoming more sophisticated about how the products they eat are grown and appear willing to pay more for sustainably grown food. In Western Europe, where over half of all California almonds are exported annually, more than 80 percent of so-called "Jane" consumers say it is important to them that farms practice sustainability when producing the food and drink they consume. The 27-member states of the EU represent the world's second largest market for almonds. <read more> May California Almonds Newsletter
     

General Industry News

  • Thirsty orchards' plight in Central Valley - - Standing on a ridge between a sluggish water canal and a swath of spindly, gray almond trees, farmer Jim Jasper has a good view of California's water crisis. Drought forced one of Jasper's friends to abandon these trees. The adjacent canal's flow has been reduced by more than one-third to protect an endangered fish. To offset the loss, Jasper has leased the land beneath the dying trees to use its water on his own 2,500 acres of almond trees, some of them "babies." Being a farmer in drought-prone California always has been a struggle. But 2008 is turning into one for the history books. This year, natural and man-made water shortages will cost the agriculture industry more than $160 million, not to mention the reduced plantings for next year and the ripple effect through banks, farming equipment businesses and consumers who could pay even higher prices for food. <read more> July 11, 2008 SF Chronicle

PLEASE SEND US YOUR GOOD ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS!

If you have good news to share about positive almond environmental practices, please send an email to us 

* Visit our website at www.almondboard.com/

The Almond Board of California
1150 Ninth Street, Suite 1500
Modesto, CA 95354 USA

Subscribe Have a friend who would like Almond Environmental News delivered directly to their email in-box? Email Mark Looker at mllooker@ainet.com and request their email address be added to the mailing list.

Unsubscribe?

We respect your privacy rights. If you are receiving this email newsletter in error or  wish to unsubscribe, please email Mark Looker at mllooker@ainet.com and request removal.