Blog

Governor's new carbon-cap rule could include Seattle's lone steel manufacturing plant

Last month, Gov. Jay Inslee directed the state Department of Ecology to start “writing a rule that would cap and reduce carbon pollution.” This directive came after the governor’s carbon cap-and-trade proposal died in the 2015 legislative session. Ecology also released a list of entities it says emit at least 100,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide […]

TVW goes to harvest

This week’s episode of TVW’s show “The Impact” looks at Washington’s agricultural economy. It starts by visiting the Yakima Valley to see the hops and apple harvests in action. As host Anita Kissée notes, apples are picked by hand. Dan Plath of Washington Fruit and Produce Co. says, “There’s no replacement for people and ladders. It’s […]

Washington's wine industry has $4.8 billion economic impact

The Washington State Wine Commission has released an economic impact study of Washington’s wine industry. In 2013, the industry’s total economic impact was $4.8 billion in business revenues and it paid $61.9 million in state taxes. (To put that in perspective, according to a study of the apple industry, its economic impact was $7.5 billion […]

Wildfires and taxes

Earlier this month I wrote about the importance of apples to our state economy and the impacts that the weather can have. Wildfires are a risk too. The Wenatchee World reports that the Chelan Complex fire has “destroyed an estimated $30 million in Chelan County property.” That includes the loss of a Chelan Fruit warehouse, […]

Weather, apples, and the state economy

I wrote yesterday about how technology is making farming more productive. But despite these advances, farmers are still very exposed to the vagaries of the weather. According to the Yakima Herald-Republic (YHR), “Heat stress, water shortages and other factors likely will combine to make the 2015 apple crop smaller than last year’s record-setter.” More apple […]

The future is on the farm

The Wall Street Journal has an interesting story about how farms are utilizing data and technology to be more productive. People often seem to have sentimental ideas about farming and ranching, so sentences like this may be surprising: “The world’s largest producer of autonomous four-wheeled vehicles isn’t Tesla or Google, it’s John Deere.” Unlike most […]

Policy Today, Common Ground edition: Consensus-Building

Policy Today: McCleary filings, Governor's carbon cap

Technology has made corn ubiquitous

The Hill reports that the House Agriculture Committee has passed a bill that would allow for a voluntary, federal labeling standard for genetically engineered (GE) foods. It would preempt states from mandating such labeling. Of course, Washington voters rejected an initiative in 2013 that would have created a mandatory labeling scheme here. Meanwhile, the Washington […]

New option for consumers who want to avoid genetically engineered foods (even though they're safe)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is developing a voluntary certification program for foods that do not contain genetically engineered (GE) ingredients. The AP reports: USDA’s move comes as some consumer groups push for mandatory labeling of the genetically modified organisms, or GMOs. The certification, the first of its kind, would be voluntary — and companies […]