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68 SEEDWORLD.COM SEPTEMBER 2015 Exploring ideas and views on all aspects of the seed industry. WATERS OF THE U.S. LAWSUIT GROWS In July the National Corn Growers Association joined 13 other organizations in filing a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers seeking to overturn the Waters of the U.S. rule. Farmers need clarity and certainty about their responsibilities under the Clean Water Act says Chip Bowling president of NCGA and a farmer from Newburg Md. Under the new rule every farmer and rancher in America now has at least one WOTUS on their farm. That puts far too much power in the hands of the federal government and exposes farmers to considerable liabilities without actually doing anything to improve water quality. Other plaintiffs in the lawsuit include the American Farm Bureau Federation American Petroleum Institute American Road and Transportation Builders Association Leading Builders of America National Alliance of Forest Owners National Association of Home Builders National Association of Manufacturers National Cattlemens Beef Association National Mining Association National Pork Producers Council and Public Lands Council. Similar lawsuits have also been filed by 27 state attorneys general. FARMERS NEED CLARITY AND CERTAINTY ABOUT THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES UNDER THE CLEAN WATER ACT. Chip Bowling PROTECT THE GROUNDWATER Groundwater makes up 99 percent of all available freshwater making it worthy of protection according to the National Ground Water Association and Sept. 8 is Protect Your Groundwater Day. Part of protecting groundwater is conservation. Irrigation for agriculture in America uses 53.5 billion gallons a day. The association encourages agribusinesses to use groundwater more efficiently and help prevent contamination. Drainage water management DWM is one of the newest technologies being deployed. Its based on the premise that the same drainage intensity is not required at all times during the year. According to the U.S. Department of Agricultures Natural Resources Conservation Service with DWM water quality improvement and production benefits are possible. DWM minimizes unnecessary drainage which reduces the amount of nitrate that leaves fields. This same system can also retain water in fields that could be used for crop production later in the season when water is need. DWM allows land ownersoperators to better control drainage water. Protect Your Groundwater Day is supported by the American Farm Bureau Federation American Water Works Association National Association of Conservation Districts National Farmers Union U.S. Environmental Protection Agency U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Water Alliance among many others. TEN-YEAR FORECAST HAS PRICES FOR ALL AG PRODUCTS DOWN The prices of crop and livestock products in 2014 show diverse trends according to the Agricultural Outlook 2015-2024 report released by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. For crops two years of high production placed pressure on the price of cereals and oilseeds. Looking ahead prices for all agricultural products are expected to decrease during the next 10 years as on-trend productivity growth helped by lower input prices outpaces slowing demand increases. While this is consistent with the tendency for long-term secular decline prices are projected to remain at a higher level than in the years preceding the 200708 price spike. Demand will be subdued by per capita consumption of staple commodities approaching saturation in many emerging economies and by a generally sluggish recovery of the global economy. The report also includes a special feature on Brazil where continued increase in production is evident and supports rapidly growing exports.