Local and state leaders will join citizens groups and unions today to establish ways to build on the momentum gained after the defeat of Proposition A. A town hall meeting at Oppenstein Brothers Park in Kansas City will discuss how to increase wages to at least $15 an hour for low-wage workers. Jessica Podhola, director […]
Tag: environment
Nestlé Purina commits $1 million to Ducks Unlimited in Iowa to help boost water quality
Ducks Unlimited and Nestlé Purina PetCare Company have partnered to protect and improve 1,600 acres of wetland and grasslands across Iowa over the next three years through Ducks Unlimited’s Living Lakes Initiative, promoting healthy soil, healthy crops, and healthy wildlife habitat. Purina, which operates three pet food manufacturing facilities in Iowa (in Clinton, Fort Dodge […]
Missouri farmer profits from direct marketing, rotational grazing
Like other livestock farmers trying to make a living in the grasp of a severe drought, Adam Boman was on the road to Kansas City in early August to market some of his cattle. But Boman, owner of Good Life Grass Farms, was only transporting the few cows he direct markets each month. The others […]
Environmentalists step up to oppose “Right To Work”
Voters will decide in less than a week whether Missouri will become a right-to-work state, potentially weakening unions. It isn’t just union members and labor groups opposing Proposition A: Environmentalists are standing against the right-to-work proposition as well. Dennis Roach, a former engineer, and union member and a current member of the Sierra Club said unions […]
Hospital workforce challenges persist in Missouri
A new report from the Missouri Hospital Association finds increased turnover rates among the majority of hospital-based healthcare positions. Vacancy rates decreased for several employee categories, including registered nurses, between 2016 and 2017. However, combined turnover among all professions surveyed increased statewide from 16 percent in 2016 to 17.7 percent in 2017. “Every Missourian has […]
The Pros and Cons of Right-To-Work and how they might affect you
The term “right to work’ relates to or promotes the right of a worker to be able to obtain employment without being required to join a labor union to do so. When right to work laws are in place, workers cannot be compelled to pay for any cost of union representation, even if the union […]
Livestock producers in 25 counties now eligible for benefits through Livestock Disaster Forage Program
Producers in 25 Missouri counties are now eligible to apply for benefits through the Livestock Forage Disaster Program and Emergency Assistance for Livestock. Both programs are administered through the Farm Service Agency. Counties now accepting applications include Adair, Andrew, Buchanan, Caldwell, Carroll, Chariton, Clinton, Daviess, Dekalb, Gentry, Grundy, Harrison, Howard, Linn, Livingston, Macon, Mercer, Nodaway, […]
North Central Missouri College Board of Trustees tackles full agenda at Thursday meeting
A North Central Missouri College Board of Trustees member has resigned from his position. The board accepted the resignation of trustee Steve Busch at a meeting Thursday evening. Busch said he is now considered a resident of Florida, which excludes him from being on the board. NCMC President Doctor Lenny Klaver and Board President Don Dalrymple […]
USDA providing $2,000,000 to assist farmers in planting cover crops
The United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service is helping producers affected by drought. State Conservationist J. R. Flores says the state has two million dollars available to help farmers plant cover crops to address inadequate feed and forage as well as other natural resource concerns. Cover crops established under the emergency initiative […]
Meeting planned to provide input into federal conservation programs
A local working group charged with identifying local priority resource concerns and providing input about program criteria to the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service will meet at 1:30 pm, July 26 at the USDA Service Center in Bethany. The working group is comprised primarily of representatives of various local, state and federal agencies with knowledge […]
First report of southern rust in U.S. this season reported in west-central Missouri
The University of Missouri Extension confirmed the growing season’s first case of southern rust corn disease in the U.S. on July 10. The MU Plant Diagnostic Clinic confirmed that southern rust was present in a sample collected from west-central Missouri. This common corn disease usually shows up in neighboring southern states before appearing in Missouri […]
Meeting in Bethany to address local resource concerns
A work group will meet later this month to identify local priority resource concerns and provide input about program criteria to the United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Service. The meeting will be held at the USDA Service Center in Bethany on the afternoon of July 26th at 1:30. Grundy County District Conservationist Scott […]
University of Missouri equine clinician offers advice on respiratory disease
Rhodococcus equi is a bacterial organism found in dry and dusty soil in horse environments that can cause pneumonia in young foals. A zoonotic disease, Rhodococcus equi can also infect people who are immunocompromised, such as HIV-AIDS patients. Philip Johnson, a professor of equine internal medicine in the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine, […]
Illness from mosquito, flea, tick bites has tripled since 2004
University of Missouri Extension health and safety specialist Karen Funkenbusch urges Missouri residents to take precautions to ward off mosquitoes, ticks, and fleas this summer. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported in May that diseases from the bites of these insects tripled from 2004 to 2016. Also, CDC reported that nine new […]
Mercer and Grundy Counties added to deer feeding ban by Department of Conservation
The Missouri Department of Conservation has expanded its restrictions on feeding deer and placing minerals for deer to seven new counties in response to finding cases of chronic wasting disease in or near them. The seven new counties are Bollinger, Cape Girardeau, Grundy, Madison, McDonald, Mercer, and Perry. The feeding ban for these seven new […]
Close-up cow’ barns help cows avoid heat stress, produce more milk
Martin Prairie Farms near Humansville treats dairy cows like guests. The family-owned dairy farm north of Humansville in Hickory County dedicates itself to top-of-the-line herd nutrition and care, says University of Missouri Extension dairy specialist Reagan Bluel. Freddie and Mary Martin, son David, and David’s spouse, Alana, own and operate the nearly 3,000-acre farm. Almost […]
NCMC Board of Trustees approve salary increases
The North Central Missouri College Board of Trustees approved increases in salaries, salary schedules, and stipends for 2018-2019 at a meeting Tuesday evening. The base will increase by one percent for faculty salary schedules for regular and nursing. A movement of one vertical step will also be allowed. The base will increase by two percent […]
Suicide rate is higher in rural areas
For many, the peace and quiet of country living is the American dream. But that dream can turn into a nightmare for those who become isolated and disconnected from their communities, says University of Missouri Extension safety and health specialist Karen Funkenbusch. May is Mental Health Month. It is a good time to talk with […]
Missouri legislature has two right to work measures moving fast in last week of session
The Missouri Senate has passed a resolution that would move up the date on a ballot referendum with the hope voters will pass right to work into law. A ballot measure to make right to work a constitutional amendment was soundly defeated in 1978. But Republican Senator Mike Kehoe thinks the business and work environment […]
Volatility in Dicamba remains controversial
Of all the factors that led to the off-target movement of dicamba in 2017, volatility remains the most controversial. Older formulations, such as Banvel and Clarity, have long been known to volatilize when sprayed under certain environmental conditions. Engenia, FeXapan, and XtendiMax were all marketed as dicamba formulations substantially lower in volatility than previous formulations. […]