When honeybees forage, they collect nectar, pollen and water from nearby flowers. These flowers contain traces of the chemicals in the soil and water where they grow.

As honeybees fly, they also pick up dust and other tiny particles from the air and any surfaces they touch. Some of these particles include metals from human activities like burning fossil fuels or industrial pollution.

By the time the bee has returned to its nest it is covered, inside and out, with the chemicals found in its local area. In this way, the honey in a beehive is a mix of everything the bees gather within about a three-kilometer area. Learning how to read the composition of honey will allow us to understand the chemical makeup of any given environment.

The honey produced by the tireless work of the honeybee is nothing short of an untapped goldmine of environmental data that could help us better understand the spread of environmental pollutants.

Bees can help map pollution

Our research — focusing on the Manchester area in the U.K. — proposes using honey as a window into the chemical make-up of a local area. Our team comprised of researchers from Dalhousie University in Canada and the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom. We measured metal concentrations in honey collected by citizen scientist beekeepers in northwest England.

Greater Manchester was a major industrial powerhouse. Unfortunately, historical industrial activities often leave behind a legacy of pollution and have been linked to environmental contamination.

Metal contaminants in soil and water from historical industrial activities do not easily disappear. They can be remobilized as dust during activities like building and road construction, or farming. Likewise, metals in surface water and groundwater may also be transferred into flowers via plant roots.

Honey samples were collected by local citizen scientist beekeepers to help determine the distribution of metal pollution across Greater Manchester. Honey samples were gathered over a single season to establish baseline metal concentrations from urban, industrial, residential and agricultural zoning districts. This baseline data can be used in future studies to monitor long-term trends and changes in metal concentrations in the environment.

Average arsenic and cadmium concentrations in Manchester were higher than global averages. Cadmium and lead concentrations were also higher than the recommended World Health Organization and United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization guidelines.

These high metal concentrations reflect Manchester’s heavy industrial past. They also reveal pollution patterns from current human activities like transportation and construction.

Natural biomonitors

Rapid urbanization, transportation, industrialization and other human activities has resulted in increased global water, air and soil pollution. Interest in measuring local and global pollution is also increasing.

Current pollution monitoring and reporting in Canada is expensive and focuses on air pollution monitoring under the National Air Pollution Surveillance program. This program was established in 1969 to monitor and assess the long-term air quality in populated regions of Canada and the dataset can be used by governments to assess air pollution trends.

The National Air Pollution Surveillance network comprises 286 sites in 203 communities located in every province and territory across Canada and is managed by the provinces, territories and some municipal governments.

Pollutant releases to air and water from industrial facilities are self-reported by the industries themselves under the National Pollutant Release Inventory. However, this inventory has been criticized for under-reporting of pollutants, and a lack of information related to how toxic the pollution can be.

Because these traditional methods can be expensive and time-consuming, government agencies and researchers need cost-effective monitoring tools to holistically track environmental pollutants such as heavy metals. Our research suggests that honey could be just the cost-effective monitoring tool governments are looking for.

Researchers in Vancouver have already run studies to measure metals like lead and cadmium in honey from hives in Vancouver’s downtown core. Analysis in 2019 found that the honey was clean, well below global averages for heavy metals like lead.

Although the honey in downtown Vancouver was perfectly safe to eat, they also discovered higher levels of metals in honey collected from nearby industries or densely populated areas. Efforts to map pollution using honey in Australia and Italy have also been effective.

Biomonitoring pollution in Canada

Because bees collect nectar, pollen and water from flowers within a three-kilometer area, they offer a seasonal snapshot of local environmental pollution.

Although there are nearly 300 National Air Pollution Surveillance sites across Canada, there are nearly one million bee hives offering even greater national coverage. These cost-effective pollution monitoring sites would complement existing pollution monitoring networks.

With beekeeping rising in popularity, this allows for community participation in biomonitoring studies like ours. Canada’s more than 13,000 beekeepers are a critical untapped resource of citizen scientists that could be vital to measuring long-term trends of harmful metals and other contaminants across Canada.

—Tony Robert Walker is a professor at the School for Resource and Environmental Studies at Dalhousie University. Simon Harper is a professor of computer science at the University of Manchester.

The post COMMENT: How honeybees can help us monitor pollution across Canada appeared first on Grainews.

“These type of greenwashing claims are on the rise and consumers have a right to know the truth about their food choices,” said Carrie Apfel, an attorney with Earthjustice, on a Wednesday press call.

Earthjustice is representing EWG in the suit alongside the Animal Legal Defense Fund, Edelson PC, and FarmStand.

The suit was filed on Wednesday by the Washington-based Environmental Working Group (EWG) in D.C. Superior Court. Tyson did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

In 2021, Tyson said it would achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 by increasing its use of renewable energy and eliminating deforestation in its supply chain, among other steps.

The company also markets a brand of “climate-friendly” beef it says is produced with 10 per cent less emissions than conventional beef.

In its lawsuit, EWG alleges that Tyson has not presented a rigorous plan for reaching its net zero goals or details for its lower-emission beef production and is thus misleading consumers with the claims.

Tyson is one of the largest meat processing companies in the United States. The company says it produces 20 per cent of the country’s beef, pork, and chicken and that the majority of its emissions are from beef production.

Livestock production generates about 14.5 per cent of all anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions globally, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. Cattle represent 65 per cent of those emissions.

The post Green group sues Tyson Foods for allegedly false climate claims appeared first on Grainews.

Holdanca Farms is located near Wallace Bay, N.S., and is owned and operated by the father-daughter duo of John and Maria Duynisveld.

After winning the award at the banquet, John Duynisveld said he felt overwhelmed.

“It’s such an honor,” he said.

Duynisveld gave credit to the other TESA nominees, highlighting the important work they all do when it comes to the environment and agriculture.

“All of us come from different parts of the country, different environments, and everyone has their own challenges in how they can have their operation work with the challenges that nature throws at them and how they’re able to cooperate with nature, rather than fight it and make things work for them in their own way. So, they’re all incredibly deserving farms and ranches.”

At Holdanca Farms, the Duynisvelds raise a herd of grass-fed cattle, as well as sheep and pastured pigs and poultry. They own 500 acres, 250 of which is a managed, biodiverse native woodlot, and the other half is in long-term pasture production.

A focus for the Duynisvelds is native and migratory birds that make their home on the North Shore of Nova Scotia. They ensure space in their barns and other outbuildings for barn swallows to safely enter and exit during breeding season. They avoid cutting forages at this time and put fences around the nests to prevent livestock from damaging them. On their farm, they have recorded over 100 wild bird species. Around 30 of those are endangered.

Holdanca Farms also directly markets their beef and are involved in agriculture education programs such as Ag in the Classroom and environmental education programs they host right on their farm.

“Holdanca Farms is a testament to how responsible farming practices can go hand in hand with success and their importance to protecting and preserving our land and wildlife,” Mike Duguid, one of the co-chairs of CCA’s environment committee, said in a press release.

Even when winning awards, the work doesn’t stop. Maria Duynisveld was back home in Nova Scotia while her father accepted the award, tending to their cattle.

“A really big thanks to our daughter Maria, who is home running the farm and dealing with all the problems that happen as soon as I go away and solving the problems very well,” Duynisveld said to laughter from the crowd.

Holdanca Farms won out of the six different operations that were nominated from across the country.

The post Nova Scotia ranchers snag environmental award at Canadian Beef Industry Conference appeared first on Grainews.

Last year, Canada experienced its worst-ever fire season, with more than 6,600 blazes burning 15 million hectares, an area roughly seven times the annual average.

Low snowfall throughout an abnormally warm winter and widespread drought prompted the government to warn in April that 2024 could potentially be another “catastrophic” year for fires.

Out-of-control forest fires in the western provinces of British Columbia and Alberta forced large-scale evacuations this spring, although cooler weather in late May and early June helped dampen down fire activity in recent weeks.

Rain across the prairies also helped improve drought conditions, although 45 per cent of the country is still classed as abnormally dry, according to Agriculture Canada.

Weather models suggest temperatures over the next three months will be warmer than normal across most of the country, except along the coast of British Columbia, said Jennifer Smith, a meteorologist with the Meteorological Service of Canada.

The models predicted less rain than usual in central Canada but were not able to make reliable predictions for much of the rest of the country, she added.

“Canadians need to be ready for a warmer summer that could be met with drier conditions across the country,” Smith told a media briefing, adding that would be conducive to wildfires and smoke.

So far, the 2024 fire season has been much quieter than last year, with 511,000 hectares burned year-to-date across Canada versus 4.7 million hectares at the same point in 2023, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. However, wildfire activity typically ramps up during July and August.

This year, in response to feedback received last summer, the federal Environment Ministry is introducing a new air quality advisory system and daily smoke forecast maps to better inform Canadians about the health risk from wildfire smoke, officials said.

The post Canada forecasts hotter-than-average summer as peak wildfire season nears appeared first on Grainews.

Why it’s important

Environmental regulation was one of the main factors behind protests that swept France and parts of Europe, unsettling governments in the run-up to European elections. The French authorities have responded with extra aid and plans to simplify environmental rules, echoing steps taken at EU level. Ecology associations have attacked a watering down of European standards.

By the numbers

The new plan aims to halve pesticide use by 2030 compared to the 2011-2013 period on the basis of an EU indicator, called HRI1, which takes into account the chemical’s toxicity. The previous indicator, called NODU, applied by France simply calculated the volume of pesticides per hectare.

Under the new indicator, France has already achieved a reduction of about 30 per cent, the government says.

France will devote nearly 150 million euros ($161.66 million) this year to research into alternatives. It will also invest 50 million euros on new equipment.

Context

The “Ecophyto” policy was launched in 2009 but the objective of halving pesticide use within a decade was pushed back as volumes increased. Farmers argue that the banning of some pesticides forced them to use more of less effective ones, while adverse weather also led them to increase volumes.

The government aims to avoid a repeat of previous setbacks. Sugar beet growers have notably endured disease losses after a ban on neonicotinoid pesticides.

The post France revamps pesticide reduction plan in wake of farmer unrest appeared first on Grainews.

But in the early going, a Prairie-wide university-developed research project suggests taking poor-producing acres out of annual crop production might be a means of improving overall efficiency, as well as the all-important bottom line.

And an “informed guess” based on early research data suggests that across Western Canada, up to 12-15 per cent of farm fields perform at marginal levels — not totally below the profitability line, but not producing consistently high returns.

And recent figures from Manitoba Agriculture show the total cost — that is, operating and fixed costs — of growing crops has climbed, from around $300-$500 per acre in 2018 to about $500-$800 per acre in 2023. So taking less productive acres out of production could be a significant cost-saver.

Rather than seed every acre fencepost to fencepost with a canola or cereal crop, lead researcher Paul Galpern suggests the lower-yielding acres be taken out of annual crop production. Seed them to forages or let them grow as natural areas, or wildlife habitat, for example.

That’s where the term “messy” applies to fields, Galpern says. “It is not going to look as neat as a solid crop stand. In some respects you are going to have these messy fields with areas with irregular boundaries that are growing forages, perhaps even shrubs or a shelterbelt.”

READ MORE: Setting seed for 2024’s marginal acres

So that’s the idea, but what are the benefits? As the research work unfolds, there might be several, Galpern told about 500 producers attending the recent CrossRoads Crop Conference in Calgary.

First, by identifying unprofitable acres, you can save on inputs by not seeding a crop into them.

Also, however, by having such mini-buffer zones in and around the field, it can produce several indirect benefits to the productivity of surrounding canola or cereal crops.

“Research indicates it is a win-win proposition,” Galpern says, “a win for profitability and a win for sustainability.”

Galpern, an associate professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Calgary, has been studying unprofitable acres for some time.

Now, he and researchers at the University of Saskatchewan have created the Prairie Precision Sustainability Network (PPSN) to study the idea of taking those acres out of annual crop production and seeding them to perennial forage stands or natural areas at the farm level.

More producers welcome

The network now works with about 70 producers across Western Canada and welcomes more to join the research project.

In 2022-23, the research covered about 660,000 acres, on farms ranging in size from 900 to 45,000 acres.

On a confidential basis, producers provide crop yield data and the network matches that with satellite imagery, ultimately producing maps for individual farms and fields.

By combining grower harvest data and satellite imagery, PPSN is building a model that will predict future yields on low-production areas, by individual fields.

“We are analyzing unproductive field zones over multiple years, accounting for variations in crop, weather and markets,” Galpern says. “Our research will provide insights across thousands of fields and multiple years, leading to better-informed decisions and preparedness for future challenges.”

Participating producers receive a Marginal Area Map and a Marginal Area Report from the network’s agricultural economist, outlining options for improving the profitability of the operation now and into the future.

The research project doesn’t require farmers to do anything, but the information on unprofitable acres is there, if farmers want to develop a plan that fits their operation, which may include taking those acres out of annual crops.

Producers interested in getting involved or learning more can visit the PPSN website. There is lots of information posted and producers can connect with Andrea Astieford or Tamara McLoughlin, grower-co-operator liaisons who will be able to answer questions.

The benefits package

Saving on input costs by not seeding, say, 10 acres of less-productive farmland is an obvious benefit to a producer, but the concept has other perhaps less obvious or more indirect benefits, Galpern says.

If, for example, those 10 acres are seeded to perennial forages, there’s potential for the forage itself to have a value as a hay crop. But Galpern’s research shows these forage patches or messy areas can provide benefits to surrounding crops.

It’s described as the halo effect — a benefit that ripples out away from the forage stand into an adjacent crop.

For example, that 10-acre messy area can become a sanctuary or habitat for beneficial insects, such as more than 325 species of bees, wasps, spiders and beetles.

“These beneficial insects can improve crop pollination or provide natural predators for biological control of pests that can infect the crop,” Galpern says. “Our studies have shown that within that halo effect zone, that canola had a higher yield than crop that was protected by bee-blocking cages.”

The most improved yield was within about 25 metres of the forage stand.

And while the messy area becomes a safe haven for beneficial insects, the research also showed it did not serve as such a haven for crop pests.

These forage areas can also help with water storage and regulation, provide habitat for birds and other forms of wildlife, and help mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, serving as sites for carbon storage.

“Establishing these perennial forage sites can help reduce the risk of producing greenhouse gases such as nitrous oxide, and also can serve as carbon sinks,” Galpern says. “And there are companies now working with producers to compensate them for measures such as these which benefit the environment. It may not be a huge return but it is one more benefit these messy areas can provide.”

Ducks Unlimited, for one, also has programs available to help farmers manage marginal cropland.

Galpern says the research project presents a challenge to traditional thinking. “Let’s call it what it is,” he says. “Non-crop vegetation can be messy. European farmers have been creating messy landscapes on their farms for years, with research showing the halo effect does produce benefits to the crop.

“The practice also helps improve the sustainability of the farming operation, which is something farmers today are looking for, and is also important to the agriculture industry as well as consumers.”

— Article updated March 7, 2024 in third paragraph to clarify basis for 12-15 per cent figure.

The post Bless your mess: Crops may not be best for underperforming acres appeared first on Grainews.

The consultation period began Dec. 22, and ends Feb. 20, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) said in a Dec. 22 news release. 

Using municipal waste as fertilizer has potential environmental benefits, namely reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reducing the need for synthetic fertilizer, the CFIA said in a May news release.  

However, they can contain toxic chemicals that don’t degrade over time–specifically per-and polyfluoralkyl substances (PFAS), the May release said. In May, the CFIA announced it would consult the industry and provinces with the intention of implementing an interim standard of less than 50 parts per billion of the PFAS called perflurooctanesulfonic acid in fertilizer-bound biosolids. 

In an consultation report, the CFIA said those consulted were largely in favour of the interim standard. Stakeholders asked for detailed guidance for those who generate, process, or import biosolids. 

Other respondents questioned the narrow scope of the interim standard, and asked if the CFIA would consider applying the same limits to composts, digestates and other mixtures likely to contain PFAS. 

Commenters also said the most effective way to minimize PFAS levels is to control their discharge at the source. 

The CFIA said it plans to implement the standard in early 2024. 

—Geralyn Wichers is associate digital editor of AGCanada.com. She writes from southeastern Manitoba.

The post Feds ask for public input on standards for municipal waste to be used for fertilizer appeared first on Grainews.

But the administration will also update the methodology by March 1, which leaves some uncertainty for corn-based ethanol producers, as it could ultimately tighten requirements around SAF feedstocks.

The global aviation industry, which is expected to reap net profits of over $20 billion in 2023 and accounts for about 2 per cent of global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions, is one of the hardest sectors to decarbonize, as the equipment is not easy to electrify. Airlines argue that incentives are needed to boost the market for SAF, which can generate 50 per cent less greenhouse gas emissions over its lifecycle than petroleum fuel, but is typically two to three times more expensive than fossil-fuel-based jet fuel.

For months, the Biden administration has been divided over whether to recognize the Department of Energy’s Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions and Energy Use in Technologies (GREET) model. That model enables ethanol-based SAF to qualify for tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act, President Joe Biden’s signature climate law.

Ethanol producers and corn farmers in rural states such as Iowa and Illinois have been awaiting updates, as the industry sees SAF as one of the only routes to grow ethanol demand amid rising sales of electric vehicles.

Biden, a Democrat, is seeking re-election and will depend on votes from closely contested Midwestern states that are the heaviest corn producers.

The guidance was first reported by Reuters on Thursday.

While the guidance aims to reduce the price gap between SAF and traditional jet fuel, administration officials could not provide data to show the extent that the incentives would reduce price discrepancies between the fuels.

Ethanol seeks role in SAF

Ethanol groups have lobbied the Biden administration fiercely to recognize the GREET model for IRA credits, battling environmentalists who want standards that elevate feedstocks like used cooking oil and animal fat instead.

Farmers, ranchers and producers have the capacity to provide feedstocks to help airlines and the transportation industry meet a potentially 36-billion-gallon market, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on a call with reporters.

“Key to this was the Treasury recognizing and appreciating the importance of the GREET platform for providing a pathway for corn-based ethanol and [other] biobased fuels to qualify for significant tax credits that were included in the IRA,” Vilsack said.

Still, the GREET model now will be updated to incorporate new data and modeling on emissions sources like land use change and livestock activity, as well as strategies producers can use to lower emissions like CCS, renewable natural gas, and climate-friendly farming practices, the Internal Revenue Service said on Friday.

The IRA currently requires SAF producers to assess emissions with a model backed by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) or a “similar methodology.”

“The real question is, come March, will the GREET model be set up in a way that will effectuate the ICAO standards,” said Mark Brownstein, senior vice president of energy transition at the Environmental Defense Fund.

Under the new changes, fuel produced in 2023 that meets the new GREET standards will be eligible for the credit, administration said on background during a call with reporters.

The Environmental Protection Agency and the Departments of Agriculture, Energy, and Transportation are working together on the scientific updates, an administration official told reporters on a Thursday press call.

Ethanol trade groups including the Renewable Fuels Association and Growth Energy cheered the news on Friday but said more information around the updated guidance was needed.

“New investments in SAF are highly dependent on the pending GREET modeling updates,” said Growth Energy chief executive Emily Skor. “The industry needs more clarity around the proposed changes before we have certainty around market access.

The post Biden backs ethanol industry on low-emission aviation fuel tax credits appeared first on Grainews.

Yesterday evening, senators read Bill C-234, An Act to amend the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act, for the third time, and passed it.

The bill received two amendments in the Senate. On Monday, senators voted to reduce the bill’s sunset clause to three years from eight. Previously, senators amended the bill to remove barn and greenhouse heating from proposed carbon price exemptions in the bill.

Farm groups and government officials aligned with the bill have expressed concerns that, since the bill must now be returned to the House of Commons for further debate, it will be delayed until it dies on the order paper.

According to its online schedule, the House of Commons will rise for the year on Dec. 15.

—Geralyn Wichers is associate digital editor of AGCanada.com. She writes from southeastern Manitoba.

The post Twice-amended Bill C-234 clears Senate appeared first on Grainews.

Senator Yuen Pau Woo introduced the amendment on Dec. 7, saying it would align it with the deadline on the Liberal government’s heating oil carbon price exemption.

This is the second amendment to Bill C-234, An Act to amend the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act. The first amendment removed fuels for heating barns and greenhouses from exemptions proposed in the bill.

Farm groups and government officials aligned with the bill have expressed concerns that, since the bill must now be returned to the House of Commons for further debate, it will be delayed until it dies on the order paper. Senators aligned against the bill have been accused of using delay tactics to try to kill a bill the Liberal government doesn’t like.

Today, the National Farmers Union (NFU) released a statement calling on political parties to prioritize and pass the bill.

In the statement, former NFU vice-president Glenn Wright said that while the NFU supports a price on carbon in general, farmers don’t have viable alternatives for drying grain.

“Because farmers are so climate-dependent—so vulnerable—it is in farmers’ interests that Canada and all nations reduce emissions as quickly as possible. Canada’s pollution-pricing system is a crucial part of that effort,” he said. “In this one case, however, because there are no alternative grain drying options for farmers, a temporary exemption is the right policy.”

He also said an amendment to remove an exemption on fuels for building heating creates a “pressing need” for financing and incentives for farmers to adopt more efficient heating options.

“The NFU recognizes that farmers can improve building efficiency and switch heating sources to clean technologies like heat pumps, but these renovations are capital intensive and farmers will need extensive financial support to decarbonize the heating of barns and greenhouses,” he said.

–updated Dec. 12 to add by how many years the sunset clause is reduced. 

—Geralyn Wichers is associate digital editor of AGCanada.com. She writes from southeastern Manitoba.

–

The post Senate votes to shorten sunset clause on beleaguered Bill C-234 appeared first on Grainews.