Agribusiness Update for Monday 1/27/14

U.S. Rep. Greg Walden announced he has urged the Bureau of Land Management to extend their comment period for their draft proposal for sage-grouse management. Walden wrote in a letter to the BLM Deputy Director quote "Many Oregonians have told me about the drastic impact this draft plan could have on rural communities throughout the West. They've also told me that complying with the deadline for comments is challenging due to the lack of availability of the document and complexity of the matter."

Following a letter from members of the House - a bipartisan group of 31 Senators sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy to urge the agency to make changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard 2014 rule. The Senators express serious concerns regarding the proposal for the Renewable Volume Obligations. They say the proposal to set the biodiesel target below current industry production levels at 1.28-billion gallons and reduce the total biofuels target to 15.2-billion gallons is a significant step backward - undermining the goal of increasing biofuels production as a domestic alternative to foreign oil consumption.

That's today's Agribusiness Update from the Ag Information Network.