09/01/06 Grants received & New EPA Regs

Grants received and new EPA regulations. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. Idaho and Oregon will be receiving part of the $17,5 million in Section 9006 Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Program Grants according to Ag Secretary Mike Johanns. The grant program compliments the Bush Administration`s overall effort to increase America`s energy independence through the development of renewable energy resources as well as improving efficiency of existing systems. The 2002 Farm Bill authorized the Renewable Energy Systems and Energy Efficiency Improvements program. Recipients of the funding include agricultural producers or rural small businesses, U.S. citizens or legal residents that have demonstrated financial need. Rural Development grant funds can be used to pay up to 25 percent of the eligible project costs. 375 recipients in 36 states will receive funds. New regulations are on the way for livestock operations. Farm groups offered their input to make them reasonable for producers. American Farm Bureau Farm Regulatory Specialist Don Parrish explains what livestock farmers will be facing under new EPA regulations. PARRISH: For those operations that need more oversight, they're going to get it and they've got to operate by some pretty strong and stringent federal regulations. For those operations that don't discharge, have good environmental records, they can continue to do so under a voluntary process. They just have to make sure that they dot their "i's," cross their "t's," maintain good clean operations and to nutrient management plans and the records to show they implemented it. Now here's today's Washington Grange Report. (GRANGE) That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.