09/14/06 El Nino & NAFTA Hurdles

El Nino, an extreme warming of equatorial waters in the Pacific Ocean that wreaks havoc with world weather conditions, has formed and will last into 2007, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said on Wednesday. The El Nino probably will spur warmer-than-average temperatures this winter over western and central Canada and the western and northern United States. It said El Nino also will cause wetter-than-average conditions in the U.S. Gulf Coast and Florida, and spark dry conditions in the Ohio valley, the Pacific Northwest and most U.S. islands in the tropical Pacific. Agriculture remains one of the bright spots in trade with Mexico and Canada - a dozen years after implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. But as witnesses explained to a Senate Finance Subcommittee on Monday - ag hurdles remain. Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative John Melle says U.S. corn, dried beans, milk powder and sugar still face tariffs going into Mexico. But these will end by 2008. And that - Melle says - gives Mexican growers some heartburn. MELLE: There's been some concern expressed in Mexico over the elimination of the duties on corn and beans. The Mexican administration, the Fox administration, has committed to implementing those obligations; obviously those are very large exports from a large number of states in the United States. Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Susan Allen. Now what constitutes sustainability? I know that "sustainability" is currently the "it" word of the decade and I am more than aware that when "sustainability" is used in the same breath as agriculture it can make farming issues all warm and fuzzy for the metropolitan crowd. "Sustainability" commonly accompanies dialog pertaining to the environment. The "S" word can pop up routinely in discussions regarding U.N. relief work or economic development. Eco- celebrities like Bono frequently pepper their conversation with it. Webster's Dictionary defines sustainability as; "relating to or a method of harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged, or relating to a lifestyle involving the use of sustainable methods.". Others have described sustainability as "about living, working and ordering society in ways which are environmentally "sustainable. Who fits the definition? The urban greenie who pats herself on the back for a "sustainable" shopping trip to Whole Foods or the farmer who continues to produce abundant crops from the same land generation after generation. Thanks Susan. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.