Tag Archives: agriculture
Lawmakers consider permanent funding for helpline for farmers, loggers and fishermen
For more than a year, Oregonians involved in agriculture, forestry and the fishing industry have had a resource to help them when they’re in a mental health crisis. The AgriStress helpline, which launched in Oregon in September 2023, is geared toward people in those industries, offering a safe option to those who ordinarily might not seek help. “The pull-yourself-up-by-your-boot-strings mentality often prevents our community members from seeking help, making resources like the AgriStress helpline vital to breaking that cycle as imperative,” Republican state Rep. Bobby Levy of Echo, a longtime farmer and rancher, said during a recent legislative meeting on a bill to keep the line operating in perpetuity. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:43
Crisis Hotline: New option for farmers, ranchers, loggers and fishermen in Oregon
A new hotline, the Agristress Helpline, launched in Oregon in September. It is tailored to support those who work in agriculture, forestry or the fishing industry through a phone and text service that operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The helpline is free and has trained counselors with experience in those industries who can take phone calls in 160 languages, with English, Spanish and Vietnamese professionals available to respond by text. Experts say the line is sorely needed. Although the 988 crisis line provides a similar service, the Agristress line is specialized to address the needs of farmers, ranchers, loggers and fishermen. They often work in social and geographic isolation and in areas with limited access to health care services. These professions also have to grapple with extreme weather conditions, such as flash flooding or drought, and they face fluctuating commodity prices. >>click to read<< 18:06

Salmon fishermen reflect on causes, future as closure looms
Earlier this year, Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order urging California’s water board to waive environmental laws and reserve water for future agricultural use, that would otherwise be released to help insure the survival of native fish and wildlife species. “The politics of water mismanagement readily and consistently traverses party lines,” Davis said. “So we’re trying to get equitable allocation of the resource to the different sectors, agricultural, residential, and environmental, which supports the salmon.” Tim Obert, a salmon fisherman based out of Santa Cruz, said the ramifications of the closure could be devastating. >click to read< 10:16

Ireland’s fishermen and farmers fight the Brexit fallout
Ireland’s fishermen and farmers took to Dublin to protest what they feel are unfair regulations. They are not happy with the Irish government either, which they say is failing to stand up for them. The issues involved for our fishermen and farmers are different, of course, but they go back to the same roots, as we will explain in a moment. First the fishermen. In the middle of last week, a huge flotilla of fishing boats sailed up the Liffey,,, It was the most picturesque protest we have seen here in a long time. >click to read< 18:12

Coronavirus: The day our world changed
Coronavirus has changed everything. We just haven’t noticed it yet. But those changes will become more apparent by the day. Where COVID19 is taking us is uncertain. It appears contained in China. South Korea seems to be on top of its rate of spread. But Italy, the US and Europe may soon be overwhelmed by the contagion. But Flinders University change ecologist Professor Corey Bradshaw says that, ultimately, its impact will not be counted in human fatalities. Nor in the cost of treating the sick. It will be in our minds. It’s in our economic system. >click to read< 07:45

Wasted – Our global food system discards 46 million tonnes of fish each year. Why?
From the moment a fisher lands a fish to the moment that fish lands on your plate, 27 percent of it will disappear.,,,It may surprise you, then, to learn that the Seafood Expo North America in Boston, Massachusetts, the largest gathering of the seafood industry in North America, does not stink. Not really. It smells of cleaned carpet and newly printed brochures and freshly scrubbed businesspeople, of men in ironed shirts and women with flat-ironed hair.,,, Around 22,000 people come from 50 countries to buy, sell, and market every consumable marine product imaginable. >click to read< 13:36

Carving up the Bureaucracy – MPI dismantling received positively by Nelson fishing industry
The announcement of a dedicated fisheries portfolio by the new Labour-led government has local fishing representatives hooked. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced this week the primary industries mega-ministry would be split into three parts covering forestry, fisheries and agriculture to allow greater focus on each sector. While the finer points of the new structure were yet to be discussed, the decision has already been well-received by both commercial and recreational fishing representatives. click here to read the story 16:56