GI Sage Grouse & Bee Troubles

If the sage grouse winds up be listed as endangered it just may very well have a major impact on the U.S. military like it has for farmers and ranchers. Congressman Dan Newhouse says that sage grouse nesting in places like the Yakima Training Center in Washington State would be forced to make major changes to areas like firing ranges.

NEWHOUSE: I do think that before any decision moves forward at the national level that we should follow through on the commitment we made and allow the states to demonstrate whether or not their management plans are effective. They have not had enough time in my opinion to do that.

The lack of honeybees is creating a new crisis in the ag industry. Honeybees continue to die off by the thousands leaving hives empty. The bees are very important pollinators and are usually quite busy at this time of year. In addition to the die-off that are being blamed on pesticides, a recent accident while transporting hives to other locations left millions of bees dead. Researchers are continuing to study the issue and postulate theories about the massive die-off dubbed "colony collapse disorder" or CCD. Until they find an answer, farmers will have to find alternate solutions to pollination of their grapes, cherries, apples, pears and more.

That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network of the West.