UPDATE (5/2/19): So far, the Senate has decided to punt on this issue by extending the current moratorium on HMO conversions from July 2019 to July 2023, instead of passing strong protections for our public money this year. During debate on the Senate floor, Senator Michelle Benson referred to Senator John Marty’s provision to protect… Read More →
Citizens Push MPCA for EIS Despite Agency’s 3rd Postponement of Decision NEWBURG TOWNSHIP, Minn. — The legal mandate for ordering an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a controversial hog operation in southeastern Minnesota’s Fillmore County has been met, according to a thorough analysis of the public record recently completed by the Land Stewardship Project (LSP)… Read More →
On Aug. 30, frac sand corporation Minnesota Sands filed a petition with the Minnesota Supreme Court in a continued attempt to subvert local democracy and undo the frac sand ban in southeastern Minnesota’s Winona County. The ordinance was passed by Winona County Commissioners after they listened to the will of the people, and has already… Read More →
Meeting Focuses on Need for Policies that Support Family Farmers, Affordable Healthcare & Strong Local Government STAPLES, Minn.— If the 2018 session of the Minnesota Legislature is to advance policies that support rural communities, then lawmakers need to support family farmers, affordable healthcare and strong local government, according to a group of farmers and other… Read More →
Over Thanksgiving, I was perusing the Dairy Star at my brother-in-law’s house in Stillwater, Minn. Having grown up on a dairy farm, I still like to see how the industry is doing. A column by Sadie Frerichs called, “The Negative Impacts of Health Insurance,” caught my eye. Because of the recent health insurance rate increases… Read More →
As last week’s Congressional Research Service report on bee health makes clear, the crisis plaguing pollinators is not a single, big bad bogey man. It’s likely a combination of factors such as habitat loss, pesticide poisoning, introduced diseases and the stress of making domesticated honey bees the insect equivalent of migrant workers. That’s the bad… Read More →
When I and four other college students from Winona participated in the Southern civil rights movement of the 1960s, we were proud of Minnesota. Like the dozens from all over Minnesota who spent months or years helping people to register and vote in the face of poll taxes, literacy tests, threats and murder, we knew… Read More →
Many beginning farmers struggle to find the capital they need to get started. Buying a piece of land, fencing supplies, a packing shed, tractor, young fruit trees—these things can add up to an overwhelming initial investment. And these farmers often have a hard time finding the financing that fits their operations. Dean Harrington is a… Read More →
As part of our work to help beginning farmers gain access to farmland, the Land Stewardship Project has been working with the Plainview Land Access Organizing Committee in southeast Minnesota. For the past two years, farmers, business owners and others in the agricultural community of Plainview have been meeting to raise awareness of issues beginning… Read More →
I am not seeing any solid program that addresses access to land for new farmers. I do see networking and apprentice efforts (such as the one we have at our Earth Wisdom Farm) but I am not seen a comprehensive program that actually provides a viable path to ownership, or resident stewardship. With so much… Read More →
