Serving Franklin County, WA
Serving Franklin County, WA
Sorted by date Results 26 - 50 of 107
The Small Business Administration backed loans worth $27.5 billion through its primary lending program in 2023—rising well above pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels as government officials aim to stabilize the economy. Many small businesses get their start and scale up with SBA loans, which increased lending to Black, Latino, and women entrepreneurs in the past few years in step with efforts to become more equitable. Flippa found the county within each state where applicants were a...
Low pay, minimal opportunities for growth, and disrespectful work environments are just a handful of the top reasons employees quit their jobs, according to a Pew Research Center survey from 2021. Of course, there are myriad reasons workers might put in their notices, ranging from the mundane, such as moving to a new state, to the dramatic, like having blow-up arguments with a supervisor. Quits are down from the recent span of historically high rates during the Great...
OLYMPIA — A bill extending the Pesticide Application Safety Committee unanimously passed the Senate, 49-0, on Tuesday, Feb. 6. Senate Bill 6166, sponsored by Sen. Rebecca Saldana, D-Seattle, extends the provisions of the Pesticide Application Safety Committee and its advisory group until July 1, 2035. It also removes requirement for virtual meetings, allowing in-person meetings to take place. The committee’s work was originally set to expire July 1, 2025. The Pesticide Application Safety Committee was established in 201...
SPOKANE VALLEY – USDA’s Natural Resource and Conservations Service in Washington is opening a second application batching period for the Agricultural Conservation Easements Program – Agricultural Land Easements. While applications for easements are taken on a continuous basis, the deadline to be considered for Fiscal Year 2024 second funding is March 11. NRCS Washington has more than $1 million remaining to allocate, officials said. The agency intends to retain those funds in Washington for farmland preservation. The progr...
SPRAGUE – The current water supply outlook for Washington is an early assessment, but it shows little snowpack through December. According to U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program hydrologistMatt Warbritton, the snowpack is significantly lower-than-average, but overall precipitation is only slightly below average, thanks to December rainfall. Because of the strong El Nino events this year, the reg...
There are at least 216 gray wolves in 37 packs in our state. Thirty-one of those gray wolf packs are in North-Central and Northeastern Washington. Senate Bill 5939 – relating to protecting livestock from wolf predation – seeks to give affected livestock raisers a chance to mitigate the confirmed and probable predation deaths of their animals. The bill would allow owners of livestock to monitor a depredation and kill the first gray wolf that returns. The bill lays out the liv...
This month’s article isn’t so much a Mythbuster, but a retrospective on where we’ve been with cow type and the implications of the changes over time. As I write these lines it’s only several days before Thanksgiving. It is the holiday season and in my line of work, it is really easy to find a lot of things to be thankful for and have hope for a great future in agriculture. I’m the eternal optimist, I also acknowledge that immense stressors are facing our agricultural producers. The holiday season is a great time to reflect o...
WINONA — The new Rebel Flat Cree trestle on the Palouse-Coulee City railroad line was dedicated Thursday morning, Nov. 2. Speakers included 9th Legislative District Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, McGregor Co. Chairman Alex McGregor and state Department of Transportation Rail, Freight and Ports Program Manager Jason Biggs. The new span replaces the 197-foot wooden trestle destroyed Aug. 19 in the Winona Fire, which burned 2,525 acres and several buildings. The new bridge n...
OTHELLO – More than $1 million has been earmarked to help four area businesses develop and maintain solar arrays to generate power for agricultural use. The USDA has announced Othello-based Basin Farmworks, Weyns Farm and Sage Hill Electric will receive Rural Energy for America Program grants. Big Bird Farms of Harrington is also receiving a grant. Weyns Farm, 8289 Kulm Road S.E., was awarded $1 million to purchase and install a 1080 kilowatt solar array. The project is expected to generate 1.49 kilowatt-hours and save the f...
OTHELLO – The USDA is moving ahead with a plan to draw water out of the Columbia River for irrigation in an effort to curtail aquifer groundwater depletion. In an announcement Wednesday, Nov. 1, the agency said it will accept the recommendation of the federal Bureau of Reclamation to use “new Columbia River diversions” for irrigation water for 70,000 acres of the Odessa subarea in the East Columbia River Irrigation District. Under the plan, water siphoned from the Columbia River will replace groundwater currently being withd...
OTHELLO – The USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service is providing $40 million in grants to three projects designed to divert Columbia River water into irrigation canals while curtailing the drawdown of Odessa aquifer groundwater. The grants were announced Wednesday, Nov. 1, the same day the agency announced it plans to move ahead with an effort to supplant groundwater use with more water withdrawn from the Columbia River. The grants include $19.7 million to complete a...
WINONA — Trains are running over Rebel Flat Creek only two months after the Winona Fire destroyed the train trestle here. On Friday, Oct. 20, state officials announced that the trestle has been replaced and the trains are running. The trestle is a vital link connecting wheat farmers and suppliers in Adams and Whitman Counties. The 197-foot wooden trestle over the creek was destroyed Aug. 19 in the Winona Fire, which burned 2,525 acres as well as several buildings. "The b...
FOUR LAKES – The railway system serving Eastern Washington's wheat industry in Adams, Lincoln, Whitman and southern Spokane Counties will be getting a facelift, thanks to $112 million in grants. The state Department of Transportation has been awarded s $72.8 million grant for the Palouse River and Coulee City Railroad Project. The grant, a product of the U.S. Federal Railroad Administration's Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvement program, is dedicated to e...
It’s been a pretty nice season to go to the fairs around the region—in most cases not too hot and not too cool. Always nice to be able to connect with both our adult and youth producers. The fairs are certainly an American tradition and it’s great to see that people are out supporting them. When I talk with producers, I’m always happy when topics of conversation come up that lend themselves to an article. A recent conversation highlighted that concerns about mRNA vaccines and their use in cattle are circulating among the ind...
SPOKANE VALLEY – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service’s deadline for environmental incentives applications is Oct. 20. The environmental incentives program is a voluntary, technical and financial assistance program designed to help farmers, ranchers, forestland owners and tribes with conservation planning and implementation. Funds can be used for irrigation efficiency, animal waste management, native plant health removing fish passage obstructions, reducing erosion and improving wildl...
ELTOPIA - With world politics and economics unstable, agriculture leaders are noting the value of local commodities has increased, but so have costs. The U.S. Wheat Association reported a rise in wheat pricing by an average of 23 cents. Corn rose 20 cents and soybeans rose 29 cents in their third weekly price report for the month of July. The report noted the price hikes may be due in part to the European Union's request that the ban on Ukrainian wheat imports be extended as...
RITZVILLE — The local middle and high school agriculture program has received a statewide honor. The Lind-Ritzville middle and high school agricultural program was recently selected by the Washington Association of Agricultural Educators as the “Outstanding Program(s)” for the year 2023. High School Principal Kevin Terris spoke highly of the teachers – Lori Sanderson and Andy Williams – noting the program deserves the award due to the teachers’ ability to “connect the two communities of Lind and Ritzville in a fun and compe...
RITZVILLE – A Pasco woman has been hired as a reporter for Free Press Publishing. Abigail Beaton, 19, of Pasco, began Monday, June 12. She will cover Franklin County and southern and western Adams County, including Lind, Washtucna, Hatton, Othello and other areas. She will also contribute coverage of the Odessa area to the Record-Times newspaper in Davenport. "I look forwards to meeting and writing for the community," Beaton said. "Abby is the best applicant for the p...
OLYMPIA — The state House of Representatives advanced a pair of agricultural bills today, April 12, sponsored by a Pasco Republican. By a vote of 97-0, the House approved Senate Bill 5156, sponsored by 15th Legislative District Senator Nikki Torres. The measure expands the state's farm internship program. In a second unanimous vote, the House also approve Senate Bill 5330, which updates the Washington Pesticide Application Act. “Our farmers do a lot to feed not only Washingtonians, but Americans everywhere, and people aro...
PASCO – A bill changing the name and membership of the Commission on Pesticide Registration sponsored by a local lawmaker was signed into law April 6. Senate Bill 5143, sponsored by Pasco Republican Sen. Nikki Torres, goes into effect July 23. It is her first bill to make it through the legislative process. "I'm pleased that my first piece of legislation to become law is about serving our agricultural community," the freshman senator said. "Washington has a robust a...
COLFAX - The Palouse Empire Threshing Association Spring Farming Days will occur this weekend, April 15-16, at the Palouse Empire Fairgrounds on state Highway 26, west of Colfax, starting at around 9 a.m. Organizer Mike Schwartz stated that the event is a group effort between him and the other organizers. Schwartz explained that this would be the grain they harvest on Labor Day and that they won't plow this weekend. "They'll be fertilizing, spring tooth, and harrow," he said....
CONNELL — The March drought report shows good news for farmers across much of Washington state and Franklin County. According to the report released earlier this month, the state is drought-free. But, some "abnormally dry" areas remain. Conditions remain abnormally dry in the Othello area, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, a division of the USDA. But with a better-than-average snowpack and rain in the forecast, farmers should be ready for the spring g...
PASCO — AgWest Farm Credit and Northwest Agricultural Consultants are partnering with Second Harvest to help celebrate the impact our region’s ag community makes for people facing hunger, In addition, the companies will match the first $15,000 donated this month, Ag Month, to Second Harvest, which supports food banks and pantries and other efforts to help feed indigent residents. “We are so fortunate to live in a region that provides a cornucopia of healthy food,” Second Harvest CEO Jason Clark said. “Our friends at AgWest...
Clearwater Supply, 1086 S. First Ave., Othello, hosted its annual Farming Kickoff lunch and barbecue on Friday, March 10. The firm invited area farmers, community members and law enforcement members to attend the event marking the start of the spring season....
OLYMPIA - Under a bill making its way through the Legislature, irrigation districts would be required to move to all-mail ballots for elections. Senate Bill 5709, introduced by Sen. Nikki Torres, R-Pasco, would eliminate polling places and absentee ballots for election of irrigation district directors. The bill passed the Senate, 47-0, on Tuesday, Feb.28. The bill now moves to the House. According to state officials, the measure applies to about 100 irrigation districts,...