News

NAXSA Tips from the Trench: Cleaning, Storing & Testing Pipe Plugs

NAXSA’s Safety Committee members develop these Tips from the Trench to help ensure that the best frontline know-how becomes the facts and solutions you need. At a glance. In the office or in the field. On your laptop, desktop, or mobile device.

Maintaining the Edge

This manual is a straightforward guide to keeping your saturated buffer or bioreactor operating as designed to improve water quality. The checklists at the end of each section are a quick reference for all the operations and maintenance tasks you’ll need to do throughout the year. Individual sections on managing control structures, seasonal management, saturated buffers, and bioreactors provide more information.

From the ADMC: A Vision for Progress

As the executive director of the Agricultural Drainage Management Coalition (ADMC), I am honored and excited to assume the role of chair of the Conservation Drainage Network (CDN). This dual position offers a unique opportunity to influence and advance the field of agricultural water management by aligning both organizations’ efforts to disseminate information, set research priorities, and advocate for the effectiveness of drainage practices.

Study: Could Some Drainage Mitigation Measures be More Harmful Than Helpful?

More than half of mitigation efforts to reduce the environmental impact of subsurface drainage are effective, according to a recent publication in Biological Conservation.

But just under a quarter are “insufficient,” according to the same study. And, in two cases, negative impacts were observed after the implication of some measures.

OSHA's 2025 Heat Safety Rule: What Every Employer Needs to Know

As climate change continues to crank up the heat, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is turning up the pressure on employers to protect workers from heat-related illnesses. In 2025, OSHA’s proposed Heat Injury and Illness Prevention Standard is making headlines—and for good reason.

Digging Deeper – Cover Crops & N2O Emissions

A pair of short-duration studies on Illinois fields suggestedhttps://ilsustainableag.org/resource/digging-deeper-cover-crops-n2o-emissions/ that cover crops reduce nitrate leaching (a win for water quality) but may increase nitrous oxide (N2O, a greenhouse gas). ISAP wanted to dig deeper into potential trade-offs and understand the environmental costs and benefits of cover crops.

Rescissions Bill Expected to Pass

Senate Republicans voted early Thursday morning to approve a rescissions package of $9 billion in spending cuts from previously approved funding. The House followed suit Friday and adopt the legislation giving the President another big legislative victory in less than a month. GOP Senate leaders quelled a revolt from members of the powerful Appropriations Committee who were concerned by the cuts.

Further NRCS Personnel Cuts Proposed in Administration's FY 2026 Budget

A Supreme Court decision last week said President Trump has the authority to cut the size and scope of the federal government allowing planned reductions in force to resume. In addition to those efforts, the administration’s 2026 budget request details how many employees the executive branch intends to cut in the coming year. It proposes a government wide 5 percent reduction in employees compared to the final year of the Biden administration.

How Ag Advisors Guide Conservation on the Ground

Advisors play a pivotal role in helping farmers adopt in-field conservation practices. On July 9, ICCON explored the question, “what makes an advisor truly effective?” The panel discussion brought together three seasoned professionals to share their strategies and experiences.

Reconciliation Provisions Impacting LICA Members

Following Senate and House approval of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” the President signed the measure in a White House ceremony on July 4th. The legislation implements the President’s domestic policy priorities by extending and enhancing the 2017 tax cuts, increases initiatives to enhance border security, increases investments in defense programs and targets reductions in other Federal programs.

Can Conservation Drainage Practices Contribute to Climate Change Mitigation?

Conservation drainage practices can mitigate water quality impacts of subsurface drainage, but their potential for climate change mitigation remains poorly understood. We summarized processes by which tile-drained croplands impact climate and assessed potential of conservation drainage practices to alter emissions of the greenhouse gases nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) and stocks of soil organic carbon (SOC), compared using carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e).

Key Tax Law Changes for Individuals and Businesses Under the OBBBA

On July 4, President Trump signed into law the far-reaching legislation known as the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). As expected, it extends and enhances many of the tax breaks from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). It also includes several of Trump's campaign promises — though many are only temporary — and eliminates tax breaks related to clean energy. Here's a rundown of some of the main tax law changes to be aware of as you plan for the 2025 tax year.

NOAA Shows Mild to Moderate Algal Bloom for Lake Erie in 2025

“It’s showing that we’ve made some progress, but we still have some room to go,” he says. “We have reduced the amount of dissolved reactive phosphorus, which fuels the algal bloom. With the amount of rain inside, they expected more phosphorus to go into the lake and we’ve had less, so that really means that what we’re doing is working.”

Ag, Biofuels Laud House-Passed Big, Beautiful Bill's 45Z Clean Fuels Production Tax Credit Modifications

The bill expected to be signed by President Donald Trump on Friday, extends the 45Z by two years through the end of 2029, restricts 45Z eligibility to fuels made from feedstocks grown in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, retains full transferability throughout the term of the credit, and harmonizes indirect land use change emissions with actual data and evidence, resulting in no ILUC penalty for corn ethanol.

States Weigh-In on DOT DBE Program Future

A coalition of 21 state attorneys general and the Arizona state legislature urged a Kentucky federal court to approve a proposal from the U.S. Department of Transportation that would end core provisions of its Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program, reports the American Road and Transportation Builders Assn (ARTBA).

ICE Enforcement of Farms/Construction Sites to Continue

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents will continue to conduct inspections of ag operations and other workplaces, including construction sites, but will focus on criminal activity, White House border czar Tom Homan announced.

OBBB Criticized As Benefiting Large Farmers At Expense of Small Ones

The “big, beautiful” reconciliation bill would overwhelmingly benefit large farms at the expense of small ones, some farm program critics told reporters on Wednesday, as reported by Agri Pulse. “This legislation that the ag committees have produced is clear "fiscal malpractice” said Josh Sewell of Taxpayers for Common Sense.

July 4 Deadline for Reconciliation Uncertain

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is sticking to his ambitious schedule of getting the reconciliation legislation to President Trump’s desk by July 4, even as he faces objections from GOP colleagues and the Senate parliamentarian to key provisions in the bill.

Construction Worker Dies After Trench Collapse in East Texas

A construction worker has died after a trench collapse incident occurred on Wednesday morning in Mabank.

According to the Mabank Police Department, at around 10:30 a.m., authorities were dispatched to the 1000 block of North State Highway 198 after reports of a construction site accident.

Drainage Water Recycling At The Dudley Smith Farm Field Day

Many research projects and presentations were shown at the 2025 Dudley Smith Farm Field Day, one of which centered around “drainage water recycling.” Farmers know better than anyone that too much or too little water, is never a good thing. Caleb Bruhn, PhD Candidate of Biological and Agricultural Engineering with the University of Illinois, is looking into new water management practices.