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ADMINISTRATION'S TRADE WAR CONTINUES TO ESCALATE
President Trump shows no sign of backing down from an escalating trade confrontation with China, even as financial markets wobbled and American farmers and manufacturers warned that he is inviting a damaging commercial clash.
Last week China announced a first round of tariffs against a variety of U.S. products, including certain nuts and fruits, beef, wine, and scrap aluminum. These tariffs were in retaliation to the tariffs on steel and aluminum the Trump Administration imposed in March. China has also announced a new, second volley of tariffs on U.S. goods, including a number of regionally relevant products, like soybeans, corn, cotton, and wheat. This second group of tariffs is in response to the Trump Administration's recently proposed tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese goods as a punitive measure for alleged Chinese violation of U.S. intellectual property rights. President Trump has subsequently threatened to increase his proposal to $150 billion in tariffs.
China is the biggest importer of U.S. soybeans, purchasing $14 billion in soybeans a year, or about one-third of the entire U.S. crop. According to the Iowa Soybean Association, one out of every three rows of soybeans grown in the state is destined for shipment to China. Notably China is less dependent on imports of U.S. corn and wheat due to its longstanding national "security" pledge to be self-sufficient in as many grains as it can. Soy, the "king of beans" by one declaration, plays a big role in the global food chain, however. Soy also plays a major role in removing nitrates from the soil that were left over from fertilizing early crops of corn grown on the same land.
If left in the soil, these nitrates are carried into rivers and streams through runoff where they can affect water quality and harm fish populations downstream.
Administration officials hinted that the trade dispute ultimately may be settled at the bargaining table. In light of the volatile last few weeks for the market, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross called the investor reaction overblown and signaled that the administration may seek to resolve the trade dispute through diplomacy.
For more information, please email Eric Heath, Senior Policy Analyst, Mississippi River Basin Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute at
eheath@nemw.org
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EPA RELEASES LAKE HURON LAMP
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last week released the Lake Huron Lake-wide Action and Management Plan (LAMP) for 2017-2021. Under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, the governments of the United States and Canada have agreed to develop LAMPs for each of the Great Lakes on a five-year cycle to outline a science-based assessment of each Lake ecosystem's health and identify key environmental challenges. The LAMP helps set priorities for research and monitoring and outlines actions that government agencies and the public can take to combat these environmental and water quality challenges.
The current Lake Huron LAMP determined that the Lake is in "fair" condition, and faces threats that include chemical contaminants, invasive species, and nutrient pollution. The LAMP provides guidance to watershed agencies, local governments, indigenous people, and the public to implement actions to address these threats during the plan's five-year life cycle. A copy of the Lake Huron LAMP can be viewed
here.
For more information, contact
Matt McKenna,
Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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This Week On Capitol Hill
The House and Senate are set to reconvene after a two-week-long recess.
A full list of regionally relevant hearings can be found below.
Wednesday, April 11
- The Senate Appropriations Agriculture Subcommittee will convene a hearing titled, "Hearing to review the FY2019 budget request for the U.S. Department of Agriculture," at 10:30 AM in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 138.
- The Senate Appropriations Energy and Water Development Subcommittee will convene a hearing titled, "Hearing to review the FY2019 budget request for the U.S. Department of Energy, including the National Nuclear Security Administration" at 2:30 PM in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 138.
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The House Appropriations Transportation and Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
will convene a hearing titled, "FY2019 Budget Rail Safety and Infrastructure: Stakeholder Perspectives," at 9:30 AM in the Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2358.
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The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will convene a hearing titled "Local Responses and Resources to Curtail the Opioid Epidemic," at 10:00 AM in the Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2154.
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The House Appropriations Commerce, Justice and Science Subcommittee will convene a hearing titled, "FY2019 Budget National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration," at 10:30 AM in H-309, The Capitol.
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The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health will convene a hearing titled, "Combating the Opioid Crisis: Improving the Ability of Medicare and Medicaid to Provide Care for Patients," at 2:15 PM in the Longworth Office Building, Room 2322.
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For more information, contact
Matt McKenna,
Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
NEMWI: Strengthening the Region that Sustains the Nation
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