Science Policy Report

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07 February 2018

In This Issue:

Policy News

International Corner

Research, Education, Extension Funding Opportunities

Science News

Policy News

Congressional leaders on Wednesday unveiled a sweeping budget deal that would add about $400 billion in federal spending over the next two years, delivering the military funding boost demanded by President Trump alongside the increase in domestic programs sought by Democrats. According to outlines of the budget deal shared by congressional aides, existing spending caps written into law would be lifted by a combined $315 billion through 2019. Read the full article.

Nearly 100 scientific societies, universities, and businesses, including ASA, CSSA, and SSSA, signed on to a letter to Congressional leadership urging them to reach a bipartisan budget deal that raises the sequestration level budget caps for both defense and non-defense programs. The letter also requested that Congress invest in American innovation by prioritizing research programs at NSF, DOE-Office of Science, and within DOD in the subsequent appropriations negotiations for fiscal year 2018. Read the full letter.

White House officials appear to have interviewed at least three people last spring to lead the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), a key post that remains vacant more than a year into the administration of President Donald Trump. The names of the candidates were redacted for privacy considerations. However, the document provides evidence that the Trump administration took steps to fill the position of OSTP director within a few months of taking office. Read the full article.

After hundreds of hours in space, former astronaut James Reilly is set to keep his eyes peeled on the US landscape. President Donald Trump will nominate Reilly to lead the US Geological Survey (USGS), the White House announced on 26 January. Reilly is now a technical adviser for the US Air Force’s National Security Space Institute. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the second person with a PhD in science to be nominated by Trump to lead a major science agency. At USGS, which is part of the Interior Department, Reilly would be responsible for the nation’s information on main natural resources and natural hazard. USGS conducts research and monitoring in areas like biology, earthquakes and hydrology. Read the full article.

A strong majority of Americans (81%) say it is important for President Trump to assign a high priority to putting science, technology and engineering to work to strengthen our nation's infrastructure. The percentages are high across the political spectrum – 86% of Republicans, 85% of Democrats, 72% of Independents, according to a new national public opinion survey commissioned by Research!America. A strong majority (80%) also say it is important for candidates running for Congress to have a basic understanding of scientific issues and more than two-thirds of respondents (68%) say it is important that candidates for Congress have a science advisor. Read the full article.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Bill and Legislative Principles for 2018 during a town hall at Reinford Farms in Mifflintown, Pennsylvania. “These principles will be used as a road map – they are our way of letting Congress know what we’ve heard from the hard-working men and women of American agriculture. While we understand it’s the legislature’s job to write the Farm Bill, USDA will be right there providing whatever counsel Congress may request or require,” said Secretary Perdue. Read the full report.

International Corner

South Sudanese refugees in Uganda are being given drought-resistant “super beans” to reduce their reliance on food aid and encourage self-sufficiency. The bean, which is not genetically modified, was developed by scientists at the National Agricultural Research Organization of Uganda, in collaboration with the Colombia-based International Center for Tropical Agriculture. The bean is considered tastier and more resilient to pests and disease than local varieties. It is also a space-efficient variety which is important for refugees farming small plots. Read the full article.

Research, Education, Extension Funding Opportunities

The 1890 Facilities Grant Program is intended for the acquisition and improvement of agricultural and food sciences facilities and equipment, including libraries, so that the 1890 land-grant institutions may participate fully in the development of human capital in the food and agricultural sciences. Deadline, April 6. Read the full announcement.

The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), an agency under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is announcing availability of Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies. Proposals will be accepted from the following several states. See the links for full announcement details and deadlines.

Michigan – Deadline, February 26

Missouri – Deadline, February 26

The U.S. – Egypt Science & Technology Joint Fund Cycle 19 request for Collaborative Research and Junior Scientist Development Visit Grant proposals is now open. Collaborative Research Grants foster research collaboration between Egyptian and U.S. scientists. Applications will be accepted for research in the four general areas of agriculture, energy, health, and water. All proposals must be within one of the topics, or propose work at the nexus of two or more of the four general areas. Deadline, March 8. Read the full announcement.

The Directorate for Geosciences is participating with the Belmont Forum on a new call for proposals, "Scenarios of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services II," in partnership with BiodivERsA2. This call invites proposals that explicitly address a biodiversity scenario, considering the following definition: "Scenarios of biodiversity and ecosystem services are the outputs of the combination of scenarios of indirect drivers and direct drivers — such as land use change, invasive alien species, overexploitation, or pollution — and models of impacts of these drivers on biodiversity and ecosystem services." The Belmont Forum will support, on a competitive basis, collaborative projects co-designed by teams of researchers from at least three participating countries. Deadline, March 9. Read the full announcement.

The purpose of this program is to promote and strengthen the ability of Insular Area Institutions to carry out teaching and education programs within a broadly defined arena of food and agricultural sciences-related disciplines. By strengthening institutional educational capacities in instruction and curriculum and enhancing the quality of teaching and learning, NIFA intends that this program will help Insular Area Institutions meet their unique needs. Deadline, March 23. Read the full announcement.

This program supports research and extension projects that have robust collaborations to increase the participation of women and underrepresented minorities from rural areas in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields that are relevant to USDA priorities identified by the Secretary: (i) Promotion of a safe, sufficient, and nutritious food supply for all Americans and for people around the world; (ii) Sustainable agricultural policies that foster economic viability for small and mid-sized farms and rural businesses, protect natural resources, and promote value-added agriculture; (iii) National leadership in climate change mitigation and adaptation; (iv) Building a modern workplace with a modern workforce; and (v) Support for 21st century rural communities. Deadline, March 28. Read the full announcement.

The purpose of this program is to promote and strengthen the ability of Alaska Native-Serving Institutions and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions to carry out education, applied research, and related community development programs. NIFA intends this program to address educational needs, as determined by each institution, within a broadly defined arena of food and agricultural sciences-related disciplines. Priority will be given to those projects that enhance educational equity for underrepresented students; strengthen institutional educational capacities; prepare students for careers related to the food, agricultural, and natural resource systems of the United States; and maximize the development and use of resources to improve food and agricultural sciences teaching programs. Deadline, March 30. Read the full announcement.

The Secondary Education, Two-Year Postsecondary Education, and Agriculture in the K-12 Classroom Challenge Grants (SPECA) program seeks to: (a) promote and strengthen secondary education and two-year postsecondary education in the food, agriculture, natural resources and human (FANH) sciences in order to help ensure the existence of a workforce in the United States that's qualified to serve the FANH sciences system; and (b) promote complementary and synergistic linkages among secondary, two-year postsecondary, and higher education programs in the FANH sciences in order to advance excellence in education and encourage more young Americans to pursue and complete a baccalaureate or higher degree in the FANH sciences. Deadline, April 4. Read the full announcement.

The purpose of this program is strengthen the capacity of Institutions of Higher Education in Insular Areas to carry out resident instruction, curriculum, and teaching programs in the food and agricultural sciences through distance education technology. The Distance Education Grants Program for Institutions of Higher Education in Insular Areas (DEG) is a NIFA-administered competitive grants program focused on improving formal, postsecondary agricultural sciences education. Deadline, April 6. Read the full announcement.

Science News

Lead arsenate was a commonly-used pesticide in fruit tree orchards from the 1890s to 1940s, and elevated arsenic (As) levels persist in soils where lead arsenate was once applied. Many previous orchards have since been converted to cropland but are now being sold for residential and public use, potentially posing a lingering threat of arsenic-related illnesses to the public. In an upcoming issue of the Journal of Environmental Quality, scientists from the University of Delaware assess the environmental and human health risk associated with historic lead arsenate contamination. Read the full article.

The uproar following Stonyfield Farm’s recent Facebook video ad featuring elementary school-aged girls perpetuating GMO myths was widespread. Within hours, hundreds of consumers, farmers and scientists condemned the brand for spreading misinformation and fearmongering. And just like that, an “exciting” new ad quickly turned into a brand’s nightmare — but it didn’t have to go down like that. Here’s three things Stonyfield and other brands can takeaway from this experience. Read the full article.

About half of the military's infrastructure has been affected by extreme weather and other climate-related risks, according to a Pentagon report obtained by a nonpartisan climate think tank. The report surveyed more than 3,500 military sites around the world. It found that about 50% of bases reported effects from events like storm surge flooding, wildfire, drought and wind. The report is relatively narrow in scope. It examines only current climate-related effects rather than future effects of warming temperatures, and it does not offer cost estimates. Read the full article.

In agricultural regions such as the U.S. Midwest, excess nitrate from crop fertilizer makes its way into rivers and streams through subsurface drainage channels and agricultural ditches. High nitrate concentrations in waterways can be harmful to ecosystems and human health, contaminating drinking water and eventually flowing downstream far enough to increase the size of the Gulf of Mexico's "dead zone." A study published today in the journal Nature Geoscience by National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded researchers offers new insights into this problem: Multiple wetlands, or "wetland complexes" in a watershed, are extremely effective at reducing nitrate levels in rivers and streams. Read the full article.

It has long been recognized that inorganic nitrogen soil testing and estimates of mineralization from soil and plant organic matter are key to predicting fertilizer responses in semi-arid cropping systems. This carryover of nitrogen challenges our assumptions about crop nitrogen use efficiency from one season to the next. In a paper recently published in Agronomy Journal, researchers report on a multi-year study in the inland Pacific Northwest featuring an emerging rotation of spring canola-spring pea-winter wheat. The researchers measured yields, nitrogen uptake, and mineralization in subsequent seasons following spring canola that received low to high fertilization as well as winter wheat following pea. Read the full article.

Arctic permafrost is packed with the remains of ancient life made of carbon. In fact, there's more carbon in the permafrost than all the carbon humans have spewed into the atmosphere since the Industrial Revolution. Right now the permafrost carbon is inert and trapped in the frozen soil. But what happens when the soil thaws? When permafrost melts and carbon begin to percolate up through the thawing soil, it could form a feedback loop; the released gas warms the Earth, which in turn causes more gas to be released and more warming to occur. Read the full article.

The National Science Board released its policy companion statement to Science and Engineering Indicators 2018, “Our nation’s future competitiveness relies on building a STEM-capable U.S. workforce.” The statement underscores the Board’s view that growing the nation’s science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce is critical for our economy and global competitiveness. It offers recommendations for strengthening a diverse STEM-capable U.S. workforce inclusive of all levels of education. The new policy companion statement addresses the need to grow a STEM-capable U.S. workforce that leverages the talents of people at all education levels and in all sectors. Read the full article.

Amid the roaring debate on how to curb climate change in Bonn last year, an impasse was finally broken on agriculture. Both a cause and casualty of climate change, our food system accounts for up to 24% of greenhouse gas emissions. Yet hit by soaring temperatures and more frequent extreme weather, farming is becoming more difficult, as demand continues to increase. Positive agricultural interventions could achieve up to 6% of reduction emissions needed to achieve the Paris Agreement goals—showing that this sector is not only part of the problem, but part of the solution to climate change. Read the full article.

A tablespoon of soil contains billions of microscopic organisms. Life on Earth, especially the growing of food, depends on these microbes, but scientists don't even have names for most of them, much less a description. These microbes create fertile soils, help plants grow, consume and release carbon dioxide, oxygen and other vital elements. But they do it all anonymously. Scientists haven't identified most of these species and don't know much else about them, either. Some scientists call the community of soil microbes a "black box." You can't see inside. Read the full article.

Sources: USDA; NSF; AAAS; ScienceInsider; Washington Post; Nature; Research!America; Medium; Quartz; NPR; The Guardian

Vision: The Societies Washington, DC Science Policy Office (SPO) will advocate the importance and value of the agronomic, crop and soil sciences in developing national science policy and ensuring the necessary public-sector investment in the continued health of the environment for the well being of humanity. The SPO will assimilate, interpret, and disseminate in a timely manner to Society members information about relevant agricultural, natural resources and environmental legislation, rules and regulations under consideration by Congress and the Administration.

This page of the ASA-CSSA-SSSA web site will highlight current news items relevant to Science Policy. It is not an endorsement of any position.