Month: January 2012

AEDE New Faculty: Sathya Gopalakrishnan

The Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics (AEDE) at The Ohio State University, is welcoming several new faculty during the 2011-2012 academic year.  This month we highlight Professor Gopalakrishnan, who teaches several key environmental and resource economics courses in the department.  Here’s Sathya’s short biography and statement of interests:

I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics at The Ohio State University. I obtained a PhD in Environmental and Resource Economics from Duke University in 2010. I also have a Master of Science degree in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University and a Master of Arts in Economics from the University of Hyderabad, India. I am originally from Chennai (Madras), India.

An interest in exploring the ubiquitous interdependencies between economic agents with conflicting interests and dynamic natural resources motivates my research. I study feedbacks between physical processes and economic decisions, and the policy implications of these interconnected dynamic systems. I have a specific interest in coupled models of complex coastal (physical) and economic systems, non-market valuation of environmental amenities and bioeconomic modeling. When I am not working, I enjoy classical Indian Music and nurture my interest vegetarian cooking.

Welcome Sathya!

Departmental Website: http://aede.osu.edu/about-us/our-people/sathya-gopalakrishnan    

Publications in GoogleScholar: http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&q=Sathya+Gopalakrishnan&btnG=Search&as_allsubj=some&as_subj=bus&as_sdt=1%2C36&as_ylo=&as_vis=0

Ohio Farm Custom Rate Survey 2012

Barry Ward, Leader, Production Business Management, OSU Extension

Custom farming providers and customers often arrive at an agreeable custom farming machinery rate by utilizing Extension surveys results. Ohio State University Extension collects surveys and publishes survey results from the Ohio Farm Custom Survey every other year. This year we are updating our published custom farm rates for Ohio.

 We need your assistance in securing up-to-date information about farm custom work rates, machinery and building rental rates and hired labor costs in Ohio. 

Please download the Ohio Farm Custom Rates 2012 survey and respond even if you know only a few rates.  We want information on actual rates, either what you paid to hire work or what you charged if you perform custom work. Custom Rates should include all ownership costs of implement & tractor (if needed), operator labor, fuel and lube. If fuel is not included in your custom rate charge there is a place on the survey to indicate this.

The survey is available for download as a Word document at:

http://aede.osu.edu/sites/drupal-aede.web/files/Custom%20Rate%20Survey%20Instrument%202012%20Survey.doc

 Or you may access the survey at:

 http://aede.osu.edu/programs-and-research/osu-farm-management/publications

Surveys can be completed and returned via email, mail or fax.

 email   ward.8@osu.edu

Fax     (614) 292-4749

 Address:   Attn: Barry Ward, The Ohio State University, Department of AEDE, Agricultural Administration Building, 2120 Fyffe Road, Columbus, Ohio 43210-1067

Ag Lease 101 – New Website Housing North Central Lease Bulletins and Sample Leases

Barry Ward, Leader, Production Business Management

More than half the cropland in the North Central Region of the United States is rented. Rental rate and leasing information is highly sought by both land owners and land operators.

AgLease101.org includes multi-state materials which help land owners and land operators discuss and resolve issues to avoid legal risk. The website also guides both land owners and land operators towards informed and equitable decisions.

AgLease101 was created by a team of economists and attorneys as a part of the North Central Farm Management Extension Committee. AgLease101 is online at: http://www.aglease101.org/

The “Document Library” within AgLease101 contains the newly revised bulletins and sample leases in pdf format for free download and use. The sample lease forms are all in a fillable pdf format to allow users to input their own lease values and other specifics.

Revised Lease Bulletins include:

Fixed and Flexible Cash Rental Arrangements For Your Farm (NCFMEC-01)

Crop Share Rental Arrangements For Your Farm (NCFMEC-02)

Pasture Rental Arrangements For Your Farm (NCFMEC-03)

Newly revised sample leases include:

Fixed and Flexible Cash Rental Arrangements For Your Farm (NCFMEC-01A)

Crop Share Rental Arrangements For Your Farm (NCFMEC-02A)

Pasture Rental Arrangements For Your Farm (NCFMEC-03A)

AgLease101 also includes a section of “Frequently Asked Questions” (FAQ) and a section “For Educators” that includes curriculum, teaching materials and web resources that can be used by state and county level Extension educators to conduct producer land rent / leasing workshops.

The North Central Farm Management Extension Committee is comprised of Extension Educators from the North Central Region of the United States. They provide leadership in the development of high quality research based extension programs and publications that anticipate and meet the ever changing business management educational needs of agricultural producers of the North Central States. Their programs and publications capitalize on the expertise of farm management faculty from throughout the region and country.

Ohio Court of Appeals Denies Township Challenge to ODA Anhydrous Regulations

A claim that the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s (ODA) anhydrous ammonia regulations are unreasonable and fail to protect public health and safety has again been rejected by the courts.  A recent decision by Ohio’s Fifth District Court of Appeals concluded that the challenge by Sharon Township’s Board of Trustees in Medina County failed to establish a valid legal claim.

The case raised considerable controversy in Sharon Township, where the owner of South Spring Farms requested ODA approval to install a 12,000 gallon anhydrous ammonia storage tank.   Ohio law grants ODA the authority to adopt rules concerning the handling and storage of anhydrous ammonia and other fertilizers and also prohibits any local regulation of fertilizers.   ODA created anhydrous regulations in the late 1970s; those regulations require ODA approval of the location and design of a stationary ammonia system.

ODA approved South Spring Farms’ application in 2010 and granted a permit for installation of the tanks.  Sharon Township filed a lawsuit against ODA, asking the trial court to grant an injunction prohibiting the ODA from permitting the installation of anhydrous storage tanks “until the ODA established regulations which would reasonably protect the health, safety, and welfare of people and property which can be reasonably foreseen to be exposed to the toxic and deadly effect of an uncontrolled release of this dangerous material, anhydrous ammonia.”

The legal basis for the denial of Sharon Township’s request for an injunction by both the trial and appeals courts concerns the issue of whether there is a “real and substantial controversy” that necessitates injunctive relief by the court, rather than “an opinion advising what the law would be upon a hypothetical state of facts.”  The Court of Appeals could not find any support for Sharon Township’s claim that the ODA regulations are unreasonable or fail to protect public health and safety.  Without such support, the court concluded that there was no controversy it could resolve.  Granting the township’s request for an injunction would thus amount to “judicial legislation,” said the court.

The case is one that raises questions about the relationships between agriculture and its surrounding communities.  Are communities becoming less willing to tolerate agricultural activities, even though Ohio laws are often set up to support and encourage agriculture?

The use of anhydrous ammonia is a routine practice farmers have engaged in for several decades, yet it upset a surprising number of local leaders and residents in this instance.  The large size of the tank may have been a factor, as well as the extent of non-farm residents in the area.  In addition to the possibility of a leak or spill, concerns raised by the community included proximity to many residents, fear of tampering by methamphetamine producers, an earlier chemical spill by the farm and lack of requirements for fencing.  Whether these are real or perceived threats, the fact that they were raised so strongly and taken to the court of appeals gives us cause for concern.

The case is Bd. of Twp. Trustees Sharon Twp. v. Zehringer, 2011-Ohio-6885 (Dec. 28, 2011).