The Monitor - Conservation Workshop

Soil and Irrigation Conservation Workshop slated for Aug. 24

ROD SANTA ANA

WESLACO – Agricultural producers throughout the Rio Grande Valley are invited to spend half a day with soil, water and farming operations experts who will offer expertise on new technologies in soil and water management, as well as funding opportunities and financial technical support for farming operations, organizers say.

The Soil and Irrigation Conservation Workshop will be held from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Aug. 24 at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Weslaco.

The center is located at 2401 E. U.S. Highway 83 in Weslaco. Breakfast and registration begin at 8 a.m. and speakers begin at

8:30 a.m.

“The objective of this educational event is to present research-based information to growers on new technologies that we are already using and others we will soon be using to help growers better manage their soil and water resources,” said Dr. Juan Enciso, the Texas A&M AgriLife Research irrigation engineer in Weslaco.

Enciso said weather stations that calculate heat and chilling units, among other parameters, provide data to an online site that growers can use to better schedule irrigation on a variety of crops, including sugarcane, citrus, corn, cotton, onions and watermelons.

The site can be found at http://southtexasweather.tamu.edu .

“The website also provides historical weather data that one can download,” he said. “This can be especially useful in making a variety of decisions, especially when and how much to irrigate, depending on assorted conditions.”

Enciso said another application will soon be added to the system to calculate water requirements for turf irrigation in urban areas.

“While we’re anxious to share the information we’ve developed and invite growers to use our internet site, we also need the grower input and feedback about our programs,” he said. “They are the end-users and their experiences and opinions are very important in improving our assistance to them.”

Speakers and topics include:

-- Rolando Zamora, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Raymondville, welcome and moderator.

-- Enciso, Victor Gutierrez, AgriLife Extension Texas Water Resources Institute, Weslaco, Internet Weather-Based Tools for Irrigation Management.

-- James Henderson, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service agronomist, Corpus Christi, “Soil Health for Maximum Productivity.

-- Ray Hinojosa, USDA NRCS district conservationist, Harlingen, USDA-NRCS Programs.

-- Dr. Ismael E. Badillo-Vargas, Texas A&M AgriLife Research insect vector entomologist, Weslaco, Concepts in Integrated Pest Management.

-- Dr. Enrique Perez, AgriLife Extension county agent for Cameron County, San Benito, Nutrient Management.

-- Chris Perez, USDA-Farm Service Agency county executive director, Harlingen, USDA-FSA Commodity Program.

-- Ricardo Chapa, Texas State Soil, Water Conservation Board regional manager, McAllen, Texas State Soil and Conservation Board.

-- Arnulfo Lerma, USDA-FSA farm loan manager, McAllen, USDA-FMA Farm Loan Programs.

-- Vidal Saenz, Prairie View Cooperative Extension agent, Edinburg, Technical Assistance with FSA Farm Loan Applications.

Enciso said three Texas Department of Agriculture continuing education units will be available.

For more information, contact your county AgriLife Extension office. In Hidalgo County call Saenz at 956-383-1026; in Cameron County call Perez at 956-361-8236; or in Willacy County, Rolando Zamora at 956-689-2412.

The Brownsville Herald- Starr County Wind Farm

Wind farm project completed in Starr County

BY BERENICE GARCIA

NEAR RIO GRANDE CITY — The latest phase of a wind farm project is now fully operational in Starr County.

Duke Energy Renewables completed its third stage of Los Vientos, which began in 2013.

In Starr County, the company completed stages III, IV, and V, of the project for a total of 426 turbines in the area. The first two Los Vientos projects are located in Willacy County, where the company constructed 171 turbines.

Vestas Wind Systems, a Danish manufacturer of wind turbines supplied 100 V110-2.0 MW turbines for Los Vientos IV and will service the project under a three-year operations and maintenance agreement.

Duke Energy has installed more than 1,500 megawatts of wind energy in the state, which is more than double the wind capacity it owns in other states combined.

“With 500 MW of that total in Starr County, we’d like to thank county leaders and our business partners for helping us deliver clean, low-cost renewable energy to South Texas customers and provide economic benefits to this region,” Rob Caldwell, president of Duke Energy, said in a news release.

“Duke Energy has been a great partner and member of our community,” Starr County Judge Eloy Vera, stated in the release. “We look forward to continuing with them to provide more wind farm opportunities for our residences.”

To read more follow the link below:

http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/valley/article_843a403a-6286-11e6-a6dc-4fb55655e42d.html

The Brownsville Herald - Potential Business for Harlingen Port

Mexico’s new energy policy could be boon for Harlingen port

By RICK KELLEY

HARLINGEN — Driven by industrial and power sector demand, the Mexican government is moving to deregulate its energy industry, providing new openings for U.S. gasoline, natural gas and other fuels.

Walker Smith, director of the Port of Harlingen, said the move to deregulate its energy sector could make the Port of Harlingen a much bigger player when it comes to unloading oil, diesel, propane and similar products from barges and putting them into rail or truck tankers for transport across the border.

Mexico’s state petroleum industry, Pemex, can’t keep up with the increasing demand, Smith said.

“I’m getting calls constantly about companies wanting to come into the Port of Harlingen because of where we’re situated and to take advantage of the Los Indios bridge crossing,” he said. Delays there are far shorter than at other border bridge crossings like Reynosa’s.

Smith, speaking before the Harlingen Economic Development Corp. earlier this month, said U.S. companies are prepared to move aggressively to capture a portion of the opening energy market in Mexico.