Six minutes of news from around the nation.

Trump loyalist Kash Patel is confirmed as FBI director by the Senate despite deep Democratic doubts; TX leads nation in methane mitigation; NM's anti-hunger advocates make case for funding at Roundhouse; Judge denies unions' request to block mass firing of probationary employees, buyout offer; NC farmer's market, hike mark Black History Month.

Transcript

The Public News Service Daily Newscast, February the 21st, 2025.

I'm Mike Clifford.

The Senate Thursday narrowly voted to confirm Kash Patel as director of the FBI, moving to place him atop the nation's premier federal law enforcement agency, despite doubts from Democrats about his qualifications and concerns that he will do Donald Trump's bidding and go after the GOP president's adversaries.

That for the Associated Press.

They quote Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois as telling colleagues, "I cannot imagine a worse choice."

That before the 51-49 vote by the GOP-controlled Senate.

Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska were the lone Republican holdouts.

Next, the methane mitigation industry has experienced a surge in Texas and around the nation over the last decade.

A recent study found Texas has 293 mitigation industry employee sites. 71 of those companies are headquartered here.

Marcy Lowe with Datu Research says there are two types of firms that are helping oil and gas companies reduce methane emissions.

The manufacturers that make equipment that can help prevent leaks by having tighter seals and valves that don't fail and also the services that are provided by firms that perform leak detection for oil and gas operators.

She says the number of methane mitigation companies has increased by 24 percent from 215 in 2021 to 266 in 2024.

I'm Freda Ross reporting.

Texas has the most employees working in the methane mitigation industry followed by California, Colorado, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania.

And anti-hunger advocates and relief organizations are gathering at New Mexico's state capitol today as part of Hunger Action Day.

Advocates will urge lawmakers to adopt a budget that includes 30 million dollars over the next three years for New Mexico's five food banks.

Katie Anderson with Roadrunner Food Bank says the money would help their 500 statewide partners close the meal gap.

Many of our partners are in the basement of a church or in some kind of very small buildings and they might not have appropriate refrigeration or freezers or racks.

So some of that funding will help to support building up that infrastructure.

Every day, one in five New Mexico children face hunger or food insecurity.

I'm Roz Brown.

Next, a federal judge has denied federal labor unions' request to temporarily block the Trump administration from carrying out mass firing of probationary employees and deferred resignation offers, saying the court likely lacks subject matter jurisdiction over the matter.

That's from ABC News.

They report instead the judge Christopher Cooper overseeing the matter wrote in his ruling that the matter should be brought before the Federal Labor Relations Authority.

This is Public News Service.

Next to North Carolina, where an urban farm is celebrating Black History Month this weekend with a farmer's market and historic group hike.

Urban Community Agronomics or UCAN in Durham is holding its farmer's market at Catawba Trail Farm.

It's also inviting people on a hike through an old plantation where the organization has reclaimed an old farmstead.

Head of UCAN Delphine Sellers says the legacy of agriculture is important for people of color.

We as the descendants are now farming and dealing with agriculture not because we have to, but because we want to and we realize the benefits of it.

The plantation where UCAN is reclaiming farming was one of the biggest in the North Carolina plantation system and at times held more than 1,000 enslaved people.

I'm Eric Tegethoff reporting.

And if Minnesota wants a strong network of up-and-coming farmers, including those who want to farm on healthier land, the state can help them become business savvy.

A Minnesota House measure would increase the budget for an initiative that funds instructors who guide beginning farmers on the financial side of running a farm.

Those who testified in support say unlike previous generations, young adults who grow up in a farming family aren't learning all aspects of the job before deciding to follow in their parents' footsteps.

That was the case for Hannah Bernhardt who owns Medicine Creek Farm in Pine County.

When I started my farm, I knew how to rotationally graze and to care for livestock, but I'd never even looked at QuickBooks, let alone applied for a business loan.

A scholarship allowed her to train under the Farm Business Management Program, easing concerns about her money decisions.

Program funding would increase by $1.5 million, but it's unclear how far the bill will go.

I'm Mike Moen.

Finally, one researcher at the University of Nevada, Reno, has developed what she calls revolutionary sorghum varieties for daily cow feed and gluten-free human foods.

Associate Professor of Agriculture Melinda Yurka says the western U.S. is facing accelerated rates of climate change and drought, highlighting the need for resilient alternatives.

She adds the traditional crops grown in Nevada, like alfalfa to feed beef cows and corn for dairy cows, are struggling to keep up.

The sorghum varieties Yurka and her team have developed now may allow farmers in the region and globally to be better prepared in the face of a hotter and drier climate.

Sorghum is a very good alternative grain crop for various uses.

Primarily it's used as an animal feed in the United States, but it also is an alternative crop to replace corn, for example, in dairy silages.

Yurka explains that dairy silage is fermented feed that's curated to feed dairy cows and in turn provides them with the required energy and nutrition to produce milk.

I'm Alex Gonzalez reporting.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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