January 2008 AALS Annual Meeting Program - Section on Agricultural Law

The Section on Agricultural Law will have a panel discussion on the following topic at the 2008 Annual Meeting of the AALS:




Energy, Food, and the Environment: Agriculture's Future

The panelists will discuss the challenges facing agriculture as an energy source. For years, we have considered the environmental impacts of agricultural production, the relative lack of regulatory controls, and policy justifications for treating farming and farmers differently. In so doing, the political goodwill that farmers enjoy with the urban electorate and the primary function of agriculture—food production—have been paramount. As energy agriculture takes root, we must reconsider the historical justifications for farm policy, integrate energy policy, and further examine the need for environmental controls to reign in the harms associated with intensive production agriculture.

J.B. Ruhl of Florida State University College of Law will discuss the evolution and current state of environmental controls placed on agricultural production. Drew Kershen of the University of Oklahoma College of Law will discuss the ways in which technological changes in agricultural production may be called upon to meet the new set of challenges facing the industry. Finally, Neil Hamilton of Drake University Law School will discuss the food policy implications of the biofuels boom. Each speaker will bring a unique approach to addressing these aspects of agriculture's future.

I will post a link to the registration information when it become available. I anticipate it will be available at this link.

Updated Panelists (6/13/07): Unfortunately, Mr. Kershen will be unable to participate in the year's conference. But Christopher Kelley has agreed to join the panel. Mr. Kelley will discuss one of the paramount and global challenges facing agriculture's future--water.