Davis, Calif., (October 30, 2017) – If you’ve ever raised chickens, you know they like to eat bugs. But does the amount of insects included in their diet have an effect on the eggs they produce? That’s the question University of California, Davis, researchers have set out to answer with a project to determine if feeding hens a diet supplemented with black soldier fly larvae will cause their eggs to taste or look different.
Oscar Martinez, fourth year animal science major feeds hens that are part of UC Davis pastured poultry project. (Trina Wood/ UC Davis)
Currently, farmers are allowed to add synthetic methionine, a synthetic amino acid, to organic poultry feed to improve the birds’ health and egg production. But the National Organic Standards Board (a federal advisory board) has expressed their desire to phase out synthetic methionine from organic poultry feed.
Why black fly larvae?
The fly larvae are a natural source of methionine — an important nutrient for chickens. But other natural replacements haven’t worked out so well. Adding fishmeal to feed has been widely studied, but in North America, when used at the levels needed to balance the dietary amino acids, fishmeal is cost-prohibitive and imparts a fishy taste to the meat and eggs.
Researchers will have consumers taste test eggs from chickens that have received feed containing 20 percent, 15 percent, 10 percent and 5 percent black soldier fly larvae to see if it affects the eating experience.
The larvae are produced in Professor Jean VanderGheynst’s lab on campus and also purchased from commercial sources. The larvae are processed, dried and ground into the chicken feed.
The project may lead to improved poultry health while reducing the amount of corn and soy used in chicken feed. The corn and soy saved could be diverted for other uses, including biofuels and additional calories for humans.
The experiment is being supported by the Methionine Task Force, which represents organic poultry producers across the U.S.
The collaborative project is led by Maurice Pitesky, UC Cooperative Extension poultry specialist with UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources; Deb Niemeier, professor from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; and Jean VanderGheynst, professor in the Department of Biological Agricultural Engineering. It also involves UC Davis Dining Services, Animal Science, School of Veterinary Medicine, Bio-Ag Engineering, Civil Engineering, graduate student Lydia Palma and approximately 10 animal science and engineering undergraduate students.
Parlier, Calif., (October 30, 2017) – Given California’s changing climate, should Sierra Nevada residents replant pine trees after so many died during the 2010-2016 drought? The short answer is yes, says Susie Kocher, UC Cooperative Extension forestry advisor.
Dead trees can be seen in the foreground and on the distant mountain side. (Click on photos for higher resolution.)
“We have every reason to believe that pines will continue to be an important part of mixed conifer forests in the Sierras,” Kocher said.
Kocher spoke at a meeting for UC Master Gardeners, volunteers who provide landscape advice to the public in California. Questions have been coming in to Master Gardener hotlines from mountain residents wondering what to do after unprecedented tree loses in the last few years.
Most California forests are suffering from severe overcrowding due to 100 years of aggressive fire suppression and selective harvesting of the largest and most resilient trees. They were then subjected to five years of drought.
“There were just too many stems in the ground,” Kocher said. “The drought was very warm, so trees needed more water, but got less. These were optimal conditions for bark beetles.”
Healthy pine trees can fight off bark beetle attack by secreting pitch. Trees weakened by drought are unable to fend off an attack. In this photo, a pine beetle is stuck in pitch that oozed from the tree.
Western pine beetle is a native pest that attacks larger ponderosa pine and Coulter pine trees weakened by disease, fire, injury, or water stress. Bark beetles are tree species specific, so other beetles target other species of trees in California’s mixed conifer forests. Typically, bark beetles bore through tree bark and create long winding tunnels in the phloem. An aggregating pheromone attracts additional bark beetles to the tree, and heavily attacked trees invariably die.
During the drought, 102 million Sierra Nevada trees died from bark beetle attack or simply lack of water; 68 million of those died in 2016 alone. But after the abundant rainfall in the 2016-17 season, the bark beetle population seems to have crashed.
Landowners with 20 acres or more may be eligible for a state cost-sharing program to remove trees, reduce the fire hazard and replant new seedlings. Landowners in mountain communities who wish to revitalize their properties can contact local UC Master Gardeners for recovery advice.
Evidence of bark beetle attack are exit holes on the outside, left, and winding galleries under the bark.
UC Master Gardeners are plant enthusiasts who have passed an intense training program presented by UC academics. They participate in continuing education annually to update and maintain their knowledge. More than 60 Master Gardeners from Mariposa, Madera and Fresno counties gathered in Oakhurst in October to learn from UC scientists how to work with mountain homeowners whose towering trees have died. Similar training sessions, all funded by a grant from UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, were held in El Dorado and Tuolumne counties in June.
“There is life after beetles,” said Jodi Axelson, UC Cooperative Extension forestry specialist at UC Berkeley.
“Eco systems are stretched, and then they come back,” she said. “You must remember the time scale of forest change is long and pines have been a major species in the Sierra Nevada for at least 28,000 years. As long as there have been pines, there have been bark beetles.”
UCCE specialist Jodi Axelson points out bark beetle damage.
The scientists suggest that people who own forestland take a step back and assess the landscape after their dead trees have been removed.
“We’re seeing a lot of young cedar and white fir surviving the drought. Oaks seems to be doing really well,” Kocher said.
She suggests landowners thin young trees so available sun and soil moisture are focused on the healthiest trees. Water seedlings that are receiving more sun than before to reduce stress. Planting native conifers is the best option. Due to climate change, she recommends choosing trees from a slightly lower elevation to hedge against warmer temperatures in the future.
Pines are adapted to the California forest, but may need help to regenerate. When the ground is moist in the late fall or spring, plant seedlings 10 to 14 feet apart. New trees should be planted well away from homes to maintain defensible space and at least 10 feet from power lines.
UC Master Gardeners learn from experts about replanting conifer forests.
“Please don’t set them up for future torture,” Kocher said. “That’s just sad.”
To help the new trees become established, cover the ground around the tree, but not touching the bark, with two or three inches of mulch and irrigate weekly during the dry season for the first few years.
Questions about special circumstances may be directed to local UC Master Gardeners. Find the local program here: http://mg.ucanr.edu/FindUs/
Fresno, Calif., (October 30, 2017) – “There’s not enough water in California.” It’s a common refrain from anti- farming activists who are using that argument to promote restrictions on agricultural water use. Although the state’s water supply is at a high level, there is no doubt that when the supply is reduced, the activists will return to their e ort to restrict water to Westlands and other agricultural districts. And they will rely on the same misinformation to make the case that California’s water supply is insu cient to provide enough water for urban, agricultural, and environmental water use.
These same activists claim that agriculture is using 80% of the state’s water resources and that as a result, policies such as land retirement, crop dictation, and groundwater restrictions need to be imposed to protect urban and environmental water use.
Westlands and other agriculture districts have pushed back against the misinformation but this false narrative continues to have an impact on the debates that shape policy-making.
For that reason, the Westlands’ public a airs sta is accelerating e orts to educate policy-makers and the public about water supply allocations. We intend to show that when our water is properly managed, the state has adequate supply to for residential, agricultural and environmental uses. While the activists want to discount a substantial amount of the water supply to arrive at a high usage number for agriculture, Westlands will be using accurate numbers that show how much water is available for all uses.
Here’s the di erence between “fake news” and reality: the Water Agency Inc. reports that between October 1, 2016 and August 6, 2017, the water supply and allocation system experienced the following:
52,102,700AF of water owed into the Delta and was available for the environment, residential, and agricultural use
2,247,400AF (which equals 3% of the Delta in ow) owed to Central Valley Project (CVP) contractors and 2,931,100AF (which equals 5.6% of the Delta in ow) owed to State Water Project (SWP) contractors.
46,742,500AF (which equals 7% of the Delta in ow) owed to the ocean.
Contrary to the claims of the activists, and despite experiencing almost NO water delivery restrictions in 2017 because of this year’s historic hydrology, almost 90% of the water that ows into the Delta ends up in the ocean.
This is only one example of the ongoing e ort to provide a fact- based narrative to the public and decisionmakers. As a priority matter, Westlands will be educating policy-makers about the facts about agriculture and urban jobs that rely on a stable water supply.
By Johnny Amaral, Deputy General Manager of External A airs Westlands Water District
Visalia, Calif., (October 27, 2017) – Tulare County Agricultural Commissioner released the current status today of Major crops in the most valued county in the California Ag portfolio. They report that Cotton is being harvested for lint and seed, and farmers are expecting a decent yield. Alfalfa fields are still going strong, and continue to be irrigated, cut, and baled. Sorghum fields are being harvested. Most summer crops have been harvested, and fields are being worked and having fertilizer spread for winter planting. Seed is being shipped in for winter planting.
Stone fruit season is all but finished, with a few being exported to Canada, Chile, Mexico, and New Zealand. Soil amendments are being applied to some stone fruit orchards. Pistachio harvest is wrapping up, with a few exports to Hong Kong, Israel, and Turkey. Almonds are being exported to Argentina, Chile, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates. Walnuts continue to be harvested. Table grape harvest continues, and are being exported to Australia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad & Tobago, and Vietnam. Thompson seedless grapes are being rolled and picked up for raisins. Pomegranate harvest continues, with shipments going to Australia, Brazil, Korea, and domestic markets. Kiwifruit are being harvested, and exported to Mexico and Panama. Persimmon harvest is underway, with the cooler weather helping external color.
Early navel oranges are being picked and tested for maturity. Navel oranges are also starting to hit the domestic market. Valencia oranges are finishing up, with a small amount going to domestic markets. Citrus orchards are being skirted and trimmed for the coming season. Melogold grapefruit are being picked and exported to Japan and Korea Limes are being exported to Japan, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. Lemons are being picked and shipped domestically. The olive crop is heavy and continues to be harvested.
Pumpkins and specialty pumpkins are available for those looking to buy. Certified producers are picking tomatoes, sweet corn, okra, cucumbers, squash, and peppers. Commercial plantings of Yellow squash, eggplant, Bell peppers, Green Chili peppers, and cucumbers are being harvested and shipped domestically. Fall vegetables are developing well, and some early varieties are almost ready for harvest. Some strawberries continue to grow at roadside stands.
Rangeland quality and forage is seen as only adequate for this time of year. The fed cattle market price is up to $111.00 per hundred weight. The milk price for local dairymen is sitting around $15 per hundred weight. Harvested grain fields continue to be sheeped-off in southern portions of the county.
Nursery shipments continue to be slow. Wholesale nurseries are shipping small amounts of stock to local and out-of-state retail outlets. Potted roses are being shipped to Texas. New ag wells continue to be drilled.
Davis, Calif., (October 27, 2017) – Training people to farm is successfully preparing them for careers, according to a new report from the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. Their report, “Cultivating the Next Generation,” evaluates the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program, which was funded in the 2008 Farm Bill.
Since 2008, USDA has invested roughly $150 million in more than 250 new farmer training projects across the country.
According to a national survey, Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program-funded project leaders estimated that over half of their participants are now engaged in a farming career, and that nearly three-quarters of them felt more prepared for a successful career in agriculture after completing the program.
The Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program has also helped nonprofit and community-based organizations, along with their academic partners, to build their capacity and serve more farmers with better services.
In California, UC Cooperative Extension has been providing beginning farming and farm business planning training in Placer and Nevada counties for over a decade. In a 2016 survey of Placer and Nevada county producers, 72 percent of respondents said they had taken one or more business classes from UCCE and another 9 percent had taken other business training. The training appeared to make a difference in their success.
“In a survey of local producers, over 90 percent were profitable as compared to 25 percent on the last national ag census,” said Cindy Fake, director of UC Cooperative Extension in Placer and Nevada counties.
In Sonoma County, UC Cooperative Extension offers “FARMING 101” workshops on the second Tuesday of the month. Experienced farmers, ranchers, and business specialists share a broad range of practical skills that new farmers and ranchers need to know. They also have resources at http://cesonoma.ucanr.edu/New_to_Sonoma_County_Ag to help new farmers and ranchers create a business plan and connect with mentors.
“For me, the full-time job I received is the direct result of my participation in the class,” wrote one Sonoma County participant. “Our products there provide 20 dozen eggs to three restaurants weekly in Healdsburg, and an average of 60 tons of wine grapes to two wineries annually.”
Jennifer Sowerwine, UC Cooperative Extension specialist at UC Berkeley, served on an advisory board for the USDA program’s evaluation. The report gave her ideas for improving training for California’s aspiring farmers and ranchers.
“There is an opportunity for UC ANR to take more advantage of Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program funding to increase our support for beginning farmers and ranchers,” said Sowerwine.
According to the report, more beginning farmer training programs are led by the nonprofit sector than by land grant universities – 56 percent of all programs were led by nonprofits, 40 percent were led by land grant universities and 4 percent were led by other universities.
“There is an opportunity to deepen UC ANR support for beginning farmers in accessing land, capital and farm business management training,” Sowerwine said. “In addition to UC ANR’s valued expertise in providing technical assistance to beginning farmers, we can also foster more farmer-to-farmer mentoring and networking opportunities for beginning farmers and ranchers to enhance their support systems.”
She also sees opportunities to incorporate more principles of adult education – such as engaging participants in the design and evaluation of the training and offering more hands-on, experiential learning activities using multisensory techniques – which were found to be highly effective practices in training beginning farmers.
Sowerwine is wrapping up a three-year beginning farmer and rancher project titled, “Growing Roots: Deepening Support for Diverse New Farmers and Ranchers in California.” Christy Getz, UC Cooperative Extension specialist at UC Berkeley, and Rob Bennaton, UC Cooperative Extension urban agriculture advisor, and Sowerwine, together with their nonprofit partners, have trained 340 beginning farmers and ranchers in 10 counties to help improve the economic viability and ecological sustainability of their agricultural operations.
The training is offered in Alameda, Contra Costa, Fresno, Merced, Monterey, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Santa Clara, Stanislaus and Yolo counties. Most of the participants are Southeast Asian, Latino and other immigrant farmers in urban, peri-urban and rural areas, along with low-income urban farmers.
By partnering with National Center for Appropriate Technology, Sustainable Agriculture Education, the Alameda County Resource Conservation District and UC Cooperative Extension colleagues in Alameda and Contra Costa counties, the team has been offering in-depth, culturally and regionally appropriate workshops and technical assistance. They also developed materials about business planning and marketing, hosted field days and farmer tours to observe organic and sustainable farming and ranching practices, and provided opportunities for the new farmers to network with other farmers.
“Collectively our project has reached 5,050 participants to date,” Sowerwine said, noting that many are people who have attended multiple events. Of the 3,485 who filled out evaluations, 89 percent reported an increase in their knowledge of workshop and field day topics and 73 percent reported plans to change their farming or business practices based on what they learned.
“We are in the process of evaluating how many have adopted practices based on what they learned,” Sowerwine said. “Based on what we learned, we are developing culturally relevant training tools in various languages.”
Rob Bennaton, UC Cooperative Extension advisor, (in white t-shirt) talks with beginning urban farmers at the UC Gill Tract Community Farm.Roger Ingram, UC Cooperative Extension farm advisor emeritus, teaches livestock grazing techniques.Workshop participants observe safe pruning techniques for fruit and nut trees.Jennifer Sowerwine describes how to make a sanitizing solution for harvest buckets for food safety.
Sacramento, Calif., (October 27, 2017) – The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) has awarded $35.2 million in grant funding to 18 dairy digester projects across the state. These projects, part of the Dairy Digester Research and Development Program, will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from manure on California dairy farms.
“California continues to the lead the nation in supporting smart climate programs that address on-farm challenges and promote agricultural sustainability,” said CDFA Secretary Karen Ross. “I applaud our dairy farmers for proactively addressing climate pollutants and reducing overall greenhouse emissions to help meet the state’s climate goals.”
Dairy manure produces methane when it decomposes. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas that traps more than 80 times as much heat in the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. Dairy digesters help capture methane emissions, which can be used to produce electricity or natural gas.
CDFA also administers the Alternative Manure Management Program, which promotes non-digester manure management practices in California dairy and livestock operations to reduce methane emissions. CDFA received 53 applications by the Oct. 16, 2017 deadline, requesting a total of $29.5 million in grants. These applications are currently under review
Financial assistance for the installation of dairy digesters comes from California Climate Investments, a statewide initiative that uses Cap-and-Trade program funds to support the state’s climate goals. CDFA and other state agencies are investing these proceeds in projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide additional benefits to California communities. Dairy digester grant recipients will provide an estimated $71.2 million in matching funds for the development of their projects.
Information about the 2017 Dairy Digester Research and Development Program projects is available at www.cdfa.ca.gov/go/dd.
Sacramento, Calif., (October 26, 2017) – With thousands of Californians suffering devastating losses due to recent wildfires, CDFA is offering a web page with resources for recovery.
Included is a program from the California Employment Development Department (EDD) for individual assistance to those who have lost their jobs during the fires, in Butte, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Orange, Sonoma and Yuba counties. This is federal assistance administered by EDD that provides temporary unemployment benefits to people whose jobs or work hours were directly impacted by the fires.
The USDA has multiple agencies that provide financial and/or technical assistance to help farmers, ranchers and rural landowners recover from natural disasters such as wildfires. The web page contains information about programs from the Farm Service Agency, the Risk Management Agency, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Rural Development agency.
Additionally, expertise and assistance on particular subjects (e.g. re-seeding, erosion & flooding, livestock, salvage logging, or reforestation) may be available through local or regional University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) Extension offices.
The page also includes a link to the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services for a roster of local assistance centers as well as information about debris removal.
Davis, Calif., (October 26, 2017) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is targeting $4 million to help farmers, ranchers, and forest land owners in California recover from the recent wildfires. USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will issue waivers for those interested in the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to enable recovery work to begin immediately. This is one of several disaster assistance program available through USDA to support recovery efforts for individuals and communities.
NRCS will immediately begin accepting applications for its EQIP Catastrophic Fire Recovery fund pool to assist producers in covering the cost of certain rehabilitation practices, such as creating check dams in drainages, using damaged trees to slow runoff, repairing culvert systems, and planting tree seedlings. NRCS is waiving the standard 30-day application ranking period and is accepting applications for this initial fund pool through November 6, 2017.
“NRCS is committed to getting assistance out as soon as possible, and we are cutting some red tape to allow people to get to work immediately,” said Curtis Tarver, NRCS California acting state conservationist. “We encourage producers to visit their local USDA service center to submit an application and work with staff to begin recovery.”
NRCS is also offering technical and educational assistance to fire-impacted landowners faced with erosion and flooding in a damaged watershed. NRCS conservationists have expertise in erosion, hydrophobic soils, and the use of measures (such as sand bags, mulching, etc.) to mitigate damage to the landscape.
Additional USDA Assistance Available: NRCS, Farm Service Agency (FSA), and Risk Management Agency (RMA) in California are planning to meet with landowners, partners and other agencies to assess damages and discuss technical and financial assistance. Public workshops will be scheduled once the fires are contained.
FSA can help farmers and ranchers with a range of disaster assistance including compensation for livestock death and feed losses, risk coverage for specialty crops, and repair of damage to agricultural and private forest land. For example, the FSA Emergency Conservation Program provides funding and technical assistance to rehabilitate farmland damaged by natural disasters. One of the most helpful practices under this program after a wildfire is fence restoration.
“FSA has a number of programs to help wildfire-impacted producers get back on their feet,” said Jacque Johnson, Acting California FSA Executive Director. “I want to encourage farmers and ranchers to contact their local FSA office to find out about resources available to them.”
FSA’s suite of safety-net programs to help producers recover from eligible losses, includes:
Additionally, producers located in counties that receive a primary or contiguous disaster designation are eligible for low-interest emergency loans to help them recover from production and physical losses.
Compensation is also available to producers who purchased coverage through the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program, which protects non-insurable crops (including native grass for grazing) against natural disasters that result in lower yields, crop losses or prevented planting.
Federal crop insurance protects producers against losses due to natural perils, such as wildfires. The program, administered by RMA, offers several plans for crops and livestock in California. Those who purchased Federal crop insurance will be paid for covered losses. Federal crop insurance benefits not just our rural economy, but the financial strength of the nation, by helping America’s farmers and ranchers overcome unexpected events and catastrophes. Producers with coverage should contact their insurance agent for questions regarding claims.
Watershed Assistance: USDA assists communities with rebuilding efforts following imminent hazards to life and property caused by natural disasters. Through the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) Program, NRCS works with local government entities and Tribes in impacted counties to remove debris, stabilize streambanks, fix water control structures, among other practices.
“EWP allows us to provide immediate assistance to communities to mitigate potential hazards to life and property resulting from the fires,” said Tarver with NRCS. “It is work we can do with a local sponsor to help a damaged watershed channel water and mitigate erosion so that lives and property are protected and additional hardships are not heaped upon the devastated community.”
With the high potential for winter rains, burned areas are at greater risk for erosion and mudflows and EWP-type services are key to preventing further damage. The program requires local government bodies or other sponsor to assist with on-the-ground work including concrete barriers and debris basins, mulching, straw wattles, and other damage control measures.
More Information: For more information on available NRCS, FSA or RMA assistance, contact a local field office, or visit www.usda.gov.
A wind-driven fire glows ominously over homes in Sonoma County in October 2017. Photo by Adam Giusti
Lakeport, Calif., (October 26, 2017) – It’s Deja Vu all over again - Yogi Berra
Once again I’m asked to provide some perspective on yet another catastrophic situation affecting the North Coast. In 2015, it was the Valley Fire. In 2016, it was the Clayton Fire. This year there are so many fires I’m having difficulty recalling their names…14 at last count.
The cause for these 2017 conflagrations will be apparent once the elements of the fires are assessed. Tornadic winds hitting 50 mph Sunday, October 8, will most likely have started most if not all. Winds of this intensity can ignite fires by impacting electrical infrastructure by breaking lines and causing transformers to explode. The cause of the fires will come out in time. Thick stands of vegetation, the result of mid-20th century land management practices, years of fire suppression, homes built in rural locations in steep terrain, old legacy roads too small to accommodate modern fire-fighting equipment, and exurban development without the necessary resources to address fire prevention. All this leads to almost impossible conditions to arrest a fire being pushed by wind.
I would argue there is no better fire-fighting force in the world than those found in California. What these men and women do is nothing short of extraordinary. But they are faced with an impossible task in the absence of an equally focused program of fire prevention.
Cobb Mountain after the Valley Fire burned more than 76,000 acres in 2015. UC Cooperative Extension helped replant the area with ponderosa pine seedlings.
What have I learned from Lake County as a result of the Valley and Clayton fires?
The Lake County fires have provided insights that can help with the recovery and reconstruction of the most recent events. Specifically, resources must be secured to assist landowners and communities in better incorporating fire resilience into local rural and suburban planning and projects, to prepare for the eventuality of another fire by creating and maintaining conditions that allow the fire to be controlled before getting out of hand. Admittedly, the recent fires were wind-driven events that became uncontrollable. However, these fires are the exception to the rule. There are hundreds of fires a year in California that are quickly controlled and extinguished. Fire resiliency must incorporate plans and projects that can address less catastrophic conditions, in the hopes of arresting a fire before it becomes a conflagration.
Other aspects for communities to consider when addressing fire resiliency may include fire-fighting equipment scaled to accommodate old, rural roads, resources to retrofit old roads to accommodate evacuees and first responders, and rural lands with poor or non-existent internet service need to re-establish fire sirens to alert residents of impending danger. Local statutes need to establish and enforce vegetation management standards on absentee parcels. And, finally, a sustained dialogue addressing fire resiliency must be incorporated into all land-use planning discussions to help landowners recognize and implement actions to help reduce the risk of catastrophic fire.
Fire-fighting equipment may need to be scaled to accommodate old, narrow rural roads to improve fire response.
None of this will be easy or inexpensive. But neither is fighting hundreds of thousand acres of wildland fires every year.
Admittedly, the weather conditions responsible for these fires may negate the best plans and efforts. But again, those conditions are the exception to the rule.
For every acre burned this year there are ten more, in the same condition, that didn’t, providing next year’s opportunity for a conflagration. The road forward to address California’s wildland fire threat is long, and full of twists and turns. But as with all long journeys, each begins with the first step.
Greg Giusti is a UC Cooperative Extension advisor emeritus specializing in forests and wildlands ecology.
Sacramento, Calif., (October 25, 2017) – The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), Meat, Poultry and Egg Safety Branch (MPES) is announcing two vacancies on the Rendering Industry Advisory Board (RIAB). The RIAB makes recommendations to the CDFA secretary on all matters pertaining to the MPES Rendering Program, including:
Adoption, modification, and repeal of regulations and procedures for employment, training, supervision, and compensation of inspectors and other personnel
Rate and collection of license fees and penalties
Acquisition and use of equipment
Posting and noticing changes in bylaws, general procedures, or orders
All matters pertaining to Food and Agricultural Code Division 9, Part 3,
Chapter 5, including, but not limited to, the inspection and enforcement program, its annual budget, necessary fees to provide adequate services, and regulations required to accomplish the purposes of the chapter
The vacancies are for a public member and an industry member and the term for both is 36 months. Applicants for the public member position should have experience and expertise in water quality, publicly-owned treatment works, and water infrastructure or law enforcement. Applicants for the industry member position must be affiliated with a licensed renderer, collection center, dead animal hauler, or registered transporter of inedible kitchen grease. Members of the board receive no compensation but are entitled to reimbursement for transportation to and from meetings and per diem expenses for lodging, meals, and incidental expenses. Applicants interested in being considered for RIAB appointment should send a resume by November 3, 2017 to:
Laura Barlow, Rendering Lead
Meat, Poultry and Egg Safety Branch
1220 N Street
Sacramento, California 95814
Additional information is available at the MPES web page at: http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/ahfss/mpes/index.html. You may also contact Paula Batarseh, Branch Chief, Meat, Poultry and Egg Safety at (916) 900-5004.
