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April 8, 2016 CapitalPress.com Bee time in Washington orchards By DAN WHEAT Washington changes policy on H-2A housing inspections By DON JENKINS Capital Press Capital Press EAST WENATCHEE, Wash. — Honeybees are so intent on their work in Bruce Nash’s apricot orchard that they just buzz on around you if you get too close. Bees collect pollen from blossoms to feed their young. As they do, they inadvertent- ly spread pollen from tree to tree. Growers take advantage of that by planting pollenizers — a scattering of a different variety of the same tree fruit — throughout their orchards so the bees cross pollinate, in- creasing fruit size and yield. Warm weather should give Nash good pollination and a large crop. Cool weather, rain and wind keep bees in their hives and diminish pollination. “I love this time of year. The color of the blossoms and the bees humming around. They never bother you. They’re too busy, but then I don’t mow real close to the bee box ei- ther,” says Nash, 69, a retired police officer who believes he owns the only commercial apricot orchard within East Wenatchee’s city limits. It’s only 46 trees on part of an acre, but Nash averages 350 boxes of apricots per season that he sells through the near- by Northern Fruit Co. Inc. It’s a hobby, supplemental income and “what keeps me young,” Nash says. The bees will only work in Nash’s cots a week or two, from bloom to petal fall. Two hive boxes are all he needs. They come from Dereck Kra- mar, Wenatchee, one of many beekeepers in the region. Hiatt Honey Co., Ephra- ta, is one of Washington’s largest beekeepers. The com- pany owns 15,000 to 18,000 hives and winters their bees in Maderas, Calif., before renting them out for pollinat- Photos by Dan Wheat/Capital Press Bruce Nash enjoys blossoms in his apricot orchard. He believes it’s the only commercial apricot orchard within the East Wenatchee, Wash., city limits. A honeybee hovers over apricot blossoms in Bruce Nash’s East Wenatchee, Wash., orchard on March 29. Bees collect pollen to feed their young but also help pollinate blossoms.. ing almonds and then moving them north to Washington’s tree fruit and east to Bowman, N.D., to work summer flowers making honey. Despite reports of high- er mortality this past winter nationally, there should be enough bees for Central Wash- ington’s tree fruit and row crops and Western Washing- ton’s berries, said Tim Hiatt, co-owner of Hiatt Honey Co. “I’ve heard no rumors of shortages,” he said. The national average win- ter bee loss is about 33 per- cent from Varroa mite, other pests and diseases, Hiatt said. It used to be far lower but Col- ony Collapse Disorder and probably pesticides have also taken a toll. As of the last day of March, bees were busy pollinating apri- cots and cherries in Pasco, the lower Yakima Valley and Mat- tawa. They were just starting in the Wenatchee area. Pollination of cherries, pears and apples Honeybees fly in and out of two hive boxes in Bruce Nash’s East Wenatchee, Wash., apricot orchard, March 29. They help pollinate the crop. will continue through April. Silver Bow Honey Compa- ny in Moses Lake and Olson Honey Farms in Yakima truck their bees to Western Wash- ington to pollinate berries in May after finishing tree fruit in Central Washington, Hiatt said. Silver Bow and Olson also have summer contracts in Central Washington for on- ions, canola, carrots, radish seed and other row crops. “We have too many bees to compete in that so we go to North Dakota,” he said. 7 A Washington farm labor association is warning grow- ers who have applied for H-2A workers to check whether they need to take additional steps for the state Employment Se- curity Department to certify the workers will have suitable housing. Dan Fazio, director of WA- FLA, formerly known as the Washington Farm Labor Asso- ciation, credits state agencies with aggressively working to clear up a backlog of housing inspections. He also, however, faults the agencies for failing to publi- cize a change in state policy that he says left some growers unaware of a new procedure that in some cases could delay applications for workers. “There was a total lack of communication,” Fazio said. “They never told people there was a change of policy.” The H-2A program requires growers to provide worker housing that meets state and federal health and safety stan- dards. The state inspects and approves the housing on behalf of the U.S. Department of La- bor. In previous years, growers have been allowed to attest in writing they had repaired prob- lems found by state Department of Health inspections. The health department and ESD agreed Feb. 4 to require re-inspections after repairs were made. Fazio said he learned about the new policy roughly six weeks later while checking with the Labor Department on the status of H-2A applications. He said he immediately be- gan notifying growers affected by the new policy and every one was unaware of the change. The new policy led to more than a dozen growers mistaken- ly thinking their housing was approved, Fazio said. The policy wasn’t widely publicized until a March 21 notice to growers, ESD spokes- man Bill Tarrow said. “I think looking in retro- spect we probably could have done a better job with that,” he said. Tarrow said the new rule conforms with Labor Depart- ment regulations. The state checked with federal officials at the request of the Northwest Justice Project, a publicly fund- ed legal aid program. Northwest Justice attorney Michele Besso said she became concerned about the procedure for approving housing because of conditions at a Yakima apart- ment building occupied by H-2A workers. She said she was surprised to learn the state had not been verifying that repairs had been made before workers arrived. “I had assumed they were already doing it,” Besso said. ESD’s agricultural pro- grams director, Craig Carroll, said Tuesday inspectors have found deficiencies in 14 hous- ing inspections so far. He said 10 cases have been cleared, and he expects the other four to be certified in the next several days. An increasing number of Washington farms have been applying to import foreign workers on temporary visas. Carroll said the state has received about 90 applications for H-2A workers so far and anticipates receiving about 150 this year, topping last year’s 125. “We’re receiving applica- tions daily,” he said. Most housing units are pass- ing the initial inspection by the health department, Carroll said. Ecology sending more letters to property owners Most landowners have not taken action, official says 12-month waiver 3 Years @ 0% 5 Years @ 0.9% OAC TRACTORS TRACTORS TRACTORS By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press The Washington State Department of Ecology will send more letters to south- eastern Washington farmers and ranchers about environ- mental problems on their operations, a department of- ficial says. Most of the letters previ- ously sent to landowners were ignored, special assistant to the director Kelly Susewind said during a March 30 meet- ing of the department’s Ag- riculture and Water Quality Advisory Committee. He expects the new letters to go out within a month. Rather than evaluate new properties, the department reassessed land owned by 50 producers — 30 contacted in 2013 and 20 contacted in 2015. All farms got at least two letters, Susewind said. Of the 50 sites, five land- owners fixed the problems, Susewind said. A few more told Ecology officials they are working with technical service providers to resolve the problem, he said. “And then we’ve got the bulk of them we have not heard from and the problems are still there,” he said. In 2013 the department was criticized by produc- ers because the letters about problems were vague. That prompted the creation of the advisory committee. Susew- ind said the next letters will clearly identify the problem. Problems include live- stock getting into streams or other water quality issues. The department will also attempt to directly contact ranchers and farmers. Ecology will send letters thanking those property own- ers who have fixed the prob- lem and to property owners who are working with pro- viders or producer groups to get an update on efforts. “For those we haven’t heard from and we’re still seeing problems, we need to ratchet it up,” he said. “We’ve been warning folks for years now and if they’re JD 5115ML, 526 hours, Low profile, ROPS, MFWD, 3 rear remotes, 540 PTO... ................$52,000 McMinnville 483050 Matthew Weaver/Capital Press Kelly Susewind, left, special assistant to the director of the Wash- ington Department of Ecology, talks with Aaron Golladay, co-chair of Ecology’s Agriculture and Water Quality Advisory Committee and first vice president of the Washington Farm Bureau, March 30 following a committee meeting in Spokane. still just ignoring us, and they still continue have those op- erations that are causing a problem. ... What we can’t have anymore is radio si- lence.” Some landowners may have been contacted five to seven times, Susewind said. Susewind said no penalty is involved — yet. “This is the precursor ‘We don’t want to get to that, please work with us’ letter,” he said. “If you get a letter, it’s not time to panic, it’s time to contact us.” Aaron Golladay, co-chair of the advisory committee and first vice president for the Washington Farm Bu- reau, praised the department for changing its process for dealing with landowners. “I think that’s fair — (landowners) have had an op- portunity,” he said. “You can disagree with them, but you still need to sit with them, say you disagree and why.” Jack Field, executive vice president of the Washington State Cattlemen’s Associa- tion, said Ecology has a plan to notify landowners and oth- er groups that might help. Field urged letter recipi- ents to contact their conser- vation district, the Natural Resources Conservation Service or Washington State University or solve the prob- lem on their own, but also acknowledge receiving the letter and follow up with Ecology. 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