Illinois Valley news., February 21, 2018, Page 10, Image 10

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Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, February 21, 2018
Agriculture census will help farmers plan
Larry Lease
IVN Contributing Writer
The Census of Agriculture has
begun in Josephine County and the
entire state of Oregon. Farmers and
ranchers across Oregon and throughout
the country have received forms in
the mail. The census is conducted
by the United States Department
of Agriculture’s (USDA) National
Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS)
every five years.
A number of government
agencies and private organizations use
information from the survey to budget
resources, develop programs and meet
the needs of agriculture. According
to a USDA website, “The Census of
Agriculture provides the only source of
uniform, comprehensive and impartial
agricultural data for every county in
the nation ... (and will) influence the
decisions that will shape the future
of American agriculture for years to
come.” By responding to the Census
of Agriculture, producers are helping
themselves, their communities and all
of U.S. agriculture.
Illinois Valley Soil and Water
Conservation District (IVSWCD)
conservation technician Tracey Brandt
says that the census helps tell our
“agriculture story.” The IVSWCD
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A modified diploma
has the same 24 credits
as a regular diploma, but
the work itself can be
modified.
Allen-Hart
explained: “If a 10th-
grader is taking geometry,
they may be able to take
those classes, but instead
of doing 20 assignments
they may be asked to do
10 assignments. Instead
of needing to get 70
percent for a passing
grade, their level might
be at 50 percent.”
Students with a
modified diploma can
enter Rogue Community
College, assuming they
works with landowners who own small
parcels and have small operations, as
opposed to Douglas County where,
according to Brandt, the average farm
size is 198 acres and is continuing to
increase.
The last agriculture census was
conducted in 2012. The data is used by
all those who serve farmers and rural
communities – federal, state and local
governments, agribusinesses, trade
associations and many others. Further
ways the data can be used include:
• Farmers and ranchers can use
Census of Agriculture data to help
make informed decisions about the
future of their own operations.
• Companies and cooperatives
use the facts and figures to determine
the locations of facilities that will
serve agricultural producers.
• Community planners and local
governments use the information to
target needed programs and services to
rural residents.
• Legislators use the numbers
from the census when shaping farm
policies and programs.
Questionnaires were first mailed
out in December to all farmers and
the surveys were due by Feb. 5, 2018.
Oregon’s state statistician for NASS
Dave Losh said that they have sent out
42,000 questionnaires. NASS updated
satisfy other entrance
requirements. They
have access to financial
aid and they can enter
the military. All of the
foregoing did not use to
be the case. Until three
years ago, a modified
diploma did not count
toward graduation; now
it does.
The state of Oregon
was one of the last states
to make that change.
The certificate of
completion is for students
who are very impacted
by their disability.
“They’re coming
to school every day,
they’re meeting their
goals, their IEPs. They
get a certificate of
completion.”
the census forms to track changes and
trends in American agriculture. Federal
law requires all agricultural producers
to participate in the census and
requires NASS to keep all individual
information confidential.
In a statement released late last
year, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny
Perdue said every response matters.
“The Census of Agriculture
is USDA’s largest data collection
endeavor, providing some of the most
widely used statistics in the industry,”
Perdue said. “Collected in service
to American agriculture since 1840,
the census gives every producer the
opportunity to be represented so that
informed decisions can support their
efforts to provide the world with food,
fuel, feed and fiber.”
Farmers have the option of taking
the survey online, which has made it
easier to respond and eliminates the
need for NASS to re-enter data. The
online survey is private and secure.
The data is eventually released only in
aggregate which protects the individual
producer or farmer’s operation.
NASS plans to release Census of
Agriculture data, in both electronic
and print formats, beginning in
February 2019. Detailed reports will be
published for all counties, states and
the nation.
MAX
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There are massive amounts of
prescription opioids flooding rural
areas, and a lot of people are on multiple
combinations of painkillers, Pinsky said.
“Anyone that knows somebody
that uses prescription opioids, street
drugs or a mixture of both should have
naloxone,” she said. “People somehow
think it’s not going to be them, but you
just have to think of it as having it in
your emergency kit or carrying it with
you. It’s not a big deal, but it is a big
deal.”
Pinsky said there are various
forms of naloxone, injectable or nasal,
however time is of the essence.
“If somebody has overdosed, but
you don’t know what they’ve overdosed
from, it will restore their breathing, but
they could slip back into overdose,”
she said. “This is why it is absolutely
imperative to call 911, even before
administering the drug.”
Pinsky said the other thing Max’s
Mission is trying to do is get rid of the
stigma of drug use.
“We are not here to make moral
judgments on people,” she said.
“Opioids are a very hard drug to stop
taking once you start taking them,”
Max’s Mission is both trying
to save lives and to get communities
talking, Pinsky said.
“If you think you have somebody
in your neighborhood or you have
teenagers who may experiment at
parties, you should have naloxone,” she
said. “Most schools now have it in their
emergency kit.”
Pinsky said there has been a
huge surplus in the amount of opioids
prescribed by the medical community,
and it has not helped the opioid
epidemic at all.
“The incredible prescribing
of opioids since 2000, it’s just been
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CITY
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The council then held the first
reading of an ordinance to remove
language from the code regulating
marijuana-related businesses that
gave the council unnecessary and
arbitrary authority to revoke business
licenses. The council discussed the
pros and cons of relinquishing their
authority, and how changes to this
code would impact the community as
a whole. As it was the first reading of
the ordinance, no vote was held.
The council also heard the first
reading of an ordinance to reduce
the public’s exposure to tobacco
products. The regulation would
ban the use of tobacco products in
public parks, outdoor seating areas
and within 20 feet of the entryways
to businesses, aligning the city code
with state law. The council voiced
support for the ordinance, citing the
well-known public health concerns
related to cigarettes and secondhand
smoke.
Then the council heard another
first reading of an ordinance that
would supplement the standards
of land uses for hydrocarbon and
petroleum extraction facilities. The
regulation would set appropriate
distances for these facilities in
relation to residential and commercial
areas.
mind-boggling,” she said. “It’s beyond
understanding how many opioids are
out there in the community. People
don’t talk about it. People don’t tell
each other that they’re using opioids. In
a room of 10 people, generally it affects
probably five in that room. If you think
about it like that, it really has had a
huge, huge impact.”
Max’s Mission wants to help
educate people to know what help is
available for them in their area and how
they can access that help or be there to
provide naloxone.
The meeting will include guest
speakers, who will speak on drug use
and naloxone – what it does and how
it works. Bend Recovery, as well as
the HIV Alliance, will also be there to
provide further information on treatment
options and facilities available in the
area.
For more information or to
volunteer or donate to Max’s Mission,
visit maxsmission.org.
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