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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (May 13, 2020)
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, May 13, 2020 Page A-3 Controversial mining permit awarded by county CJ Schatza IVN copy editor At its May 6 weekly business session (WBS), the Board of Josephine County Commissioners (BCC) revisited a pair of controversial matters that were discussed, but not finalized, at prior meetings: granting a mineral exploration permit to American Mineral Research, Inc. (AMR) and choosing to amend or eliminate the county’s current overtime compensation policy. On video teleconferencing service Zoom for a third straight session, the BCC welcomed public comments via emails sent to bcc@ josephinecounty.gov. The first public hearing for AMR’s mineral exploration permit application took place Feb. 19, was continued to April 1, and then again continued to May 6. At these two previous sessions, testimony was heard from both sides regarding why AMR should or should not receive the permit. As a refresher, American Mineral Research is seeking to explore a roughly 77-acre property known as the St. Peter Mine for a SAFETY ... Continued from A-1 • Disinfect customer-contact surfaces at tables between each customer/dining party including seats, tables, menus, condiment containers and all other touch points • Provide condiments, such as salt and pepper, ketchup, hot sauce and sugar, in single-service packets or from a single-service container. Do not pre-set tables with tableware • Prohibit counter and bar seating • Encourage reservations or advise people to call in advance to confirm seating/serving capacity Retail • Use signage to encourage physical distancing • Frequently clean and sanitize work areas, high-traffic areas, and commonly touched surfaces in both customer/public and employee areas of store • Consider placing clear plastic or glass barriers in front of cashiers or customer service counters, or in other places where maintaining 6 feet of physical distance between employees and customers is more difficult • Encourage one-way flow with marked entrances and exits, but do not block egress for fire exits. Use signage to direct one-way flow of traffic • Use signage and tape on the floor to maintain physical distancing while waiting for cashiers • Designate specific entrances and exits to the shopping center or mall to constrain traffic flow and encourage physical distancing between customers. For entrances with a single door or single pair of doors, consider designating it entrance only or exit only if another entrance/exit exists and one-way flow through the area is feasible Childcare • Limit the number of children in rooms • Adjust staffing ratios with mixed ages, based on the youngest child in the group • Up to two groups of children may be allowed in a classroom over the course of the day for an AM/PM model if adequate The G SPOT Closed until further notice 541-592-5220 period of three years, and hopes to find valuable minerals including tellurium, which is an important resource in the solar power industry. Jay Meredith, AMR’s chief financial officer, previously speculated that millions of dollars of minerals could be found on the property, which the county could receive part of in royalties. County legal counsel Wally Hicks spoke first at the May 6 public hearing. “I think we’ve all pretty well come together on how we envision the best recommendation to present to the board here today,” sanitization protocols can be implemented between classes, including sanitization of high- touch surfaces, toys and materials • The same staff must stay with the same group each day/week and cannot interact in person with other staff or groups of children • Prioritize care for families needing care due to essential infrastructure employment such as first responders, health care, grocery store employees, etc. This prioritization will be enforced for programs that are subsidized, and these programs must collect family employment type for children in their care • Permit child care provider staff to wear cloth face coverings if they choose Workplace • Make health and safety a priority by implementing safeguards to protect employees and the public. Federal and state guidelines, including sector-specific guidance, will help you determine which safeguards are recommended or are required, for example, use of personal protective measures such as face coverings or masks • Consider modifying employee schedules and travel to reduce unnecessary close physical contact. Identify positions appropriate for telework or partial telework, including consideration of telework for employees who are at higher risk for severe COVID-19 complications due to underlying medical conditions identified by the CDC • Consider keeping a record of name, contact information and date/time of visit for customers/visitors for purposes of contact tracing if needed • Increase physical space between workers. Restrict use of any shared items or equipment and require disinfection of equipment between uses • Regularly disinfect commonly touched surfaces (workstations, keyboards, telephones, handrails, doorknobs, etc.) as well as high traffic areas and perform other environmental cleaning • Restrict non-essential meetings and conduct meetings virtually as much as possible • Consider regular health checks (e.g., temperature and respiratory symptom screening) or symptom self-report of employees, if job-related and consistent with D eli still open ! C urbside s erviCe G rill available for T akeouT C all 541-592-5358 B B Q o n Pat i o 11 - 2:30 Taylor’s Country Store he said. Hicks recommended that the commissioners vote to adopt draft documents and also invite Meredith to submit final comments before deliberating on the proposal. “The applicant, AMR, will continue... to seek permission in a formal manner from the county as it escalates its exploration activity on the property,” Hicks went on. He gave a brief summary of the entire draft permit, including indemnification, county liability, insurance, and the like. Most were standard elements of these types of proposals. business necessity Personal Services/Salons • Contact clients prior to appointments and ask if they have been exhibiting influenza- like symptoms or been in contact with anyone who tested positive for COVID-19. If they answer in the positive, reschedule for at least 72 hours after symptoms cease, or at least 14 days after contact with a person sick with cough, fever, or diagnosed with COVID-19 • Consider using touchless infrared thermometers to check temperature of each client who enters the business. Explain to any client who has a temperature above 100.3 degrees Fahrenheit that services cannot be provided, and the appointment will be rescheduled until at least 72 hours after fever and other symptoms have resolved without medication • Immediately send home any employee with COVID-19-like symptoms (cough, fever, shortness of breath, etc.) and do not allow the employee to return to work until at least 72 hours after fever and other symptoms have resolved without medication • Limit visits to scheduled appointments. Provide curbside pick-up arranged ahead of time for product purchases outside of scheduled service appointments. Have clients wait in their car or outside to be contacted when the provider is ready for the appointment • Assign one provider per client throughout the encounter • Remove all unnecessary items such as magazines, newspapers, service menus, and any other unnecessary items such as paper products, snacks, and beverages • Wear medical grade masks when providing services that require close contact (within 6 feet), such as in the case of a haircut, massage or pedicure • Provide hand sanitizer and tissues for employees and clients, if available • Clean and disinfect all retail areas at least daily, including products. Try to keep clients from touching products that they do not plan to purchase Outdoor Recreation • Prior to reopening after extended closure, ensure all parks and facilities are Sportsman Tavern Order Pizza!!! No DiNiNg TakeouT oNly Delivery 4-8 p.m. Call 541-592-3556 Closed for now busy deep cleaning & remodeling for our loyal customers Dave Streeter, the county’s forestry program manager and mineral administrator, said, “I know one point of contention with the applicant is the insurance requirements, which was kind of a general clause in our timber sale contracts that we use for our operations on our timber lands. I presume that they feel like it’s overinsure but I don’t know if my advice to the county would be to underinsure. I think you would want to protect our ground, protect our interests and whatnot.” SEE MINE ON A-8 ready to operate and that all equipment is in good condition, according to any applicable maintenance and operations manuals and standard operating procedures • Prohibit parties (a group of 10 or fewer people that arrived at the site together) from congregating in parking lots for periods longer than reasonable to retrieve/return gear and enter/exit vehicles • Keep day-use areas that are prone to attracting crowds (including but not limited to playgrounds, picnic shelters/structures, water parks and pools, sports courts for contact sports like basketball) and overnight use areas closed • Prohibit contact sports • Thoroughly clean restroom facilities at least twice daily and, to the extent possible, ensure adequate sanitary supplies (soap, toilet paper, hand sanitizer) throughout the day. Restroom facilities that cannot be cleaned twice daily should be kept closed or a sign should be posted stating that the restroom is unable to be cleaned twice daily • Keep any common areas such as picnic tables not in shelters/structures, day- use shelters, and buildings open to the public arranged so there is at least six (6) feet of physical distance between parties (chairs, benches, tables). Post clear signs to reinforce physical distancing requirements between visitors of different parties • Consider opening loop trails in a one-way direction to minimize close contact between hikers. Designate one-way walking routes to attractions if feasible. • Encourage the public to visit parks and recreation areas during off-peak use times as defined and publicized by park or recreation area management • Consider opening private, municipal, county and federal campgrounds, as well as skate parks, as long as physical distancing requirements can be maintained • Encourage visitors to bring their own food, water bottles and hygiene supplies (including hand sanitizer), as well as to take their trash with them when they leave • Encourage the public to recreate with their own household members rather than with those in their extended social circles KXCJ 105.7 FM Valley News & Views Laurel Cemetery Tuesday, May 19 6 -7 p.m. streaming at www.kxcj.org Closed until further notice @ McGrew’s! Call 541-596-2202
