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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (May 3, 2007)
The INDEPENDENT, May 3, 2007 Page 5 Business Notes Now is time to apply for Watch test of vote counting equipment May 8th The public certification test Department at the courthouse hours on May 15, from noon to of Columbia County’s vote in St. Helens. 8:00 p.m. state Conservation grant counting equipment will be on Ballot drop sites for area vot- • Mist-Birkenfeld Rural Fire Applications for Oregon Conservation Strategy Imple- mentation Grants will be ac- cepted by the Oregon Depart- ment of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) from May 1 through June 15, 2007. To be eligible for a grant, proposed projects must focus on actions that ben- efit species and habitats as outlined in the Oregon Conser- vation Strategy. Application materials are available on the Conservation Strategy section of the ODFW web site. Approximately $400,000 is available through the federal State Wildlife Grants (SWG) program. Individual grants will be awarded in amounts be- tween $10,000 and $50,000. Private non-profit organiza- tions, educational institutions, and state and local agencies may apply. Federal agencies are not eligible. For information on the grant application process, contact: Peg Boulay, ODFW conserva- tion strategy coordinator, 503- 947-6316; Audrey Hatch, ODFW conservation strategy monitoring coordinator, 541- 757-4263 ext. 242; or Jim Gores, ODFW invasive species coordinator, 503-947-6308. State Wildlife Grants were created by Congress to provide a proactive approach to con- servation, with the intent of pre- venting species from declining to the point of qualifying as threatened or endangered. The Oregon Conservation Strategy grew from congressional re- quirements to ensure that State Wildlife Grants were spent in a prioritized, strategic manner to increase effectiveness and effi- ciency of conservation efforts. The Oregon Conservation Strategy creates a broad vision for long-term conservation of Oregon’s native fish and wildlife. It identifies how all Ore- gonians can become involved through a non-regulatory, proactive, statewide approach to conservation. With ODFW’s leadership, the Conservation Strategy is currently being im- plemented by a wide range of landowners, biologists, conser- vationists, agency personnel, hunters, anglers and other in- terested citizens. For informa- tion on the Oregon Conserva- tion Strategy, visit <www.dfw. state.or.us/conservationstrate gy/>. FSA farm loans available for specially targeted population The USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) has specially- targeted farm loans available Jobless rate is static in Columbia County Columbia County’s season- ally-adjusted unemployment rate was essentially un- changed at 5.6 percent in March and about the same as the year before (5.5%). The rate was little different from the statewide rate (5.2%) but high- er than the national rate (4.4%). Total employment edged up by 93 from February to 22,687 and the number of unemployed people dropped by 137 to 1,457. Total employ- ment this March was 607 more than one year before but 82 more people were unem- ployed. for Socially Disadvantaged Ap- plicants. These loan programs are designed to help farmers purchase and operate family farms. Socially Disadvantaged Ap- plicants are defined as a group whose members have been subjected to racial, ethnic, or gender prejudice. For purposes of this program, the groups considered are women, African Americans, American Indians and Alaskan Natives, Hispan- ics, and Asians and Pacific is- landers. Applications for all FSA di- rect loan programs are made through FSA’s Washington County office at 1080 SW Baseline, Suite B-3, Hillsboro. Additional information is avail- able by calling 503-648-3174, ext. 2, or by email to Nancy. Thompson@or.usda.gov. Tuesday, May 8, for the May 15, special election. Testing will begin at 10:00 a.m. in the county Elections ers who do not mail their ballots will be as follows: • Vernonia Library during regular hours, plus extended District office during regular of- fice hours. Hours for May 15 will be noon to 8:00 p.m.
