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The INDEPENDENT, September 2, 2010
Pinchot and BlueCross teaming up to to develop County farmers now eligible for
both healthy forests and healthy forestland owners freeze loss disaster assistance
A Leading health insurance
carrier is teaming up with a
nonprofit conservation organi-
zation to develop new ways to
help family forest owners hang
onto their land.
With nearly three-fifths of
U.S. forest lands owned by
families, financial pressures on
these families in recent years
have resulted in the loss of for-
est and open space at an aver-
age of 6,000 acres a day.
The Pinchot Institute con-
ducted a survey of forest land
owners and their heirs which
found that sudden unexpected
major medical expenses are
among the most likely factors
that force the sale of family
owned forests.
To address the problem, Re-
gence BlueCross BlueShield of
Oregon has joined with the Pin-
chot Institute to explore new
approaches to linking the con-
servation and sustainable man-
agement of family forests to
funding family health care
needs. This voluntary project
would give families who need
access to the health care sys-
tem another way to sustainably
manage their land as forest,
and have the funding from do-
ing so go directly toward their
medical bills. Forest owners
may even be able to pay, not in
dollars, but in credits earned
through protecting the ability of
their lands to store atmospher-
ic carbon and mitigate climate
change.
The first phase of the initia-
tive, began in early 2010. Two
hundred interviews with forest
land owners in Oregon and
Washington were conducted to
determine potential interest in a
carbon payment to health care
program.
The next phase of the initia-
tive will determine the interest
of owners of family forests in
Columbia County in participat-
ing in such a voluntary pro-
gram. The study will also deter-
mine whether carbon credits
from family forest lands can
achieve higher prices in the
carbon market if those pay-
ments go directly to pay for
landowner/family health care
products. At a recent meeting
for forest owners with Pinchot
Institute, three quarters of
those attending expressed in-
terest in the proposed program.
Columbia County farmers
are eligible for disaster assis-
tance from the U.S. Depart-
ment of Agriculture (USDA) for
potential losses from last De-
cember’s freezing tempera-
tures.
USDA Secretary Tom Vil-
sack approved a disaster dec-
laration request from Washing-
ton County, on August 2, for
damage to crops from low tem-
peratures that occurred be-
tween December 1 and 13,
2009. Due to the way the
USDA disaster declaration
process works, farmers in
counties contiguous to Wash-
ington County are also eligible,
making the declaration applica-
ble to Columbia County.
This declaration opens up
certain types of assistance for
farmers, according to Derek
White with Columbia County
Emergency
Management.
“Farmers here are able to apply
for disaster assistance from the
Farm Service Agency. That as-
sistance, if the applicant is eli-
gible, ranges from emergency
loans to supplemental revenue
assistance payments”, White
said.
Farmers have until April 2,
2011 to apply. Assistance appli-
cations must be filed at the
nearest Farm Service Agency
(FSA) office, which is located
at: Washington County FSA,
1080 SW Baseline, Suite B2,
Hillsboro, OR 97123.
For more information, con-
tact the Washington County
FSA office at 503-648-3174. To
read more about the declara-
tion, visit the Columbia County
Emergency Management blog
at http://columbiacountyem.
blogspot.com .
Community Calendar
VERNONIA
Alcoholics Anonymous
Mondays
6:30 p.m., 410 North Street
Alcoholics Anonymous
Thursdays (Big Book Study) 7:00 p.m., 410 North Street
American Legion Post #119
2nd Thursday
7:00 p.m., 627 Adams Avenue
Booster Club
2nd Wednesday
7:00 p.m., VHS Library
Boy Scout Troop 201
Tuesdays
7:00 p.m., Scout Cabin
Boy Scout Troop 860
Wednesdays
7:00 p.m., LDS Church
Cemetery Beautification Comm.
2nd Thursday
6:30 p.m., Library
CERT
4th Wednesday
For Info Call 503-429-3018
Chamber of Commerce
2nd Wednesday
For Info Call 503-429-6081
Community Coalition
2nd Monday
12:30 p.m. School District Ofc.
Cub Scout Pack 201
Scout Cabin
For Info Call 503-429-4250
Friends of the Library
1st Tuesday
7:00 p.m., Vernonia Library
Girl Scouts, Neighborhood 4-2
For Info Call 503-819-0143
Izaak Walton League
3rd Thursday
For location call 503-429-7193
Kiwanis Club
2nd & 4th Wednesday
6:30 p.m., New Hong Kong
Lions Club
1st & 3rd Tuesdays
6:30 p.m., New Hong Kong
Municipal Airport Committee
1t Wednesday
6:30 p.m., City Hall
Pioneer Museum
For Info Call 503-429-3713
Public Works Committee
4th Tuesday
7:00 p.m., City Hall
Vernonia Cares Directors
For Info call 503-429-1414
Vernonia City Council
1st & 3rd Mondays
7:00 p.m., City Hall
Vernonia Community PTA
2nd Wednesday
7:00 p.m., WGS Library
Vernonia Garden Club
2nd Tuesday
1:30 p.m., Vernonia Library
Vernonia Grange
3rd Monday
7:00 p.m., Grange Hall
Vernonia Health Center
2nd Monday
6:00 p.m., 510 Bridge St.
Vernonia Learning Center
1st Wednesday
6:00 p.m., VLC
Vernonia Parks Committee
3rd Wednesday
6:30 p.m., City Hall
Vernonia Planning Comm.
1st & 3rd Thursdays
7:00 p.m., City Hall
Vernonia Pride
2nd Thursday
1:00 p.m., City Hall
Vernonia Ridge Riders
Last Thursday
7:00 p.m., Senior Center
Vernonia RFPD Board
2nd Tuesday
6:00 p.m., Fire Station
Vernonia School Board
2nd Thursday
6:00 p.m., District Office
Vernonia Sr. Center Board
2nd Friday
10:00 a.m., Senior Center
Vernonia Transfer Station
2nd & 4th Saturdays, 8 a.m.-2 p.m.
Behind VHS
Vern. Volunteer Ambulance Assoc. 1st, 3rd & 4th Tuesday
7:00 p.m., Fire Station
Vernonia Volunteer Firefighters
2nd Monday
7:00 p.m., Fire Station
WOEC Directors
3rd Tuesday
7:00 p.m., WOEC
MIST-BIRKENFELD
M-BRFPD Board Business Mtg.
2nd Tuesday
M-BRFPD Board Workshop
4th Tuesday
M-B Ambulance Drill
1st & 2nd Thursdays
M-B Fire Drill
1st & 2nd Wednesdays
M-B Helping Circle
2nd Monday
M-B SAR Drill
3rd Wednesday
M-B Volunteer Assoc.
1st Tuesday
Natal Grange
2nd Wednesday
T.O.P.S.
Mondays
Upr Nehalem Watershed Council For date call 429-0869
BANKS
Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous
American Legion Post #90
Banks City Council
Banks Fire District #13
Banks Library Commission
Banks Planning Commission
Banks School Board
Banks Youth Group
Chamber of Commerce
CPO 14
Everybody’s Hometown Band
Friends of the Library
Lions Club
Sunset Park Assoc.
T.O.P.S.
Friday
Wednesday
2nd Tuesday
2nd Tuesday
2nd Wednesday
3rd Tuesday
Last Tuesday
2nd Monday
Sunday, Wednesday
1st Thursday
3rd Monday
Tuesdays
2nd Tuesday
1st & 3rd Mondays
3rd Wednesday
Wednesday
7:00 p.m., Main Fire Station
7:00 p.m., Main Fire Station
7:00 p.m., Main Fire Station
7:00 p.m., Main Fire Station
7:00 p.m., Main Fire Station
7:00 p.m., Main Fire Station
7:00 p.m., Main Fire Station
7:30 p.m., Natal Grange Hall
9:00 a.m., Main Fire Station
7:00 p.m., Main Fire Station
7:30 p.m., Methodist Church
7:30 p.m., Methodist Church
7:30 p.m., Main Street Post
7:30 p.m., City Hall
7:00 p.m., Station 13
7:00 p.m., City Library
7:00 p.m., City Hall
7:30 p.m., Jr. High Library
7:00 p.m., UMC Youth Bldg.
12:30 p.m., Fire District Office
7:00 p.m., City Library
7:00 p.m., BHS Music Room
7:00 p.m., City Library
7:00 p.m., Brown Derby
8:00 p.m., Gun Club
7:00 p.m., Administration Bldg.
COLUMBIA COUNTY (All meet in St. Helens unless otherwise noted.)
Board of Commissioners
Wednesday
10:00 a.m., Courthouse
Citizens for Senior Justice
2nd Tuesday
7:00 p.m., Sunset Park Church
Columbia Comm Mental Health
1st Tuesday
5”30 p.m., 58646 McNulty Way
Columbia Soil & Water District
3rd Wednesday
7:30 p.m., NRCS , 2514 Sykes
County Fair Board
2nd Monday
6:00 p.m., Fairgrounds 4-H Bldg.
County Parks Commission
3rd Tuesday
Times vary, 1054 Oregon St.
Mental Health Advisory Comm.
Quarterly
For Info call 503-397-7211
Comm. on Children & Families
3rd Thursday 5:30 p.m. OSU Ext., 505 N. Hwy. 30
Local Alcohol & Drug Plann. Comm.
Quarterly
For Info call 503-397-7211
Organizations and meeting dates not listed may be included by calling 429-9410 or by mail to The INDEPENDENT, 725 Bridge Street, Vernonia, OR 97064.