Economy’s backbone in a silent fight with COVID-19 [Salinas Californian]
… Essential agricultural workers have been at the center of the COVID-19 outbreak in Monterey County and across the nation. … As of Sept. 18, agriculture workers accounted for 2,203 positive tests. This is 23.54% of the total positive cases in Monterey County — the highest of all occupations. … Despite the efforts to protect workers in the food sector, agricultural workers continue to become infected at a rate three times higher than non-agricultural workers. … Unlike essential employees in the healthcare sector, farmworkers are less likely to have proper medical access and aren’t aware of the health status of surrounding workers.
Following Santa Barbara, Ventura County enacts new protections for certain farmworkers [Ventura County Star]
After major coronavirus outbreaks in farmworker housing facilities along the Central Coast, Ventura County will now require employers to screen temporary agricultural workers daily for COVID-19 symptoms. … The order is the first time Ventura County has enacted an enforceable action to protect farmworkers from the coronavirus. … The new health orders require that all workers staying at H-2A housing facilities receive daily temperature checks and screenings for COVID-19 symptoms. … The new health order allows the county to fine employers who fail to comply.
Newsom wants to step up climate fight as wildfires rage. But will Californians pay up? [Sacramento Bee]
When Gov. Gavin Newsom declared recently that “we have to step up our game” and accelerate California’s fight against climate change, it triggered a question in Chris Rufer’s mind: How much will this cost? Rufer is the founder of The Morning Star Co. of Woodland, one of the world’s largest tomato processors. … If California raised the price of carbon credits, it would mean higher production costs — and price hikes for consumers of tomato paste, diced tomatoes and other Morning Star goods. … Rufer’s reaction underscores the challenges that Newsom faces as he ramps up an array of new climate-change initiatives for California.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/environment/article245776245.html
Farm aid, election security stall spending bill [Wall Street Journal]
A spending bill that Congress needs to pass to avoid a partial government shutdown next month hit last-minute snags Friday, as lawmakers and President Trump sparred over aid for farmers and election security. … One debate emerged over the White House’s request to include $21 billion for the Agriculture Department’s Commodity Credit Corp., or CCC, a Depression-era program designed to stabilize farm incomes and which permits borrowing of as much as $30 billion from the Treasury to finance its activities. Democrats said they had concerns over replenishing a program if that meant giving President Trump a blank check to use for political purposes after he announced more aid for farmers at a campaign rally in Wisconsin Thursday night.
Point Reyes releases final plan to preserve ranches, cull tule elk [Marin Independent Journal]
The Point Reyes National Seashore released a final version of a controversial plan Friday to extend leases of historic ranches in the park and to cull some tule elk to prevent conflicts with private ranching. In its final environmental review of the park’s general management plan amendment, the National Park Service’s preferred option is to extend leases for private ranchers from five-year terms to up to 20-year-terms. … To address conflicts between the free-roaming Drakes Beach tule elk herd and ranches, the plan would allow park staff to kill some elk to keep the population to 120 elk.
Tiny wasps being released across San Diego … for good reason [KNSD TV, San Diego]
It sounds like the stuff of nightmares: thousands of tiny wasps are being released in areas of San Diego County this week. But the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) says the minuscule bugs are actually the good guys. The wasp, called Tamarixia radiata, are being released to fight off another tiny disease-carrying bug that could devastate citrus crops — the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP). … The CDFA says that while the HLB disease has not yet been found in San Diego, the disease-carrying bug has. Once the disease invades a tree, there is no cure.
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