2020’s fire damage to Napa wineries already far exceeds 2017, and it may not be done [San Francisco Chronicle]
Three days after the Glass Fire first erupted in Napa’s eastern hillsides, it was starting to become clear that the fire’s effects on the valley’s wine industry were nothing short of catastrophic. … Already, the sheer volume of destruction to the Napa Valley wine industry has far exceeded what happened in 2017, when fires including the Atlas Fire tore through Wine Country. … That doesn’t begin to account for all the other types of harm that may require more time to reveal themselves, including smoke and water damage to buildings, longterm health issues for vines and probable smoke impact on the grapes themselves.
New California law funds COVID-19 outreach, enforcement for farmworkers [Sacramento Bee]
Gov. Gavin Newsom this week signed two laws aimed at helping California’s “unsung essential workers” during the COVID-19 crisis, one of which aims to ensure farmworkers have access to reliable information about how to stay healthy. The main bill, Assembly Bill 2043, calls for an outreach campaign to inform farmworkers on best practices to prevent COVID-19 infection, and provide information on paid sick leave, workers’ compensation and other coronavirus-related services. The bill will also direct California Division of Occupational Safety and Health to enforce COVID-19 guidance and track and report workplace investigations in the agricultural industry.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article246092890.html
Opinion: Disruption of lives from the coronavirus disrupts Napa Valley agriculture [North Bay Business Journal]
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a dramatic impact to Napa Valley’s agricultural sector affecting not only agriculture itself, but more importantly the men and women of Napa Valley agriculture who work tirelessly in support of a strong and viable agricultural economy in Napa Valley. The Napa County Farm Bureau has worked vigorously to appropriately address COVID-19 and the impacts it has had on agricultural workers and their families. As we continue to address this most important issue in Napa Valley, there are several keys to recovery that we must recognize.
Pregnancy and pesticides: A study as old as its subjects reveals health concerns [KALW Radio, San Francisco]
… Research has shown that working this closely to pesticides can be dangerous. … Now, imagine if a farmworker is pregnant. … Pesticide exposure is extremely hard to study. … Plus, proving it, like saying Maritza definitely has asthma because her mom worked in the fields is equally challenging. … Researchers have been studying her, and hundreds of other young adults in the Salinas Valley, since before they were born, trying to see what happens when farmworker’s kids are exposed to pesticides very early on in their lives. The study is named after the Spanish word for kid: CHAMACOS. … Over the past two decades, CHAMACOS research has informed lawmakers and influenced policy.
California tightens rules on rat poisons that kill wildlife [Associated Press]
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday signed a bill widely restricting the use of certain highly potent rat poisons that are blamed for killing mountain lions, birds and endangered wildlife. … However, the bill permits the use of the poisons to protect public health, specifically naming rodent infestations that pose an urgent and “significant risk” to human health. It also permits their use to protect water supplies; to eliminate non-native species that have invaded offshore islands; in food warehouses, slaughterhouses, canneries, breweries, and wineries; and for certain other agricultural uses.
Steinbeck Center’s agricultural technology exhibit highlights trailblazing women [Salinas Californian]
Women control just 7% of U.S. farmland according to the 2012 Census of Agriculture from the United States Department of Agriculture. Despite this fact, there are dozens of women trying to change the face of agriculture, like Diane Wu and Poornima Parameswaran of Trace Genomics, which utilizes soil science, genomics and machine learning to measure bacteria and fungi in soil. These are just two of the women that Amy Wu, the creator and chief content director of From Farms to Incubators, an upcoming exhibit at the National Steinbeck Center, seeks to promote with her work highlighting women leaders and innovators in agricultural technology.
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