TUESDAY MORNING NOTES - July 9, 2013

Tue Jul 9 11:50:49 MST 2013

TMN submittal:
http://cals.arizona.edu/extension/tuesday/form/submittal_form.html 

Tuesday Morning Notes 

July 9, 2013

FROM THE DIRECTOR:

On the first day of this month, we were greeted with the horrible news
associated with the fires in Yavapai County and the deaths of 19 Granite
Mountain Hotshot fire crew members in the Yarnell Hill fire, which were part
of the Prescott Fire Department's Wildland Fire Division. This was not only
a sad and terrible event, but it was also one that hit very close to home
for those of us living and working in Arizona, particularly those working
and living in Yavapai County and the surrounding areas.  

The fire crews, including the Hotshot crews, work under the direction of the
U.S. Forest Service which is part of the U.S Department of Agriculture
(USDA) in dealing with fires in the National Forests.  As many people have
asked in the past week, it is important to point out that the U.S. Forest
Service is not directly related to Cooperative Extension, CALS, or the UA.
However, we do have close affiliations with the U.S. Forest Service through
various programs and personnel arrangements. CALS Cooperative Extension
conducts programs in education and research in Forest Ecology and Forest
Health with some direct relationships regarding management on National
Forest lands.

This tragic event in Yavapai County with the Granite Mountain Hotshot crew
is a reminder of what is often referred to as "The Great Fire of 1910." The
Great Fire episode burned about 3 million acres (approximately the size of
Connecticut) in northeast Washington, northern Idaho (panhandle of Idaho),
and western Montana.  That incredible fire storm burned over two days from
20 to 21 August of 1910 and killed 87 people, mostly fire fighters with the
U.S. Forest Service. There were several conditions that contributed to the
catastrophic nature of the Great Fire of 1910 that included high winds,
exceedingly hot and dry conditions, an abundance of dry vegetation, and
forests that were rich in dry fuel and high fire potentials. On 20 August
1910, weather conditions developed that were conducive to expanding hundreds
of small fires into huge catastrophic fire storms. In that devastating fire,
an entire 28 man fire crew was overcome by flames and perished on Setzer
Creek outside of Avery, Idaho. The Great Fire of 1910 had a huge impact on
the direction of the U.S. Forest Service for many decades, which had just
been formed in 1905 by Theodore Roosevelt, with Gifford Pinchot serving as
the first Director. For more details on the The Great Fire of 1910, the
history of the U.S. Forest Service, and their fire prevention objectives,
all have been very well described in a 2009 book by Timothy Egan titled "The
Big Burn."  

I know that we all mourn for the recent Hotshot fire crew victims as well as
their families, friends, and colleagues following the events last week in
Yavapai County.  Also, I'm sure I'm joined by many who contemplate at this
time the general nature of conditions in the western forests and the
potentials that we have for additional events of this type. Also, we must
consider what we are asking of the U.S. Forest Service in terms of
controlling these fires and protecting developed areas in and immediately
adjacent to forested lands. In that sense, good science and education has a
place in the process but it is certainly not a panacea in itself as we look
to manage our extensive forested lands in the west and throughout the U.S.
in the best manner possible.

JAMES 4-H CAMP UPDATE:

With a third of the camp season already behind us, I thought you might
appreciate an update.  Camp is going well and Randy Ryan installed the first
pilot model of a solar panel for lighting on one of the cabins.  Kristin
Wisneski has been busy preparing for Camp Corral, our camp for children
whose parents were killed or injured in the wars.  We originally had a limit
of 50, but with so many kids on the waiting list, we increased the camp to
60 youth.  This camp is sponsored by the Golden Corral restaurant chain.
The statewide 4-H camp is a go with about 40 youth enrolled.  Other county
camps have been held or will be held in the coming weeks.  This year, we
received approval to conduct shooting sports programs at the camp and the
state shooting sports committee purchased two gun cases in which air rifles,
bows, arrows and pellets can be secured while at camp.  So far, the camp is
far from any fires and the weather there is a nice respite from valley heat
although we are learning that fans are needed for the bunkhouse.  Other
needs include shade for the dining hall patio, chairs for the Rec Center,
and ceiling fans for the dining hall.  Contact Kristin Wisneski
<mailto:kristinw at email.arizona.edu>  if you have people interested in
donating to support the camp through an endowment or contribution, and we
will arrange to show them around.

INFLUENZA A VIRUS IN PIGS & PEOPLE ASSOCIATED WITH FAIRS & SWINE SHOWS:

For those of you with Fall Fairs, or other livestock exhibitions, you may
want to pay close attention to the information recently shared by the USDA
APHIS/VS Deputy Administrator's Office to US State Animal Health Officials
(State Veterinarians).  As you plan for fair season, there are a few simple
actions that can help minimize potential transmission of influenza A between
pigs, from pigs to people, or people to pigs:

*	Request swine exhibitors are particularly vigilant in looking for
clinical signs in their swine that may indicate illness and remind them to
notify the fair veterinarian if they observe any such signs.  
*	Fair veterinarians should be encouraged to follow-up on any reported
illness in pigs at the fair.  
*	Encourage additional biosecurity and common sense health practices
in the swine barns at all fairs.  

Guidance to minimize transmission of influenza viruses between pigs and
people has been compiled in the joint NASAHO / NASPHV document, "Measures to
Minimize Influenza Transmission at Swine Exhibitions, 2013".  This document
can be found on the USAHA website
<http://www.usaha.org/Portals/6/news/Swine%20Exhibitions%202013.pdf> .
Additional sources of information on influenza in both people and pigs, good
biosecurity practices for swine shows, and updated information on influenza
virus transmission between people and pigs can be found at the following
websites:  USDA Animal
<http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_dis_spec/swine/> & Plant
Health Inspection Service, CDC
<http://www.cdc.gov/flu/swineflu/h3n2v-cases.htm> , and the Pork
Organization <http://www.pork.org/Resources/1389/influenza.aspx> .

EXTENSION IN THE NEWS:

The Cooperative Extension Maricopa County SNAP-Ed program, under the
direction of Assistant Agent, Traci Armstrong Florian, was featured in UA
News.  Stephanie Martinez, Associate in Extension, SNAP-Ed, and Betty
Thompson, Health Educator, Sr., SNAP-Ed, were highlighted in the  article,
Helping Low-Income Families Eat Healthier
<http://uanews.org/story/helping-low-income-families-eat-healthier> , and
spoke of SNAP-Ed's efforts to educate limited-income seniors, adults, and
children regarding healthy nutrition and physical activity practices for
healthy lives.

Jeffrey C. Silvertooth
Associate Dean

Director for Economic Development & Extension
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
PO Box 210036
Tucson, AZ  85721-0036
520.621.7205
520.621.1314 (fax)

To submit tips, suggestions, ideas for changes and anything that could help
us be more effective, use  the "Director
<http://extension.arizona.edu/state/directors-suggestion-box> 's Suggestion
Box" - all submissions are anonymous.  

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