Florida announces appliance rebate program

The State of Florida announced early this week the launching of its Energy Star Appliance Rebate Program starting this April 16 and lasting through April 25, 2010.

The ten day program will provide Florida residents who replace an old appliance with a new Energy Star appliance with a 20% rebate off the retail price of the appliance.

Only six Energy Star appliances are eligible for the rebate: Refrigerators; freezers; dish washers; washing machines; room air conditioners (window units); and gas hot water heaters.

Energy Star is an international standard for energy efficient consumer products. It was first created in 1992 as a United States government program by the Clinton Administration in an effort to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emission by power plants.

Florida’s rebate program is part of the Federal cash for clunkers program funded through President Obama’s economic stimulus package that allowed consumers to trade in fuel-inefficient vehicles for efficient ones. However, unlike the Federal program, states were given the option to determine for themselves how best to administer the rebate.

Any Florida resident that is in need of a new energy efficient appliance and would like to take advantage of the rebate program better start looking now, because the state only have enough funds to provide rebates for 66,000 new ones. In addition, consumers who recycle their old appliance will received an additional $75 bonus on top of the rebate.

State officials are defining recycling as either: The consumer arranges for their retail store to deliver the new appliance and pick up the old appliance with that agreement written on the receipt. The store must recycle the old appliance; it cannot refurbish and resell it. Or, the consumer can take their old appliance directly to a landfill, solid waste department or recycler and get a receipt.

The state is hoping that the rebate program will help reduce consumer electric bills through the use of Energy Star appliances and stimulate retail sales and manufacturing to encourage employment in those sectors.

Apalachicola begins fire hydrant testing

On Monday, March 29, the City of Apalachicola through its engineering firm Inovia Consulting Group started conducting fire hydrant flow and pressure tests on all 200 hydrants within the city's fire protection system.

City Commissioners ordered the tests after learning that five fire hydrants were inoperable during the aftermath of the February 8 blaze that destroyed the historic Wright house located off 16th Street.

The commission chose Inovia Consulting Group, from its pool of engineers to perform the work at the city’s March 2 regular meeting. Based out of Tallahassee and headed by Apalachicola native James Waddell, Inovia is a design firm that provides services in civil engineering, land planning, landscape architecture, environmental permitting, and development management services

In a written proposal submitted by Waddell, the firm plans to conduct the tests in accordance with the American Water Works Association (AWWA) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards and guidelines for hydrant testing. This type of testing will not only ensure the protection of both property and lives of Apalachicola residents, but also serve as an evaluation indicator used by the Insurance Services Office (ISO), which rates cities according to the fire protection they offer.

Inovia will report the results of each hydrant in a format to include tabular and graphical results. In addition, the firm will summarize the results with an executive summary, explanation of the testing protocol, and the actual results.

The testing will take about a month to complete and cost the city $20,400 plus any intermittent assistance that may be required by the engineer for quality control purposes.

FDA Pushing Forward on Oyster Ban

Ban on raw clams could be under consideration, even as National Shellfish

group rejects FDA plans for second time in six months

Bipartisan group of Senators and Congressman ask Government Accountability Office to Investigate

Despite reports to the contrary, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is aggressively pushing aheadwith plans to ban the sale of traditional, raw Gulf Coast oysters, essentially ignoring the concerns of tens of thousandsof consumers, restaurant owners and seafood workers who spoke out against the plan last fall.

But the national shellfish rulemaking group refused to endorse the FDA plans for the second time in sixmonths, at a meeting held in Denver in early March. At the meeting of the Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference(ISSC), FDA officials made clear they have no intention of backing off the plan, saying that the Oyster Ban “is still areasonable step to take” despite the complaints tens of thousands of people made last October. The ISSC is anindependent group which is dominated by public health and regulatory officials from around the nation.Representatives of the shellfish community from all three coasts also serve on the ISSC.

Many shellfish lovers are also concerned that FDA is not conducting a thorough and scientific cost/benefitanalysis of the proposed Oyster Ban, and on Monday, March 15, a bipartisan group of six U.S. Senators and 12Congressmen released a letter asking the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to do a detailed analysis of theproposed rule, which could eliminate thousands of jobs along the Gulf Coast. (letter attached) The Congressionalrequest came after FDA failed to fully include ISSC members in an analysis of the proposed Oyster Ban.

At the Denver ISSC meeting, FDA officials also presented a report on nationwide illnesses from consumptionof raw clams. Internal FDA memos show that the agency is considering expanding the Gulf Oyster Ban to include rawshellfish on the East and West Coasts.

“FDA appears to be intent on regulating all raw shellfish just to protect a small group of susceptible peoplewho have unique health complications,” said Bob Rheault, director of the East Coast Shellfish Growers Association. “These immune compromised individuals should not be eating any raw foods.”

Mike Voisin with the Gulf Oyster Industry Council said that he’s frustrated by FDA's unwillingness to modifyits position after all of the outcry from consumers, restaurant owners, public health officials and members of Congress.

A key issue is consumer choice. Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers executive director Robin Downey noted thatone FDA official at the meeting said that even if every immune compromised consumer was fully aware of the healthrisks but chose to eat their oysters raw regardless, the FDA would still seek to require processing of all oysters.

“While the FDA’s intent and mission to keep consumers safe is laudable, they must also weigh it against theconsumers’ inalienable right to choose the kinds of foods they eat – especially something like a raw oyster that is one ofMother Nature’s most perfect foods,” Downey said.

Kevin Begos the Franklin County (FL) Oyster & Seafood Task Force noted that environmental groups havealso begun raising concerns about the FDA plan. “The Gulf Coast oyster community provides more than 10,000 jobs intotal, but it also has priceless cultural and environmental value,” Begos said. “Hurting this natural, sustainable fisherymakes no scientific, environmental, or public policy sense.”

For more information contact Kevin Begos, Executive Director Franklin County Oyster & Seafood Task Force at either (850) 653-3351 or director@seafoodtaskforce.org .

Community Pride Meeting Rescheduled

Tonight's Community Pride meeting has been rescheduled for 6:00PM next Thursday, March 25, 2010 at City Hall 1 Bay Avenue, Apalachicola. Hope to see you there!

Oyster School Returns to Apalachicola

The Franklin County Tourist Development Council (TDC) recently approved a $500 request to bring “Oyster School” back to Apalachicola next month. The event, scheduled for April 28-29, is expected to bring key food retailers to the area to learn about the harvest and processing of fresh oysters. The event is also designed to promote the culinary desirability of the Apalachicola Bay oyster.

Bill Mahan, Director of the Franklin County UF-IFAS Extension Program, requested the assistance to help fund the school which has been held in Apalachicola twice before. Mahan is working with members of the Franklin County Oyster Seafood Task Force, Franklin County Seafood Workers’ Association and the Apalachicola Bay Oyster Dealers’ Association to coordinate this year’s Oyster School on behalf of UF IFAS and the Florida Sea Grant Program.

The first Oyster School was held in Apalachicola in October 2007 and was a collaborative effort between the University of Florida, Florida Sea Grant Program and the local oyster industry. The “school” educates major seafood buyers, shippers and restaurateurs from around the country about shellfish harvesting, management, nutrition, product safety and new product forms. In 2008 the TDC helped support a similar event called “Shellfish School” that educated shellfish shippers & buyers about both clam and oyster shellfish issues.

Attendees will head out on the bay for a hands-on oyster-tonging demonstration aboard an oyster boat; tour a dockside processing facility, and spend time learning techniques to evaluate the taste, texture and appearance of fresh oysters.

“In our first two schools, we have had buyers from Outback Restaurants, Red Lobster, Winn Dixie, Wal-Mart, Publix, and Disney World attend to learn about our oysters and clams,” said Mahan.

According to Mahan, this year’s session will feature presentations on: Shellfish as Food, What You Need to know About Shellfish Resources, The Sensory Profile of Oysters, Oyster Harvesting & Handling and Sensory Evaluation of Local Seafood. In addition, Mahan said new advances in Post Harvest Processing (PHP) methods will be discussed. PHP oysters are processed using methods like freezing, high-pressure, low-temperature Pasteurization and irradiation to reduce normally occurring bacteria like Vibrio vulnificus to undetectable levels.

Helping to raise awareness of seafood industry safety and culinary marketing through events like “Oyster School” recently became one of the priorities of the TDC. Directed by the Franklin County Board of Commissioners, the TDC is currently working with local business and seafood leaders to finalize a countywide marketing campaign designed to promote Franklin County seafood as “Caught Wild and Kept Fresh.” The FCTDC has produced a documentary-style video about the area’s seafood industry and heritage. It can be viewed at www.anaturalescape.com.

Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, Nobody

This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody.

There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it.

Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about this, because it was Everybody's job.

Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it.

It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.

Library gathering draws crowd

A small crowd of library enthusiast assembled both outside and inside the Apalachicola Municipal Library on Monday March 15 as part of a networking session organized by first year Librarian Caty Greene.

Those gathered helped themselves to a variety of beverages and orderves while interacting with each other as they toured the small brick building.

Greene along with members of the Library Board are to be commended for putting the event together as a means of informing the community of the many services and programs the library offers.

The library located at 76 6th Street in historic Apalachicola is home to a collection of 11,683 volumes and serves a population of about 2,400 residents and a host of tourist that frequent the area each year.

Both city commissioners Brenda Ash and Frank Cook were on hand during the event.

Franklin County on Display in Regional Airports

Franklin County’s beaches, historic landmarks, and natural resources are now on display in the Tallahassee Regional Airport and the Panama City Regional Airport, and will soon be on display in Bay County’s new Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport scheduled to open in May. The Franklin County Tourist Development Council organized the airport marketing project, which was recently approved by the Franklin County Board of County Commissioners.

The airport displays, which consist of a 70” LCD video display in the new Bay County airport and a 42” backlit billboard in the Tallahassee airport brings Franklin County front and center among other North Florida destinations vying for the attention of the visiting traveler – at a fraction of the cost spent by other vacation destinations in the region.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for Franklin County to piggyback on the big budget marketing efforts of Bay, Walton, and Leon Counties,” said TDC chairman Helen Spohrer. “Our marketing budget is less than 1% of the combined budgets of these counties.”

The two airport contracts cost slightly under $10,000 per year, but TDC officials say they are priceless in terms of the visibility and opportunity to attract visitors who would not otherwise consider Franklin County as a vacation destination.

“Over the past several years we have been able to establish a relationship with our TDC neighbors to the west,” Spohrer said. “Franklin County is not a threat to those destinations – we offer something completely different. They recognize that and see our value in the total package.”

According to Sheila Hauser, the TDC board member spearheading the airport contracts, the displays will change periodically and will be accompanied by the TDC’s informational brochure about the area.

Bill Nelson's Office, in Apalach on Thursday

In a press release submitted ealier today, U.S. Senator Bill Nelson announced that a representative from his Senate office will be in town tomorrow March 11, 2010, from 10:00AM to 11:00AM at the Franklin County Courthouse Annex at 34 Forbes Street, Suite 3 in Historic Apalachicola.

Nelson representative will be on hand to meet with all residents, including those with a Federal issue to discuss.

For more information, please contact Lynn Bannister, Director of Outreach/Regional Director for Senator Nelson's office at (850) 942-8415.

A Day of Hope

What started out as one community’s show of love and support towards a young woman stricken with cancer has ended up as a county sanctioned day of hope.

It all began in 2007, when Kathy Ingersoll a member of the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 82 in Lanark Village received word that a young woman in her neighborhood named Tonya Bridges was battling terminal cancer and needed help with her bills.

Ingersoll quickly went to work soliciting the membership of the Auxiliary to host a yard sale and pig roast as a fundraiser to provide financial assistance to Bridges during her extreme time of need.

During her final month, members of the Auxiliary asked and received permission from both Bridges and her family to continue using her name and image to benefit other residents of Lanark Village.

However, is was during the planning of last year’s benefit fundraiser that the Auxiliary decided to expand the event to include providing financial assistance to the residents of Carrabelle that needed their help.

This year the group went before the Franklin County Board of County Commissioners to spread out the benefit to include all of Franklin County and obtained county approval to declare April 3, 2010 as Tonya’s Hope Day throughout the entire Franklin County community.

Proceeds raised through the Auxiliary’s efforts, will now go toward providing financial assistance to the families of Franklin County residents who have love ones stricken with cancer. Items that monies raised from the benefit will cover include the cost of gasoline, tires, groceries, utilities, rent, babysitting, and housecleaning.

The Auxiliary is asking all residents of the county to come out and "HELP US HELP EACH OTHER" at the Fourth Annual Tonya’s Hope Day. The group has scheduled the event for April 3, 2010, at the American Legion Post 82 in Lanark Village starting with a huge yard sale at 9:00AM, the blessing at 12:00PM followed by a roast pig dinner for a $10.00 donation, an auction at 3:00PM and wrapping up with a Carnival Cruise drawing promptly at 6:00PM.

For more information or questions concerning Tonya’s Hope Day, please contact Kathy Ingersoll, Chairperson at (850) 697-9533.

Neighborhood Watch Meeting

To help you help yourself, and your community, the Apalachicola Police Department has been trying for the past several months with minimum citizen participation to establish a Neighborhood Watch Program in the City of Apalachicola.

Neighborhood Watch Programs are nationally recognized as first step programs to help make your home, your neighborhood, and your community a safer place to live. In addition, the police department really needs the eyes and ears of the whole community to help combat crime.

Therefore, come join us at 6:00PM this Tuesday, March 9, 2010 at the 6th Street Recreation Center to learn what you can do to help fight crime and how to reduce your chances of becoming a crime victim.

Summerhill Designated Certified Municipal Clerk

At the Apalachicola City Commission March 2 meeting, City Clerk Lee Mathes presented Deputy City Clerk Cindy Summerhill with the prestigious designation of Certified Municipal Clerk (CMC).

The CMC designation program has been in existence for 40 years, started in 1970 by the Florida Association of City Clerks (FACC) along with the International Institute of Municipal Clerks (IIMC) as a means to assist municipal clerks increase their proficiency in areas related to their work, and their professional and personal growth.

The program prepares the participants to meet the challenges of the complex role of the Municipal Clerks by providing them with quality education in partnership with 47 institutions of higher learning. To earn the CMC designation, a Municipal Clerk must attend and successfully complete an extensive curriculum provided by the association and its partners.

Mathes told commissioners during the presentation that Summerhill had successfully completed over a three-year period 100 hours of arduous educational and training courses and that she had met the requirements to become a Certified Municipal Clerk in the State of Florida.

The FACC has a statewide membership of 575 members, with 303 currently holding CMC designations and 60 holding the designation of a Master Municipal Clerk (MMC).

Mathes also holds the CMC designation and currently serves as the District Director over the Florida Association of City Clerks (FACC) Northwest District, which includes the counties of Bay, Calhoun, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Wakulla, Walton, and Washington.

Tobacco Products Placement Resolution

The Apalachicola City Commission unanimously adopted Resolution 2010-03 at their March 2 regular scheduled meeting, at the behest of David Walker, Human Services Program Manager with the Franklin County Health Department.

Walker requested the resolution in response to an intense campaign that the Chapters of the Tobacco Free Franklin Partnership and the Franklin County Students Working against Tobacco (SWAT) have waged against the sale of tobacco products to minors under the age of 18.

According to a 2008 Florida Youth Tobacco Survey, smokeless tobacco use among Franklin County High and Middle School students are among the highest in the State.

The Resolution adopted by the Apalachicola Board of City Commissioners at the March 2 meeting:

Resolution # 2010-03

TOBACCO PRODUCTS PLACEMENT RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, the Florida Legislature has enacted laws, located in Chapter 569, Florida Statutes, that provide for increased regulation of the retail sale of tobacco products; and

WHEREAS, The Florida Legislature has, in Chapter 569, provided for civil, administrative, and/or criminal penalties for the sale of tobacco products to an underage person and for the possession of such tobacco products by an underage person; and

WHEREAS, the State of Florida has entered into a settlement with the tobacco industry for billions of dollars to reimburse the state for some of the health care costs incurred by the state due to the prevalence of tobacco use; and

WHEREAS, the government and residents of the City of Apalachicola are also concerned about the use of tobacco products by underage persons; and

WHEREAS, a reduction in the availability, both visually and physically, of tobacco products to underage persons will lead to a reduction in underage persons obtaining tobacco products which will likely lead to a reduction in tobacco product use by underage persons.

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED BY THE CITY OF APALACHICOLA COMMISSIONERS THAT: it supports the placement of all tobacco products “behind the counter” in all retail establishments so as to limit underage accessibility to such products.

THE MAYOR OF THE CITY OF APALACHICOLA
Mayor Van Johnson

Nelson Acts on Fishing Regulations

U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, Florida (D) took several steps to help fishing communities in Florida that have been hurt by federal regulatory closures. He introduced two bills: one would end the current ban on red snapper fishing in the South Atlantic, and the other would prevent the federal government from shortening the red snapper fishing season in the Gulf of Mexico.

Additionally, Nelson requested that the Senate Commerce Committee examine the ban on red snapper fishing and fisheries closures in Florida to determine whether federal officials are using reliable data to support the tough fishing restrictions. “What’s troubling is too often these closures are based on limited data and sporadic stock assessments,” Nelson wrote to committee leadership. He also asked the panel to examine whether economic aid could be provided to communities hardest hit by the fishing bans.

Healthcare Associated Infections

Hand washing helps prevent Healthcare-associated infections (HAI)

When someone develops an infection at a hospital or other patient care facility that the person didn’t have prior to treatment, the healthcare industry refers to this as a Healthcare Associated Infection (HAI) or hospital-acquired infection.

HAI’s are a global crisis affecting both patients and healthcare workers alike.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), at any point in time, 1.4 million people worldwide suffer from infections acquired in hospitals.

A Center for Disease Control (CDC) report published in March-April 2007 estimated the number of U.S. deaths from healthcare associated infections in 2002 at 98,987.

The risk of acquiring healthcare-associated infections in developing countries is 2-20 times higher than in developed countries.Afflicting thousands of patients every year, HAI often leads to lengthening hospitalization, increasing the likelihood of readmission, and adding sizably to the cost of care per patient.

Financially, HAI’s represent an estimated annual impact of $6.7 billion to healthcare facilities, but the human cost is even higher.

Until recently, a lack of HAI reporting requirements for healthcare facilities has contributed to less-than-optimal emphasis being placed on eliminating the sources of healthcare associated infections. However, growing public anxiety regarding the issue and resulting legislation on state and local levels demanding accountability is serving to accelerate initiatives to combat HAI’s.

To learn more about the impact of healthcare-associated infections for both medical professionals and patients, please visit www.haiwatch.com.

City Commission to discuss fire hydrants tonight

The Apalachicola Board of City Commissioners will hold their regular scheduled meeting tonight at 6:00PM at City Hall located at 1 Bay Avenue in Historic Apalachicola.

Time has been set aside at the top of the agenda to give residents the opportunity to discuss the February 8 fire that destroyed the Wright residence located off 16th Street.

At the time of the fire, fire fighters, residents and the city commission were surprised to learn that the water department had shut off a fire hydrant closest to the fire for repairs.

Personnel from the water department reported at a February 10 staff meeting called by the Mayor and attended by the City Administrator, and the Fire Chief that the hydrant and four others had been offline for repairs for over a year.

The City Administrator along with representatives from the water department, the fire department, and a representative from the City’s engineer firm Baskerville and Donovan who assisted with the design of the water system and has extensive background in fire service and emergency management will be on hand to assist in the discussion.