The Tuesday Letter
Agricultural Experiment Station & Cooperative Extension Service
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
(Vol. 19 No. 15)
IN THIS ISSUE...
HISTORICAL TIMELINES, PUBLICATIONS NOW ONLINE TO HELP PROMOTE SESQUICENTENNIAL
K-State Research and Extension has compiled a lot of information regarding its history, and that information has now been placed on a single web page for faculty and staff to access. That web page is here: http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/Marketing150.
Much of the information will work really well to help you communicate about the university's 150-year history in columns, news articles, interviews, radio, social media, and more. There is also a PowerPoint slide that you might like to insert into existing presentations to promote the 150th anniversary.
Employees who know of, or have, resources that would be useful for this web page, please send the information to Pat Melgares, melgares@ksu.edu or call 785-532-1160. --Pat Melgares melgares@ksu.edu
WEB SEMINAR--BIODIESEL FEEDSTOCKS, PRODUCTION, SUSTAINABILITY AND THE RENEWABLE FUEL STANDARD-2
Friday February 22, 2013
10:00 a.m. Central Time Presented by Richard Nelson, President Enersol Resources, Inc.
The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) commonly known as the Renewable Fuel Standard or RFS-2 requires entities that refine or import gasoline or diesel fuel to meet annual mandated volume requirements of renewable fuel. To be eligible for inclusion in the RFS-2, any feedstock used to produce biodiesel must meet certain sustainability requirements.
This webinar will focus on examining current status of the RFS-2, feedstocks (fats, oils, and greases) that qualify within the sustainability parameters of the RFS-2, what’s on the horizon for land use and alternate feedstocks, sustainability concerns within the industry, and where the US biodiesel industry is headed.
How To Connect:
Start connecting 5 minutes prior to the start time. You need a computer with internet access and speakers. At the meeting time, copy and paste this URL into your browser to enter the meeting: https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/agenergy/.
At the login page, enter as a guest with your name and business or institution and click Enter Room. The audio portion of the meeting will come through your computer speakers. Anytime before the meeting you may visit the following URL to confirm your ability to connect: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/testconnect/. --Ed Brokesh ebrokesh@ksu.edu
ON-FARM FUEL STORAGE WEBINAR TO BE HELD MARCH 12
The Oil Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) Program is an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) program designed to prevent water resource damage from oil and fuel spills. Farms with on-site oil/fuel storage that exceeds 1,320 US gallons in above ground containers must have a SPCC Plan in place by May 10, 2013.
If you have questions about how to help farmers comply with SPCC requirements, plan to join us at 10 a.m., Tuesday, March 12, for a webinar featuring Mark Aaron, Environmental Scientist with the Storage Tanks & Oil Pollution Branch of Region 7 EPA. Mark will discuss how to determine if a farm needs a Plan, review online templates for Plans, and offer advice on how to help farmers complete their Plans for on-time compliance. For further information, Aaron recommends the following web sites:
http://epa.gov/oilspill/ will direct you to the EPA Office of Emergency Management page, and the fourth bullet will direct you to the following link:
http://www.epa.gov/emergencies/content/spcc/index.htm where you can click the "SPCC for Agriculture" link for general and agriculture specific information.
http://www.epa.gov/emergencies/docs/oil/spcc/guidance/D_BulkStoragePlan.pdf is an example plan for facilities with greater than 10,000 gallons of storage.
To participate in the March 12, 10 a.m. webinar, log on to http://connect.ksre.ksu.edu/sareseminar. -Kerri Ebert kebert@ksu.edu
SPRING ACTION CONFERENCE APRIL 29-30, REGISTRATION OPEN
Spring Action Conference is a time when all in K-State Research and Extension work together to focus on Programming, which Daryl Buchholz tells new agents, “Is the only real reason for Extension!”
The purposes of Spring Action Conference 2013 are:
• Strengthening Team Programming
• Expanding Audiences
The Program Prioritization Task Force will be sharing the results of the KSRE survey that is currently in process. Individual Program Focus Teams will examine the survey results for programming implications for their team, implications for program collaboration with other PFTs, and for determining if additional input is needed.
This year we will meet at the Hyatt Regency in Wichita.
Registration information is located on Employee Resources/Registration site, www.ksre.ksu.edu/employee_resources. Select the Registration link from one of the purple boxes in the lower center of the page. Early bird registration (if you register before March 30) is $175. After March 30 the registration will be $200.
In addition, there is a pre-conference event for those interested. There will be a ribbon cutting celebration for the new facility at the John C. Pair Horticulture Center. More information about this event is posted to the Employee Resources/Registration.
--Gregg Hadley ghadley@ksu.edu, Barbara Stone bjstone@ksu.edu, Paula Peters ppeters@ksu.edu, Margaret Phillips margaret@ksu.edu
GET FINANCIALLY PREPARED -- TAKE STEPS AHEAD OF DISASTER
The tornadoes that hit Greensburg and Reading, Kansas have been significant news stories in the last few years. Would you have been prepared to take action if you were in one of these situations?
Many people have installed smoke detectors, fire alarms, and dead bolt locks in their homes and stocked extra food in the pantry. To be financially prepared ahead of a disaster, create a household inventory, check your insurance coverage, and prepare a grab-and-go box. Stocking, or re-stocking, an emergency supply kit is also important.
With Kansas’ Severe Weather Awareness Week approaching (March 3-9), the Family Resource Management PFT invites you to participate in our Get Financially Prepared Challenge. Throughout the month of March, complete activities to prepare your home or workplace ahead of a disaster.
Activities will be announced each week in the Tuesday Letter. You will record your efforts online. Those who complete the challenge will be recognized. --Family Resource Management Program Focus Team – Elizabeth Kiss dekiss4@ksu.edu and Jamie Rathbun jrathbun@ksu.edu
MARIE'S PICKS . . .
This week my picks are outcomes reported by Cindy Evans and
Jamie Rathbun for the Family Resource Management Program Focus Team:
**Family
and Consumer Sciences Extension Agents provide leadership through local volunteer income tax sites, such as
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA), Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE),
and AARP Tax Aide sites. The
combined tax site results reported by agents for 2012 indicated that the
volunteer tax preparers they worked with completed 11,992 federal returns that
resulted in more than $13 million in federal tax refunds returned to Kansas
communities. The IRS sets the value of tax preparation at $250 per return,
bringing a total in estimated value of tax fee savings performed by volunteers
to be nearly $3 million.
**Following programming to “Get Financially Prepared: Take Steps Ahead of Disaster,”
surveys prompted participants
to indicate which actions they intend to take to be sure that their home/ business
is prepared if a disaster strikes their property. Specifically, they were
asked, "What is the first thing you plan to do as a result of
participating in this program?"
* 17 planned to complete a household inventory,
* 5 planned to review insurance coverage on their home and
property and make needed adjustments, and
* 10 planned to develop a grab-and-go box that will include
important paperwork that would be hard to replace if destroyed in a disaster
situation.
Other participants reported plans to talk to family members
about the topic; create an emergency supply kit; become prepared for other
disasters (not just tornadoes); get paperwork updated; create a farm inventory;
get renter's insurance; and create photocopies of important documents, such as
credit cards and driver's licenses. --Marie Blythe mblythe@ksu.edu
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