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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
If you are preparing to reopen a business where there’s been little to no water use, Cal Water asks that you thoroughly flush water from the taps before using it.
Cal Water said this precaution is necessary because prolonged stagnation of water in building pipes can impair water quality.
To flush properly, start from the faucet closest to the water meter and move outward toward the farthest faucet.
If your faucet has both cold and hot water handles, run the cold water first, then the hot water.
For more information, visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/php/building-water-system.html or https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/covid-19.html .
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
While the recently-passed Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act created a program that provides immediate relief to small businesses with loans from the Small Business Administration, there was no such provision for those who have loans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture under the Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program, or RMAP.
In a letter to Congress, the group is requesting that any new legislation to address the coronavirus pandemic include six months of principal, interest and fee payment relief for RMAP borrowers, similar to that already granted to businesses who borrow through SBA.
“We believe these small business borrowers should be treated equally,” said Johnathan Hladik, policy director with the Center for Rural Affairs. “The majority of these business owners are in the service industry, which has been severely damaged by the coronavirus pandemic. They should not be ignored just because they are rural.”
RMAP, which was first created as part of the 2008 farm bill, allows the USDA to coordinate with Microenterprise Development Organizations that provide training, assistance, and lending capital to rural entrepreneurs. To qualify for a loan, a business must be located in a rural area, unable to access loan capital from other sources, and have 10 or fewer employees.
Since 2008, RMAP has helped more than 2,100 small businesses expand operations, create new jobs, and tap into new markets. Loans have been made in nearly every state and in Puerto Rico.
In 2017, 18 nonprofit Microenterprise Development Organizations worked with the USDA to make 156 loans. Though the average amount was just under $28,000, this helped start 26 new businesses and create 286 new jobs. At least 60 of these loans were made to women and 153 to racial/ethnic minorities.
“This policy has the potential to change lives for more than 1,000 small business owners in rural America,” Hladik said. “We believe these individuals deserve the same opportunity as SBA borrowers, and should not be treated differently because their zip code is rural.”
Visit www.cfra.org/RMAPLetter to read the full letter.
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
The county of Lake’s Health Services Department has prepared helpful resources.
Social distancing protocol:
http://health.co.lake.ca.us/Assets/Departments/Health/Public+Health+Division/COVID-19/Business+Social+Distancing+Protocol+Form.pdf
“COVID-19 Reopening Plan,” a fillable PDF tool for businesses:
http://health.co.lake.ca.us/Assets/Departments/Health/Public+Health+Division/COVID-19/COVID-19+Reopening+Plan+Form.pdf
For those interested in further information on developments that are likely as soon as this week, the following resources are available.
Executive Order N-60-20, from Governor Newsom
https://www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/5.4.20-EO-N-60-20.pdf
“Governor Announces Loosening of State Order,” by the California State Association of Counties:
https://www.counties.org/csac-bulletin-article/governor-announces-loosening-state-order
For further Lake County-specific coronavirus information, please continue to visit the Lake County Health Services Department’s website at http://health.co.lake.ca.us .
The Lake County Coronavirus Response Hub has additional valuable resources: https://lake-co-ca-coronavirus-response-lakecoca.hub.arcgis.com/ .
If you still have questions, send an email request to
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
CDFA is looking to engage interested parties to provide early feedback as the map develops. Staff from USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service will also participate in the workshop.
“We are excited to start the collaboration on creating a statewide soil organic carbon map,” said CDFA Secretary Karen Ross. “We want to hear from our stakeholders on how it might be useful and how they can provide resources for its development.”
The map will serve as an indicator of soil health as California takes multiple actions to sequester carbon in agricultural soils to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The California Biodiversity Initiative: A Roadmap for Protecting the State’s Natural Heritage calls for the state to undertake a series of actions to secure the future of its biodiversity, including the development of the organic carbon map.
As part of this process, CDFA will develop a data repository system for soils data submitted to CDFA’s Healthy Soils Program and make the data available to monitor progress of soil carbon sequestration.
This map-based tool will monitor soil organic carbon changes and show on-the-ground results of projects implemented to build soil health.
The workshop will be held via webinar and will be presented on two separate dates to maximize participation. The agenda and description of the map can be found on our Healthy Soils Program webpage.
Participants much register in advance for one of the following two dates:
May 5 10 a.m. PT
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2081096641823640844
May 6 1 p.m. PT
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3379254836366749452
There is also a written comment period on the development of the map. Questions and comments should be submitted to
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