Goal 5 kickoff meeting held

Paul Blom, an entomologist for the Oregon Department of Agriculture, and Harney County Farm Bureau President Thurston “Rusty” Inglis attended the Harney County Court meeting on June 22, to discuss a major grasshopper outbreak around the Malheur Lake area in southern Harney County.

“The scale of the current outbreak (so far surveyed in and around the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge) is of unusual magnitude and needs both an immediate response as well as planning for the following years,” Blom explained.

He added that several species are involved, which could complicate suppression strategies.

Inglis stated that the combined spraying costs for affected landowners could easily exceed $40,000 for one treatment, and because a large population of the grasshoppers are already in the adult stage, multiple treatments may be needed.

“Without treatment, the economic loss to the agriculture community could easily exceed over $400,000,” Inglis wrote in a letter addressed to Harney County Judge Steve Grasty. “It is imperative that we act immediately, as some producers are already experiencing major crop damage. Failure to control this most recent outbreak may result in expanded population outbreaks within the county, compounding the economic losses.”

Blom said the issue is complicated because federal, state and private lands are involved.

On public lands, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) runs the suppression programs in outbreak situations.

APHIS has only three suppression options in its arsenal: Dimilin, Sevin and Malathion.

The preferred method is to use Dimilin, a compound that inhibits production of chitin, a major component of grasshoppers’ exoskeletons.

In order to grow, grasshoppers have to molt. During this process, they shed out of their skeletons, which are located in their skin, and form a new skin. Each period of life between molts is called an instar. Generally, grasshoppers go through five immature instars before reaching the adult life stage. Adult grasshoppers have fully formed wings, allowing them to fly. They can also mate and lay eggs.

Dimilin is sprayed on the plants that grasshoppers eat, as ingesting the compound causes their next molt to be abnormal, resulting in their death. It is the preferred suppression option because it has the greatest specificity and a fairly long residual (three weeks), reducing the treatment area by relying on grasshoppers’ wandering behavior.

Unfortunately, because much of Harney County’s grasshopper population has already reached the adult stage, Blom said Dimilin will no longer be effective in treating this year’s outbreak. This leaves only Sevin and Malathion.

Used either as a bait or a liquid, Sevin attacks grasshoppers’ nervous systems. Compared to Dimilin, it is broader spectrum in its activity and shorter lived. Additionally, recent label changes only allow for aerial application by APHIS.

“The limitation of aerial application of Sevin to APHIS and the geographic scale of this infestation probably precludes its use for all but the smaller parcels,” Blom explained.

Thus, APHIS is left with Malathion, which also acts on the grasshoppers’ nervous systems. Unfortunately, it is the least preferred alternative because it is too broad spectrum and has a very short residual. However, it is effective against all life stages and can be flown on. Many landowners select it due to its cost, availability, and because a license is not required to use it. (Dimilin is a Restricted Use Pesticide, meaning that it requires a license.)

“While it may not be preferred, it is advisable to inflict significant mortality on the adults. Not only as a tactic against the feeding damage they cause now, but also to limit the number of eggs laid for next year’s population,” Blom said regarding the use of Malathion.

He added, “Whatever strategy is taken, it will be more beneficial if neighbors can coordinate efforts. Grasshoppers do not recognize boundaries, and populations really act at a regional scale. Individual efforts will have an impact, but that impact will be greatly enhanced through coordination. Also note that, as a greater proportion of the population becomes adults, they will be more inclined to local (still measured in miles) movement. You may need to be flexible in treatment, as they can be here today, or even in the morning, but somewhere else in the afternoon or next day.”

Grasty said, “If something is going to happen this year, someone is going to have to put a plan and a budget together.”

Inglis said the Harney County Farm Bureau hopes to sponsor a training in late fall or early winter to begin planning for next year, adding that he’d like to include the refuge in a coordinated effort.

•••

Mark Owens discussed the Goal 5 kickoff meeting, which took place later that evening.

The objective of the meeting was to garner input from community members regarding the natural resources that they consider important to the county and how they’d like to prioritize and sustain them.

Harney County Commissioner Dan Nichols said Harney County’s people should be considered its most important resource.

•••

Ted Tiller, Harney County assessor and tax collector, attended the meeting to discuss a court order to dismiss property taxes on personal property that has been demolished.

Tiller explained that, typically, when people walk away from their property, the county can seize it. However, in the case of these two destroyed mobile homes, there is nothing for the county to seize.

Both properties have been taken off the tax roll, but the taxes that have already been imposed can’t be removed from the books without a court order.

The court will revisit the matter during its next meeting.

•••

Public Health Director Darbie Kemper was present to discuss the Oregon Health Plan Outreach and Enrollment Program. The Harney County Health Department received a $100,000 grant.

Kemper said the grant will be used to staff someone at the health department full time. The funding will also be used to provide part-time coverage to Harney County’s rural communities.

This is a one-year grant, but the department can reapply for it.

•••

In other business the court:

• accepted the Harney County Coordinated Human Services Public Transportation Plan, as presented by Harney County Senior and Community Services Center Executive Director Angela Lamborn;

• discussed the trust deed for Symmetry Care Inc.;

• met with Dan Jordan of Steens Mountain Insurance and agreed to sign the insurance documents for the 2016-2017 year;

• agreed to sign the 2016 Fund Exchange Agreement between Harney County and the Oregon Department of Transportation for chip sealing Van Drewsey Road.

Grasty explained that the county is exchanging federal funding for state funding, which has fewer regulations;

• approved Resolution 2016-03 in the matter of appropriating funds due to unexpected occurrence or condition.

Harney County received $90,000 to be equally distributed among its six Rural Fire Protection Associations;

• agreed to sign documents with Oster Professional Group Certified Public Accountants LLP to conduct an audit of the county’s accounts and fiscal affairs for the period beginning July 1, 2015 and ending June 30, 2016;

• held a public hearing to adopt the budget and levy and categorize taxes. There being no public comment, the hearing was closed;

• approved Resolution 2016-04 in the matter of adopting the 2016-2017 budget in the total sum of $30,650,222.40 and making appropriations;

• approved Resolution 2016-05 in the matter of imposing and categorizing 2016-2017 taxes. Harney County imposes the taxes provided for in the adopted budget at a rate of 4.5016 per $1,000 of assessed value for operations;

• passed Resolution 2016-06, transferring $60,000 within Harney County General Operating Reserve Fund 241 from “contingency” to “transfer out.” The resolution also appropriates $16,900 from Fund 241 to Harney County Archive Building Fund 401 and $43,100 to Harney County 911/Dispatch Fund 223;

• reviewed and discussed the lease agreement between Harney County and Oregon State University (OSU) Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center.

Grasty said OSU asked if it can extend the duration of the lease to a 15-year period. The university will make the necessary changes to the lease and return it for the court’s consideration and approval;

• agreed to sign the USDA APHIS Wildlife Services Work and Financial Plan for July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2017 to continue the cooperative wildlife damage management program in Harney County.

The objective of the program is to resolve wildlife/human conflicts related to damage caused by predatory animals and other wildlife to livestock and human health and safety;

• reviewed water use requests.

•••

The court received correspondence from:

• Kenneth H. Delano Jr., stating that circumstances have changed, and he’d like to continue to serve as the Harney County Surveyor.

The court recognized Delano’s resignation during its March 16 meeting, and agreed to reappoint him during the June 22 meeting;

•  Bettina Bowman, requesting funding assistance for Celebrate Recovery of Harney County.

Grasty suggested that funding requests be made in January, so they can be considered in the budget process;

• Shari Harris-Dunning of the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) regarding a compliance inspection that she conducted at the Riley Landfill May 16.

Harris-Dunning noted two violations, which were failure to post required signage and failure to control litter. Both are Class III violations, which are the least serious.

Grasty said the sign has been put back up, and cleanup will occur on a more regular basis;

• Harris-Dunning, stating that DEQ received and approved the county’s annual recertification of financial assurance for permitted solid waste landfills, including Diamond, Drewsey, Fields, Frenchglen and Riley;

• Gregory Moon, district ranger for the Prairie City Ranger District, regarding the Wildlife Aspen Thinning and Whitebark Pine Protection project proposals on the Prairie City Ranger District;

• Richard Roy, Three Rivers Resource Area field manager, requesting that the Harney County Court and Advisory Board contribute $1,500 (payable to the Soil and Water Conservation District) toward the drilling of a livestock well;

• Steve Beverlin, forest supervisor for the Malheur National Forest, regarding a timber sale. Sealed bids will be opened in Beverlin’s office Wednesday, June 29, at 10 a.m.;

• Donald Syriani, a member of the Silvies Watershed Risk Mapping, Assessment and Planning  (Risk MAP) Project Team, who provided the Risk MAP project quarterly report for Silvies Watershed and Harney County.

The next regular meeting of the Harney County Court will be held Wednesday, July 6, at 10 a.m. at the courthouse.