The number of foreign workers living in dormitories who test positive for the coronavirus daily continues to be high in part because of an "active and aggressive testing regime" that sees more workers being tested each day, said National Development Minister Lawrence Wong.

"We expect to still see these numbers for a few more weeks before they stabilise, but our strategy is working and we are making progress day by day in clearing these dormitories," he told a press conference yesterday.

While the coronavirus situation in larger purpose-built foreign worker dormitories is stabilising, Mr Wong said it will take time to clear other smaller dorms, such as factory-converted ones.

Several cases of Covid-19 were recently detected among healthcare workers and other support staff working in dormitories and community care facilities like the one at Singapore Expo. "We already have precautions in these settings but we are doing more now by also testing the workers who are working in these settings," Mr Wong said.

He added that these workers will be tested not just once but periodically to ensure they can do their work in a safe environment.

The Health Ministry's director of medical services Kenneth Mak said the ministry is very concerned about the number of staff involved in dormitory operations who have been diagnosed with Covid-19.

"We want to make sure that they were properly trained in the use of their personal protective equipment and masks, and that they were obeying and respecting the infection control measures to make sure that they were properly protected," said Associate Professor Mak. "If needed, we will work with the inter-agency task force on refresher training, as well as having staff carry out inspections to watch over each other and make sure that everyone is doing the right thing."

Prof Mak also said the Health Ministry decides whether or not to attribute the death of a patient to Covid-19 based on the advice of medical authorities such as a doctor who attended to the patient or a coroner.

"Our approach really is first to ask ourselves, is this directly attributable to Covid-19 infection or complications related to Covid-19 infection? If they are, we will report them as such," he said.

"This comes out in our press statement every day. We are quite transparent in announcing and reporting all the deaths that we have."

He said that if a death is determined not to be due to Covid-19, it will still be reported but not attributed to the virus.

Read the rest here:
Clearing smaller dorms of coronavirus will take time, says Lawrence Wong - The Straits Times

Text Size:A- A+

New Delhi: Now that the Narendra Modi government has begun repatriating Indians stuck abroad, the countrys rich have begun sending in applications to return using private jets, ThePrint has learnt.

According to sources, in the last one month, the Ministry of Home Affairs has received over 20 applications from private charter operators, requesting clearances to fly back to India from various international and domestic locations.

The pending applications include those from Sahara India chief Subrata Roy, Bharti Airtel head Sunil Bharti Mittal, and Essel Group/Zee Media chairman Subhash Chandra. While Roys son is said to be stuck in Colombo, Sri Lanka, a family member of Chandra is stranded in Dubai, sources in the home ministry said.

ThePrint reached the spokespersons of Roy, Mittal and Chandra through calls and messages.

While Mittals spokesperson refused to comment, Chandras and Roys teams did not respond to the query. The report will be updated when they respond.

The Modi government had, in an advisory issued on 16 March, prohibited travel from member countries of the European Union, the European Free Trade Association, Turkey and the United Kingdom to India, with effect from 18 March. Then, on 22 March, the ban was extended to all countries as the government prohibited all international commercial flights from landing in India.

The rules laid down by the MHA are very strict and are being followed strictly. We cannot allow any chartered flight to land, unless they have permission from MHA, a government official said.

A second government source said the operation of these chartered flights are not allowed because the government is reluctant as people coming from abroad could be carriers. But with international flights now starting to repatriate Indians, the government may reconsider its decision, the source added.

Now we have started the flights to repatriate Indians stuck abroad but that too we are doing with extra caution. The private jets could be allowed in the near future (in phases) once we are ready to deal with the traffic. No decision has, however, been taken till now, he said.

Also read: Why Air Force wont be a part of Indias massive Covid evacuation for now

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has also received several requests from private chartered plane operators, but none of them has been cleared until now.

The DGCA is not clearing any such flights at the moment. The applications are scrutinised, and if it is an emergency situation, the MHA gives the approval directly, the second source said.

Private charter operators are constantly enquiring whether it is permitted, this source said, adding: For now, air travel has only been allowed to inter-ministerial teams, doctors, air ambulances and paramedics. No non-essential travel has been allowed.

Last week, an Indian businessman, Rajnish Gupta, chartered a plane from Zambia and reached India with his cook, Suresh Kumar Baheliya. However, they were not allowed to de-board, and were eventually sent back.

They came to India without any clearance or permission, and so were sent back as we are strictly adhering to the guidelines issued by the government, said the first official quoted above.

Also read: India plans to expand repatriation from 15 May to bring back citizens from more countries

The cost of travel by a private jet can be as high as $200,000 (over Rs 1.5 crore), depending on where it is coming from, but that has not deterred those willing to return home.

The ride can cost anywhere between $50,000 (approximately Rs 38 lakh) for a four- to five-hour flight and $200,000 (approximately Rs 1.5 crore) for a longer flight, say from the USA. If someone is coming from London, then it will cost around $1,50,000 (approximately Rs 1 crore), said Kanika Tekriwal, founder of New Delhi based JetSetGo, a private jet operator.

It indeed is expensive, but people are still booking their slots on these planes and sending us requests, the second source quoted above said.

Many of these plane operators are also demanding such high amounts as so many clearances are required, and the demand is only for flying one-way, the source added.

Tekriwal, however, said the rates are constant. Covid or no Cobid, these rates are constant.

ThePrint is now on Telegram. For the best reports & opinion on politics, governance and more, subscribe to ThePrint on Telegram.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Original post:
Indias super rich ready to pay to return home on private jets, but govt not ready to allow it - ThePrint

By the time the already-fractious Allies had agreed on the form, timing and signing details of Germanys unconditionalsurrender at the end of the World War II, Berlin had been under the complete control of the Soviet Red Army for almost a week.

Adolf Hitler, terrified of the prospect of being captured alive or being held accountable for millions of murders,had married his partner Eva Braun and then the two died by suicide shortlybefore the Battle of Berlin was decided. Their newlywed corpses were burned and the ashes scattered near the so-called Fhrerbunker, Hitlers base of operations later in the war. He didnt even want his corpse to fall into enemy hands.

The Allies eventually agreed that combat would officially cease as of 11:01 p.m., Berlin time, on May 8, 1945. The strangely specific timingwas no accident. It assured that in Moscow, one hour ahead of Berlin, the clocks would have ticked over to May 9, allowing the Soviets their own day on which to recall victory inwhat was known in the USSR as the Great Patriotic War.

Field Marshall Keitel signs the capitulation shortly after midnight local time on May 9

It was the Allied leaders who delivered triumphant speechesto their people. Winston Churchill stood atop the roof of the Health Ministry in London before cheering crowds and proclaimed: This is your victory! It is the victory of the cause of freedom in every land. In all ourlong history, we have never seen a greater day than this. Everyone has tried. The exiled former and future French leader, Charles de Gaulle, also spoke of victory in his radio address, noting that Francesmilitary command was present for the signing of the capitulation.

Meanwhile, the man who briefly succeeded Hitler that May, Admiral Karl Dnitz, issued a radio broadcast lasting barely 30 seconds. He alluded to his previous broadcast, onMay 1, when he had announced Hitlers death and saidhis first priority would be to save the lives of German people. To that end, he said, hed asked the armed forces to agree to unconditional surrender.

On May 8, at 23:01, the guns will fall silent, Dnitz said. His next major public stage would be the Nuremberg Trials and his conviction for war crimes in 1946. He served just 10 years in prison.

The rubble women

The dominant international view was and remains that the role of Germans in the war was that of the perpetrators, not the victims, after their country set in motion a global war that went on to claim an estimated 60 million lives and its forces exterminated six million Jews in the Holocaust.

On the ground especially after more than a decade of wall-to-wall propaganda from the schoolyard up, distorting the image of Hitlers Germany this reality was not as immediately obvious.

Many German cities lay in rubble, either firebombed by western Allies (most notably Dresden and Hamburg) or overrun by the Soviets (Berlin). Occupying soldiers are estimated to have raped more than one million German women. Rushing into this wasteland was an exodus of as many as 14 million ethnic Germans refugees who either fled or were driven out of territory far to the east of todays borders.

Many young men were either dead, wounded, captured or traumatised, often by war crimes theyd committed themselves or had seen in the field. Meanwhile, the true extent of the Holocausts horror, which did not feature in Josef Goebbels anti-Semitic propaganda, was coming to light. The immediate postwar desolation became known colloquially as Stunde Null: zero hour.

Florian HuberPromise Me Youll Shoot Yourself: The Downfall of Ordinary Germans, 1945Penguin (July 2019)

Florian Huber has written extensively about the misery in defeated Germany in 1945

First of all Germans had to accept the defeat, which in itself was very hard for many of them, the historian Florian Huber told DW. His two most recent books focus on the immediate postwar months and years for ordinary Germans. His look at the wave of suicides in Germany at that time, Promise Me Youll Shoot Yourself, has also enjoyed success in English. For those who kept going, Huber said, simply securing food and income was the top priority.

The biggest problemwas how to get along with daily life when the man was imprisoned in the prisoner of war camps while children and families tried to get along with a situation that was very extreme, Huber said, and nobody could really say when it would end.

This did allow women to take a more active role. Obsessed with preserving traditional gender roles, Hitler had not called on women to volunteer to take up work in factories and other facilities to aid the war effort as the US and UK had; Nazi Germanys wartime economy had been propped up by the labour of enslaved people a mixture of civilian and military prisoners.

In the postwar years, a new German compound noun was coined for the women who took the lead in clearing the debris from city streets. They were venerated as the Trmmerfrauen, or the rubble women.

Also read: Promise me Youll Shoot Yourself: Nazi Germanys Suicide Wave

A divided land

Initially, Germany was divided into four zones, one administered by each of the Allies to whom it had formally surrendered: the UK, the US, the Soviet Union and France. But the tensions between these allies of necessity had been apparent even before Germanys capitulation, and had resurfaced at precisely thePotsdam conferencewhere the countrys ultimate postwar fate was decided.

Nevertheless, in a marked change of strategy after the punitive peace terms following World War I, the Allies opted for a lighter touch, gradually ushering Germany back into the international community. Reparations would still have to be paid, but nothing like to the extent of those demanded at Versailles in 1919.

The broader transition from global conflictto the Cold War would soon lead to a longerdivision of the country with the Soviet-occupied zone becoming East Germany, or the GDR, and the other three areas making up West Germany, or the Federal Republic. Paradoxically, this fresh threat and division might have smoothed the rocky path to democracy for West Germany.

I am quite convinced that the Cold War experience made it easier, especially for West German society, to accept being part of the Western world, Huber said. It also made it easier for them to adopt, voluntarily, a new democratic constitution, which we have to this day.

The Marshall Plan a major investment program launched by the US in 1948 to rebuild Western Europe after the war and prepare it for the long standoff between capitalism and Soviet communism added a financial incentive to welcome a new world order in the face of the familiar perceived threat from perhaps Hitlers fiercest foes: Stalin and the USSR.

East and West

West German foreign policy rapidly strove for outward reconciliation and reparation. A new and purely defensiveBundeswehr was formed, and no foreign military deployments whatsoever were approved until 1990. To this day, any missions abroad require regularly renewed parliamentary approval.

When Germany does participate in overseas operations, it is typically providing logistical support for allies hitting the targets, such as in the coalition against the Islamic State, or performing peacekeeping and defensive operations in territorythat has been secured by NATO or other friendly forces (with Afghanistan being the largest and longest-running example).

West Germany, and later the reunified country, led the push for the formation and then the expansion of what is now the European Union. The government in Berlin also anchored a historical responsibility for the Holocaust and the defence of Israels existence as part of the nations raison detre.

Especially in the early decades after the war, a spectre overshadowed such advances: the number of former senior Nazis still occupying positions of power in governments, courts, newspapers and society as a whole.

It took an extraordinarily long time for West Germany to make any serious attempt to face the Nazi past, said Susan Neiman, a philosopher and American Jewwho has spent much of her career in Germany,writing several books exploring the countrysrelationship to the Holocaust, and is currently with the Einstein Forum in Potsdam.

Its often the case that foreigners dont quite appreciate how true this was, because the iconic picture of postwar Germany was [Chancellor] Willy Brandt on his knees at the Warsaw Ghetto memorial [in 1970]. That is the picture we expected and we wanted to see. What most foreigners dont realise and it took me decades to realize it myself is that many West Germans hated that gesture of Brandts. They thought it was wrong; they attacked Brandt for having left the country during the war. The much more common view in West Germany was not atonement or repentance for having been a perpetrator, but self-pity for having been a victim.

Also read: When Hitler Realised the End of the War Was Upon Him

Real movement came in Germany with the next generation: the youngsters who were university students around the time of Brandts 1969-74 tenure, and who often grew up asking their own parents searching questions about the Nazi era. Both Neiman and Huber point to a speech by Richard von Weizscker in 1985, the 40th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, or V-E Day,when he declared May 8 one of liberation for Germany, not defeat.

East Germany was rather different, Neiman said.East Germany was anti-fascist from the start because the first victims of Nazis were not Jews, they were Communists and Social Democrats. So the leaders of East Germany were mostly in exile or concentration campsand they were genuinely opposed to the Nazis. Did they abuse their anti-fascist stance ideologically? Of course they did! But was it clear in one side of Germany that the Nazis were evil, and that defeating them was good? Yes.

The GDRs anti-fascism was very much top-down, as Neiman puts it: It was state ideology. So, though the GDRs political class could accurately claim to have never harboured any support for Nazism, this was rather less true for ordinary citizens many of whom would spend decades listening to fresh propaganda that reassured them that Nazism and capitalism went hand in glove and any responsibility for World War II lay west of the Berlin Wall.

Neimans 2019 book, Learning From the Germans, is an exploration of what lessons the US South could take from the progress made in Germany from examining the nationalpast. It was recently published in German.

When I told German friends and colleagues about the book, they either laughed at me or shouted at me because its part of being a good German that you dont believe Germany has any lessons to teach anyone else [on such matters], Neiman said. And my answer was always: Thats an admirable attitude to hold, but its also rather provincial. If you look at other national histories, I think you have to acknowledge that Germany as a whole has gone further in changingits view of itself from a victim to a perpetrator than any other country with remotely comparable history.

A new front

Could the progress made be at risk as the number of survivors of World War II dwindles? Young Germans, in particular, score increasingly poorly in surveys exploring their knowledge of the Nazi era.

By the numbers, the nationalist Alternative for Germany (AfD) isone of the least successful populist far-right movements in Europe, yet it has still established what many analysts deemed impossible for years: a viable political party clearly to the right of the Christian Democrats with seats in the Bundestag and all stateparliaments.

The AfDs heavy hitters and more controversial figures dont tend to talk that much about World War II or the Nazis, although when they do, they will often breach postwar taboos, especially by questioning the culture of remembrance. Alexander Gauland, who weighed in this week arguing against making May 8 a public holiday in Germany, once described Hitler and the Nazi regime as a speck of bird sh*t on over 1,000 successful years of German history.

The partys chairman in the state of Thuringia, Bjrn Hcke, described Berlins Holocaust Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe as a memorial of shame in January 2017.

Also read: The Beer Hall Putsch of November 9, 1923 Germanys Own 9/11

I think we must be aware that the AfD doesrepresent a considerable part of German society today, Huber said. So, yes, they are here to stay. And we certainly will witness a hard and long fight between those who still insist on keeping alive our lessons from the past and those who want to close this chapter of our history, once and for all.

This doesnt seem to have escaped Chancellor Angela Merkel either. In December last year, having already made it clear her time in office was winding down, she visited Auschwitz for the first time on the 75th anniversary of its liberation.We can never forget, Merkel said at the concentration camp, which was built in Nazi-occupied Poland and is arguably the site most symbolic of the Holocaust on the planet. We can never draw a line under this or seek to relativize it.

According to surveys, the vast majority of Germans agree and feel a moral responsibility for the darkest chapter of their countrys history.

The article was originally published onDW.You can read ithere.

More:
May 8, 1945: Germany's 'Zero Hour' - The Wire

It wasn't that long ago that Australia was mired in what many assumed would be the country's worst crisis of 2020.

Thousands of people were forced to seek temporary accommodation in rental properties and hotels. Many are still there, listening to daily reminders to "stay at home" to stop the spread of the coronavirus. If only they could.

Rebuilding after a bushfire can take months, if not years. Insurance assessments need to be carried out, land cleared, boundaries redrawn and essential services like electricity and water reconnected. Plans need to be drafted, costed and approved.

But most importantly, homeowners need to decide if they're willing to stay and risk losing everything all over again.

"A lot of people are coming to grips with what's happened, and the level of trauma is still very high," said architect Tim Lee, who was conducting how-to-rebuild seminars in fire-hit towns in New South Wales before coronavirus isolation measures forced everyone indoors.

Many Australians choose to live near the bush to feel closer to nature. They often live in wooden dwellings, sometimes down quiet, unsealed roads surrounded by trees.

Designed by Ian Weir and Kylie Feher, Karri House in Denmark, Western Australia, prioritizes design over land clearing. Bushfire shutters are used on a daily basis to block out light and insects. "My aim with my work is to build houses that will give extreme, very high levels of confidence so that people can leave early and the house will sustain itself without their help," architect Ian Weir said. Credit: Andrew Halsall / Ian Weir

That's because the vast majority of their houses were built decades ago, before the current building standards were introduced, and when little thought was given to fire.

But with the climate crisis producing hotter, drier conditions, architects say it's more important than ever to design for bushfires before they become more intense and even harder to control. And they say it's possible to create a fire-resistant home that doesn't resemble a bunker -- one that works with the landscape rather than adding fuel to a raging fire.

Losing a home

Merran and Peter Guest lost their home in the small Victorian town of Marysville on February 7, a day now known as Black Saturday. They left their home that morning to drive two hours to a party in Melbourne, unaware that a fire was approaching. Back then, there were no text messages or alerts warning of an imminent fire threat, as there are today. By the time they were allowed to return to their home, nothing was left.

"Everything that survived, when you picked it up it just turned to dust," Merran Guest said.

Related video: Can robots transform Chinese architecture?

However, with millions of Australian homes in moderate to extreme fire-risk areas, retrofitting them to meet current standards is all but impossible, said architect Nigel Bell of ECOdesign Architects + Consultants.

"You cannot, no matter how much money you've spent, upgrade it without demolition," said Bell. "If you've only got $5,000 or $20,000 to spend, probably one of the best things you can do is to add a water spray sprinkler system."

Kate Cotter, CEO of the Bushfire Building Council of Australia, says improving existing homes, even with simple measures such as sealing gaps and replacing flammable material, is a matter of national urgency. "Ignoring legacy property ignores the majority of the risk," she said.

A fire-resistant house built after the 2013 Blue Mountain fires that destroyed around 200 homes. The homeowners originally wanted to insert roof-windows, but were prevented from doing so due to tough regulations on "roof penetrations," according to architect Nigel Bell. They had to fit extra windows instead. Credit: nigel bell

Design as a barrier

New homes in high fire risk areas not only have to meet strict Australian building standards, but extra measures imposed by some states.

"People might not even smell smoke, and suddenly their immediate landscape around the building is on fire," he said. "In the majority of sites across the whole country, fire authorities are encouraging the management of sites, as opposed to the design of resilient homes."

Clever design can help reduce the risk of fire, without razing surrounding land, he said. For example, traditional wooden decks can be replaced with terraces, if the land is flat enough, and internal courtyards can be used to bring nature inside without compromising safety.

"We can get those kind of verandah-style spaces actually within the interior of the house," Weir said.

The panels on this prototype by architect Ian Weir are able to fold down to protect the house from flames. Galvanized steel panels cover bushfire-proof fabric. The idea is that owners should seal their house as a fire approaches -- then leave. Credit: ian weir

The prototype resembles a small oven, but the logic behind this house is that its occupants can lock it up and leave.

"Almost 50% of the wall surface area opens up to the landscape but (it) closes down to create a fully enclosed shield from embers, radiant heat and flames," Weir explained. "It is not intended to protect occupants -- instead the occupants can close it down and leave early."

The position of the house is important, too, said Bell of ECOdesign Architects + Consultants.

It should be low-set, especially the part of the house exposed to a potential firefront, and built on lower ground. "The worst thing you could do is build high on top of a hill or a mountain with bushfire-prone vegetation below," Bell said.

Fire resistant materials

New materials are also making homes more fire-resistant.

Architect Jiri Lev describes hempcrete as a "miracle material" that's both non-flammable and eco-friendly. Made from industrial hemp, a lime-based binder and water, it is squashed into a wooden frame and, once dry, creates an effective barrier against flames.

Lev says there needs to be a complete rethink of architecture in Australia, which he said has created "commodified, uniform dwellings" that are disconnected from the land and local conditions.

"It's always about building the biggest for the cheapest. Of course with that attitude and approach, you can never end up with a beautiful home or a beautiful suburb," Lev said.

His vision for bush architecture is a blanket of small townships, each flanked by agricultural land and bush that's close enough to be managed by the community to regulate the threat. Lev said it would require a change in thinking, from seeking solitude in the bush to building homes closer together to make communities safer and more efficient.

"Everyone tends to want to live like the nobleman, have their own little duchy or their own little barony, even if it's just a quarter acre or less," he said. "People naturally try to create their own little isolated universe, but it's not sustainable. And it makes no sense. In the end of there's no sustainability in isolation."

His point seems more pertinent now than ever. Designing a new home may seem exciting, but for many people who are rebuilding after a fire, it's a painful and daunting experience.

"You've got people who've been in their houses for 20 to 30 years, then all of a sudden it's gone," said Tim Lee. "There's a grieving process to go through. Many people just want their old house back."

Peter Guest inspects what's left their home after catastrophic bushfires on February 7, 2009, a day now known as Black Saturday. More than 170 people were killed and the entire town of Marysville was destroyed. The couple rebuilt on the same block soon after. Credit: Merran Guest

Merran and Peter Guest did, too. The house they lost was less than 10 years old. They still had the plans and asked the builder to construct another one -- but to make it bigger and more fire resistant.

The old marine plywood was replaced with rendered brick, all the windows were double-glazed and now the only wood in the house is the front door, made of merbau, a fire-resistant hardwood.

"Because we built the house, we knew what it cost. But many people had bought a house for not a lot, so they'd only insured it for a little bit -- and they didn't have money to build to the new specifications," Merran said, adding that if she had her time again, she wouldn't rebuild. The process was time-consuming, costly and confusing.

"If we had known what we'd go through rebuilding, we wouldn't have done it. But now we have, I'm glad we did it."

The rest is here:
The Australian architects designing homes to withstand bushfires - CNN

Upcoming Deadlines/DatesJune 30: 2020 ARCPLC ElectionJuly 15: Crop CertificationSeptember 30: PLC Yield Update

USDA Service CentersThough USDA Service Center doors are locked, they are open for business by phone and email. Field work will continue with appropriate social distancing. While our program delivery staff will continue to come into the office on a rotational basis, they will be working with our producers by phone, and using online tools whenever possible. All Service Center visitors wishing to conduct business with the FSA, Natural Resources Conservation Service, or any other Service Center agency are required to call their Service Center first. The Allamakee County USDA Service Center is (563) 568-2148. More information can be found at farmers.gov/coronavirus.

April 2020 CCC and FSFL Interest RatesNew rates were issued for the month of April and are as follows: 0.750% for 3 years 0.750% for 5 years 1.000% for 7 years 1.000% for 10 years 1.125% for 12 years 1.250% for 15 years

Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage Enrollment for 2020USDAs Farm Service Agency (FSA) encourages agricultural producers to enroll now in the Agriculture Risk Loss (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs. The deadline to enroll for the 2020 crop year is June 30, 2020. By enrolling soon, producers can beat the rush as the deadline nears.

FSA offices have multiple programs competing for the time and attention of our staff. Because of the importance and complexities of the ARC and PLC programs; and to ensure FSA meets your program delivery expectations, please do not wait to start the enrollment process. Contact your FSA county office and make an appointment soon to ensure your elections are made and contracts signed well ahead of the deadline.

ARC and PLC provide financial protections to farmers from substantial drops in crop prices or revenues and are vital economic safety nets for most American farms.

Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) - February RateThe DMC rate for February 2020 was $10.06/cwt. As a result, there will not be a DMC payment for February 2020.

Breaking New GroundAgricultural producers are reminded to consult with FSA and NRCS before breaking out new ground for production purposes as doing so without prior authorization may put a producers federal farm program benefits in jeopardy. This is especially true for land that must meet Highly Erodible Land (HEL) and Wetland Conservation (WC) provisions.

Producers with HEL determined soils are required to apply tillage, crop residue and rotational requirements as specified in their conservation plan.

Producers should notify FSA as a first point of contact prior to conducting land clearing or drainage type projects to ensure the proposed actions meet compliance criteria such as clearing any trees to create new cropland, then these areas will need to be reviewed to ensure such work will not risk your eligibility for benefits.

Landowners and operators complete the form AD-1026 - Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation (WC) Certification to identify the proposed action and allow FSA to determine whether a referral to Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) for further review is necessary.

Marketing Loans - ReminderGrain that is under loan, or sealed as many producers call it, must be repaid or released for sale prior to moving the bushels out of storage for sale or feed use. Unauthorized disposition results in possible penalties and administrative actions. Remember to call before you haul and we can discuss your options and forms that you may need to sign. Phone the FSA office at (563) 568-2148.

Follow this link:
What's Up at the USDA Office? - Waukon Standard

Autoplay

Show Thumbnails

Show Captions

The Santa Rosa County homebuilding industry, which has enjoyed a boom in recent years,is preparing for an uncertain future as economic consequences loom from thecoronavirus pandemic.

Dozens of housing developments, both small and large-scale, are already underway throughout the county. Some are in the infancy stages of land clearing, and some are already built and ready to be shown to potential home buyers. But with unemployment soaring due to coronavirus-related closures and a recession all but certain, homebuilders and those employed by the local construction industry are bracing for the unknown.

"I am in complete agreement that in late March, the U.S. started a downhill trend toward recession, and that in the second quarter of calendar year 2020 April, May and Junewe will be in a severe recession," said Rick Harper, economic adviser for Triumph Gulf Coast. "There's no doubt about that, and it's because of the slowdown in consumer spending."

To provide our community with important public safety information, our newsroom is making stories related to the coronavirus free to read. To support important local journalism like this, please consider becoming a digital subscriber.

But Harper cautioned that due to the sudden nature of the economic downturn and the various unknowns associated with when the economy will open up again and how long it will take for things to get back to "normal," not every industry will be hit the same.

Construction, for instance, could fare better thanthe tourism and hospitality sectors in Florida, which were shut down just at the peak of spring break season.

"Being designated as 'essential' by the DHS (Department of Human Services) puts the construction industry in a very different position than the tourism industry, for example," Harper said. "But I think, relative to the other industry sectors, construction may be hit a little bit less hard. Construction workers want to stay on the job, and the DHS says they can stay on the job."

Still, the local construction industry is already experiencing impacts related to the coronavirus. Blaine Flynn, owner of Flynn Built and the 2020 president of the Home Builders Association of West Florida, said construction of new housing developments in the county has already begun to slow down in recent weeks.Flynn estimates he's seen a decrease in sales contracts of 40% to 50% for the month of March, which is typically one of his busiest months for new home sales.

Essential industries: Coronavirus Florida shutdown: Complete list of essential businesses that can stay open

He attributes the decrease in sales to sudden job losses, people's hesitancy to take out mortgages due to the uncertain future of the economyand a slowdown in the actual construction process due to social distancing guidelines. His crews must work six feet apart from each other, and only one subcontractor is allowed to be in the house at once, whereas previously he could have multiple subcontractors HVAC, plumbing, electrical and more all in the house at the same time to speed up the process.

The slowdown in the construction process means interest rates on construction loans are building up, causing the process to cost more, which could be passed on to the home buyers.

Flynn remembers the 2008 recession well, but he said the current economic climate is one he's never experienced before, and he's not sure what it will look like on the other end.

Unemployment: Coronavirus Florida: DeSantis takes steps to fix failing unemployment system

Electricians Jason Clemons and Eric Ownby prepare to run electrical wiring throughout a new home build in Santa Rosa County on Monday, all while practicing proper social distancing.(Photo: Tony Giberson/tgiberson@pnj.com)

"I think the difference between the 2008recession and this (the coronavirus) is that when (2008) happened, it was economically driven from the fact of bad mortgages and it all kind of came to a head,"Flynn said. "But this is different than anyone's ever seen before. This isn't happening because the economy was bad, this is a virus that no one has any answers to. ... So to compare it to 2008, I don't know how you do that, because we were in the strongest economic growth that we've seen and this virus just hit it immediately."

Shawn Ward, the planning and zoning director for Santa Rosa County, said his office has seen a slight decrease in building inspections in March. The county typically does between 300 to 350 inspections per day, but lately they have been doing about 250 to 300.

But at the same time, Ward said hehas actually seen an uptick in building permit applications in recent weeks attributed to the economic uncertainty.

"A couple of builders have referenced that they're going to submit more because they don't know if that supply chain is going to waiver off," Ward said. "And there's also some worry about the upcoming educational impact fee."

Impact fee: Santa Rosa County could consider delaying school impact fee collection due to coronavirus

The educational impact fee is slated to go into effect May 4 to help build new schools in Santa Rosa County, though County Commissioners could decide to delay that. Homebuilders, who have been opposed to the fee since the beginning, say implementing the fee now will make it even more difficult for people tobuy homes in an already uncertain market.

Keith Furrow, a broker with Keith Furrow and Associates and a builder and partner in Gulf Coast Dream Homes, said he takes more stock with building inspections than with permits at the current moment.

"A bunch of the big builders have enough money that they can order hundreds of permits at a time, so that would give you an artificial sense that it's going to be amazing, when in reality they just might not build those right away," Furrow said. "I think the permit number applications, in this case, don't mean a lot. I think inspections mean a lot."

Santa Rosa Countys housing boom is already slowing down due to the economic impact of the coronavirus, as workers have to practice social distancing on job sites and prepare for disruptions in the international supply chain. But experts arent sure about the long-term implications of the economic downturn on the local homebuilding industry just yet.(Photo: Tony Giberson/tgiberson@pnj.com)

Furrow said the sudden collapse of the economy in the past three weeks has been "shockingly devastating" for the homebuilding industry. He said he's seen business partners lose hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash flow instantly as buyers lose their jobs and have their 401(k)s wiped out.

Still, Furrow said he's remaining "cautiously optimistic" about the months ahead and refers to the current climate as a "pause" in the market as opposed to a "dip."

"In the second quarter (April, May and June), there's going to be no doubt about it that it's not going to be as good, and the third quarter (July, August, and September) may not be good either," Furrow said. "But the fourth quarter, you never know. It's going to take a year or longer to get things even close to being back where we were. Because it takes time for people to rebuild their lives."

For Santa Rosa County residents who own homes, or are looking to buy or sell homes, the future just isn't clear, experts say.

On the one hand, the economy prior to coronavirus was strong, housing demand in Santa Rosa County was high and new inventory was constantly being built.

But on the other hand, no one knows when or if the economy will get back to normal, and how long it will take for people to get back on their feet.

"With the advent of coronavirus and the growing realization that it's a serious problem for the economy, we've seen a slowdown in mortgage finance requests applications," said Harper, the economist with Triumph Gulf Coast. "So the demand will slow for new construction because people are uncertain about the future.But the federal reserve is keeping interest rates extraordinarily low, and mortgage rates are very attractive for people considering building a new home or moving to Santa Rosa County."

Furrow speculated that some property owners could see a decrease of between 2%to 4% in their property values, but that could easily change due to the constantly changing nature of the economy. He said the fluctuations will vary depending on the value of the home.

Low mortgage rates: A 'traffic jam' hits home refinancing as owners rush to take advantage of record-low rates

He said there are so many factors that have ripple effects on the home buying and building sectors, from sales people who can't show model homes due to social distancing guidelines, to people from up north who were planning to come to Florida but can't due to travel restrictions.

"Each month there's going to be a slight adjustment, but there's no doubt that there's going to be pressure on home prices," he said.

Electrician Jason Clemons works on new home in Santa Rosa County on Monday.(Photo: Tony Giberson/tgiberson@pnj.com)

Gary Michaels, operations manager with the Mark Lee Team at Levin Rinke Realty, said his team's first quarter was a record in terms of sales, and they've had multiple closings last week and this week.

He said the economy has been strong prior to the sudden crash, and he's optimistic it will rebound soon but only if people follow the rules and stay inside.

"I'm optimistic that we're going to come through this, and we're going to go right back to a robust economy," he said. "I say that cautiously, because ultimately no one knows, and we need to get through this as quickly as possible. We need everybody to do their part."

Annie Blanks can be reached at ablanks@pnj.com or 850-435-8632.

Read or Share this story: https://www.pnj.com/story/news/2020/04/07/how-coronavirus-impact-santa-rosa-countys-homebuilding-industry/2954283001/

Originally posted here:
Santa Rosa County's homebuilding industry was booming before the pandemic. Now what? - Pensacola News Journal

With neighborhoods full of home-bound residents thanks to the state-wide Stay at Home order, any smoke created by recreational fires or yard-waste burning may impact a large number of people. Worse, since Covid-19 creates severe respiratory issues, anything that impacts breathing during these tense times can add to peoples stress and worry.

For these reasons, the Olympic Region Clean Air Agency (ORCAA) encourages residents and businesses to continue working together to protect public health by reducing the amount of smoke they produce. Folks are asked to refrain from outdoor burning activities, including recreational fires, yard waste burning, and land-clearing slash burning. These voluntary restrictions should be upheld until the need for social distancing relaxes.

Residents may make use of alternatives to burning, including curbside pickup services offered by their trash pick-up providers. Compost piles can turn yard waste into valuable soil additives for yard and garden. And chipping can create good ground-cover materials.

Read the original post:
Residents Asked to Refrain from Burning - masonwebtv.com

With millions of jobs now furloughed indefinitely and billions in lost revenue, the tourism industry is currently grappling with the most significant challenge it has ever faced. Through the uncertainty and fear a chorus of voices is emerging, trying to give hope and encourage investment during these extraordinary times.

With more than 50 years in the attractions industry,Frank Stanekknows it better than most. The "Themed Entertainment Association Lifetime Achievement Award" winner now serves as an executive adviser for themed entertainment and attractions design firm the Producers Group. Via TPG Stanek published a white paper that has since become a rallying cry across the industry. Pointing to the numerous previous tumultuous economic shifts that have occurred over his lifetime, Stanek says now is not the time to allow fear to freeze investments in the future, adding, In fact, this is an ideal time to continue the development of well-thought-out projects" with appealing concepts, sound business plans and good execution strategy.

He goes on to say that in past cases, those who have used downturns to reinvest are at a better advantage when the economy does rebound. The social and economic activities of life run in cycles. Since the development cycle for a new project in itself is a longer term, two to 10 years, stopping development in uncertain times creates an unforced delay in the project realization.

Its not just the return of guests that is at play so is finding quality labor. In periods of uncertainty, strategic advantages can accrue to those who keep moving the project forward. Competitors less confident will slow down or stop their projects, giving you a chance to overtake and lead. Competition for resources may slow down, allowing you to achieve better pricing on project needs for construction and equipment. Turmoil may cause disruption in the labor market, which would allow you to recruit more experienced or high demand talent, executives and services.

So far, the tourism industry has flashed mixed signals. At Universal, leaders have said projects around the world are continuing to move forward. At Disney World, there seems to be a dichotomy on how to respond with construction projects within the parks paused indefinitely while Reedy Creek projects outside the parks remain active.

Drew Fisher of the tourism-focused "In the Loop" podcast and YouTube channel, who is currently furloughed from his tourism-related job, spoke to Orlando Weekly on what he expects over the next two years. Regional chains like Six Flags and Cedar Fair may choose to not invest in new attractions for the 2021 season, he said, but larger park chains like SeaWorld and Disney are likely already too far along to cancel similar projects.

As the shock of our post-coronavirus reality sets in, and as weeks of social distancing-related closures turn into months, how each company will respond will be become clearer. With tens of thousands of tourism workers already furloughed, one thing is clear: Few seem to be learning from Milton Hershey, who proudly proclaimed, As far as I know, no man was dropped by reason of the Depression. And no salaries were cut. To see who will come out ahead after this slowdown, industry leaders may be wise to look to Hershey and Stanek. So far, the only company that seems to be doing so is Universal.

Here is the original post:
History shows now is the time to invest in tourism projects are Disney, Universal and SeaWorld listening? - Orlando Weekly

Drought, fires and land clearing have pushed Australias iconic koala to the brink of extinction, animal welfare groups warned on Sunday,with last year's bush fires killing thousands of the animals.

The groups are urging Australia's national government to classify the marsupial as endangered in Queensland, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory after research from two major conservation groups revealed a dramatic collapse in the koala population in the past 20 years.

WWF-Australia found that since 2001, the number of koalas in Queensland has been cut in half, while in New South Wales numbers may have declined by up to 62 percent, according to the International Fund for Animal Welfare.

Drought anddeforestation-along with the related problem of bush fires - were the main factors driving the collapse, according to WWF-Australia scientist Dr Stuart Blanch, who added that the situation was worse than we thought.

We have gone from [koalas] not being a threatened species to [potentially] being listed as an endangered species on the east coast within a decade - I would never have thought that was possible. I never thought we would be losing them so quickly, he told SBS News.

Raising the threat level to endangered would increase the protection for forests and woodlands where koalas live, mobilise fundsand, hopefully, increase public support for the species. Koalas are the canaries of our forests. If we lose koalas, it means our forests are disappearing as well, warned Dr Blanch.

He said raising the level to endangered was inevitable but must happen as soon as possible.

The devastating bush fires of 2019-20 contributed heavily to the problem, according to the research. The report by the International Fund for Animal Welfare found that at least 6,382 koalas were killed in New South Wales between the start of the bush fire season and February 13, representing 15 percent of the region's koalas.

That added to the enormous stress on the population due to land clearing, urban development and drought, with numbers declining by up to 62 percent since 2001.

IFAW wildlife campaigner Josey Sharrad said the death toll is a conservative estimate which doesn't include the number of koalas that will die because their habitats have been destroyed by fires. The surviving koalas have nowhere to go, she said.

Sue Ashton, of the Koala Hospital in Macquarie, New South Wales, told The Telegraph that drought severely depleted the food supply forkoalas, a problem exacerbated by bush fires.

They get about 65 percent of their hydration from leaves [but] because of the drought the leaves are too dry, she said. Koalas desperate for food may venture across roads and into peoples backyards, putting them at risk of being killed by traffic or dogs.

Link:
Koalas pushed to the brink of extinction by drought and bush fires, animal welfare groups say - Telegraph.co.uk

The government notably rejected one recommendation: the commission's call for "an overarching steering committee" led by an independent chair to oversee agency coordination and implement review triggers and other action.

Loading

Instead, the government offered support for an oversight group led by senior bureaucrats.

Rachel Walmsley, an Environmental Defenders Office NSW policy director, described the response as "totally inadequate".

"It was all a very secret process, with no action to [fix the problems] or commitment to transparency," she said.

She added the government had also "noted" the commission's call for it to finalise and release regulatory maps and to nominate areas of outstanding biodiversity value - despite the laws being active since August 2017.

The commission completed its report last July and the government released it last month following a threat of legal action from independent NSW MP Justin Field. Mr Field said the state's response to the audit - prompted by a previously secret deal between the Liberals and Nationals if land-clearing approvals topped an annual rate of 20,000 hectares - was to "kick the can down the road again and let the escalated land clearing continue".

A front-end loader removes trees on a property near Junee in the Riverina.Credit:Ashley Hermes

"The National Party keep getting away with environmental vandalism in this state and the Liberals appear unable or unwilling to hold their feet to the fire and back in the expert advice," Mr Field said.

Separately, the Herald has learned the Planning Department has ordered compliance officers to finalise all investigations related to alleged breaches under the former laws by August 25, 2020.

In some instances, such a deadline will mean the 24-month statute of limitations for bringing action against offenders from the first official warning will be cut by half a year or more.

Loading

Social isolation limits prompted by the COVID-19 lockdown is also hindering work across the agriculture and environment departments, including compliance.

However, the government spokesman denied there was an interruption to work: "All compliance activity is currently continuing while adhering to NSW government guidelines and rules on social distancing, self-isolation where required and strict hygiene protocols to protect staff and our stakeholders.

"At this stage we do not anticipate any statute of limitations impacts because of COVID-19," he said.

The government did not respond to questions about the recommendations.

Peter Hannam writes on environment issues for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

Link:
'Environmental vandalism': State's response to secret land audit blasted - Sydney Morning Herald