e-Directions is an information-sharing newsletter issued at least bi-monthly to help keep you updated on Extension-related issues covering restructuring, programming opportunities, strategic plan initiatives and enhancements and other information.
If you have any comments or suggestions to improve e-Directions or the Director’s Web site, please contact me at pcoreil@agcenter.lsu.edu.
Because of the length of this newsletter, it has been divided into sections that are available from the list provided below.
Introductory Comments
As you know, the Legislature is in special session November 5-22 to begin dealing with the realities associated with hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Besides the personal hardships we have suffered within the LSU AgCenter family involving loss or damage to employees’ homes, we have also experienced loss or damage to several parish Extension Service offices and Experiment Station facilities statewide. Additionally, many farmers, forest landowners and fishermen have suffered significant financial losses estimated to exceed $1.6 billion in Louisiana alone (not counting infrastructure losses).
Now we face a state budget that is estimated to receive $1.5 billion less in revenues because of the impacts of the two hurricanes. This has triggered the governor to call for up to 10% cuts in many state agencies including higher education. The details of the actual higher education cut of $66 million (or approximately 6.6%) have not been determined but must be approved by the Board of Regents by November 18. The Commissioner of Higher Education has indicated that the cuts will not be across the board; therefore, each institution may actually face cuts lower or higher than the 6.6% average. We hope to get the proposed cuts facing the LSU AgCenter well before the November 18 deadline and before the end of the special session. We understand that cuts must be made during these tough financial times facing the state; however, we will work very hard to make sure cuts to the LSU AgCenter are fair and proportionate to other institutions of higher education and with the realization that we cannot generate additional income from tuition increases.
We have much work to do to help communities recover from the devastating impacts caused by the two storms. Clearly the relevance of the AgCenter’s mission is more critical now than ever! It is our job now to step up to the challenge and continue to be a significant part of recovery and rebuilding efforts in a way that no other institution of higher education can. A fair budget rescission will be critical if we are to continue effectively fulfilling our important mission. I assure you we pledge to do all we can to make our case during the special session and in the months ahead. I ask you to continue making a positive difference through programming excellence at the departmental, regional and parish office levels.
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Strategies for Coping with Hurricanes Katrina and Rita
The following information is provided by the LSU Student Health Center:
There are personal hardships that go along with a tragic event, such as a hurricane, like lack of electricity or supplies, fearful of health hazards due to flooding, or not knowing family members’ whereabouts. The following, however, are normal responses to a traumatic event:
Feelings become intense and sometimes are unpredictable. You may be more irritable than usual, your mood may change dramatically, you might be more anxious and nervous, and may become depressed. Repeated or vivid memories of the event may lead to physical reactions such as rapid heartbeat or sweating. An affected person may find it difficult to concentrate or make decisions, or become more easily confused. Sleep and eating patterns may be disrupted. Interpersonal relationships often become strained. This may be magnified, if multiple people are required to share personal space. Greater conflict, such as more frequent arguments with family members and friends, is common. On the other hand, you might become withdrawn and isolated and avoid your usual activities. You may also experience headaches, nausea, chest pain and other physical symptoms that may accompany extreme stress.
There are various ways you can cope with this great amount of stress. An individual needs time to heal and must anticipate this time to be difficult. You must allow yourself to mourn the losses that have been experienced, and must be patient with changes in your emotional state. Talk to people who care about you and express your thoughts and feelings about your situation. You can even start a journal.
More ways one can cope with stress can be to engage in healthy behaviors to enhance this ability. Eat well-balanced meals and snacks and stay physically active. Get plenty of rest; if you experience ongoing difficulties with sleep, you may be able to find some relief through relaxation techniques. Avoid using alcohol and drugs to cope. Establish or reestablish routines such as eating meals at regular times and following an exercise program. This can be especially important when the normal routines of daily life are disrupted. Even if you are unable to return home, establish routines that bring comfort. Take some time to pursue hobbies or other enjoyable activities. Also avoid major life decisions such as switching majors or jobs if possible because these activities tend to be highly stressful.
If an individual was not directly affected by Katrina and Rita but has family and friends who were, there are strategies you can employ to cope with your situation. Watching endless footage of the disaster can increase your stress. Although you’ll want to keep informed, take a break from watching the news. Feelings of relief or guilt are common in these situations. Try to stay focused on the good things in life despite the disaster around the area. You can also be productive and provide financial support or other aid to victims of natural disasters through various organizations.
Many people are able to cope effectively with the emotional and physical demands brought about by a natural disaster by using their own support systems. It is not unusual, however, to find that serious problems persist and continue to interfere with daily living. For example, some may feel overwhelming nervousness or lingering sadness that adversely affects job performance and interpersonal relationships. Individuals with prolonged reactions that disrupt their daily functioning should consult with a trained and experienced mental health professional.
For more information or for assistance, contact Mental Health Service at 225/ 578-8774, the Wellness Education Department at 225/ 578-5718 or Ann Coulon at AgCenter HRM at 225/578-6787.
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Disaster Recovery Hotline
The LSU AgCenter recently established a toll-free phone system to help Louisiana citizens obtain information about recovering from the disasters and damages created by recent hurricanes.
The LSU AgCenter Disaster Recovery Hotline, 866-573-0178, provides callers with recorded answers to frequently asked questions concerning disaster recovery 24 hours a day. Callers also will have an option to speak with an LSU AgCenter agent during regular business hours.
Among the topics covered are how to avoid mold hazards and what to do about home and garden damage. Other topics include personal finances, food and water safety and issues related to fisheries, crops and livestock.
The recorded messages will change over time to meet the needs expressed by callers.
The hotline is open around the clock with recorded answers on some issues. For additional information, callers may speak to an LSU AgCenter faculty member from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Additional information on storm preparation and recovery is available on the LSU AgCenter’s Web site at www.lsuagcenter.com. Printed copies of the AgCenter’s "Storm Recovery Guide" and other publications related to storm recovery can be ordered through that site or when calling the hotline. Copies of some publications also are available through parish LSU AgCenter offices.
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Disaster Declarations
Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco announced yesterday that United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Mike Johanns has honored her request for a disaster designation for all eligible parishes in Louisiana due to the combined losses caused this year by drought and hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This designation makes all qualified farm operators in the listed parishes eligible for low-interest emergency loans from FSA, provided eligibility requirements are met. Farmers in eligible parishes have eight months from the date of the declaration (October 24, 2005) to apply for the loans to help cover part of their actual losses.
After reviewing Damage Assessment Reports along with additional information submitted by the state executive director of the Farm Service Agency (FSA), the USDA has given the following 40 parishes a Secretarial disaster declaration:
Acadia, Allen, Avoyelles, Beauregard, Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Calcasieu, Caldwell, Cameron, Catahoula, Claiborne, Concordia, DeSoto, East Carroll, Evangeline, Franklin, Grant, Jackson, Jefferson Davis, LaSalle, Lafayette, Lincoln, Madison, Morehouse, Natchitoches, Ouachita, Rapides, Red River, Richland, Sabine, St. Landry, St. Martin, Tensas, Union, Vermilion, Vernon, Webster, West Carroll and Winn.
This latest declaration in combination with the Presidential declarations made after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita now makes every parish in the state a primary disaster area. In addition to providing emergency loan assistance, the Secretarial declaration would make those areas not originally covered by Presidential declarations eligible for any additional assistance provided by Congress in a supplemental disaster appropriation.
Those parishes that were originally declared primary disaster areas under Presidential declaration were:
Acadia, Ascension, Assumption, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberia, Iberville, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette, Livingston, Orleans, Pointe Coupee, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James, St. Mary, St. Martin, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Terrebonne, Lafourche, Vermilion, Washington, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana.
Disaster relief programs administered through the Farm Service Agency originally made available to these parishes included the emergency loans and the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP).
With this latest declaration, all agricultural producers throughout Louisiana are encouraged to contact their local Farm Service Agency office to get more information about the programs available in their area.
Click here to view a map of the disasters areas.
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Director’s New Voting Poll Question
After Katrina and Rita, many lessons were learned, and this Poll Question is the first of a series that I hope will help us be better prepared for disasters.
Do you feel that it is necessary for each parish or bi-parish area (where USDA offices are not located in small parishes) to develop a hurricane/natural disaster or terrorist-related emergency contingency plan to help coordinate relief/recovery efforts immediately after a disaster?
This might include all agricultural agencies, such as: LDAF, NRCS, LSU AgCenter (Extension Service and Experiment Stations), FSA, etc., and delineate the specific tasks to be conducted in the region, emergency contact information and identified place to meet immediately after the disaster (maybe within 24 hours), assistance in implementing emergency response, setting up relief efforts, conducting damage assessments, etc.
The voting poll is accessible at: http://www.lsuagcenter.net/LCES/DIRECTOR/poll/
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eXtension Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Initiative
During the eXtension National Video Conference, it was announced Louisiana tied with Tennessee as the Southern Regional winner in the FAQ initiative! As a winner, everyone submitting a question/answer will receive an eXtension mouse pad. These prizes will be sent to the extension director for distribution. The FAQ initiative will be offered again to increase the number of questions; the goal is 7000.
Many thanks to all contributing faculty for responding to this call and contributing to what will be a very exciting and effective system for delivering information to clientele.
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USGS Reports Preliminary Southeast Louisiana Wetland Loss Estimates Caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita transformed some 100 square miles of marsh to open water in southeastern Louisiana, according to preliminary estimates by U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) based on an analysis of Landsat satellite data from September and October.
Future observations of Landsat imagery over the upcoming year will allow scientists at the USGS National Wetlands Research Center (NWRC) in Baton Rouge and Lafayette to determine how much of the loss is permanent and how the marsh recovers. Although this early analysis of wetlands does not take into account some marsh recovery, indications are that much of the loss may be permanent. Some of the new areas of open water will likely become new lakes.
Most of the loss east of the Mississippi River is attributed to the effects of Hurricane Katrina's storm surge, although Hurricane Rita's surge appears to have rearranged some of the wrack, or marsh debris, left behind by Hurricane Katrina in the upper Breton Sound area.
Substantial marsh loss, primarily from Katrina, occurred east of the Mississippi River in St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes. Approximately 39 square miles of marsh around the upper and central portions of Breton Sound were converted to open water by ripping of the marsh or by marsh submergence. Large compressed marsh features several thousand feet long are evident in Breton Sound. Most of the loss was concentrated in an area bounded by the Mississippi River levee to the west, the Delacroix Ridge to the east, and State Highway 300 to the north. Follow-up imagery and aerial photography will be used to determine if some of the submerged marshes reemerge over time.
An additional 47 square miles of marsh were lost throughout the Pontchartrain, Pearl River, Barataria and Terrebonne basins. The active Mississippi delta also incurred approximately 14 square miles of loss. The lower Pearl River basin contains numerous marsh rips south of Highway 90.
Direct impacts from Hurricane Rita were not as severe as Hurricane Katrina's impacts in southeastern Louisiana. For example, rips in marshes from Rita were not nearly the size of rips from Katrina in upper Breton Sound although they are noticeable in the Barataria and Terrebonne basins. Rita's surge caused new tears in fresh and intermediate marshes within Barataria and Terrebonne basins and reactivated older hurricane scars attributed to Hurricane Lili (2002) in western Terrebonne and the East Cote Blanche Bay area.
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Hurricane Rita Recovery Task Force Named
As we did for Katrina, the LSU AgCenter established a new southwest Louisiana task force has been selected to help southwest Louisiana respond, recover and rebuild after the devastation of Hurricane Rita. Lake Charles Mayor Randy Roach and other parish and state officials made a personal request that the LSU AgCenter help with recovery efforts. Chancellor Bill Richardson has appointed Deborah Tootle, professor of ag economics, as the chair, and she will act on Chancellor Richardson’s behalf as she interacts with local, state and federal officials. She will lead this effort over the next several months and is housed at the AgCenter’s Southwest Region office in Crowley and in a Lake Charles office. Members of the task force include Jerry Whatley, farm financial management; Gary Wicke, cattle; Tommy Shields, cattle, pastures and forage; Johnny Saichuk, rice; Mark Shirley, crawfish; Kevin Savoie, recreation, commercial fisheries and nature-based tourism; Cynthia Richard, family resource management; Bill Branch, water and environment; Claudette Reichel, housing and rebuilding policy; and Bruce Schultz, communications and media relations. Please give Deborah Tootle and the task force your full support as they embark on this important initiative.
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LaHouse Mid-Construction Open House
To address the housing rebuilding and restoration information needs of our citizens, our Louisiana House Resource Center (LaHouse) now under construction, is having a Mid-Construction Open House every Friday until December 16 from 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. The public is invited to tour LaHouse to see its hurricane, flood, termite and moisture-resistant structural systems as well as its energy-saving features while still fully exposed. It will also be open for two hours before each of the Saints’ football games that will be held at LSU and before some of the LSU home games. For more information and open house schedules, visit http://www.louisianahouse.org/.
Please share this news with local media, parish officials and interested clientele seeking information on home rebuilding and restoration. A news release about the LaHouse Mid-Construction Open House, with photographs, is available at http://www.lsuagcenter.com.
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Organization Development & Evaluation (ODE) Posts New Web Page on Intranet
On the new ODE web site you can find the answers to many questions, including information on getting into graduate school, writing outcome statements and reporting impact, ways to improve your programs or strengthen your advisory committees, and many more. A one-stop-shopping source for all your program development, program evaluation and professional development needs, this site offers volumes of useful information and direct links to PARS, Faculty Performance Appraisals, professional associations, recent extension-related research, professional journals, the electronic course request form and the new CMS directory to locate faculty. Venture out from the ODE site and visit the CECP (Cooperative Extension Curriculum Project) campus to try out some of the new online learning opportunities, the SEAL (Strengthening Extension Advisory Leaders) site to find valuable curriculum information for use with advisory committees or to the eXtension site to learn more about this exciting national initiative. You can enter the ODE Web page from the AgCenter’s intranet home page by clicking on ODE. Be sure to bookmark this site in your FAVORITES folder because you will visit there again and again; check back often for new things that are being added each day. For suggestions on how this site might be improved or to report broken links, please contact Debra Davis.
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AgCenter Celebrities
Congratulations to Dr. Dale Pollet of entomology who was featured on The No Spin Zone with Bill O’Reilly on October 14 and explained how fire ants survive floods. Additionally, Howard Cormier, county agent in Vermilion Parish, was featured on MSNBC to discuss disaster recovery efforts that he and other Vermilion Parish agents have been leading in Southwest Louisiana.
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Center for Natural Resource Economics & Policy Approval
In October of 2005 the Center for Natural Resource Economics & Policy (CNREP) was approved for full center status by the LSU Board of Supervisors and the Louisiana Board of Regents. CNREP is a cooperative of social scientists and policy professionals engaged in research and extension programs that contribute to the management and sustainability of natural capital.
CNREP cooperators work on a wide range of natural resource and environmental issues related to fisheries, wildlife, wetlands, forests, energy, and soil and water resources. There are 14 members in the new center, of which, 7 are faculty of the Department of Agricultural Economics & Agribusiness (DAEA). Over the past year, CNREP faculty from the DAEA have obtained more than $1.7 million in funding awards from competitive federal sources, such as the National Science Foundation, National Sea Grant Program, USEPA, and USDA. Dr. Rex Caffey is director of CNREP.
Congratulations goes out to Dr. Caffey and other Center faculty who worked to make this happen.
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