Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2006

Supreme Court to hear Ohio tax-incentive case; money helps rural areas

An appeal of a ruling that struck down some economic-development incentives in Ohio will go before the U.S. Supreme Court tomorrow.

"Critics of tax incentives say states are needlessly sacrificing revenues to placate businesses that aren't really influenced by the offers. States and companies that have received tax breaks say the programs help generate jobs and keep companies operating in this country. The Supreme Court will hear arguments over two issues in the case -- whether the plaintiffs had the right to sue in federal court and whether such tax breaks violate portions of the U.S. Constitution that forbid erecting trade barriers between states," writes Robert Schoenberger of The Courier-Journal.

In its defense, Ohio claimed that although incentives offer preferential treatment for companies that build or expand in specific locations, they don't hurt companies that build or expand elsewhere. In its appeal to the Supreme Court, the state's lawyers wrote that the Constitution "prohibits barriers, not welcome mats," reports the Louisville newspaper. (Read more)

Incentives have been important in attracting jobs to rural areas. To help rural journalists cover this and other issues, the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues will present a workshop, “Covering and Guiding Rural Economic Development,” in Murray, Ky. on April 7. (Click here for details)

Governors worried about National Guard funding, prescriptions for seniors

All 50 governors signed a letter opposing what they view as cuts in National Guard funding in Bush's fiscal 2007 budget as well as fears that the government is slow to replace equipment in Iraq.

The Bush administration has since committed to funding the Guard at the fully authorized level, and to replacing and upgrading equipment sent to Iraq, writes Dan Balz, chief political writer for The Washington Post. That commitment received mixed reaction from governors who met with Bush on Monday. Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne, Republican co-chairman of a National Guard committee of the National Governors Association, said, "I appreciated the president saying he's committed to the full strength, but the money is not in there. They must find the money."

Under the administration's plan, there will be a cut in the number of National Guard units involved in heavy combat and an increase in units devoted to engineering and policing, Balz writes. Officials said such changes would reduce costs to reequip Guard units. Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano (D), the NGA vice chair, said, "It's something that governors are going to be paying very, very, very close attention to, to make sure that those oral representations are adhered to."

Governors have started speaking about more the National Guard since its units were heavily deployed in Iraq. A disproportionate number of National Guard enlistments come from rural areas. Those deployments have caused stateside unit numbers to shrink, which governors say hurts their ability to handle domestic problems, notes Balz. (Read more)

Senior drugs and rural druggists: During the meeting with Bush, several governors brought up concerns about the federal government's new prescription drug program for seniors that started in January. Medicare, the federal health insurance program for the elderly, began paying for prescriptions that previously had been paid by Medicaid, the state-federal program that services the poor and disabled.

"North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley (D) said he is concerned about the effect the new drug benefit will have on rural pharmacies, which might get reimbursed at a lower rate by the federal government than they did when states were paying part of low-income seniors' drug costs through Medicaid. Easley said he would like to see the federal government develop a tiered reimbursement system that takes into account the increased cost of delivering drugs in rural areas that often are still served by mom-and-pop operations rather than large chains," write Kathleen Hunter and Mark K. Matthews of Stateline.org. (Read more)

Maverick biologist banks on genetic material for new sources of ethanol

J. Craig Venter, the maverick biologist who mapped the human genome, returned from a three-year yacht trip with an idea about using genes from the sea to turn switch grass and cornstalks into ethanol.

Since forming Synthetic Genomics Inc., Venter has called upon Aristides Patrinos, who directed the U.S. Energy Department's biological and environmental research and was a force behind President Bush's mention of switch grass in the State of the Union address. Venter has an extensive collection of genetic material from his sea journey, which is the raw material for his alternative fuel project, reports Michael S. Rosenwald of The Washington Post.

"In the case of energy, the problems are well known. Oil prices have skyrocketed. There are national security concerns over relying so heavily on foreign oil sources. Energy companies are pursuing any number of alternatives, including increasing production of ethanol. The problem with current production methods is that they rely on using corn kernels, which are converted into sugar, fermented to produce alcohol and then distilled into ethanol. Meeting the country's energy needs using that method could eventually strain the food supply, particularly for animals that feed off corn," writes Rosenwald.

Ethanol can be produced by using plant matter such as switch grass, cornstalks or corn husks and breaking it down into cellulose using a combination of enzymes. There are no commercial-scale facilities available yet, but one in Spain could open this fall. "This will not happen tomorrow. Venter's scientists will need at least several years to sift through the millions of organisms he collected on his around-the-world yacht trip, which ended last month. The hope is that something in that menagerie will provide the key to more efficient energy," writes Rosenwald. (Read more)

Does logging after fires harm national forests? Oregon study says 'yes'

If fire ravages a national forest, the Bush administration supports loggers taking the marketable trees before the replanting of a healthy forest. One university's study poses some concerns about such logging.

An Oregon State University study says logging burned forests harms recovery. "What the short study did not say -- but what many critics of the Bush administration are reading into it -- is that the White House has ignored science to please the timber industry. The study is consistent with research findings from around the world that have documented how salvage logging can strip burned forests of the biological diversity that fire and natural recovery help protect," reports Blaine Harden of The Washington Post.

The study, "Post-Wildfire Logging Hinders Regeneration and Increases Fire Risk," focused on a section of the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest damaged during a 2002 fire that damaged a half-million acres. It suggests that seedling regeneration was reduced by 71 percent because of post-fire logging, reports Paul Fattig of the Medford [Ore.] Mail Tribune. (Read more)

A bill pending in Congress would ease procedures for post-fire logging in federal forests, which is becoming more important to the bottom line of timber companies. "It generates about 40 percent of timber volume on the nation's public lands, according to Forest Service data compiled by the World Wildlife Fund, and accounts for nearly half the logging on public land in Oregon.," writes Harden. (Read more)

Tennessee stops non-citizen driver cards; many applicants bring little proof

Tennessee has suspended a program that allowed immigrants to legally drive, less than two years after it started as a possible model for other states.

The "driving certificate" program could eventually be done away with, because of the large number of undocumented immigrants applying and a staff of state workers who often questioned the legitimacy of identities, writes Trent Seibert of The Tennessean. Less than a month ago, federal agents revealed a bribery scheme where hundreds of people were illegally directed to a driving school, which then paid off safety workers for the "students" to obtain fraudulent cards. (Read more)

"Of the 51,000 people who signed up for the one-year certificates, 90 percent might not pass the newer, tougher standards that will be in place for the certificates starting March 6," writes Seibert. Prior to that, a blue-ribbon panel will study the concept and ways to improve it.

Vermont anti-meth bill would place cold medicines under lock and key

Law enforcement and public health officials in Vermont hope to prevent a methamphetamine epidemic by restricting access to cold medicines used in the manufacturing of the drug.

The state House is expected to vote this week on a bill that would require pharmacies and other retailers to restrict sales of several common cold medicines. There would be 24-hour and 30-day limits on the amounts of the specific ingredients that can be sold to individuals, reports Nancy Remsen of the Burlington Free Press. (Read more)

The Vermont bill is similar to laws passed in several states last year. In addition to the 24-hour and 30-day limits, Vermont's bill proposes having a log that customers would have to sign and requiring them to present identification. If signed into law, the new measures would take effect Sept. 1, notes Remsen.

West Virginia governor calls for rescue chambers in state's coal mines

West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin is pushing for rescue chambers in all of his state's 315 underground mines with enough air, food and water for at least 24 hours.

The proposal would amend emergency rules previously filed as part of the state's new mine-safety law. Sixteen miners have died in West Virginia accidents this year. In Canada, airtight chambers helped 72 people survive a underground fire in a potash mine last month, but critics argue that such chambers might fail in coal mines, reports The Associated Press. Coal mines possess a long-lasting supply of fuel and there is the threat of secondary explosions.

Manchin's proposal would need approval from the West Virginia Office of Miners' Health Safety and Training, and all safety equipment must be OK'ed by the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration. Manchin hopes to form a six-member Mine Safety Technology Task Force with labor and management representatives to examine whether his proposal is feasible, reports AP. (Read more)

The State Journal in Charleston has a comprehensive story on the state's coal deaths this year and the subsequent industry and government efforts to improve safety. (Read more)

Building bridges to Indiana would delay 80 road projects in Kentucky

A plan to build two bridges between Louisville and Indiana could delay 80 road projects in Kentucky, causing a rift between the state's largest urban area and its country cousins.

"The project would gobble up $789 million in federal highway dollars for Kentucky over the next six years in the new state highway construction plan recently proposed by Gov. Ernie Fletcher. That's up from $168 million for the bridges in the previous road plan released two years ago. It amounts to 10 percent of the $7.8 billion total spending within the plan on the state's 27,000-mile highway system," writes Tom Loftus of The Courier-Journal.

Since the bridges would be federally funded, that means taking away money planned for the 80 projects. Those projects would now be in competition for a limited amount of state funds, reports the Louisville newspaper. Lawmakers question why many projects in their districts are in doubt.

Kentucky Transportation Secretary Bill Nighbert told lawmakers last week that the federal funds have to be spent to meet agreements with Indiana and the Federal Highway Administration that want the bridges finished by about 2020. However, many Kentucky counties were counting on the 80 road projects to improve safety and ease traffic congestion, notes Loftus. (Read more)

For examples of a local paper covering officials' efforts to get a local project moved up on the state schedule, click here and here for stories by Mike Wynn in The Winchester Sun.

Poynter starts new online ethics column; looks at reporting on MySpace.com

The Poynter Institute for Media Studies has started Everyday Ethics, a new online column by Ethics Group Leader Kelly McBride and her colleagues. "The column includes reports on ethical decision-making in newsrooms big and small, and will provide shorter, more frequently updated posts than we offered with Ethics Journal," says Poynter's Bill Mitchell.

McBride's first column is on the handling of stories about MySpace.com, the Web site for children that can become a magnet for sexual predators. She salutes our friend Steve Israel of the Times Herald-Record of Middletown, N.Y., for "a more thoughtful approach" than some others. Israel consulted with McBride before writing his story, "What you must know about MySpace.com." To read it, click here.

To read McBride's column, click here. You can sign up to receive an e-mail whenever the column is updating by clicking here.

George Washington media professor gets dean spot at UNC-Chapel Hill

Jean Folkerts, a media professor at George Washington University, will be the next dean of the University of North Carolina's School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

UNC Chancellor James Moeser said Folkerts "has demonstrated a broad depth of knowledge about the rapidly changing field of journalism and mass communications," especially electronic media, reports The Herald-Sun (Durham, N.C.). On July 1, she will replace Interim Dean Tom Bowers, who took over last July when Richard Cole returned to the faculty after 26 years as dean.

Folkerts joined George Washington's Media and Public Affairs program in 1990. She previously worked as a general assignment reporter for The Topeka Capital-Journal; editor of Perspective, a magazine published by The Menninger Foundation, a psychiatric research and hospital institute; and assistant press secretary to the governor of Kansas, notes The Herald-Sun. (Read more)

Newspapers, communities to honor open government with Sunshine Week

From March 12 through 18, newspapers and their communities will celebrate Sunshine Week, which is dedicated to observing the public's right of access to government information.

National Newspaper Association President Jerry Reppert, a member of the national steering committee leading the Sunshine events, said open government is more important in 2006 than ever. "The public is expressing more concern about open government than in recent years," Reppert said. "Perhaps the shock of 9/11 has worn off a little and we are back to the hard business of remembering that in a democratic society, the public still needs to hold the reins, even if we have to be more careful in how we manage some types of information," reports Tonda Rush, NNA public policy director. (Read more)

During Sunshine Week, daily and weekly newspapers, magazines, online sites and broadcasters will provide an assortment of stories on the importance of open government. More information is available at the NNA Web site and the Sunshine Week Web site.

Monday, Feb. 27, 2006

Rising economy and land values signal a brighter 2006 for rural America

The Center for the Study of Rural America's annual report predicts a good year for small communities.

"A slowing national housing market may take some of the wind from the sails of the rural land boom, but most analysts expect land values to keep rising, though perhaps at a slower pace. A quick glance at the economy, therefore, suggests another good year for rural America in 2006. Still, there are some significant clouds on the horizon that bear watching," according to the center.

The report highlights some trends worth watching this year including: energy prices that may lead to opportunities for alternative fuel industries in rural areas; a budget climate that makes partnering and regional approaches important; and sprawl, which is an issue for rural and urban areas.

The 16-page report also highlights several innovative approaches being taken in the rural business world. One innovation included the City of Columbia, Mo., and nearby rural communities partnering up for the Mid-Missouri Technology Business Incubator. (Read more)

Rural broadband gap narrowing, but many areas still left out, Pew says

Rural Americans are still much less likely to have high-speed Internet connections than people living in other parts of the country, but the gap is narrowing, reports the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

At the end of 2005, 24 percent of adults in rural areas had high-speed connections, compared to 39 percent in urban and suburban areas. "In 2003, only 9 percent of rural residents had home broadband service. Their city counterparts were more than twice as likely to have service - 21 percent for urban dwellers and 23 percent for suburban dwellers," notes the Dallas Morning News.

But, because broadband providers are reluctant to extend the service to sparsely populated areas, and some state legislatures have prohibited local governments from offering the service, "High-speed Internet service is still just a dream for many Americans who live in rural areas and find themselves beyond the reach of DSL or cable broadband lines," Terry Maxon writes.

"Rural homes often are too far from telephone company offices to get DSL service, and usually aren’t served by cable companies. That leaves them with few options for high-speed service. One possibility is for Internet service from satellite providers, but at a substantial cost. Electric utilities have investigated 'broadband over power line' (BPL) service that would provide Internet service delivered through electrical outlets. But its use has been hampered by technological issues, particularly BPL’s potential interference with radio signals by amateur radio operators and others. Wireless companies have begun offering Internet service in some rural communities, but its spread is still limited.

The speed of a DSL line falls steadily as it goes out from a switching office [so] a lot of rural homes must rely on dial-up service, which is significantly slower than broadband service. . . . The higher percentage with dial-up service -- 29 percent for rural Americans as opposed to 21 percent for others -- means that a rural resident is less likely to use the Internet as intensely than his city counterparts." (Read more)

“Rural broadband users are no different than home high-speed users elsewhere; they go online more often and do more online activities than dial-up users,” John B. Horrigan, associate director of the Pew Internet Project and principal author of the report, said in a release. All-speed Internet use is at 62 percent in rural areas and 70 percent elsewhere. "This 8 percentage point gap is about half the rural-non-rural gap at the end of 2003," Pew says.

There are differences in how the Internet is used. "Rural Internet users are more likely to take classes for credit online, download screensavers, and download video games," Pew says. (Read the release)

Coal executive's memo makes miners wonder if production trumps safety

The president of America's fourth largest coal company, and the largest in Central Appalachia, told mine superintendents recently that they should ignore any orders from middle managers "to do anything other than run coal . . . We seem not to understand that the coal pays the bills.”

The memo from Massey Energy Co. CEO and President Don Blankenship, leaked to the Appalachian News-Express of Pikeville, Ky., "is creating a stir in the coal mining community," writes Rachel Stanley, a reporter for the the thrice-weekly newspaper. "Some miners say they believe the memo illustrates a common complaint - that the industry focuses too much on profit."

The memo, dated Oct. 19, told underground mine superintendents,“If any of you have been asked by your group presidents, your supervisors, engineers or anyone else to do anything other than run coal (i.e. - build overcasts, do construction jobs, or whatever) you need to ignore them and run coal." Overcasts ensure proper air flow, so retired miner Irvin Smith of McCarr told Stanley that line bothered him. “Safety should come first, before the first lump of coal,” he said. “Anybody that's worked underground knows that you have overcasts built to have the proper air. That's a very serious safety issue.”

"Company officials say they addressed the miners' concerns with a follow-up memo, sent a week later," Stanley reports. "The second memo was also sent from Don Blankenship and addressed to all deep mine superintendents, and begins with a statement that safety is the company's first responsibility." The memo says, "If you have construction jobs at your mine that need to be done to keep it safe or productive, make every effort to do those jobs without taking members and equipment from the coal producing sections that pay the bills.” (Read more)

Stanley notes, "It is the second time this month that a Massey document has gotten a negative response from coal miners. In early February, a document distributed to the state Mining Board by Sidney Coal Co. President Charlie Bearse was made public. Sidney is a subsidiary of publicly traded Massey. Coal miners were outraged by the text of the document, a portion of which stated, 'It is common knowledge that the work ethic of the Eastern Kentucky worker has declined from where it once was. Attitudes have changed among the existing work force, which effects attendance, drug use, and ultimately, productivity.'”

Coalfield publisher calls for dialogue between coal firms, news media

Appalachian News-Express Publisher Marty Backus wrote in an editorial that Massey Energy's Don Blankenship and other coal executives in the region need to be more open with reporters, and Backus suggested a roundtable discussion among journalists in the region and those who operate its coal mines.

"Until the coal industry and the news media find some way of communicating, it's always going to be the media beating up on the companies," Backus writes. "First off, the reporter who is gathering the news generally doesn't know the first thing about the coal industry and they take any bit of information they can dig up from anywhere. It's usually not from a coal-company official, because they have no trust in the media, which means they keep themselves away from providing facts -- on any subject, whether it be good or bad for the coal industry.

"It's a shame both sides can't get together and air their grievances and come to some understanding. Maybe the media can learn more about what a coal operation is and not be so critical in their reporting. There's two sides to every story, which I think reporters often miss in getting the company's side. However, you can't get the facts when the information door is always closed." The Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues is inviting coal industry leaders in the region to a roundtable with news outlets.

"For example, it's practically impossible for the local coal-region news media to get an audience with the coal bosses, such as Don L. Blankenship, the chief executive of Massey. But let the Wall Street Journal from New York City come along and they appear to get anything they want, such as a front page story in their Feb. 13 issue. As I've written before, The Appalachian News-Express is not an enemy of the coal companies. All we want is a dialog with them, and it appears that's not in the cards." (Read more)

The Wall Street Journal story on Feb. 13 was not a puff piece. It detailed Blankenship's huge and controversial spending on political campaigns and referenda, and noted, "In 2001, a report commissioned by then-Gov. Bob Wise said the company's accident record 'would be among the highest' if contract workers were included. . . . In recent weeks, four workers have died at Massey-owned mines in West Virginia, two of them in a fire on Jan. 21. . . . Rep. Lidella Hrutkay, a Democrat from the county where the accident occurred, criticized Mr. Blankenship on the floor of the House, saying he should have poured millions of dollars into improving safety at Massey's mines instead of into state politics." (Read more)

Pittsburgh paper looks at West Virginia foes of mountaintop-removal mining

"In a state that has bred some of the country's most storied citizen battles against the powers that be, mountaintop mining has matured as a galvanizing issue in West Virginia," reports Diana Nelson Jones of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

In 2004, only 70 of West Virginia's 544 coal mines involved removal of mountaintops, but those mines accounted for 26 percent of coal production in the Mountain State that year, according to the state Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training.

"Our wells, our land, our homes, our culture, our very lives are being threatened. Will it take a tragedy for us to be heard?" asks Maria Gunnoe, who tells Jones that her yard has been washed away by water from a nearby mountaintop-removal mine.

Nelson relates such concerns to more recent news about safety in underground mines: "The dangers of mountaintop removal usually do not present horrifying dramas featuring a rescue team, a ticking clock and a countable number of lives at stake. And you can't even see most of West Virginia's topless mountains unless you board a plane or drive to the top of a peak with a view. But according to Vivian Stockman, an organizer for the Ohio Valley Environmental Council, who claims that 'Over the last several years, at least 12 people have died in floods exacerbated by mountaintop removal.'"

Bill Raney, president of the West Virginia Coal Association, told Jones that mountaintop removal is "a responsible method of mining, recognized in state and federal surface mining acts. It is a methodical, well engineered, sophisticated method and it does its best to protect the environment. ... There's not a drop of water that doesn't go through treatment." Raney said there may be "a reduction in elevation," but, Jones paraphrases, "coal gets extracted and West Virginia gets valuable pieces of flat real estate." (Read more)

Eastern Iowa faces an unlikely outbreak of heroin use; meth replacement?

"The case of a 13-year-old runaway from Minneapolis who was kidnapped and brought to eastern Iowa has led to investigations of child prostitution and heroin trafficking, rare crimes in rural America," reports Erin Jordan of The Des Moines Register.

Jordan writes the probe is "a window into a drug ring connected to a rash of heroin deaths and overdoses in eastern Iowa, law enforcement officers said. . . . When the drug was first popular in the 1970s, it was less than 10 percent pure. The purity of heroin found recently in eastern Iowa has been as great as 80 percent, said Rick LaMere, a federal Drug Enforcement Administration agent in Cedar Rapids."

The purer product "can be snorted instead of injected," avoiding "the risk and stigma of needles," Jordan reports. Now law-enforcement officers are wondering if new laws to suppress methamphetamine use and production have created a niche for heroin. (Read more)

Illinois Farm Bureau restarts 'Crime Stoppers in the country;' meth a factor

At least 36 counties in Illinois are participating in "a new program designed to encourage people to report crimes committed against farmland and other agriculture-related property in rural areas," reports Karen Walters of The Pantagraph in Bloomington and Normal, Ill.

"It's Crime Stoppers in the country," Walters writes. "A $1,000 reward will be paid to an informant who provides a tip leading to a felony conviction. Farmers can post signs on their property saying they support the program. Livingston County Sheriff Bob McCarty said farmers need to make sure machinery and other equipment, like anhydrous ammonia tanks, are secure." Anhydrous ammonia is used to make methamphetamine, still a scourge in many rural areas.

"The program mimics one the organization operated in the 1970s that lasted about 10 years. Members paid 10 cents per year and displayed [an Illinois Farm Bureau] decal saying their farm was under watch," Walters reports. "Farmers are encouraged to be proactive in preventing crimes by locking and shutting items, as well as providing good lighting." (Read more)

Wal-Mart, fast-food chains top list of Ohio firms with workers on Medicaid

"Wal-Mart and McDonald's top a new state list of Ohio employers who send the most people to the Medicaid, food stamp and welfare rolls," according to a state study, reports The Plain Dealer.

"The much-anticipated Ohio Department of Job and Family Services review was ordered amid pressure from legislators, advocates and the press, questioning why Medicaid spending is eating up an ever-increasing share of the state budget," reports Julie Carr Smyth for the Cleveland newspaper. The study "did not distinguish between full-time and part-time employees." (Read more)

After Wal-Mart and McDonald's, the Ohio employers with the most workers and relatives on Medicaid were Yum! Brands, parent of KFC, Taco Bell, A&W, Pizza Hut and Long John Silver's; and Wendy's and Bob Evans, two restaurant chains that started in Ohio. "The list includes many retailers, restaurants and health-care companies, including the Cleveland Clinic," reports Catherine Candisky of The Columbus Dispatch. (Read more)

Yesterday, Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott told the National Governors Association that legislation requiring the company to spend more on health benefits "may score short-term political points, but they won't solve America's health care challenges." He said the company's "health plans were 'not perfect' but that the company was committed to improving the health care system by expanding its benefits and by opening low-cost medical clinics for workers and the public in its stores," reports Michael Barbaro of The New York Times. (Read more) To read Scott's full speech, click here. For a broader look at the governors' meeting, from Daniel C. Vock of Stateline.org, click here.

Religious older women stay more active than male counterparts, says study

A new study suggests that older women who are religious are more likely to stay active.

Older women who attend religious services are more prone to being physical active, according to the study from researcher R. Frank Gillum, M.D., a physician with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics. The association between physical activity and devotion did not show up for older religious men or religious younger adults, reports Newswise, a news and public relations service for higher-education and research firms.

The study analyzed data for 11,820 people from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. It is the first national examination of the link between religiousness and physical activity, Gillum said. The analysis did not explore why older religious women are more active, but social scientists know that women age 60 and older are the nation's most religious group, notes Newswise.

In Gillum’s study, people who reported that they attended services at least one a week were grouped together as one measure of religiousness. (Read more)

Rural Californians want addresses to remain a factor in insurance rates

"Urban and rural interests clashed Friday at a hearing on proposed state regulations that would bar insurers from using ZIP codes to determine auto insurance rates," reports the San Jose Mercury News.

State Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi says a previous commissioner, by allowing addresses to be used in determining rates, violated a law voters passed in 1988. The law requires that driving record, experience and miles traveled be the main factors.

"At a hearing Garamendi held Friday in San Francisco, elected officials from rural counties argued that the proposed rules would subsidize urban drivers at the expense of their constituents," writes Matthai Chakko Kuruvila. "Insurance industry officials believe that ZIP codes more accurately determine a person's risk of filing a claim than driving ability and other factors. Urban areas have higher concentrations of people, car thefts and vandalism and thus more insurance claims, said Bob Downer, the former chief actuary for Farmers Insurance. He also said urban residents are more likely to sue if they're injured in an accident, raising costs for insurers. But groups representing Latinos, African-Americans and urban senior citizens argued that ZIP code-based insurance rates discriminated against them." (Read more)

Bird flu found in France; China warns of possible 'massive outbreak'

China's agriculture minister is warning of a possible "massive bird-flu outbreak" as the country announced two new human cases of the H5N1 flu strain, raising to 14 the number of human-infections reports since October, reports The Associated Press.

Meanwhile, "The European Union's first outbreak of the H5N1 strain of bird flu in commercial poultry was confirmed Saturday in France, the EU's largest poultry producer. But President Jacques Chirac sought to ease fears by insisting that eating poultry is safe and that panic is unjustified," AP reports. "Japan and Hong Kong temporarily suspended imports of French poultry." (Read more)

Birmingham News prints unseen civil rights photos unearthed by intern

Hundreds of photos from the civil rights era were lost, sold, stolen or stored in archives at The Birmingham News. Some of those pictures appeared Sunday for the first time in the newspaper in a section titled "Unseen. Unforgotten."

"The section is the result of research by Alexander Cohn, a 30-year-old former photo intern at The News. In November 2004, Cohn went through an equipment closet at the newspaper in search of a lens and saw a cardboard box full of negatives marked, 'Keep. Do Not Sell,'" writes Barnett Wright of The Birmingham News (Read more). Dozens of the pictures are available on this Web site.

Some of the images will be on display starting March 13 at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. To read The Associated Press story, click here.

Lee Enterprises Inc. names Joyce Dehli vice president for news

Joyce Dehli, director of editorial development at Lee Enterprises Inc., has been promoted to vice president for news. Dehli, 47, has run the company's journalism training programs since last April. Previously, she was editorial training manager, and before that, managing editor of the Wisconsin State Journal in Madison, where she had held several reporting and editing jobs. Earlier in her career, she worked at The Courier-Journal and the old Louisville Times.

Dehli succeeds David Stoeffler, who took a leave of absence from the company several months ago. Lee, based in Davenport, Iowa, owns 52 daily newspapers and more than 100 weeklies, and has a joint interest in six other dailies. It has more than 300 weeklies, shoppers and classified and specialty publications.

Rural Calendar

Mar. 1: Signup deadline for National Farm to School Training in New Orleans

The National Farm to School Program, a collaboration of the Center for Food & Justice, a division of the Urban & Environmental Policy Institute at Occidental College, and the Community Food Security Coalition, is offering the National Farm to School Training for farm to school practitioners of all levels who would like to establish new programs or improve existing programs with new tools and strategies. Training is from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., March 13 at the Garden District Hotel in New Orleans. Registration deadline is March 1. For information call 323-341-5095, or e-mail ajoshi@oxy.edu.

March 2-3: Navigating the Global American South, UNC-Chapel Hill

The University Center for International Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, in collaboration with the university's Center for the Study of the American South and support from Quintiles Transnational Corp., invites you to explore the economic, political and social impact of globalization in the American South. For more information, please check www.ucis.unc.edu/globalsouth/conference06. For the schedule, click here. For registration, click here. You can contact the University Center for International Studies at globalsouth@unc.edu.

March 3-4: Training for solar water heater installers in Louisville

The Kentucky Solar Partnership and University of Louisville Energy Center are sponsoring a two-day workshop March 3-4, 2006 in Louisville to train installers of solar water heaters. The course is geared to plumbing and heating contractors and other interested persons. For more information and to register contact solar@kysolar.org.

March 8: Panel, film on how to help rural families avoid 'the money trap'

Many rural families work hard but struggle to meet day-to-day expenses or to build a cash cushion for unexpected financial blows. Money traps such as payday loans, high-interest car loans, tax-refund anticipation loans, and other predatory financial practices make their struggle to pull even or move ahead more difficult. This briefing will provide new research and tools to address money traps and other obstacles to building family financial stability and success. Current policy initiatives and innovative approaches to address these issues will be discussed.

Ralph Smith, senior vice president of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, will speak on "Leveling the Field for Rural Working Families: A Commonsense Consensus." His comments will be followed by a premiere of the 25-minute documentary Avoiding the Money Trap and a panel discussion among nationally-renowned experts, including Cynthia M. "Mil" Duncan of the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire and Jean Ann Fox of the Consumer Federation of America.

The event will be held Wednesday, March 8, from 10 a.m. to noon in Room 233-235 of the Hall of the States at 444 North Capitol Street NW in Washington. Reservations are required. RSVP to Helina at 301-656-0348 or helina@thehatchergroup.com.

Friday, Feb. 24, 2006

Small high schools often unfairly criticized about costs and academics

"A new study . . . skewers the common assumption that large high schools cost less to build than small schools. In fact, the study found that smaller high schools, on average, cost about the same per student to build as larger high schools and they cost less per square foot than larger high schools. The findings hold true across rural and suburban areas," reports Rural Policy Matters.

"As research evidence supporting small schools has accumulated -- confirming better academic and social outcomes for students and equivalent operating costs when compared to larger schools-prevailing wisdom has continued to assert that economies of scale are achieved in larger construction projects. As a result, many state policies push large new schools on economic justifications. The study found that smaller schools cost the same per student and less per square foot to build than larger schools." (Read more)

The study was done by education researcher Craig Howley. Click here to read it.

The latest edition of Rural Policy Matters also has a story titled, "What's the Beef with Small High Schools in Iowa?" Despite small high schools in Iowa being criticized for failing to provide adequate course offerings and educational programs, this article reports that smaller districts actually provide more computers per pupil, and offer smaller class sizes than do larger districts. (Read more)

Rural schools undergo demographic change with jumps in diversity

Rural America has been diverse for centuries, but that mix is increasing dramatically in some states.

The Rural Trust analyzed data from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and the Census Bureau to investigate demographic changes in rural communities. The NCES tracks students in five NCES-designated racial/ethnic categories-American Indian/Alaskan Native, Asian/Pacific Islander, Black Non-Hispanic, Hispanic, and White Non-Hispanic.

In 1993-94, enrollment in rural schools nationally was 2.57% American Indian/Alaskan Native; .37% Asian/Pacific Islander; 8.30% Black Non-Hispanic; 3.16% Hispanic; and 84.55% White Non-Hispanic. By 2002-03, those percentages had shifted to 2.97% American Indian/Alaskan Native; .55% Asian/Pacific Islander; 7.92% Black Non-Hispanic; 4.98% Hispanic; and 80.94% White Non-Hispanic.

The ten states that experienced the most growth in the numbers of Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaskan Native students in rural schools are North Carolina (10,955 more students in rural schools), Oklahoma (+10,919), Texas (+10,145), California (+7,963), Kansas (+4,092), Florida (+3,604), Colorado (+3,352), Washington (+3,223), Wisconsin (+2,505), Missouri (+2,501), and Minnesota (+2,450). (Read more)

Senators back bills to open unused TV channels for wireless broadband

New legislation in the U.S. Senate would direct the Federal Communications Commission to open unused television channels in each local market for unlicensed wireless broadband access.

"These tremendously valuable — and presently dormant — TV band frequencies represent the much-needed rocket fuel that rural and other under-served areas need for affordable broadband deployment. Vacant TV channels are perfectly suited for WiFi and other unlicensed wireless Internet technologies. . . . Access to TV spectrum will allow commercial ISPs, municipalities and non-profit community efforts to deploy wide-area wireless broadband networks quickly and at a low cost," reports Spectrumpolicy.org.

In 2004, the FCC began rulemaking procedures to accomplish this task, but progress stalled with the departure of Chairman Michael Powell. (Read more)

"Both new bills would instruct the FCC to move more quickly on concluding those rulemaking procedures," writes Anne Broache of News.com. "The agency would have to come up with technical rules and guidelines for those operating on the unlicensed spectrum, with an eye toward preventing 'harmful interference' from the new devices." (Read more)

Minnesota governor pledges to provide everyone with broadband access

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty said Wednesday he'll support a plan to make his state a world leader in high-speed Internet access, reports John Reinan of the Star Tribune in Minneapolis.

"The United States trails many Asian and European nations in the speed and price of its high-speed broadband connections, with countries such as Japan and South Korea offering Internet connections as much as 100 times faster than those available here. In some rural Minnesota communities, consumers and businesses have access only to slow dial-up connections," writes Reinan.

Pawlenty supports a plan developed by a group of state leaders led by the Blandin Foundation, which focuses on Minnesota. It aims to develop Japanese-style broadband service throughout the state, and to make it available to every resident, business and institution at affordable rates, notes Reinan. (Read more)

Wal-Mart plans to expand health insurance, but offers few specifics

Wal-Mart Stores, a big employer in rural America, says it will soon allow part-time employees to enroll their children in a health insurance plan and cut the waiting time for new part-time employee to be eligible for benefits. The company declined to say how the waiting period will be cut.

Currently, only full-time workers can have health coverage for children, and part-timers must wait two years before enrolling, while full-timers must wait only six months. Wal-Mart's workers average less than $20,000 in pay per year, and they will still pay monthly premiums and big deductibles, writes Michael Barbaro of The New York Times.

Wal-Mart insures fewer than half of its 1.3 million U.S. employees, and critics say its policies place the burden of providing health care on state governments. The Maryland Legislature has passed a law that would force Wal-Mart to expand its benefits, and a dozen other states, including California, Colorado and Rhode Island, are considering similar measures.

Wal-Mart says 75 percent of its workers have health insurance, either through the company, a spouse or a previous job. "Wal-Mart has never said how many of its employees' children rely on company insurance, but an internal memo written by M. Susan Chambers, Wal-Mart's executive vice president for benefits, disclosed that 46 percent of them were uninsured or on Medicaid," writes Barbaro. (Read more)

Virginia and Maryland hew to heritage, reject indoor smoking bans

Virginia, where the tobacco industry began in 1619, and Maryland, another state with a tobacco heritage, have rejected legislation against indoor smoking.

"Flirtations with smoking bans in Virginia and Maryland came to abrupt ends yesterday, as legislative panels in each state rejected bills that would have made restaurants and virtually all other public places smoke-free," write Rosalind S. Helderman and Ann E. Marimow of The Washington Post.

Eleven other states have approved smoking bans, backed by evidence about the health risks of breathing secondhand smoke, report Helderman and Marimow. (Read more) Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights says there are more than 11. To see its list, click here.

In Virginia, a House subcommittee unanimously rejected a bill that already had Senate approval. "The House instituted rule changes this year that allow subcommittees to kill legislation before it reaches a full committee," raising questions, report Mason Adams and Michael Sluss of the The Roanoke Times. Senate Floor Leader Thomas Norment, R-Williamsburg, told them he respected the "sovereignty of the House to adopt rules," but "I do think that a bill that has come out of the Senate with a significant vote, and a bill that is a significant policy decision where reasonable people can differ, probably should be afforded an opportunity before the full committee." (Read more)

Rural North Carolina needs $1 billion to improve water, sewer systems

North Carolina's legislature should consider a $1 billion bond referendum to help the state's poorest regions upgrade aging water and sewer systems, a state policy center suggested Thursday.

"The money will help the state catch up on an estimated $6.85 billion in projected statewide repairs and improvements needed over the next five years, officials of the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center said. Voters would have to approve the bonds in a statewide election that could come as early as November," reports Gary D. Robertson of The Associated Press. (Read more)

The center recommended creating a permanent revenue source to pay for water, sewer and stormwater runoff system needs. Rural areas have a hard time securing repair funds, and poor systems make it difficult to attract industry, notes AP. "This state is growing and all of our infrastructure was put in by FDR," said Sen. John Kerr, D-Wayne, referring to Depression-era projects. "These pipes are older than we are."

Hunting game: New Hampshire lawmakers set sights on elk, deer

New Hampshire's House passed a bill Wednesday "that would allow hunters or other game meat buyers to go onto a farm where red deer or elk are raised and choose their animal. They could then shoot it and take the carcass home for meat," writes Jason Schreiber of The Eagle-Tribune in North Andover, Mass.

Supporters say the measure would support an alternative form of livestock farming since the cost to take animals to federally approved slaughterhouses is high. Also, farmers who raise red deer and elk are no longer allowed to ship animals to other states because of worries over contagious chronic wasting disease that kills deer, notes Schreiber.

The bill, which goes to the Senate next, has been opposed by hunting advocates and the state Fish and Game Department. Opponents call it an unfair form of hunting, and they say it only props up a business that might be failing, reports Schreiber. (Read more)

Northern Kentucky's Sunday-only 'voice' shuts down after 20 months

A Sunday-only newspaper called "A Voice for Northern Kentucky" has spoken for the last time.

The co-owner and the publisher of The Sunday Challenger announced last weekend that the paper for Cincinnati's Kentucky suburbs had printed its last edition. Co-owner Bill Butler, who launched the Sunday Challenger in July 2004, blamed the closing on increased efforts by the Cincinnati Enquirer and that paper's parent, Gannett Co., acquiring the Community Recorder weeklies in northern Kentucky, reports Mark Fitzgerald of Editor & Publisher.

The Sunday Challenger home-delivered 60,000 copies with another 5,000 copies distributed in racks and store drops, according to a report in The Cincinnati Post. President and Publisher Donald J. Then called the closure "a matter of pure economics," reports Fitzgerald.

Butler said he hoped the Gannett papers keep up their improved coverage, saying, "From where I sit, it's truly important that you don't short-change the public's right to know with wire-service tripe to squeeze every dollar you can for corporate profit." (Read more)

Thursday, Feb. 23, 2006

'Covering and Guiding Rural Economic Development' seminar April 7

Many local news outlets have played a role in bringing jobs to their communities, both with stories and editorials and with civic leadership. Today, they and their communities face new challenges. For example, globalization has made it more difficult for American communities to attract and retain jobs, and many rural communities face technological obstacles in keeping up with the rest of the country and the world.

To help rural journalists cover these issues and provide responsible civic leadership, the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues will present a workshop, “Covering and Guiding Rural Economic Development,” in Murray, Ky. on April 7. The conference at Murray State University will be held in conjunction with the spring meeting of the West Kentucky Press Association; the fee, which includes lunch, will be $25 for WKPA members and $50 for non-members.

Confirmed speakers include Hilda Legg, who recently headed the federal Rural Utilities Service and is keen on the issue of getting high-speed Internet to rural areas; Brian Mefford of ConnectKentucky, a business-government alliance that promotes technology development; Mickey Johnson, district director of Murray State's Small Business Development Center, which encourages entrepreneurship; Paul Monsour, former Union County Advocate editor, who now heads the county economic development foundation; Justin Maxson of the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development, which encourages local entrepreneurship and questions the effectiveness of state economic-development incentives; Keith Rogers, executive director of the Governor's Office of Agricultural Policy, which oversees Kentucky's spending of tobacco-settlement money for agriculture; and Laura Skillman, an award-winning journalist who heads news services for the agricultural-communicatins unit at the University of Kentucky.

Invited speakers include Ron Hustedde of the UK Cooperative Extension Service, who runs an Entrepreneurial Coaches Institute to develop and encourage entrepreneurs to create jobs in rural areas; Kathy B. White of Rural Sourcing of Jonesboro, Ark., and Durham, N.C.; and state Sen. Dorsey Ridley, a Henderson banker.

Sessions are planned on access to broadband and other technology, entreprenurship, local and state incentives to recruit and retain jobs, the evolution of rural economies from farming to manufacturing to services, new ways to make money in agriculture, the investment of the tobacco settlement, how to manage conflicts in journalistic and civic roles, and ways communities can cooperate to attract jobs.

Detailed registration information will be issued soon, but you may pre-register by clicking here.

Republican senator joins fight against plan to sell pieces of national forests

Opposition is growing to the Bush administration's proposal to sell public lands and use the revenue to fund rural schools and roads, with one Republican senator breaking ranks and joining Democrats in the fight.

Now, "U.S. Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., says the proposal to sell federal lands to pay for reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools Act is 'dead in the water,'" writes Perry Backus of The Missoulian. Although he is now joining Democrats, Burns co-sponsored the original Secure Rural Schools Act legislation in 2000 and does not want to use public land to reauthorize that. (Read more)

Burns' staff recently met with representatives of the Montana Wilderness Association, National Wildlife Federation and county governments. Burns said he was no longer interested in supporting the Bush administration's proposal. Burns chairs the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee.

For The Rural Blog's initial report on this issue, which has received much coverage in the last two weeks, click here.

Research finds newspaper readership, including on-line accessing, growing

If you count on-line readers, a study shows, newspapers are a growing source of information.

"Even in the newspaper industry, no problem is ever quite black and white. Despite a tsunami of competition from radio, TV, cable, the Internet and now podcasting, more than half of American adults read a daily newspaper," writes Brian Deagon of Investor's Business Daily. The figure jumps to 75 percent when counting those who read a paper once or twice a week, usually for special sections, Scarborough Research found.

Gary Meo, a vice president at Scarborough, told Deagon, "The state of the newspaper business is not as dramatic as stories report. Declines in newspaper circulation have been slow and steady, but it is not catastrophic." Meo added that when print and online audiences are combined, newspaper readership is growing. Meo said, "The newspaper business has recognized their future is digital."

The research showed that no major newspaper companies reported "near-death'" earnings last month. All were in the black and analysts were more concerned about new products, writes Deagon. (Read more)

Judging contest recharges editor's batteries, and one entry gives him a buzz

Ed Jones, editor of The Free Lance-Star in Fredericksburg, Va., writes that judging entries in the American Society of Newspaper Editors contest last week recharged his batteries.

"My judging stint gave me a booster shot of new admiration for journalists across the nation," Jones writes. "All I are a couple of steps back from the day-to- day hurly-burly of putting out a newspaper to rediscover why I love journalism so much. At its best, journalism is a breathtaking force for good."

Jones recounts the good work of mostly large papers, but concludes, "The most eye-catching entry came from Mike Trimble, the opinion editor of the Denton (Texas) Record-Chronicle, who's not in the habit of mincing his words. Reacting to Gov. Rick Perry's suggestion that homosexual war veterans from Iraq should move to some 'more lenient' state, Trimble reasoned: 'We do not want our governor to be a bigot. We fervently hope he just said something stupid again. We can live with stupid.'" To read Jones's column, click here. To read Trimble's editorial, click here.

UPDATE: Trimble won the ASNE award for distinguished editorial writing.

Paper in heart of Appalachian coalfield tackles coal-mining issues

Small newspapers in Central Appalachia do relatively little reporting on environmental issues, unless there is a disaster, but the Williamson Daily News is breaking out of that mold. It recently published a three-part series on the coal industry and its labor issues, a reporter's column criticizing the area's main coal company for its attitude toward news coverage, and a two-part series on coal-waste impoundments like the one that burst in 2000, creating the largest environmental disaster in the Southeast.

"Billions of gallons of coal slurry and water sits behind earthen dams throughout southern West Virginia and eastern Kentucky. What would happen if one of these facilities were to break above a populated community?" asks reporter Kyle Lovern, who attended the "Covering Coal" seminar held by the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues in November.

"The Mountain State has over 130 coal slurry impoundments, many in the southern counties. In neighboring Kentucky, several impoundments are located in both Pike and Martin counties," Lovern reports for the 8,760-circulation daily, which also covers parts of Kentucky. "The www.coalimpoundment.com Web site has information on all of the slurry dams throughout the region. It is complete with contact information for the coal companies, emergency services and evacuation routes."

To read Lovern's work, click here.

Illinois farm group opposes mining method known to make land subside

Farmers in one Illinois county have formed a coalition of landowners to oppose plans for "longwall" coal mining, fearing the practice will cause their land to subside.

"The Longwall Mining Action Project is not against mining in the area, according to representatives of Montgomery County's farm bureau and soil and water conservation district. But the group hopes to avoid possible surface subsidence caused by the longwall method," writes Daniel Pike of the Springfield State Journal Register.

Longwall mining is a more advanced method that increases the chances of subsidence beyond that of the original "room-and-pillar" approach, in which corridors are mined through a seam and the unmined area creates pillars that support the mine roof and other rock strata above.

Farm Bureau manager Bob Lentz told Pike, "Our concern is, how can it be exactly like it was before it was pre-mine when it's already going to be subsided four to five feet?" The Montgomery County Board agreed in 2004 to sell 120,000 acres of coal reserves to Colt LLC of West Virginia, a deal that could mean about $7.2 million and 600 jobs for the county.

Colt vice president Jim Morris told Pike that if enough farmers oppose longwall mining, the company would have to employ the room-and-pillar method. (Read more)

Court nixes judge's ruling barring report of testimony on his misconduct

The Supreme Court of Arkansas struck down yesterday a judge's restraining order prohibiting the Helena Daily World "from reporting testimony made in open court about the judge's alleged misconduct," reports the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.

More than a year ago, on Jan. 6, 2005, Phillips County Circuit Judge L.T. Simes II ordered the parties, attorneys, the newspaper and anyone at the open hearing not to relay "in any fashion whatsoever . . . any information heard or received at the said hearing," a seven-judge panel noted.

"Although we are sensitive to the concerns raised by the respondent, we find that, in this particular case, they are insufficient to counterbalance the public interest in the knowledge of what has transpired at judicial proceedings that are open to the public," wrote Justice Betty C. Dickey wrote for the court.

"Simes' order came during a hearing in a highly publicized case between West Helena Mayor Johnny Weaver and the city council over Weaver's attempt to oust the city's police chief," says the Reporters Committee. "In the hearing, Weaver requested to have Judge Simes recused from the case. He alleged that Simes had improperly started conversations with him about the case without the opposing party present in which the judge asked the mayor to deal leniently with the police chief, and had an interest in a radio station that broadcast council meetings." (Read more)

TVA sets date for Chattanooga-area land sale with one qualified bidder

The Tennessee Valley Authority plans to auction 578 acres on the shores of Nickajack Lake near
Chattanooga Tuesday for one of the largest private developments along the Tennessee River.

TVA spokeswoman Barbara Martocci told reporters, "Chattanooga developer John 'Thunder' Thornton's Nickajack Shores LLC development group is the only qualified bidder," reports The Associated Press. For the original Chattanooga Times Free Press story, click here ($1.95 cost).

Martocci also told reporters, "We responded to nine requests for information (from other possible
bidders) and of the nine, only one group submitted a bid package to TVA." She would not identify the potential bidder but did say said it failed to meet requirements.

AP reports the minimum bid is $7.2 million which includes fair market value for the land, mitigation fees and administrative costs associated with the auction. The buyer must offer about 1,100 acres of exchange land that "supports diverse recreational opportunities, habitat and historic resources." (Read more)

Alaska governor paves way for gas pipeline, may overhaul oil taxes

In a rural state full of pristine vistas, Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski has announced a deal that could clear the way for a natural gas pipeline and has introduced legislation to change how oil companies are taxed.

"The Murkowski administration has been working for the better part of two years on a deal that would clear the way for construction of a natural gas pipeline. Today, the governor announced that BP and ExxonMobil agreed in principle to a gas pipeline contract. ConocoPhillips agreed to the contract
terms several months ago," reports KTUU-TV of Anchorage.

The administration's plan would replace the present system that taxes oil production in favor of a tax on profits. The change could mean an extra $1 billion a year for the state. Murkowski said, “We want to enable and encourage smaller producers and that’s what we’ve done,” reports KTUU-TV. (Read more)

Strange bedfellows: Rare alliance forged to protect Wisconsin waters

Conservation groups, regulatory agencies, farmers and University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists are making an unprecedented effort to preserve Wisconsin's lakes, rivers and streams.

"For three years, the consortium -- known as the Wisconsin Buffer Initiative -- has pondered how best to combat ecological offenders such as phosphorus, nitrogen and the sediments that seep from agricultural lands into state waters," reports the university, via Newswise, a news and public relations service for higher-education and research firms. Recommendations include a watershed ranking system which divides the state into 1,600 18 square-mile hydrological units based on their ability to handle restoration measures.

Riparian buffers, or strips of vegetated land that lie adjacent to water, have been the center of discussion. "Scientists have known for years that among other ecological benefits, buffers serve as effective natural filters that can absorb pollutants from farmland runoff," writes the university.

But the Wisconsin Buffer Initiative wants to know where in the state's diverse agricultural landscape the buffers would have the greatest impact for the lowest cost. UW-Madison's team of soil scientists, ecologists and agricultural engineers have studied the matter for several years. Pete Nowak, a UW-Madison professor of rural sociology who chaired the WBI process, said, "We hope this project will reestablish Wisconsin as a leader in natural resource management." (Read more)

Kentucky communities eyes smoking ban; advocacy group releases study

In a state where tobacco once reigned supreme, some Kentucky communities are eyeing a smoking ban for public places, while another city's leaders are against the idea.

Oldham County, just up Interstate 71 from Louisville, may follow in its "footsteps and snuff out smoking in restaurants. A group of school and health officials and others is pushing for a smoking ban in public buildings. And if the group gets its way, there will be few if any exceptions to the rule," writes Andrea Uhde of The Courier-Journal of nearby Louisville.

Dori Livy, an employee of the county health department and member of the Oldham County Tobacco Awareness Coalition, told Uhde, "We're a different community. We will be looking at it differently." Livy hopes the Fiscal Court will pass an ordinance before the November elections. Judge-Executive Mary Ellen Kinser will hold a meeting from 7 to 8 p.m. Monday at the courthouse in La Grange, 100 W. Jefferson St., so restaurant owners can get information. (Read more)

In Ashland, a group pushing for a smoking ban has released a study on the effects of second-hand or "sidestream smoking" on restaurant employees and non-smoking patrons. "Indoor air pollution in Ashland restaurants and bars that permit smoking is 10 times higher than similar locations in smoke-free cities [nationwide], according to a study," writes Mike James of The Independent. But the results are not persuading city leaders to consider a ban. The Greater Ashland Smoke-Free Policy initiative conducted the study by visiting 15 restaurants and bars with portable air-monitoring equipment. (Read more)

Rural Calendar

Tonight: Panel on coal at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts

"Un/Natural Intervention: Changed Lands and Transformed Lives" is a panel discussion that focuses on coal, the communities that it affects, and the land from which it comes. Panelists include Barbara Freese, attorney and author of Coal: A Human History; Robin Webb, a former miner who now serves as a state legislator in Kentucky; and Hillary Hosta of Coal River Mountain Watch, a West Virginia-based environmental organization that illuminates the natural and unnatural environmental aspects of mining.

The conversation is intended to honor the lives of miners who died in recent disasters in West Virginia and the many coal workers around the world who die each year in mining-related accidents. It is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 23 at 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Art Building at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Mass. The event is free and open to the public. Click here for directions, here for a map.

Tomorrow: Forum at UNC-Chapel Hill on religion in the public schools

Several of the most prominent voices in the national debate over religion in public schools will take part in a daylong symposium on Feb. 24 sponsored by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law’s First Amendment Law Review. Admission to the symposium (including a continental breakfast) at the Carolina Inn, adjacent to the UNC campus, is free, but a $25 fee applies for those who wish to have lunch on-site. Pre-registration is required; information is available at http://falr.unc.edu/register.html.

The symposium is certified for six hours of CLE credit at a cost of $13.50 for registrants. Designed for attorneys, educators and the public alike, the symposium will feature panel discussions centering on three of the most pressing issues related to religion in public schools today.

The keynote speaker will be William Van Alstyne, Lee professor of law at the College of William and Mary and a nationally regarded expert on constitutional law. Speakers will discuss constitutional questions associated with the teaching of intelligent design in public school classrooms; the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance and government-sponsored religious exercises in public schools; and the possible reintroduction of religious symbols in classrooms in light of a reconstituted Supreme Court.

Members of the legal, religious and education communities will give remarks regarding these issues. Dr. Michael Newdow, plaintiff and attorney in the cases challenging inclusion of the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance, will be a panelist. Two prominent scientists also will discuss the validity of the theories of intelligent design and evolution.

Other panelists include Anthony R. Picarello Jr., president and general counsel of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which is trying to reverse a California federal judge's injunction prohibiting recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in California public schools; Dr. Scott Minnich, associate professor of microbiology at the University of Idaho, who recently testified as an expert witness in support of the teaching of intelligent design in biology classes in a Pennsylvania case where a federal judge rules such teaching unconstitutional; and Richard B. Katskee, assistant legal director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, who represented plaintiffs who opposed such teaching. For a full list of expected panelists and information on registration, visit http://falr.unc.edu/symposium.html.

Tomorrow: Entry deadline for Payne Awards for Ethics in Journalism

Now in its seventh year of honoring the high ethical standards of print, broadcast, and new media journalism, the Payne Awards for Ethics in Journalism is seeking entries by the Feb. 24 deadline.

Administered by the University of Oregon