The new Saskatchewan Barley Development Commission (SBDC) and Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission (SWDC) may not hit the ground running with a recently elected board of directors, but according to one new member they at least would start out walking at a pretty good pace.

Cam Goff, a Hanley farmer elected to the SBDC board of directors, said the expectation is the new producer-elected board is going to have a busy year ahead of them as they try to get an idea about the best direction production check-off fees need to go in. He said they need to begin with talking to the decades old Alberta barley commission and recently formed Alberta wheat commission as well as the Manitoba barley and wheat commissions that are set to go online this year to find out how they are going to set up.

“The first year really is getting our feet on the ground and talking to the other groups,” said Goff, who was elected to a two-year term on the SBDC by barley growers last month. “We are going to be talking to the Alberta and Manitoba groups, trying to work together, and having as little duplication as possible in what we’re doing. Obviously I’m just starting, but I currently think it’s very much a joint proposition for all three provinces that we’re going to have to work very closely together to reduce the overhead fees and the duplication of efforts. There has to be constant communication between us or else we’re going to end up really not doing a very good job for producers.”

Goff was elected along with Jeff Mathieson of Regina and Foam Lake’s Zenneth Faye to a two-year term on the SBDC while Jason Skotheim of Spruce Home, Strasbourg’s Brent Johnson and Vanguard’s Allen Kuhlmann were elected to four-year terms through 549 mail-in ballots by barley producers. Over 2,000 Saskatchewan wheat growers elected Edenwold’s Rod Flaman, Ken Rosaasen of Saskatoon, Regina’s Bill Gehl and Glenn Tait of Meota to four-year terms on the SWDC along with Saskatoon’s Dan Danielson, Radisson’s Laura Reiter and William Rosher of Kindersley to two-year terms.

The two new commissions are entrusted with building the prospects for Saskatchewan-grown wheat and barley crops by administering check-off fees toward research and market development initiatives that improve wheat and barley varieties, build their marketability and provide greater value to producers. The new producer-elected directors replace an interim board that oversaw the affairs of each commission from their establishment this past August to the election.

Goff said he ran for a seat on the SBDC board of directors because he believes it is important for farmers to retain as much control as possible over the seed end of their business through using these check-off dollars to get producers the “best bang” for their buck.

“The job is to make sure the funds are collected,” Goff said when describing what his job as a director would entail, “and then to decide which project that researchers bring forward that has the best possibility of increasing the sales of barley, the use of barley and getting those traits in the barley that producers need whether it be disease, yield or other factors that may come along in the future.”

To read more please see the January 20 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

The Heartland Health Region has restricted visitor access and isolated some long-term residents at the Davidson Health Centre after an outbreak of respiratory illness infected some of its patients.

Dr. David Torr, consulting medical health officer with the Heartland Health Region, said the facility closed its doors to visitors about a week-and-a-half ago after some residents contracted the H1N1 flu virus. He said visitation of its long-term patients has been restricted because they don’t want any further illness brought into the facility and they also don’t want anyone picking up the illness from the facility.

“As soon as the outbreak is under control then we open up (visitor access),” said Torr. “We will notify everybody as soon as we have the situation under control. So far it seems to be resolving pretty well. We’re not having further spread of infection, but we’ve got to make sure our perimeters are covered.”

Torr said all patients that are showing symptoms of H1N1 have been isolated and the other long-term residents are being monitored closely to make sure they don’t contract the illness. He said appropriate precautions have also been taken to protect staff at the facility.

Emergency services at the acute side of the Davidson Health Centre are still providing care during this time, said Torr. He added it is likely the outbreak originated through contact with visitors to the facility and that is probably also the case with the other health centres in the province that have experienced similar outbreaks.

“We don’t have other outbreaks currently within facilities (in the Heartland Health Region), but in the province there is certainly been a number of long-term care facilities already affected by the influenza,” he said.

To deal with the H1N1 concern in the general public, Torr said there is still a limited amount of flu vaccine available in the province and right now health officials are looking at demographics, the pattern of illness and statistics to determine who would receive a shot. He said although 30 per cent of the population has been immunized only around 15 per cent of children under five years have received the vaccine yet they are the ones more disproportionably affected by H1N1, so it is this demographic and pregnant mothers that will be focused on to receive the vaccine.

“Decisions had to be made to get the best bang for the buck with what limited vaccine is available, but the province is working hard at securing more vaccine and we did get an extra stock this week,” said Torr, noting this new batch is still not enough to go out to the general population. “We included also people with immune suppression like cancers and post-transplants and dialysis patients (to receive the vaccine). The province continues to hunt for vaccine and as we get more vaccine in we will keep the population updated on who can access vaccine.”

To read more please see the January 20 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Officials with the Heartland Health Region public inspection program are asking homeowners in Davidson, Kenaston and area to contact them about conducting radon gas testing on their homes in an effort to reduce the carcinogen that is found in basements throughout the region.

Vanessa Amy, public health officer with Heartland Health, said high levels of radon gas has been detected in particular areas of the region, but it is unknown how elevated levels of the radioactive gas is around Davidson and Kenaston because no testing has been done. She said radon gas is formed through decaying uranium and seeps through the soil into basements and because it is a carcinogen causes lung cancer when people are exposed long-term to it when it builds up during the winter.

“Radon gas is heavier than air, so it will collect in the basement,” said Amy. “It doesn’t go up and fill up your whole house, but in the wintertime when you run your furnace the furnace draws air from the basement and hot air rises out the chimney. You create negative pressure in your basement, so that air pressure in the soil surrounding your house is going to be higher than in your basement (and) that radon gas is drawn from the soil into your basement. It doesn’t occur very much during the summer months when you’re not running your furnace, (but) we can see levels of radon building up in your basement during the winter heating months.”

Amy said the amount of radon gas collecting in a basement has nothing to do with the age of a home, but it does have to do with the type of soil surrounding a basement and the condition the basement is in. She said a wood framed basement or a cracked concrete basement surrounded by heavy clay soil would draw more radon gas into it than a sound concrete block basement, but it is impossible to predict how much radon is in a home without it being tested.

“Heartland is actually offering free radon tests to homeowners in the health region, so people can contact me,” she said noting she can be reached at 306-882-2672 ext. 2288 or by email at public.health@hrha.sk.ca. “We’ve arranged for testing to be provided to people in the area because we know that it’s been a concern.”

To read more please see the January 20 print edition of The Davidson Leader.