The parcel, which is adjacent to the UC Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center in Browns Valley, will be managed by UC to protect its natural resources. Bear Yuba Land Trust will hold the conservation easement on the Narrows property to ensure that it remains permanently protected and available for public benefit. The transaction closed today (Jan. 29).
Located on the Yuba River, the Narrows property is 60 miles northeast of Sacramento. UC Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center has more than 5,700 acres of rangeland for scientists to study critical rangeland issues.
“We are excited to be able to manage this parcel because this new property will increase the size and connectivity between key research pastures at Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center,” said Jeremy James, Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center director.
Cattle grazing is a major tool to manage vegetation on rangelands and to enhance rangeland ecosystems. Although the Narrows land is too steep for grazing, it can be used to study a suite of critical natural resource processes.
“This is the first of several land transfers from PG&E to a public agency in the Yuba River watershed and the only in Yuba County,” said Marty Coleman-Hunt, Bear Yuba Land Trust executive director. “It's the culmination of over a decade of planning and work with local conservation groups and the Stewardship Council. The permanent protection of this land below Englebright Dam is critical for the health of the important Yuba River salmon fishery and public recreation for the lower Yuba River.”
The research center encompasses river, grassland, oak woodland and riparian habitat types for studying beef cattle production, nutrition and health, rangeland water quality management, oak woodland restoration, native plant conservation and invasive plant management as well as monitoring and management of sensitive fish and wildlife species.
The center has many educational features including a series of nature trails and an education center on the Yuba River, which can be used by schools and community groups for outdoor education and outreach events.
Bear Yuba Land Trust is a non-profit, membership-supported group that promotes voluntary conservation of natural, historical and agricultural resources in the Bear and Yuba watersheds of the Sierra Nevada foothills. Each year, BYLT's stewardship team will monitor the conservation easement at the Narrows for conservation values like documenting the presence of native plants and animals. BYLT will hold the development rights forever, meaning the land will be permanently protected as a natural place and remain undeveloped.
For more information about PG&E's transfer of the Narrows property, visit http://www.stewardshipcouncil.org/land_conservation/planning_units/narrows.htm.
For more information about the UC Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center, please visit http://sfrec.ucanr.edu.
For more than 100 years, University of California Cooperative Extension researchers and educators have been drawing on local expertise to conduct agricultural, environmental, economic, youth development and nutrition research that helps California thrive. UC Cooperative Extension is part of the University of California's systemwide Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Learn more at ucanr.edu.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
The UC Office of the President will provide $7,500 to each of UC's 10 campuses, as well as the Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, to fund student awards in support of UC's Carbon Neutrality Initiative and other university sustainability efforts. Awards could be made as early as late February.
The program was inspired by UC's Global Food Initiative fellowship program, through which 54 students across the university system have received $2,500 awards to support projects that further the food initiative's goals.
UC President Janet Napolitano said she hopes this new program will spark a similar universitywide interest among students in advancing UC's carbon neutrality goals.
"It is essential that we harness the passion and creative energy of our students as we look for new ways to reduce the carbon footprint of our campuses, our communities, our country and the world,” Napolitano said. “I am hopeful that these awards will galvanize student activity.”
The program will be open to both undergraduate and graduate students, and will be administered at each location to ensure that student efforts align with local needs. UC locations will also have flexibility in determining the number of awards to issue.
At each UC campus, one award recipient will be designated to support student engagement and communications for the Carbon Neutrality Initiative and the President's Global Climate Leadership Council, which was created in 2014 to guide UC's efforts on climate action and sustainability.
Since President Napolitano launched the Carbon Neutrality Initiative in fall 2013, UC has achieved several key milestones, including:
- Creation of the President's Global Climate Leadership Council, which is now mapping out UC's long-term strategy for achieving university-wide carbon neutrality.
- Becoming a wholesale power provider, a move that has allowed UC to begin supplying electricity to some of its campuses and medical centers. The change allows UC to make renewables a bigger portion of its power supply and brings energy price transparency to its electricity purchases.
- UC signed an agreement with Frontier Renewables for the largest solar energy purchase by any higher education institution in the United States. As a result, a significant share of UC electricity will come from solar power beginning in 2016.
- Author: Pat Bailey, UC Davis News Service, (530) 752-9843, pjbailey@ucdavis.edu
The current detected strains, H5N2 and H5N8, are not a risk to human health and have not been found in commercial poultry in the United States. However, commercial poultry flocks in British Columbia and backyard flocks in Washington and Oregon have been affected.
Avian influenza -- commonly called "bird flu" -- is a disease found in a wide variety of domesticated and wild birds. Once introduced into an area, infection can spread through bird-to-bird contact or through contact with contaminated clothing, shoes, hands, feed, water or equipment. Because waterfowl are reservoirs for avian influenza strains that can be fatal to domestic poultry (yet often show little to no signs in waterfowl), backyard and commercial chickens raised near areas commonly used by migrating waterfowl are at risk of transmission.
"Due to normal waterfowl migration along the Pacific Flyway, during the winter there are approximately eight times the number of waterfowl in California than what we will see three months from now," said Maurice Pitesky, a UC Cooperative Extension specialist with the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. "There are lots of birds that winter and establish roosting and feeding habitat in California wetlands and agricultural crops. If you are a poultry owner -- either backyard or commercial -- and live in proximity to waterfowl and their habitat, your birds are at risk."
Owners of backyard chickens who observe illness or increased mortality in their birds should call their veterinarian or the California Department of Food Agriculture sick bird hotline at (866) 922-2473.
The California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory System includes four diagnostic labs in Davis, Turlock, Tulare and San Bernardino. The labs encourage veterinarians and owners of backyard chickens to submit sick or recently dead birds for necropsy (postmortem) examination. The exam is free of charge for California backyard flock owners of fewer than 1,000 birds (chicken, turkey, waterfowl and squabs). For more information, contact (530) 752-8700 or visit: <http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/cahfs/>
Reduce the risk of bird flu
To reduce the risk of avian influenza transmission, chickens should be kept separate from wild birds and monitored for signs of illness or increased mortality. The CDFA also urges owners to take the following necessary and crucial precautions:
- If you have a pond or body of water that can attract waterfowl to or near your facility, consider draining if feasible.
- Provide housing to confine domestic poultry and/or enclose an exercise area with netting.
- Avoid use of water that comes from sources where waterfowl may congregate during migration.
- Ideally, owners of poultry should try to avoid waterfowl hunting during migration. Otherwise, ensure clothing, footwear, vehicles, etc. used during hunts are laundered and/or disinfected.
- Permit only essential workers and vehicles on premises and provide disposable coveralls, boots and head coverings for visitors.
- Clean and disinfect vehicles and equipment entering or leaving the premises.
- Control movement associated with the disposal of mortality, litter and manure.
Additional resources
Information on good biosecurity and hygiene precautions to keep backyard flocks healthy can be found at:
- UC Cooperative Extension: Backyard Poultry Resources: <http://ucanr.edu/sites/poultry/type/backyard>
- USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service: <http://healthybirds.aphis.usda.gov>
- California Department of Food and Agriculture Avian Health Program: <http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/ahfss/Animal_Health/Avian_Health_Program.html>
Reports of dead, wild birds can be directed to the Wildlife Investigations Lab at (916) 358-2790. There is also a Web application for submission: http://bit.ly/17ESHWy.
The University of California Global Food Initiative aims to put the world on a path to sustainably and nutritiously feed itself. By building on existing efforts and creating new collaborations among UC's 10 campuses, affiliated national laboratories and the Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, the initiative will develop and export solutions for food security, health and sustainability throughout California, the United States and the world.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
California farmers grew about 23,000 acres of baby and large limas with a value of about $30 million in 2012, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service.
“While that's not a lot compared to some crops in our state, it's significant because California growers produce 60 to 80 percent of the world's market of dry limas,” said Rachael Long, UC Cooperative Extension advisor.
The primary export market for California baby lima beans is Japan, where they are used to make Japanese confections, such as sweet bean filling for manju.
Dry lima beans, which are canned or packaged for domestic or export markets, are grown in California. Thick green lima beans for freezing are grown on the East Coast.
Among California lima beans, there are baby limas and large limas, and bush and vine types of both. Baby limas are grown primarily in the Sacramento Valley, while the large limas are grown south of Tracy and on the Central Coast. Large limas grown on the Central Coast are mostly dry farmed and used for canning.
“Baby limas are produced in the warmer areas north and south of the Bay Delta and large limas in the south Delta area, which has a slightly longer and drier harvest season and cooler night temperatures favoring flowering and pod filling,” she said. “So there's lots of baby limas in the Knights Landing area and large limas in the Patterson area.”
Farmers like to grow lima beans because they fix nitrogen, improve soil health, use relatively few pesticides and help control weeds in field crop rotations with crops including wheat, corn, tomatoes, alfalfa and sunflowers. Because lima beans are not a widely planted crop that would attract research investment by private companies, growers depend on UC research for improved varieties.
“Dr. Paul Gepts, along with Rachael Long and other researchers, plant extensive bean variety trials to select favorable genetics such as high yield, insect resistance and drought tolerance,” said lima grower Stephen Perez, who farms in Stanislaus County. “Their work is incredibly valuable to the California bean industry as well as to other bean growers around the world.”
“For years, we've been working on developing varieties of lima beans that are resistant to lygus bugs as well as nematodes, two significant pests of beans and limas in particular,” said Long. “These studies are mostly conducted by UC Davis professor Paul Gepts, UC Riverside professor Phil Roberts and UC Cooperative Extension farm advisors, continuing the research by now-retired UC Cooperative Extension specialist Steve Temple.”
Lygus bugs, which feed on buds and flowers, are very destructive to lima fields.
“With these new varieties, the use of pesticides has been decreased, saving growers unnecessary expenses and, just as important, reducing the use of these pesticides,” said Sano. “By using these lygus-resistant baby lima lines, Paul Gepts is now working on breeding that resistance into large lima varieties. This would provide those growers the same advantage.”
“We hope to identify the genetics of partial resistance, then we can select for resistance in crosses,” explained Gepts, professor in the Department of Plant Sciences at UC Davis. “We use a mix of basic and applied research in breeding, with a focus on developing new varieties.”
The UC scientists are also trying to breed lima bean plants that use less water. “We are trying to find how much we can reduce water and still get sufficient yields,” said Gepts. “Eventually we hope to test to identify markers for drought tolerance to lower the number of irrigations.”
Long and her colleagues recently published a lima bean production manual, which includes a list of large and baby lima varieties available in California and their pest-resistance levels. To help protect groundwater quality as required under new farm plans, the manual also features a table of nitrogen rates for lima production based on nitrogen levels in the soil and water. “Lima Bean Production in California” can be downloaded for free at http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu.
UC also has published cost of production studies for dry beans, including baby vine and bush types: "Sample Costs to Produce Beans-Common Dry Varieties-Double Cropped in the Sacramento Valley" and "Sample Costs to Produce Beans-Common Dry Varieties-Single Cropped in the Sacramento Valley." The production cost studies can be downloaded for free at http://coststudies.ucdavis.edu.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
“California will need about 150 percent of normal rainfall this winter to end the drought,” said Doug Parker, director of UC California Institute of Water Resources. “Although the rains have come, we can't afford to let our attention drift away from carefully managing our water supply.”
The UC California Institute of Water Resources, with support from the California Department of Water Resources, has recorded presentations by scientists in the UC system and other organizations on a variety of topics related to water management and drought. “Insights: Water and Drought Online Seminar Series” is accessible by computer or mobile device.
The online seminars enable UC Cooperative Extension and the other scientists to share their knowledge with a larger audience than those who can attend meetings in person, said Daniele Zaccaria, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in agricultural water management in the Department of Land, Air and Water Resources at UC Davis.
“Farmers, landscape professionals, land managers, irrigation consultants, resource managers from water districts and others can view the half-hour video presentations on YouTube whenever it is convenient for them, obtaining science-based information that stems from applied research conducted by several scientists over the last 10 to 15 years,” said Zaccaria, who coordinates the speaker series.
Currently 39 videos addressing drought and water management in different settings are available, and more talks will be added in the coming months. The videos are also being used by Cooperative Extension in other states and have been viewed hundreds of times. “Groundwater and surface water interactions under water shortage,” by Thomas Harter, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Land, Air and Water Resources at UC Davis, has been viewed nearly 1,400 times and “Climate change and paleoclimatology: 2013/2014 in perspective” by Lynn Ingram, professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Science at UC Berkeley, has been more than 800 times.
The following titles have recently been added:
Water resources management in the Pajaro Valley, California
Brian Lockwood, senior hydrologist, Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency
Managing corn under California's drought conditions
Mark Lundy, UC Cooperative Extension advisor in Sutter, Yuba and Glenn counties
Droughts, climate change, and dams: Reconciling a future for California's native inland fishes
Peter Moyle, professor in the Department of Wildlife, Fish & Conservation Biology at UC Davis
Managing landscapes on limited water
Loren Oki, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Plant Sciences at UC Davis
Drought - An insidious stress on wildlife
Greg Giusti, UC Cooperative Extension advisor, forests and wildland ecology in Mendocino County
Agricultural water management practices under limited water supply: Lessons from recent droughts
James E. Ayars, agricultural engineer, USDA-ARS
Soil moisture monitoring and utilization during a drought
Dan Munk, UC Cooperative Extension advisor, irrigation, soils and cotton in Fresno County
Land subsidence along the Delta-Mendota Canal and neighboring areas
Michelle Sneed, California Water Science Center, US Geological Survey
How to save water and beautify your landscape ... the sustainable way
Janet Hartin, UC Cooperative Extension advisor, environmental horticulture in San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties
Efficient citrus irrigation
Blake Sanden, UC Cooperative Extension advisor, irrigation and soils in Kern County
Using agroecological practices to enhance the resilience of organic farms to drought
Miguel A. Altieri, professor in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, UC Berkeley
The drought videos are available at http://ucanr.edu/insights and https://www.youtube.com/UCANR.
/span>/span>