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The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship is responding to the PROBABLE CASE of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Adair County at the Rose Acres Stuart Egg Farm. According to Adair-Guthrie County Emergency Management Coordinator Bob Kempf, the Department has quarantined the premises and once the presence of the disease is confirmed, all birds on the property will be humanely euthanized to prevent the spread of the disease.

The Stuart Egg Farm is a commercial laying operation with an estimated 975,000 birds. Initial testing showed it positive for H5 avian influenza. Additional confirmatory testing is pending from the APHIS National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) in Ames.

Because of the possible economic impact if the disease is confirmed both the Adair & Guthrie County Board of Supervisors have approved Emergency Disaster Declarations as of May 26th. Kempf asks residents to “Please avoid this area to help eliminate the spread of any potential HPAI Virus and to allow work to be done.”

350th Street from Pinewood Road (P20) to Riverside Avenue is closed to Thru Traffic and Riverside Avenue from 350th Street to 110th Street is closed to all traffic to help with this situation. If you have question about HPAI you can contact the Iowa Concern Hotline at 800-447-1985 or go  to www.iowaagriculture.gov/avianinfluenza.asp

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship said Tuesday it was responding to two probable cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Adair and Webster counties. With the new announcements, Iowa now has 66 cases of the disease in the state. The Department has quarantined the premises and once the presence of the disease is confirmed, all birds on the property will be humanely euthanized to prevent the spread of the disease.

Adair 1 – Is a Commercial laying operation with an estimated 975,000 birds that has experienced increased mortality. Initial testing showed it positive for H5 avian influenza. Additional confirmatory testing is pending from the APHIS National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) in Ames.

Webster 1 – Is a Commercial laying operation with an estimated 160,000 birds that has experienced increased mortality. Initial testing showed it positive for H5 avian influenza. Additional confirmatory testing is pending from the APHIS National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) in Ames.

As the Department receives final confirmations of the disease updated information will be posted to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship’s website at www.iowaagriculture.gov/avianinfluenza.asp. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Iowa Department of Public Health considers the risk to people from these HPAI H5 infections in wild birds, backyard flocks and commercial poultry, to be low. No human infections with the virus have ever been detected and there is no food safety risk for consumers.

Connections Area Agency has announced that the state is continuing the Farmers Market voucher program for older Iowans. With this program, seniors meeting income requirements can obtain vouchers that they can use at participating area Farmers Markets to buy $30.00 worth of fresh, locally grown produce. If you have questions about eligibility, please check with your local senior center. Applications for the vouchers will be available at your local senior center the week of June 1st.

Your completed application guarantees you a booklet, but there is a limited number, so contact your local senior center if you are interested in this program. Once you have a completed application, you can return to your local Senior Center to pick up your vouchers. Applications for Council Bluffs residents are now available at The Center, located at 714 S. Main Street.

The distribution date for Council Bluffs vouchers will be once again held at The Center on Monday, June 8th from 9am – noon. Again, your completed application guarantees you a booklet, so you may come at any time on June 8th to the Center to present your completed application and obtain your vouchers. Seniors (age 60 and older) in all other communities in Cass, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, Pottawattamie and Shelby counties will receive their vouchers through their local senior center.

Program Criteria:
• Must be at least 60 years of age or older
• Annual income must be less than
$21,775 Single
$29,471 Married
• Only one original application allowed per individual. No photocopies or duplicate applications allowed

Dates to Remember:
• Immediately: Applications will be available in Council Bluffs at The Center, 714 S. Main
• June 1, 2015: Applications and vouchers are available at all local Senior Centers outside of Council Bluffs.
• June 8, 2015: Council Bluffs Farmers’ Market voucher distribution at The Center, 714 S. Main from 9am – Noon for seniors with a completed application.

Just as one holiday ends, it is time to think about another. Campers hoping to reserve spots for the 2015 Labor Day weekend need to mark June 4 on their calendars, when reservations for a Friday arrival open. Sherry Arntzen with the DNR Parks Bureau, says “Even by June 4 some sites will already be reserved by campers arriving prior to the holiday weekend. “And electric sites always go quickly.”

For more information on Iowa’s state parks and to make a reservation, visit www.iowadnr.gov/parks

Iowa residents may fish without a license on June 5th, 6th and 7th, as part of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources’ free fishing weekend. Free fishing weekend is the first weekend in June each year. It allows Iowans an opportunity to try fishing without purchasing a license. All other regulations remain in place.

DNR staff will be at popular fishing spots across the state to help beginner anglers get started. They will assist with setting up fishing poles and distribute small kits with basic terminal tackle for panfishing along with tips and a few fun items. Hands-on fishing clinics are available to teach parents or kids the basics of fishing.

A list of fishing clinics, derbies, and other fun events co-sponsored by the DNR are available on the special events page. Log on to www.iowadnr.gov then click on Special Events Application System under the Event Calendar and Search for Events.

Anyone catching their first fish is encouraged to take a photo of it and send it in to receive the DNR’s first fish award. The DNR will commemorate the event with a certificate suitable for framing and the submitted photo. Information on the first fish program is available in the Iowa Fishing Regulations and online at http://www.iowadnr.gov/Fishing/MasterAnglerFirstFish.aspx.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — Officials say there’s evidence a black bear has traveled into Dubuque. Nate Johnson with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources says tracks found behind a home on the south side of the city belong to a black bear weighing between 100 and 200 pounds. Police say a bear sighting was reported Monday morning.

The Iowa DNR said Monday, that the body of a boater missing since Sunday afternoon was recovered in the Mississippi River a short distance from where the boat he was in capsized under a roller dam. The body of 33-year old Christopher Corson,  of Burlington, was found shortly before 11:30 a.m. Monday.

Corson and 30-year old Anthony Zurmuehlen, of Burlington, were fishing below a roller dam at Lock and Dam 18 when the 14-foot jon boat they were in was pulled under the dam where it rolled over. Zurmuehlen was able to grab on to a log and other debris below the roller dam and work his way to shore where he was eventually discovered by Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Conservation Officer Paul Kay shortly before 3 p.m. on Sunday. He was taken to Great River Medical Center in West Burlington where he was checked and released without injury.

Neither of the boaters were wearing life jackets when the boat capsized. The DNR was assisted at the scene and in the search by the Des Moines County Sheriff’s Department, Henderson County, Ill., Sheriff’s Department, the Illinois DNR Conservation Officer Service; the Des Moines County Conservation Department and Burlington Fire and Rescue. The incident remains under investigation by the Iowa DNR.

SIBLEY, Iowa (AP) – Iowa farmers who have been dealing with thousands of dead chickens attracting flies for weeks are frustrated with the government’s response to the ongoing bird flu outbreak. The Des Moines Register reports several chicken and turkey farmers expressed their concerns at public meetings in northwest Iowa Saturday.

Merlin DeGroot says he’s waiting for government crews to dispose of his dead chickens, but the agencies involved haven’t coordinated plans well. Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey says the size of the bird flu outbreak is unprecedented and the government is working to respond.

More than 25 million chickens, turkeys and ducks have been killed in Iowa, and it has taken time to find places to dispose of their carcasses. Two landfills in the state recently agreed to take birds.