Tag: June14

Information as of December 2021

General Details

• Employees who are at a higher risk for COVID-19 based on risk factors identified by the CDC should discuss their concerns with their supervisor. If additional accommodation is needed, they should discuss these concerns and possible accommodations with the University’s ADA coordinator.
• Whenever possible, meetings should continue to be virtual. When meetings must be in-person, designate a space for such purpose.
• Continue physical distancing and use of protective equipment.
• Continue closure of areas where people congregate.
• Face coverings are not required in University facilities, but remain strongly encouraged in instructional areas (classrooms, instructional labs) and research labs.
• Anyone who wants to wear a face-covering regardless of their vaccination status is welcome to do so.
• No quarantine following known exposure for fully vaccinated individuals.
• Current recommendations for physical distancing in University facilities remain in place.
  Events and large gatherings must continue to go through University protocols for approval.

Extension Offices

• Notify county government partners that the facility has reopened to the public.
• Transfer main office lines back to office phones.
• Post public health notices on all publicly accessible entrances.
• Prepare sampling areas to mitigate personal contact with the public.
• Create physical separation between all publicly accessible areas of the office and those intended to be accessed by staff only.
• Make hand sanitizer available at all entrances.
• Make supplies including, but not limited to, disinfectant wipes, disposable towels, disinfectant solution, etc. available in all commonly used areas of the office facility.
• Update sampling information on county websites and social media outlets only after the office has been deemed safely accessible to the public.
• Consider maintaining a long-term soil drop-off-only process that limits in-office interactions with the public.
• Consider delineating physical separation with marks on the floor in open spaces accessible to the public.

Extension Volunteers

Clemson Extension volunteers may return to in-person service in Stage – Yellow provided ALL the following conditions are met:

• The program-leading Extension Agent and any applicable third party or property have approved the volunteer activity.
• The volunteer follows appropriate CDC guidelines.
• Adults that have routine interaction with youth must abide by Clemson University Youth Protection Policy and Operating Standards.
• General guidance for returning to in-person volunteer service includes:
• Remain at home if you or anyone in your household is not feeling well or has a fever.
• High-risk individuals and those with significant underlying medical conditions are strongly encouraged to stay at home and take measures to limit exposure.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Try to work independently, keeping 6 feet or more apart from others.
• Frequently clean high‐touch surfaces including your cellphone/tablet, door handles, restroom surfaces, handrails, tools, etc.
• Refrain from using shared office equipment when possible. If it is necessary to use other’s equipment, sanitize between each user.

Guidance for Outdoor Service

• People should be spaced apart 6 feet or more.
• Individuals may work independently, keeping 6 feet or more apart from others in the garden.
• When possible, use your own gardening tools and equipment; shared tools and equipment should be cleaned after each use.

Communication Regarding Attendance at Educational Events

• Advise participants in advance that if they have any symptoms or feel unwell, they should not attend.

Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to people of all ages, regardless of race, color, gender, religion, national origin, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or family status and is an equal opportunity employer.

Silvopasture is an intentional, intensive, integrated, and interactive system that utilizes timberland for grazing within a managed rotational grazing system. This five-part webinar series included sessions on selection of forages and forage establishment, livestock selection and management, fencing, predator management, and how the timber component is initiated through stand establishment or by thinning an existing stand. Silvopastures are not widely utilized in South Carolina; however, there has been an increased interest in learning more about this combined production setting. With the increase in requests for more information, the Livestock and Forages and Forestry and Natural Resources teams paired up to offer a Silvopasture: Forestry and Forages Webinar Series. The series is divided into two different time sessions each Tuesday during the month of March with Advanced at noon and Foundational at 2pm. Registration includes participants from three different states gaining knowledge on the components and challenges of utilizing silvopasture. The goal of this series is to introduce the concept of Silvopasture from a forestry and livestock production standpoint. Topics cover components that show participants the basics for setting up a silvopasture from existing stands or the establishment of a new silvopasture and the livestock requirements. Due to the limitation of time, pre-recorded sessions were made available to the participants. Participants could register to receive 6 CFE credits and 4 CCH credits from participation.

Submitted by: Amber Starnes, Area Livestock and Forages Extension Agent

On May 13, 2021, a free webinar was held to profile Clemson’s recent research on shellfish mariculture consumer preferences and economic impacts in South Carolina. Dr. Marzieh Motallebi organized the webinar with Clemson’s Belle W. Baruch Institute of Coastal Ecology and Forest Science and Steve Richards with Clemson Extension Agribusiness Team’s Center for Cooperative and Enterprise Development.

The webinar included shellfish consumer preference research by Clemson graduate student Sam Cheplick, oyster consumer preference research by Steve Richards, and a shellfish mariculture economic impact study by Dr. Rob Carey, Director of Clemson’s Regional Economic Analysis Laboratory. In addition, a shellfish producer needs and research assessment was presented by Dr. Motallebi and South Carolina Sea Grant’s Living Marine Resource Specialist Graham Gaines. As a special guest, Gary Spires, with South Carolina Farm Bureau, talked about the importance of shellfish growers and how SC Farm Bureau would welcome their membership and involvement.

Seventy-eight attendees registered for this webinar, representing coastal shellfish growers and researchers from Maine to Alabama, the US Department of Agriculture, the South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation, and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. Of the seventy-eight registered, fifty-two attended the webinar with the balance of participants downloading the recording, which can be found at https://clemson.box.com/s/eool0runedlzf2ncu5i0pg8z7x88d48q.
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Submitted by: Steven Richards, Director, SC Center for Cooperative and Enterprise Development

The official start of summer is upon us, and Clemson Cooperative Extension’s event calendar is full of programming opportunities with more in-person activities being made available. A positive trend continues for our state, with eighty-five percent of the counties in green stages due to low virus incidence rates. As you may remember, I stated in my May 18 email, Clemson Cooperative Extension in-person activities of fifty or fewer participants occurring in counties with green or yellow stages will no longer require approval from Clemson University Administration. However, we must still conduct all in-person events according to the Clemson Cooperative Extension Meetings and Events guidance document. Please consult your District Extension Director and Program Team Director with any questions.

I have two important reminders. First, we have been gradually transitioning into the Extension re-organization outlined in my April 6 email. All changes will be fully in place by July 1, 2021. Secondly, the fiscal year ends on June 30. Please be mindful of any reporting responsibilities that must be addressed and the deadlines to do so. Those who are in charge of collecting fiscal year information have a lot on their plates as it is. Please be considerate of their time and workload. I am so excited that we are moving toward in-person meetings, reopening the offices, and moving more to the new normal. It is important that we stay cautious but that we move our Extension Programs forward. Let’s learn from programming during the pandemic but let’s also remain steadfast to serve the needs of our stakeholders.

In my previous month’s article, I discussed Extension’s involvement in the Power Plant SC program organized by the Floodwater Commission to raise awareness about the importance of trees to human and environmental health, including flood mitigation. I would like to recognize another unique collaboration established to address water resource issues in the state. The Water Resources Program Team is partnering with the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control and the Natural Resources Conservation Division on a new dam ownership program. Many farmers have dams on their properties, and offering a free, self-paced, online course covering inspection and maintenance topics is a great service. I am excited to see this new program take off. The education shared with dam owners is also for the benefit of those who live nearby the dams.

Water is always a critical issue for our state as precipitation amounts continually swing between too much or not enough, and the impacts of climate change become more apparent. Hurricane season recently began, and the NOAA Climate Prediction Center predicts another above-normal Atlantic hurricane season. I encourage you to familiarize yourself with the SC Emergency Management Division’s new website, hurricane.sc, and consider utilizing the SC Emergency Manager mobile app.  Additionally, people living in the coastal areas should know that this year’s updated SC Hurricane Guide includes new evacuation zones for Berkeley County. We are grateful for those who provide their expertise for these resources that help keep South Carolinians informed and safe. Please share this information for hurricane season with your stakeholders, no matter their location in the state.

Over the past year, we didn’t know what to expect from week to week, nor did we know when to expect it. In South Carolina, the pandemic stages have become much less devastating, but that is not the case everywhere. Please keep in your thoughts those who are grieving from loss and those who are still battling the grip of COVID among their families and communities. If there is anything we’ve learned, it’s that nothing is certain at any stage of a pandemic. The pandemic is far from over; we are still and will be for a long time transitioning through stages.

I want to thank everyone for their diligence in helping us pave the way by adhering to the guidance provided. Let us continue to remain optimistic but vigilant and flexible with any new guidance that might be implemented for whatever reason.

As always, please take good care of yourselves and your families, and thank you for what you do for Clemson Extension.