DES MOINES – Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) has been positively identified in a residential tree in the southeast corner of rural Dallas County, making this the twenty-first county in Iowa where this invasive beetle has been found. EAB kills all ash tree species and is considered to be one of the most destructive tree pests ever seen in North America.

The current EAB infestation was found as a result of an arborist contacting state officials about a suspect ash tree. Investigation by the Iowa EAB team revealed characteristic galleries, recent woodpecker activity, and live larvae that were positively identified by federal identifiers.

“This finding is the closest to Polk County and Iowa’s capital city to date” said Mike Kintner, Iowa Department of Agriculture & Land Stewardships EAB and Gypsy Moth
Coordinator. “With this discovery, Iowa has declared three positive counties in 2015
where this ash-killing pest has been found.”

Twenty-one Iowa counties now have confirmed EAB infestations. A statewide quarantine, issued on Feb. 4, 2014, remains in place, restricting the movement of hardwood firewood, ash logs, wood chips and ash tree nursery stock out of Iowa into non-quarantined areas of other states. “We still strongly urge Iowans to not move firewood long distances,” said State Entomologist Robin Pruisner of the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. “A large portion of Iowa is not showing signs of EAB infestation; let’s keep those areas EAB-free as long as possible by not moving wood that potentially harbors EAB or other tree pests. Be vigilant and report suspicious symptoms in counties that are not yet known to be infested to a member of the Iowa EAB Team.”

The Iowa EAB Team provides EAB diagnostic assistance to landowners and includes
officials from Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS), Iowa
State University Extension and Outreach, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources
(DNR), USDA Animal Plant Health Inspection Service and the USDA Forest Service.

The Iowa EAB Team strongly cautions Iowans not to transport firewood across county
or state lines, since the movement of firewood throughout Iowa or to other states
poses the greatest threat to quickly spread EAB and other plant pests. Most EAB
infestations in the United States have been started by people unknowingly moving
infested firewood, nursery plants or sawmill logs. The adult beetle also can fly
short distances, approximately 2 to 5 miles.

The window for preventive treatment measures (trunk injection, soil injection, soil
drench or basal trunk sprays) is mid-April to mid-May. If a landowner is interested
in protecting a valuable and healthy ash tree within 15 miles of a known infestation, they should have landscape and tree service companies bid on work, review the bids and treat during the recommended treatment time.

Please contact Iowa EAB Team members to have suspicious looking trees checked in
counties not currently known to be infested. The State of Iowa will continue to track the movement of EAB on a county-by-county basis. Before a county can be officially recognized as infested, proof of a reproducing population is needed and an EAB must be collected and verified by USDA entomologists.

To learn more about EAB and other pests that are threatening Iowa’s tree population,
please visit www.IowaTreePests.com.

(Press Release)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A plan to expand access to medical marijuana has won approval in the Democrat-majority Senate, but the legislation is unlikely to move any further this year in the Legislature. The Senate voted 26-19 in favor of the bill Wednesday. The legislation would make medical marijuana available to people with certain chronic diseases. Those approved by a doctor could purchase marijuana products produced in Iowa and sold at state-licensed dispensaries.

The legislation moves to the Republican-controlled House, where leaders have expressed little interest in the bill. Last year, the Legislature approved a law allowing some residents with epilepsy to use oil with an ingredient derived from marijuana for treatment. But the law did not establish an in-state program for the production and distribution of the oil.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports a woman was arrested for assault, Tuesday, and a man was arrested on drug charges. 24-year old Kirstin Marysa Silence, of Atlantic, was arrested on a Cass County Sheriff’s Office warrant for Willful Injury. Silence was taken to the Cass County Jail where she was released later that day on $10,000 bond.
And, 31-year old Joseph Lee Flathers, of Anita, was arrested on charges of Possession of Marijuana 2nd Offense and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Flathers was taken to the Cass County Jail where he was released on his own recognizance the following day.

There’s been a change in location for next month’s electronics recycling trailer, in Atlantic. Atlantic Community Protection committee Chairman Chris Jimerson reports a semi-trailer for the loading of electronics to be disposed of will be located at the Cass County Fairgrounds, instead of on North Chestnut Street, as had been previously announced. The 4-H Fairgrounds committee has authorized the use of the grounds for the dropping off of electronic items. The event will be held May 9th, from 7-until 11-a.m.

The electronic recycling program is for Cass County residents only. Businesses are not allowed to participate. You may bring the following items ONLY, to the fairgrounds for placement in the trailer: televisions, computer monitors, hard drives, printers, lap-tops, VCR/DVD players, keyboards, speakers, circuit boards, cell phones, cables, electronic scrap, small appliances, and microwaves.

Once the semi is full, no further electronic items will be taken, and anyone with items left over, will be asked to take those items to the Cass County Landfill, which has had its own E-recycling program in place, since 2006. For information about what electronic pieces are accepted at the Landfill, and the price of disposal, go to www.casscountylandfill.com, or call 712-243-1991.

Federal tax returns are due by midnight tonight (Wednesday) and officials with the Internal Revenue Service expect more than 57-thousand Iowans will be requesting an extension this year. I-R-S spokesman Bill Brunson says you can go the antiquated route, using a paper form that needs to be postmarked before midnight, or speed up the process with a few clicks on the agency’s website.

Brunson says, “All you need to do is go to IRS.gov and click on the Free File icon where you can choose to request an extension automatically for an additional six months online at no charge.” You have until midnight to make the request, which will push your federal tax deadline back to October 15th. While it used to be a circus-like atmosphere on April 15th, with procrastinators rushing to the post office late at night, most of those offices now keep regular business hours on tax deadline day.

Brunson notes e-filing has all but eliminated that urgency and Iowa is one of the nation’s e-filing leaders. “The Internal Revenue Service expects more than 1.4-million returns for this reporting period and of that 1.4 million, 1.3-million are expected to be electronically filed,” Brunson says. “That’s a rate of 93% of Iowans who will choose to electronically file their tax return.”

E-filers also have until midnight to complete the tax task, which Brunson says is more accurate, since the program won’t let you make a math error. He touts another benefit. “Your electronic return is secure in the sense that, if you have a refund coming, you can choose to have it directly deposited in your savings or checking account, and that item won’t get lost or stolen like an old-fashioned paper check,” Brunson says. “You can expect to get a refund from the Internal Revenue Service in 21 days or less.”

E-filing saves the I-R-S a bundle. Processing a paper return costs three-dollars and 54-cents on average, while an e-filed return costs more like 18-cents.

(Radio Iowa)

A new survey shows Iowa voters are divided over the issue of legalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use. Peter Brown is assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll. “Iowans are split right down the middle on the question of legalizing recreational use of marijuana, 47-percent of Iowans told Quinnipiac they favor legalization, while 47-percent oppose it,” Brown says.

Quinnipiac also surveyed voters in two other states on the same issue. Voters in Virginia support so-called recreational pot 54-41 percent, while Colorado voters still back their first-in-the-nation experiment 62-34 percent. In Iowa, Brown notes support for legalized recreational use of marijuana is much stronger among Democrats than Republicans. There’s also a large gap on the issue among age groups.

Support for personal use of marijuana is 62-32 percent among voters 18 to 34 years old, while voters 35 to 54 years old are divided 47-47 percent and voters over 55 years old are opposed 53-41 percent. Iowans, meanwhile, overwhelming favor the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes.

The Quinnipiac poll shows 87-percent of the Iowans surveyed support the use of medical marijuana, while 11-percent are against its legalization. Last week, dozens of people took part in a rally at the statehouse and met with legislators to lobby for a new state law that would allow marijuana to be grown and dispensed in Iowa — as treatment for a wide range of medical conditions. The Quinnipiac University Poll was conducted between March 29 and April 7 and involved phone interviews with 948 Iowa voters.

(Radio Iowa)

ONAWA, Iowa (AP) – A 200-plus-pound St. Bernard won’t be seized from his owner, thanks to a vote by the Onawa City Council. The council voted 4-2 on Tuesday night to reverse a ruling by the police chief that Zhivago is dangerous. The giant pooch had gotten loose twice, but owner Billy Parker has said Zhivago is “a gentle giant” who poses no threat.

Council member LeRoy Habinck said at the meeting that if Zhivago were “going to bite somebody, he would have done it long before this.” Parker has installed a 6-foot-tall fence to keep the dog from escaping and roaming the neighborhood.

The council will be taking a look at city ordinances to clearly define what makes an animal “dangerous” or “vicious” and subject to city seizure.

Members of the CAM and Adair-Casey Boards of Education held discussions Tuesday evening at the High School in Anita, on a possible Whole Grade Sharing arrangement. CAM Superintendent Dr. Casey Berlau told KJAN News it was discussion only, no decisions were made. He said the matter of who Adair-Casey teams up with is in “Their court. What they expressed to us was that they want to get a decision made, but I don’t know that I heard and exact date when they’re expecting to do that.”

Adair-Casey School members met with the Guthrie Center School Board Monday evening, and are expected to meet with West Central Valley School Board members this (Wednesday) evening.

In other business, Berlau said the CAM School Board approved three resignations. They include: Rex Mehrhoff, Assistant Football & Assistant Wrestling Coach in the shared CAM/Atlantic wrestling program; Asst. Girls Basketball Coach Valerie McPheron, and 5th grade teacher Diane Casey.

The CAM Board also passed a Resolution approving the 2015-16 School Budget, for which the tax asking (levy) is relatively unchanged from last year, at $9.26 per thousand dollars taxable valuation, and, the approved a bid of about $19,000 from Glascock Floor out of Indianola, for work on the high school gym floor.

The Glenwood Police Dept. reports a Taylor County man was arrested Tuesday. 57-year old Kurt Wagaman, of New Market, was arrested for Public intoxication and interference with official acts. Wagaman was being held in the Mills County Jail on $600 bond.