Newspaper Page Text
Page 2 — Wednesday, September 29, 2010, TheTrue Citizen
Farmers get early
start on harvest
By Anne Marie Kyzer
annemariek@thetruecitizen.com
The cotton pickers and pea
nut diggers are already hard at
work in fields across Burke
County.
The timing seems almost too
early to be true to those who
recall last year’s harvest, which
was stalled by adverse weather
and field conditions.
Typically, cotton is defoliated
around late September or early
October and picking would be
gin in October. Last year, exces
sive rains pushed the harvest of
a few fields into January. This
year, pickers were combing
some dry land cotton fields by
the first week in September.
Burke County Extension Co
ordinator Peyton Sapp said
there are a few variables at play
in the earlier harvest activities.
“It seems that the heat has
matured crops a little bit faster
this year,” he said. "In addition
to that, the last month has dried
off. We just got really dry, so
there are some dry land cotton
fields that were done. They had
done what they were going to
do.”
He also said some early ma
turing fields can be attributed to
new varieties being planted.
Though scattered dry land
fields across the county have
already been picked, most of the
county’s 27,000 acres of cotton
and 18,900 acres of peanuts
have a ways to go.
“We’ve gotten a good start on
cotton harvest but we still have
a lot of cotton to pick. We did
have pockets that got rain at
critical times and irrigated fields
that aren’t moving along any
faster than they should,” Sapp
said, noting some cotton fields
are still showing new blooms.
“Any place where they can gain,
they haven’t defoliated yet.”
Carl Perry and his workers dig peanuts at the Elanco Farm, formerly known as the Conser
vation Tillage Farm.
Burke’s
workforce
shrinks
BIG PICTURE
By Elizabeth Billips
lizbillips@yahoo.com
Burke County’s labor force shrank by more than 175 work
ers in August - but Georgia Department of Labor (DOL) offi
cials say the trend is statewide.
According to DOL figures, Burke County’s downsized labor
force is accompanied by an unemployment rate that appeared
to rebound from 11.5 to 10.8 percent from July to August.
But the apparent hiring boost is actually a false-positive when
held to other statistics, including the number of unemployment
claims filed by Burke County residents last month.
DOL representatives believe the lower unemployment rate is
largely a reflection of a smaller workforce.
The reduced workforce, in turn, appeal's to be the result of
discouraged residents who quit looking for jobs.
From July to August, DOL reported a more than 74 percent
drop in unemployment claims filed by Burke County residents
formerly employed in the manufacturing of machinery,
healthcare and social assistance.
However, those workers don’t seem to have found jobs... but
rather gave up their searches.
“It looks like there were a number of discouraged workers
who finally took themselves out of the job market,” a DOL
spokesperson said. “This is characteristic of the whole state.”
Despite the grim news, Burke County is still faring better
than a number of neighboring counties, including Jenkins which
had a jobless rate of 19.3 percent
- the third highest in Georgia.
Burke, along with 10 other
counties, falls right onto
Georgia’s middle-ground when
it comes to jobs. Of the state’s
159 counties, those 11 share the
79 th highest, or 80 th lowest, un
employment rate.
Georgia’s overall jobless rate
continues to hover around 10
percent, with a jobless pool now
flirting with a half-million.
“Georgia’s job market is stag
nant ... and almost half the job
less Georgians have been out of
work for twenty-seven weeks or
longer,” State Labor Commis
sioner Michael Thurmond said.
“Many employers are reluctant
to hire because of the costs and
risks associated with bringing on
new employees.”
Thurmond announced the ex
pansion of his Georgia Work$
training initiatives in hopes that
the new incentives will spark on-
the-job training and hiring.
To find out more, go to
www.dol.state.georgia.us. ho ™ P arents or those on
and other government programs.
U.S.
Georgia
CSRA
Burke
9.6
10
9.3
10.8
AMONG NEIGHBORS
Emanuel
12
Jefferson
14.3
Jenkins
19.3
Richmond
10.8
Screven
13.8
BURKE BY THE MONTH
January
11.3
February
11.9
March
11
April
9.8
May
10.8
June
11.3
July
11.5
August
10.8
* August figures are preliminary and
are likely to be adjusted in upcoming
weeks. Rates only include residents
actively seeking work and do not take
into consideration retirees, stay at
New Vogtle reactors
NRC to hold public
meeting next Thursday
From Staff Reports
Area residents are invited to speak up about new reactors at Plant
Vogtle during a public meeting set for next Thursday.
Staff members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission are seeking
comments on preliminary findings that there are no environmental
impacts that should stop the NRC from issuing Combined Operating
Licenses for two new reactors at Plant Vogtle.
The Combined Operating License is the final major federal hurdle
that must be crossed before full scale construction may begin on the
reactors.
In the meeting, which is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Oct. 7 at Augusta
Technical College’s Waynesboro/Burke Campus, NRC staff will dis
cuss the draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. Staff
will also be available for informal discussions with members of the
public during an open house session from 6-7 p.m. No formal com
ments on the DSEIS will be accepted during the open house.
Scam artists prey on elderly
By Elizabeth Billips
lizbillips@yahoo.com
Waynesboro police are ask
ing for the public’s help iden
tifying two scam artists who
stole thousands of dollars
from an elderly man.
According to Investigator
Claude Wade, the women
were working a scam called
“the pigeon drop” outside
CVS last Thursday.
Officers say the women,
who pretended to be strang
ers, were targeting the elderly
in the parking lot. While one
woman would strike up a con
versation with the intended
victim, the other would ap
proach and ask if either of
them dropped the envelope of
money she’d just found.
“They’d befriend the per
son and pretend they were
going to split the money,” in
vestigator Wade said, noting
their motive was to confuse
the person long enough to get
him or her to the bank. “Then
they’d start asking about chil
dren, grandchildren ... every
thing but the money.”
The scam worked on an 84-
year-old Burke County man
who agreed to let one of the
women follow him to a local
bank where he withdrew
$6,000. The victim handed
the money over with inten
tions of trading it for the en
tire envelope of money, which
he believed was still outside
the pharmacy with the second
woman.
When he returned, she was
gone.
Bank security cameras cap
tured photos of the woman
who accompanied the victim
to the bank. She is described
as a well dressed black
woman and in her 40s. Police
believe the women were in a
black car.
Anyone who recognizes the
women or saw them that day
is asked to call investigator
Wade at 706-554-8032.
Police need help identifying this woman who scammed an eld
erly man out of $6,000.
uirft Lv4sftltti*fc *ui'il r ,.n| s^:*-i,n b* Frtw’-vriwJfc* Li 4ni iPfaa Itaii !1 hlliU* =4<Vlicil« fc4i M*p K&*if|«£ iinti wH ratal Ifl•'■Mi r'i# ifn 1N i nt*l» i**ru«T ^ifM<Mv»p*|i
■jffiriHrUik' win twl flUi ll i NwiWit liTrjf -it il Ji i hi's 4#« i# it* >«ru #ih ■■>i ?**#t ’ hi ■ - irfc f:--
f-Mu-kl-;-- afthu -u-M-iifl •MHvlu-flH-r'i ‘ r •i Ihh^MMir G*i4p tal • IVyt,4£^’t« v*. • 4 -i* M "tiwiiftfl - IwMfc I* I ■ |u «>•*«•■
I Mr CMd# tBBrttfiiMlfV n« takFi A W 71 l|*f cjAm* plk«% * luin** M r C«tl* »>■#**» !»**«*< ***** W ■ - ■ i*c- *W t s j aa-i-iib'i *■ ■ rta*
ai<grh4 fr *** ,i actprtl gn ftahl 1?t |i A ***>** V* "*H* 4 b* -ig ->u ■ * k V, i ■ l# I4*m if* F«rl ■*4***d«i i-**i M** »«4*a
Hr;* i Sr'* atfiA«r«4 fttttM 1^1 r|* pr*, pf| 1^^ U tm* l * t* p H |<bt******p ■ .1 pH U+i 11|*. p i* w ^,^ii ■ . * r-*r .n p » ] 1 ■
: 1 1*1 ri‘M I *r t»+i 44*16 Ud *"*■•« lifiA llhHtH-ViM If* ***! 4’ jr ft* *.*«d n lyWI 1 *U* * MU Wi Hf tt-MWA m 51 |US4r |i «*.
1 sUt»Vi *«4;*«***■ t nir>^iri itttMKuiti mitiHfcf'J Mb-
*11 Hi fe 111 m f Bpbtf* i 1*
I -rll'r^sid liilrnprli 4’:lhavri4Ki|irvo*r**rk tIi-IGii , r In Wc^ E - iwt^rpr i M f*»Pi I ■ ■ rr B H):nA«p>i rpr#!
filf fl Mil P- L (TUB«■! Uwttaw A4r»|4*lifw^rt fNi WTC Mm* fciuLft*
'■ t ■'* ■ 4eir*rfr. «4d**f>*iwL d***Ll' . ■■ ■ . «f ■; ^ *4
Jllar.Lijm I BD’j .'■!(■) '
GladkEony Curv# H530
smar^ihDfHi
* Wl- ft rjjjlM
» Fi&aiiw
■ f nl QlMMCffT V ifBQWfi
Harper Communications
105 w 6 th Street
Waynesboro 706-554-9187
'Cl
c ILtel
wireless
cirfcle
UNLIMITED
talk & text
Touch
* Lvpt. kueh-fpiipi dmAv
* ewt >WEflTVkhvn-J*n
* 1 ►. "sr.viij "iq it* fir
FUN
phones.
FANTASTIC
prices.
Courtesy of Peyton Sapp