Steinhatchee River Chamber of Commerce's

Can Scallop Season Open Early and Meeting Thursday!

I asked the County this AM about the possibility of opening Scallop Season early – NOW! They have added the question to tonight’s agenda and LaWanda is doing some research during the day today to provided them with as much info as possible to make informed decision. I guess FWC would be the ones to make that decision. I have also sent a note to them and the governor’s office as well. We need to see if we can salvage any of the season before it is too late – What I heard from the Weather Channel yesterday thing’s are not looking very favorably for us.

Having said that, there will be an attorney in Steinhatchee on Thursday. They will be here to discuss preliminary options and what we need to do to have our ducks in a row if we should need to take it to the next level with BP.

This venue will not be a place to vent anger. This will be a learning and Q&A session to gather info on what we can do legally to protect ourselves. The attorney who will be here specializes in this type of law and will also be in consult with another who specializes in environmental law. Please come and hear what they have to say. There is no charge for this. Time is 11am at Fiddler’s. Jim will offer a buffet that day for $7.95.

Here is the latest info on the oil spill concerning FL

Date: Friday, June 4, 2010, 2:50 PM Here is the latest situation report on the oil leak disaster. I’ve also attached a weather briefing for this weekend. Taylor County Emergency Management Taylor County Board of County Commissioners 591 East US Highway 27 Perry, FL 32347

NWS Briefing Document 2010 Jun4

Situation Report 37 Deepwater Horizon 04 June 2010 1200hrs

Roll Out PDF

Gov. Crist has authorized FREE saltwater fishing this Memorial Day weekend

I’m e-mailing you today to announce that Gov. Charlie Crist has authorized FREE saltwater fishing this Memorial Day weekend. He wants Floridians and visitors to see firsthand that our beaches are clean and the fish are biting. It’s simple – residents and non-residents can recreationally saltwater fish on May 29, 30, and 31 without a saltwater fishing license. All other normal recreational saltwater fishing rules, seasons, bag and size limits apply.

I share the Governor’s concern about people canceling fishing trips due to misperceptions about the oil spill. In fact, oil from the spill remains far away from Florida’s coast and all state waters are open for fishing. As a fellow fishing license holder, I urge you to pack your gear and take someone fishing – because with clean water and free fishing, now is the perfect time to show friends and family that Florida really is the Fishing Capital of the World.

Sincerely,

Rodney Barreto

FWC Chairman

Yee Haw! We’re Raffling A Golf Cart To Raise Funds …

for our July 4th fireworks display.

See Chamber Members For Tickets.

Note: See info on who won here.

TRAINING OFFERING FOR WILDLIFE RECOVERY & REHABILITATION PARAPROFESSIONALS

Please provide this to all of your interested volunteers. Remember, they still need to call 1-866-448-5816

TRAINING OFFERING FOR WILDLIFE RECOVERY & REHABILITATION PARAPROFESSIONALS

BP extends its sincere gratitude to you for volunteering to assist with the oil spill cleanup. Your safety is important to BP and we are offering a choice of computer based training or classroom training. This free training is required by BP and will provide you both awareness and safety information for this endeavor. There is a scored test with the training.

INFORMATION FOR TRAINING CLASSES

To sign up for a live training class in the Gulf Coast Region please call this number to enroll in training classes that are being offered in the Gulf Coast region – 1-866-647-2338.

INFORMATION FOR COMPUTER BASED TRAINING (CBT)

NOTE: When you have finished the training course, there will be a certificate page. Please be sure to print the certificate page and bring it with you to the site where you will be working.

Please read the following information before clicking on the link:

Overview of the training site: When you are ready to enter the training site, click on this link – https://www2.virtualtrainingassistant.com/BPPublic/wc.dll?learner~cmenu to take you to the training.

Go to “I’m a New Student” where a page will pop up for you to self-register. Keep your log in and password info

There are 4 lesson modules in the training

First lesson is an attachment that you are a qualified wildlife recovery paraprofessional. Should you not meet the qualifications listed, you will not be allowed to move further into the training

Second lesson is the training CBT itself

Third lesson is the test (CBT Exam); you will need to score 80% on the test and will have three chances to pass.

Fourth lesson is the certificate that you should print and bring with you to the rehabilitation site

Stephanie Culp

Assistant Director

Office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas

3900 Commonwealth Boulevard

MS 235

Tallahassee , Florida 32399

Office 850/245-2993

Cell 850/508-5140

Scott L. Nelson, FPEM

Wakulla County Emergency Management Director

Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office

850.926.0861

Other Spill Info

I have attached the latest long-term coastline impacts outlook from NOAA and the latest booming strategy from BP and USCG Mobile Sector.

NOAA is not anticipating a Florida coastal impact from the oil through Monday. USCG St. Petersburg Sector has the majority of Taylor County in their sector and have recently stood up their incident command post and planning section. They are currently working on the booming strategies for their sector.

The attached maps depict the existing plan. If needed Booms are to be deployed to the areas that have three diamonds. Booming equipment is being held in the Mobile sector at this time awaiting the Eglin plan. Then the needs of Okaloosa County will be filled.

We are coordinating training at this time. Information will be coming out early next week.

NOTE: There will be a meeting of the Board of County Commissioners to renew the existing local state of emergency on Monday, May 10, 2010 at 5:30 PM at 201 East Green Street, Perry, FL 32347

Jack R. Brown
County Administrator
Taylor County

GRP_Map_WP1-1.pdf
GRP_Map_WP1-2.pdf
GRP_Map_WP1-3.pdf
GRP_Map_WP1-4.pdf
GRP_Map_WP1-5.pdf
GRP_Map_WP1-6.pdf
GRP_Map_WFL-64.pdf
GRP_Map_WFL-65.pdf
Taylor_County_Division_1.jpg

Update: Deepwater Horizon Oil Drilling Spill

As our valued Industry Partners, we wanted to offer a brief update regarding the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

At this time, there has been no impact to Florida’s 2,276 miles of tidal shoreline, 1,197 miles of coastline and 663 miles of beaches, and VISIT FLORIDA is continuing with all of our sales and marketing efforts to promote Florida as the #1 travel destination in the world.

However, as the news continues to raise the alarm about a potential impact from the spill, we have taken steps to enable consumers to get the facts and not react out of fear or misinformation.

If VISIT FLORIDA is going to be the trusted source for travel planning information after this potential crisis passes, we need to offer credible and transparent information before and during any potential crisis.

VISIT FLORIDA has put in place a communication platform to provide consumers with information from the most credible sources – official information from the State of Florida and information direct from local destinations. At present, these status updates communicate that our destinations are clear and open for business. The same platform will also provide the most current local information should the situation worsen.

VISIT FLORIDA is hosting a Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Update page on VISITFLORIDA.com which provides consumers with real-time information on the status of all Florida destinations. We have also added new map-based navigation to facilitate consumer interaction with the most up-to-date information coming from our DMO Partners. We encourage you to visit the VISIT FLORIDA Travel Update page and select a city or region to understand how this feature will work.

In addition to putting in place consumer communication platforms to handle a potential crisis, we are working closely with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection on their messaging to visitors and providing updates on the situation to our industry.

You can get the latest information via our corporate blog at www.SunshineMatters.org. We encourage you to sign up for the RSS feed or e-mail alerts from the blog. We are also providing the industry with the most current information on both our industry Twitter Account http://twitter.com/FloridaTourism and our Corporate Facebook page www.facebook.com/FloridaTourism.

Please know that we will continue working to develop the most effective response to this evolving situation.

If you have further questions or need assistance with a media request, contact Kathy Torian, VISIT FLORIDA Corporate Communications Manager at kathyt@VISITFLORIDA.org or (850) 205-3865.

It’s Time To Pray

Dear Folks,

As a coastal community on the Gulf of Mexico, we can identify with what those who are facing the devastating effects of the oil spill off of the coast of Louisiana. And while we are uncertain as to whether or not we will be affected here, Governor Crist has declared a state of emergency for Dixie and Taylor counties.

It is time to pray. We are going to dedicate the major part of our Wednesday night service to praying about this situation. I hope you can come and pray with us.

FYI.

Below is a link to a great website that provides comprehensive information on the oil spill response effort in the Gulf now called Deepwater Horizon Response. It also contains important links and other general information on oil spill response.

http://gulfseagrant.tamu.edu/oilspill/index.htm

Also, for further information and daily updates, you can visit: http://www.floridadisaster.org/index.asp (click on the DEM homepage)

Blessings,

Aaron Turner

Fellowship Baptist Church

Mr Paul McKain To Speak Fiddler’s tomorrow

Mr Paul McKain who is running for our congressional seat later this year will be at Fiddler’s tomorrow (Thur) Mar 25 at 11:30am.

He will be ready to answer any questions you may have for him as to where he stands on all the major issues.

There will be another meet and greet in May but you’ll have to go to Perry for that one.

PS This is not an endorsement nor is the Chamber supporting any candidate. We are providing an opportunity for you to meet him, just like we did for Allen Boyd.

Just A Quick Fiddler Crab Festival Note

Here is an online link to the Premier Magazine story about the Fiddler Crab Festival

http://content.yudu.com/Library/A1krdk/YUDUUpload/resources/index.htm

Also Coastal Angler Magazine had an article in their January issue. It’s also on line at

http://coastalanglermagazine.com/featured-articles/664-steinhatchee-fiddler-crab-festival.html

And… for our info on this Florida Festival! 

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