FEMA extends flood deadlines
Nov 8th
City urges residents and businesses to seek all available aid
Federal agency extends deadlines for disaster assistance and clarifies who can file flood insurance claims
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has extended its deadlines for individuals and businesses seeking financial disaster assistance related to the September flood. Anyone interested in being considered for this aid must register with FEMA no later than Nov. 30, 2013, for individual assistance or Small Business Administration loans. You can do this online at www.disasterassistance.gov or call 1-800-621-3362.
In addition, FEMA wants property owners to know that National Flood Insurance Program policy holders in any Colorado county are eligible to file a flood claim under this program. Policy holders do not have to live in a disaster-designated county. These claims must be filed within 60 days of the date of loss, so these deadlines are approaching soon.
The City of Boulder urges anyone impacted by the flood to reach out to FEMA and seek all available aid if you have been impacted by the flood.
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A plague of ash borers? Not yet.
Nov 7th
Emerald ash borer pest found in Boulder ash trees; delimitation survey begins Nov. 4
In late September, the emerald ash borer (EAB), an invasive pest of ash trees was identified within the city limits of Boulder. Since that time, staff from the City of Boulder Forestry Division and the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) have worked cooperatively to complete a visual assessment of all public and private ash trees within a half mile of the initial infestation.
Staff visually assessed hundreds of ash trees from the ground, looking for symptoms of infestation, which include large branch dieback in the tree crown, woodpecker damage and excessive sprouting. Fortunately, no obviously symptomatic ash trees were discovered outside of the initial cluster of infested trees, however; EAB is very difficult to detect in early stages. To determine the full extent of infestation, a delimitation survey begins this week. The survey is being conducted by staff from city forestry, CDA, Colorado State University Extension, and forestry staff from other Front Range cities who have graciously offered to assist. It is anticipated to take up to six weeks to complete.
For the delimitation survey, the city has been divided into plots or grids of one-square mile each. Crews will remove two small branches from each of 10 ash trees near the center of each plot. The branch samples will be peeled and examined closely for the presence of emerald ash borer life stages. The branch sampling protocols were developed by the Canadian Forest Service (CFS). The CFS found by performing random branch sampling on asymptomatic trees with this technique, they were able to detect EAB several miles away from the original location before trees become symptomatic. The goal is to determine the full extent of infestation within the city limits. The results of the survey will also help guide the future city of Boulder EAB Response Plan to manage the infestation within the city and potentially slow the spread to nearby communities.
On Tuesday, Nov. 5, the city of Boulder is hosting an EAB “tree dissection” for forestry staff from other Front Range cities and Wyoming. Staff from CSU Extension, Colorado Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine (USDA APHIS PPQ) will be on hand to teach other forestry professionals what EAB looks like and to demonstrate branch peeling techniques to find EAB larvae. More dissections are planned to educate tree care companies.
There are approximately 38,000 city park and public street rights-of-way trees under the jurisdiction of the Boulder Parks and Recreation Urban Forestry Division; approximately 6,000 are ash trees (15 percent of the public tree population).
For more information, please contact the City of Boulder Parks and Recreation Department’s Forestry Division at 303-413-7245.
–CITY–
CU panel: More help for kids w/mental disorders
Nov 7th
CU psychologists to present
resources for families struggling
with behavioral concerns
resources for families struggling
with behavioral concerns
Families seeking information about childhood psychiatric and developmental disorders are invited to a community open house with experts from the University of Colorado Boulder and the University of Colorado School of Medicine on Wednesday, Nov. 13, on the CU-Boulder campus.
Experts will address emerging research on early onset bipolar disorder, prevention of schizophrenia, postpartum depression, attention and behavior disorders, and autism spectrum disorders. Each researcher also will describe their community services.
The event, “CU Community Open House: Behavioral Health Resources for Families,” is free and open to the public from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Wolf Law Building, room 207.
A panel of five researchers from the CU-Boulder Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the CU School of Medicine will explain recent advances in their fields and local research conducted in their CU lab or clinic, as well as resources they offer to families.
The panel will include:
- Nomita Chhabildas, director of the Attention, Behavior and Learning Clinic at CU-Boulder [http://psych.colorado.edu/~clinical/raimy/child]
- Sona Dimidjian, director of the Center for Research, Evidence-based Services and Treatment (CREST) at CU-Boulder [http://psych-srv3.colorado.edu/~crest]
- Susan Hepburn, associate professor of psychiatry and director of research at JFK Partners at the CU School of Medicine [http://www.jfkpartners.org]
- Vijay Mittal, director of the Adolescent Development and Preventive Treatment Research Program (ADAPT) at CU-Boulder [http://www.adaptprogram.com]
- Dawn Taylor, lead psychologist and project coordinator for the Colorado Family Project based at CU-Boulder [http://www.coloradobipolar.com]
Christopher Schneck, M.D., associate professor of psychiatry at the CU School of Medicine and principal investigator for the Colorado Family Project, will address the pros and cons of receiving services in a research setting.
“Many people don’t realize that free or low-cost evidence-based services are available through a variety of groups at the University of Colorado,” Taylor said. “We invite the public to join us for an evening with local experts and to learn more about the fascinating research taking place in our community and how these programs may benefit local families.”
The brief presentations will be followed by a question-and-answer session and opportunities for attendees to speak individually with the presenters.
The Wolf Law Building is located at 2450 Kittredge Loop Road near the intersection of Baseline Road and Broadway. Parking in lots 402 and 470 is free after 5 p.m. For questions call 303-492-1668.
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