Precinct caucus changes for Eagle County Republicans

Eagle County Republicans have announced some details of the Tuesday, Feb. 7, precinct caucus, which includes several significant changes to the process.

With a commitment to investing in new technologies in order to maintain a competitive advantage in the upcoming 2012 elections, the Colorado Republican Committee has announced a statewide caucus registration website, www.caucus.cologop.org. This will allow caucus attendees to pre-register for their caucus as well as find their local caucus location.

In Eagle County, Battle Mountain High School cafeteria will serve as the meeting location for 25 of the 30 precincts in the county.

Precinct 10 will meet at the Bond Baptist Church while precincts 7, 8, 24 and 25 — the four precincts in the Roaring Fork Valley — will meet in the Basalt Middle School auditorium.

In order to participate in the Republican caucus, you must have been a registered Republican as of Dec. 7 and you must have been a resident of your precinct since Jan. 9.

If you registered as Democrat, an unaffiliated voter or are a Republican who is not eligible to vote at the caucus, you can attend as an observer. You will not be able to pre-register and you will not be able to vote for delegates or vote in the straw poll. Guest badges will be provided at check in.

The caucus will begin promptly at 7 p.m. with check-in starting at 6 p.m. The state party is gearing towards an 8:30 p.m. deadline for caucus results.

The first thing on the agenda will be the presidential straw poll. Candidates or their representatives will be allowed time to address the group before the vote is taken.

Also on the agenda is the election of precinct committee persons who form the backbone of the local party. Delegates and alternates to the March 24 Eagle County Assembly also will be elected as the next step towards becoming a delegate or alternate to the district assemblies on April 13 and the Colorado Republican State Convention on April 14. There will also be the opportunity to sign up to be an election judge.

“In this very exciting and critical election year, we are urging all citizens to get involved in the political process” said Kaye Ferry, chair of Eagle County Republicans. “The caucus process represents the most grassroots form of politics and gives every citizen a chance to interact with their friends and neighbors as they sort through the issues and candidates. If you've never participated, now is the time.”

The caucus attendees will also be considering resolutions to be submitted for the Republican platform. Forms will be available on www.eaglegop.com which is also the source for updates on the caucus.

For any questions, contact info@eaglegop.com or call Kaye Ferry at 970-376-5100.

— Enterprise staff report

CSU offers Master Food Safety courses

Colorado State University Extension of the Western Slope is recruiting interested citizens to attend in-depth training sessions on food safety and food preservation through the Master Food Safety Advisor Program.

Training will be conducted on Wednesdays, March 7 through 21, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Garfield County Extension Office Event Hall at the Rifle Fairgrounds, located at 1001 Railroad Ave. in Rifle. Cost of the training is $125 with a commitment of 20 hours of volunteer service. Space is limited.

CSU's Master Food Safety Advisor Program is an intensive training regarding food safety and prevention of food-borne illness, as well as methods of canning, pickling, freezing and dehydrating. Master Food Safety Advisors must apply for selection to be in the program, must attend all trainings, must work cooperatively with other volunteers and give a minimum of 20 hours of service to the community by sharing their knowledge and teaching others.

“We are offering the program in order to expand CSU Extension's capabilities to provide the public with information from Colorado State University and the USDA by trained volunteers,” said Glenda Wentworth, extension agent in Eagle County.

According to Wentworth, experiences for volunteers may include answering consumer phone calls; providing information at local farmers markets, fairs and supermarkets; conducting presentations and workshops for community groups and schools; preparing educational displays; and writing articles for newsletters and newspapers.

Applications are available at www.eaglecounty.us/csu or at the Eagle County Extension Office, located at 441 Broadway, in Eagle. Applications are due Friday, Feb. 24.

— Enterprise staff report

B&B Excavating increases its environmental sustainability

B&B Excavating, one of five companies that make up Oldcastle Materials SW Group Inc. and one of western Colorado's leading producers of sand, rock, ready-mixed concrete, asphalt and paving, set a goal three years ago to reduce its environmental footprint. The company designated a plan of action at its Montgomery operation site in Eagle that included 13 goals, action steps and desired results.

Improvements made by B&B Excavating to increase its sustainability include the following:

• Developing recycled asphalt pavement capabilities and a recycle program to reduce energy, oil and material sent to the landfill

• Paving haul roads to reduce dust

• Upgrading fleet equipment so more tons can be hauled with less fuel

• Upgrading asphalt plant with double drum and eliminating diesel-generated electric power

• Switching to natural gas

• Developing warm-mix and ECO mix asphalt capabilities at the asphalt plant

In 2011, the company increased its recycled asphalt use by 11 percent and warm-mix asphalt use increased by 148 percent. Approval for the use of ECO mix on state projects has helped drive the increase in recycled and warm-mix asphalt use.

As a result of these improvements, B&B Excavating reduced material sent to the landfill by 40,000 tons and saved 235 tons of carbon dioxide, which is equivalent to planting 940 acres of trees in 2011 alone. The increased use of warm-mix and recycled asphalt also reduced emissions and conserved asphalt binder, eliminating additional truck traffic and fuel.

Eagle County Health Department Director Ray Merry applauds B&B Excavating for incorporating environmental sustainability into its day-to-day operations.

“B&B has gone above and beyond our environmental compliance requirements,” he said. “We challenge every business to follow B&B's lead to operate more sustainably.”

Merry also noted B&B Excavating's participation in the Eagle County Air Quality Forum. The company has actively participated in the forum since Eagle County created it in 2006.

— Enterprise staff report