DOVER — Delaware growers are the first on the East Coast able to take advantage of a new online tool that helps protect sensitive crops from pesticides that may drift due to wind or weather.

Delaware is the newest participant in the DriftWatch program, which allows growers of certain crops or commercial beekeepers to alert pesticide applicators of sensitive areas before they spray.

“Proper pesticide use is an important part of agriculture, and we are pleased to provide this new tool to help applicators and growers communicate and share information,” said Delaware Secretary of Agriculture Ed Kee.

The Delaware Department of Agriculture regulates pesticide applicators through a rigorous training and certification process, registers all pesticides used in Delaware, and investigates complaints about pesticide drift or improper application. Drift on to neighboring parcels of land can occur because of high winds, certain weather conditions, or application errors.

The free DriftWatch program applies to such uses as commercial beehives, certified organic crops, fruits, grapes, nursery crops, greenhouses, pumpkins, melons, tomatoes and vegetables. The program is not designed for homeowners or for sites smaller than a half-acre.

Once the locations are registered online, pesticide applicators can then check the DriftWatch site to map out sensitive areas near their application sites and take precautions to avoid drifting onto those areas. Enrolling a sensitive site does not guarantee that pesticides are not sprayed near a property, but instead aims to improve awareness of pesticide use and reduce instances of drift exposure.

“The best way to reduce pesticide drift is for pesticide applicators and growers to communicate, and we hope the DriftWatch tool will open up dialogues,” said Dave Pyne, the Department of Agriculture’s environmental program administrator and pesticide compliance director.

Pyne said DDA handles a handful of drift complaints each year, with most dealt with amicably between applicators and growers or landowners.

“This mapping program will provide an easy-to-visualize tool to help reduce any incidents,” Pyne said.

Developed by Purdue University staff members, DriftWatch is now run by a Purdue-created nonprofit organization. Ten states are participating in the program, with most in the Midwest and West.

Delawareans can go to http://dda.delaware.gov/pesticides/Driftwatch.shtml for more information and to register.

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Contact:
Dan Shortridge
Chief of Community Relations
Delaware Department of Agriculture
302-698-4520

Last fall, here at Mount Pleasant High School, I joined the President of the College Board to announce a first-in-the-nation effort to address a national problem. Many students who have shown they can succeed in college don’t even apply. We sent students helpful resources, including fee waivers if they qualified. And we followed up by helping them fill out applications in school and navigate the financial aid process. This past week, I returned to Mount Pleasant to celebrate that, this year, every college-ready student in Delaware applied.

Our success was made possible by Race to the Top. Winning that federal funding competition helped us pay for every Delaware junior to take the SAT during the school day, and it helped us identify every student who is ready for college. It’s an example of how, four years after launching our Race to the Top plan, we have worked with our teachers and administrators to build a foundation for improving student opportunities. We’ve invested in better data to track students’ progress. Teachers receive more support and feedback. We’ve renovated science labs. And we’re providing targeted counseling and programs for freshman to adjust to high school. The list goes on and we’re seeing improvement: Our dropout rate hit a 30-year low. More students are reaching their growth targets in schools that were struggling. More top teachers are staying in Delaware. And more students are passing AP tests.

Our progress is why, this past week, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan visited to celebrate our efforts. Our work isn’t finished, but Race to the Top has laid the groundwork for our schools to keep improving. And that will keep Delaware moving forward.

Wilmington – In his weekly message, filmed at Mount Pleasant High School in Wilmington, Governor Markell highlights improvements made to Delaware’s education system in the four years since the implementation of Race To The Top.

“We’ve invested in better data to track students’ progress; teachers receive more support and feedback; we’ve renovated science labs, and we’re providing targeted counseling and programs for freshman to adjust to high school,” said Governor Markell. “Our work isn’t finished, but Race To The Top has laid the groundwork for our schools to keep improving and that will keep Delaware moving forward.”

Every week, the Governor’s office releases a new Weekly Message in video, audio, and transcript form. The message is available on:

YouTube: http://youtu.be/K1YoeEDkwBo
Delaware.Gov:  http://governor.delaware.gov/podcast_video.shtml
By email: Please contact our press team to subscribe to our press list
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/governormarkell
Twitter:  www.twitter.com/governormarkell

Transcript of the Governor’s Weekly Message: Celebrating Success in Education through Race To The Top

One day enforcement blitz April 11^th

Dover- Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS) and Delaware law enforcement agencies are once again asking motorists to show how much they care about their loved ones by putting the phone down while driving.  Law enforcement will be ticketing those who don’t follow the law during a statewide one-day enforcement blitz on April 11^th as part of the U Drive. U Text. U Pay. campaign running nationwide from April 10-15.

Distracted driving consists of any non-driving activity that has the potential to distract the driver from the primary task: driving.   In 2013, Delaware saw 149 cell phone related crashes and law enforcement issued over 19,500 cell phone citations.

Delaware’s cell phone law bans texting while driving.  Drivers are also required to utilize hands-free technology in order to use a cell phone to talk while driving.   It also bans the use of pagers, blackberry’s, PDA’s, laptops, games, or the use of any other electronic device while driving. If you have to make a call, pull over to a safe place to use your cell phone or use a hands free device such as a blue tooth.

Delaware’s cell phone law is a primary offense. If a police officer observes you using a handheld device while driving they can stop you for the violation and cite you $50 for your first offense ($106 total with fees).  If you get caught again penalties can increase to $300.  Violations do not incur points on your driver’s license. Since 2011, when the law went into effect, there have been over 35,000 cell phone citations issued statewide.

Get the facts:

• 20-24 yr olds are the most over-represented in cell phone related crashes, with 25-29 yr olds second, and 19 yrs and under a very close 3rd. Of those crashes, 55% are caused by a person under the age of 30.

• Males account for 55% of crashes and females 45%.

• 62% of cell phone related crashes have occurred in New Castle County.

• 22% have occurred in Sussex County, and 16% have occurred in Kent County.

• Friday trends much higher than other days for cell phone related crashes.

• Cell phone crashes normally increase in rate around lunch time and between 1:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. when bars close.

For more information on distracted driving, please visit www.distraction.gov/delaware or ohs.delaware.gov/cellphone.

Bill helps veterans obtain professional licenses

Dover, DE – Recognizing an unnecessary obstacle that has prevented Delawareans who serve our country from pursuing economic opportunities at home, Governor Markell and members of the General Assembly today announced legislation that would help veterans obtain and renew professional licenses. House Bill 296, sponsored by Rep. Earl Jaques and Sens. Brian Bushweller and Bruce Ennis, allows professional licensing boards to recognize military education, training, and experience when reviewing credentials and issuing licenses. This change would assist service personnel and their spouses in obtaining and/or renewing professional licenses when transitioning from active duty.

“It’s wrong when military medical personnel return from treating members of our armed forces overseas and want to pursue the same line of work in Delaware, but are told they must complete an entire educational program because they don’t have the right training or experience to obtain a nursing license in our state,” said Governor Markell. “These situations occur across a variety of professions because our laws haven’t allowed the experience of military training and service to satisfy licensing requirements. The legislation we’re proposing corrects the flaws in our licensing system that have inadvertently, but unacceptably, worked against our service members and their spouses.”

HB 296 further allows boards to issue temporary licenses to service personnel when he or she holds a valid license from another state. The current Delaware law only allows Boards to do so for military spouses.

 “Today’s Delaware National Guard is very different than what you might remember from decades ago. Our guardsmen bring a variety of professional skills to the table that help the Guard function as a modern military unit,” said Rep. Jaques, D-Glasgow. “Unfortunately, when our guardsmen are called to active duty, their work in their applied trade does not count toward the experience that licensing boards require. These guardsmen essentially are being penalized for their service because they fall behind their professional counterparts who aren’t in the military. By helping our military personnel obtain credit for the work they put in while serving our country, we are respecting their service and ensuring that they aren’t penalized in their professional development.”

Delaware has made progress in giving Veterans the support they have earned. According to the Institute for Veterans and Military Families, the Delaware unemployment rate for our most recent returning veterans – those categorized as Gulf War II Veterans – plummeted from 12.9 percent to 6.4 percent from the end of 2011 to the end of 2013. However, at a news conference announcing HB 296, the Governor and bill sponsors emphasized that there is more work to do to support our past and present service members and their families.

“We have a lot of highly skilled service members right here at Dover Air Force Base who see what Delaware has to offer and want to stay here when their tour of duty ends and we want to make it as easy as possible to keep those skills in Delaware,”  said Sen. Bushweller, D-Dover. “This helps take us from talking about helping our veterans succeed in civilian

life to actually doing something to help our veterans both stay here and succeed in civilian life.”

 “This makes sense,” said Sen. Ennis, D-Smyrna. “We all recognize the high-quality training our service members receive.  This simply makes it easier to switch those skills from the

military to civilian worlds.”

“This legislation is going to offer us the opportunities to use what we’ve learned and the training that we’ve had around the world and bring those experiences to Delaware,” said Deshawn Jenkins, a nurse who served as a medic in the Air Force and had difficulty obtaining a license to get a job when he left the military.

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