Departments and Units Resources
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C 858-13
Mercury in Your Water
Mercury in your drinking water poses a threat to your health. The U.S. EPA has set the current standard for mercury in drinking water at 2 ppb. The amount of mercury in public water systems is regulated according to EPA standards. If your water comes from a public system, it is routinely tested to ensure safe mercury levels. Unlike users of public water systems, those who use private water supplies (such as wells, springs, and cisterns) are responsible for ensuring the quality of their own drinking water. Since private systems are more susceptible to mercury than public water systems, private well owners should take steps to guard their health through routine testing and wellhead maintenance and protection.
Uttam K. Saha and Gary L. Hawkins
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Vegetables require careful handling, storage, and monitoring to ensure the maximum postharvest life span. Because we are dealing with live organisms, the maximum attainable shelf life of vegetables can easily be affected depending on preharvest and postharvest factors that often manifest during storage. Following storage recommendations for each specific commodity helps to ensure the best quality and marketability of fresh produce. This circular contains basic guidance for the storage of most of Georgia-grown vegetables.
Angelos Deltsidis and Andre Luiz Biscaia Ribeiro da Silva
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Municipal water systems are required by law to be monitored for many contaminants found in pesticides, solvents, and petroleum products. However, if your water comes from a private well or from a system that serves fewer than 25 people or has fewer than 15 connections, it is not regulated under these laws. The safety of water from these sources is the responsibility of the owners. If you suspect that your water supply may be contaminated, be sure to have your water tested. Contact your county Extension agent for more information. A home water treatment system can help to protect you from certain contaminants in your water supply.
Uttam K. Saha and Gary L. Hawkins
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Nutrition can play a key role in achieving peak athletic performance in horses. This publication discusses ways to enhance feeding strategies to maximize training and conditioning programs and keep horses in peak physical condition. It also includes a Body Condition Scoring table.
Kari K. Turner
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This publication contains information on Microdochium patch, an emerging disease in the state of Georgia. This circular contains the biology of the causal agent, as well as a detailed description of the disease symptoms (with detailed pictures), relevant up-to-date information on conditions favoring the disease, as well as cultural, genetic and chemical methods of control. The publication is aimed at turfgrass professionals, sod growers, consultants, county faculty, students, and the general public.
Alfredo Martinez and Bochra Amina Bahri
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Several dozen insect species infest food and nonfood products of plant and animal origin commonly found in homes. Collectively, this group of insects is referred to as stored product pests. Most are small beetles or moths. For homeowners, often the first sign of a stored product pest infestation is the sudden, unexplained and then persistent presence of numerous insects in a particular area of the home.
Dan Suiter, Michael D Toews, and Lisa Ames
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According to the National Mastitis Council, the recommended milking procedure for dairy animals is 1) provide low-stress environment, 2) check foremilk and udder for mastitis, 3) wash or predip teats with an effective disinfectant, 4) completely dry teats with a single-use towel, 5) attach milking unit within 120 sec of teat stimulation, 6) adjust milking units as necessary, 7) shut off vacuum for removing the unit, and 8) dip teats with a postdip disinfectant. One of the most critical steps in this recommended routine is checking foremilk to not only ensure there are no signs of mastitis and to maintain milk quality, but also to effectively stimulate the teats in preparation for milk collection. Thus, stripping the first three to five streams of milk (foremilk), during the premilking routine serves three important purposes including: teat stimulation which can result in optimal milk release, enhanced milk quality by removing the highest bacterial and somatic cell count milk, and identification of mastitis to allow rapid, well-informed decisions regarding further evaluation, milk culturing, and/or antibiotic therapy. This publication will discuss the purposes of forestripping for dairy animals to serve as an educational resource when creating and evaluating best milking practices.
J. Peyton Sapp, Pamela Sapp, and Valerie E Ryman
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Hispanic workers predominate in Georgia’s urban agriculture industry, comprising almost three-fourths of the workforce. Employers must ensure comprehension and safety compliance, address language barriers to create a safe workplace, use physical demonstrations, diagrams, bilingual materials and, if available, an interpreter. This publication covers general precautions, equipment safety, pesticide safety and other information that is necessary for keeping employees safe. It is also available in Spanish.
Alfredo Martinez and Ellen M. Bauske
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Los hispanos representan la minoría más grande de los Estados Unidos con 42.7 millones de habitantes. Los trabajadores hispanos predominan en la industria de la agricultura urbana del estado de Georgia y conforman casi las tres/cuartas partes del total de obreros del estado. Los supervisores deben garantizar la comprensión e implementación de la seguridad laboral. Es imprescindible reconocer las barreras de comunicación para mantener un área de trabajo donde predomine y se haga efectiva la seguridad laboral. Use demostraciones, dibujos, materiales bilingues, y si es posible, un intérprete.
[Hispanic workers predominate in Georgia’s urban agriculture industry, comprising almost three-fourths of the workforce. Employers must ensure comprehension and safety compliance, address language barriers to create a safe workplace, use physical demonstrations, diagrams, bilingual materials and, if available, an interpreter. This publication covers general precautions, equipment safety, pesticide safety and other information that is necessary for keeping employees safe. It is also available in Spanish.]
Alfredo Martinez and Ellen M. Bauske
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