WVTK Local & State News April 10, 2013

If you were delayed in traffic this morning on Route 7 then you were stuck behind a fleet of truck from J.P. Carrara & Sons of Middlebury.  They were hauling several giant concrete beams this morning.  The large beams will be used in a bridge project in Londonderry, New Hampshire.  The fleet of trucks was traveling to South Burlington for easier access to Interstate 89.  The beams they were hauling were similar to the ones used in the construction of Middlebury’s new Cross Street Bridge spanning the Otter Creek. 

Grants are available to help improve public access to non-profit or municipal shooting ranges across New York.  A press release says it's an effort to help support recreational opportunities for sportsmen and women across the state and to promote safe and responsible use of firearms.  Depending on available funds and number of applications received, projects will be selected annually through a competitive grant process, with allocations ranging from $1,000 to $15,000.  To learn more about the goals and eligible projects within the program and to obtain the Program Guidelines and Application Packet, visit the Shooting Range Small Grants Program page on the DEC website.

Vermont is preparing for a destructive beetle recently found in New Hampshire.  A press release says officials have confirmed the presence of the emerald ash borer (EAB) in an ash tree near I-93 in Concord. Vermont officials do not know if the beetle has arrived yet in Vermont.  Vermonters can help slow the spread of EAB to Vermont by burning only local firewood.  Officials say, most new EAB infestations are introduced via untreated firewood.

When an 8th grade Middlebury Union student competes in the National Spelling Bee, it'll take more than just good spelling to win.  Last month that Ronan Howlett won the state spelling bee.  For the first time in 86 years, a vocabulary test is being added to the competition.  Spellers will take computer-based vocab tests in the beginning rounds.  Those scores will determine the semifinalists and finalists.  The on-stage spelling rounds will still look the same.  Howlett heads to Washington, D.C. in late May.

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin says a South Burlington electrical contractor is a good example of how the state is working to ensure businesses have enough qualified workers.  Omega Electrical has been working with the state to sponsor employees who get trained while working full time.  Shumlin said this morning that such programs are one reason Vermont unemployment rate is tied for the third lowest in the country.

Adirondack Health may close Adirondack Medical Center in Lake Placid, including the Emergency Department.  Instead, an urgent-care clinic and physical-therapy facilities would be established at the Uihlein Living Center, about a quarter of a mile away.  The idea isn’t to remove emergency-care access from Lake Placid but to replace it with walk-in urgent care.  Emergency ambulance calls would be routed to Adirondack Medical Center in Saranac Lake for critical-care medical services.