The Hastings Banner — Thursday, October 14, 2021 — Page 11169583
RUTLAND CHARTER TOWNSHIP PLANNING COMMISSIONBARRY COUNTY, MICHIGAN
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING ON PROPOSED AMENDMENTS OF 2005
MASTER PLAN AT NOVEMBER 3, 2021 MEETINGPlease take notice the Rutland Charter Township Planning Commission will hold a public hearing
on proposed amendments of the 2005 Rutland Charter Township Master Plan at its regular meeting
on November 3, 2021, which begins at 7:00 p.m., at the Rutland Charter Township Hall/offices
located at 2461 Heath Road, within the Charter Township of Rutland, Barry County, Michigan.The purpose of this public hearing is to receive public comments on proposed amendments of the
Rutland Charter Township Master Plan adopted in 2005, to generally update the Master Plan.Subsequent to this public hearing, at the same meeting or at a different meeting, the Planning
Commission will consider whether to approve the proposed amendments of the Master Plan and
submit same for approval by the Rutland Charter Township Board, which has reserved the right of
final approval of all matters pertaining to the Master Plan. The Planning Commission and Township
Board reserve the right to revise the proposed amendments of the Master Plan as submitted for
public hearing before final approval, without a further public hearing thereon, to the extent allowed
by law.The proposed amended Master Plan in its entirety may be examined by contacting the Clerk of
Rutland Charter Township at her office during regular business hours on regular business days until
and including the day of the hearing/meeting, and further may be examined at the hearing/meeting.
The proposed amended Master Plan in its entirety is also available for public review on the Town-
ship website (www.rutlandtownship.org).Written comments concerning the proposed amendments of the Master Plan may be submitted to
the Rutland Charter Township Planning Commission c/o the Rutland Charter Township Clerk at any
time prior to this public hearing/meeting leaving sufficient time for the receipt and distribution of
same to the Planning Commission, and may also be submitted to the Planning Commission at this
public hearing/meeting.Necessary reasonable auxiliary aids and services will be provided at the hearing/meeting
to individuals with disabilities, such as signers for the hearing impaired and audiotapes of printed
materials being considered, upon reasonable notice to the Rutland Charter Township Clerk.
Individuals with disabilities requiring auxiliary aids or services should contact the Rutland Charter
Township Clerk.RUTLAND CHARTER TOWNSHIP PLANNING COMMISSIONc/o Robin Hawthorne, Clerk
Rutland Charter Township
2461 Heath Road
Hastings, Michigan 49058
(269) 948-State says EEE continues to pose
a threat to people and animals
The Michigan Department of Agriculture
and Rural Development Tuesday confirmed
the discovery of three new cases of Eastern
equine encephalitis in horses from Genesee
and Shiawassee counties. These findings
highlight the mosquitoes carrying EEE are
still alive and active, and Michiganders still
need to take precautions to safeguard their
animals and themselves.
With the addition of these newest cases,
Michigan has experienced a total of eight
cases of EEE in animals for 2021: one deer
from Livingston County and seven horses
from Barry, Genesee, Livingston, Otsego,
and Shiawassee counties, combined.
An EEE-positive mosquito pool also was
discovered in Barry County.
EEE is a dangerous, zoonotic mosqui-
to-borne disease which is typically seen from
late summer to early fall in Michigan.
Mosquitoes that carry EEE will continue to
pose a threat until at least one hard freeze
occurs, where the temperatures fall below 28
degrees Fahrenheit for several hours.Due to this year’s mild fall temperatures,
the mosquitoes are continuing to circulate in
the environment and spread the virus, accord-
ing to an Oct. 12 MDARD press release.
No human cases of the disease have been
identified this year. Overall, while case num-
bers are down from the total seen in 2020 (
animal cases and four human cases), resi-
dents still need to actively protect their ani-
mals and themselves from EEE.
“When combatting EEE, the date on the cal-
endar is not as important as the temperatures
being experienced,” State Veterinarian Nora
Wineland, DVM, said. “Our current mild tem-
peratures mean horse owners should not ease
up on taking precautions, including vaccina-
tion. Since the mortality rate of EEE in horses
can be as high as 90 percent, it is important for
owners to work with their veterinarian to
ensure their animals are properly vaccinated.”
To further protect horses and other domestic
animals (such as dogs, sheep, and goats) from
mosquitoes that carry EEE, owners are encour-
aged to eliminate standing water on their prop-erty, place livestock in a barn under fans from
dusk to dawn to avoid peak mosquito activity,
use insect repellants that are approved for the
species, and contact a veterinarian if an animal
displays any sign of illness, including fever
and stumbling, which can progress to being
down and struggling to stand.
“Michiganders need to continue taking
precautions against mosquitoes as they take
advantage of our current mild weather condi-
tions and enjoy outdoor activities,” said Dr.
Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical execu-
tive at the Michigan Department of Health
and Human Services. “People can also be
infected with EEE from the bite of a mosqui-
to carrying the virus, which can lead to seri-
ous health impacts and even death.”
Applying insect repellants, wearing long-
sleeved shirts and long pants, maintaining
window and door screening, and following
other precautions can help residents avoid
mosquito bites and stay healthy.
More information about EEE can be found
online at Michigan.gov/EEE.Celebrating a milestone
Vonda VanTil
Public Affairs Specialist
We are excited to celebrate a significant
milestone for My Social Security: 60 million
registrations.
We appreciate everyone who took the time
to create a personal My Social Security
account and encouraged others to do the
same. We keep improving our online services
to make doing business with us easier, faster
and more accessible.
If you are receiving benefits, you can use
your personal My Social Security account, to:- Change your address and direct-deposit
information. - Get proof of your benefits.
- Request replacement documents, like a
Medicare card.
If you aren’t currently receiving benefits,
you may: - Check your earnings record.
- Get estimates of your future benefits.
- View your Social Security Statement.
In Michigan, you also can request a
replacement Social Security card online,
although often you only need to know your
Social Security number and you do not need
the physical card. See everything you can do
with a personal My Social Security account,
and open one today at ssa.gov/myaccount.
Please help us share this information about
My Social Security with friends and family.
You also can post it on social media to help
us spread the word.
Vonda VanTil is the public affairs specialist
for West Michigan. You may write her c/o
Social Security Administration, 3045 Knapp
NE, Grand Rapids MI 49525, or via email to
[email protected].Leach Lake weed
removal to continue
Benjamin Simon
Staff Writer
Hastings and Carlton townships plan to
proceed with clearing invasive weeds at
Leach Lake.
Officials from the two townships met
Monday to hear from residents and provide
their reasoning for the removal of the weeds.
A biologist from Professional Lake
Management attended the event to discuss
how the weeds multiply, inform the public
about two new kinds of weeds in the lake and
why it’s important to get rid of them.
The nearly 110-acre lake lies within both
townships.
Nine residents from Carlton and one resi-
dent from Hastings attended the special meet-
ing.
“If there’s no one there to say they don’t
want to have it done or there’s no big group-
ing, then we adopt doing this,” Hastings
Charter Township Clerk Anita Mennell said.
Hearing no complaint, township officials
decided to again go ahead with the weed
removal.
The townships have conducted the weed
clean-up for 15 years. Every five years, they
hold a formal meeting to inform residents that
the five-year contract with Professional Lake
Management has expired. This time around,
property owners on the lake will be charged
about $260 per year.
Mennell discussed the Leach Lake weeds at
the Hastings Charter Township monthly meet-
ing Tuesday. Without removing them, she said
in an interview, “it would get it so you couldn’t
use the lake. It’s to keep the lake clean.”
Next month, both townships will move to
formally adopt the map of property owners
who will be charged for the service. Carlton
Township has about 70 parcels on the lake,
while Hastings Charter Township has 21.
Mennell said the townships need to finish
the process before the December property tax
bills go out.
In other news from the Hastings Charter
Township meeting, the board:- Scheduled a clean-up of the township
cemetery for the week of Nov. 15. - Approved a 6-percent salary increase for
the township’s 16 employees as a cost of living
adjustment, Clerk Anita Mennell said. Next
month, Mennell will present the budget and the
salaries will be discussed in more detail.
Social Security announces
5.9 percent benefit
increase for 2022
Vonda VanTil
Public Affairs Specialist
Social Security and Supplemental Security
Income benefits for approximately 70 million
Americans will increase 5.9 percent in 2022,
the Social Security Administration announced
Wednesday.
The 5.9 percent cost-of-living adjustment
will begin with benefits payable to more than
64 million Social Security beneficiaries in
January 2022.
Increased payments to approximately 8
million SSI beneficiaries will begin Dec. 30.
The Social Security Act ties the annual
COLA to the increase in the Consumer Price
Index as determined by the U.S. Department
of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Some other adjustments that take effect
in year in January are based on the increase
in average wages. Based on that increase,
the maximum amount of earnings subject
to the Social Security tax (taxable maxi-
mum) will increase to $147,000 from
$142,800.
Social Security and SSI beneficiaries are
normally notified by mail starting in early
December about their new benefit amounts.
Most people who receive Social Security
payments will be able to view their COLA
notice online through their personal My
Social Security account. Individuals may cre-
ate or access their personal My Social
Security account online at socialsecurity.gov/
myaccount.
Information about Medicare changes for
2022, when announced, will be available at
medicare.gov. For Social Security beneficia-
ries receiving Medicare, Social Security will
not be able to compute their new benefit
amounts until after the Medicare premium
amounts for 2022 are announced.
Final 2022 benefit amounts will be com-
municated to beneficiaries in December
through the mailed COLA notice and my
Social Security’s Message Center.
The Social Security Act provides for how
the COLA is calculated. More information
can be found at socialsecurity.gov/cola.County employees commended
Veteran Barry County employees were commended for their years of service during the county board meeting Tuesday. The
employees include (from left): Patricia Musser, driver/dispatcher at Barry County Transit celebrating five years of service; Beth
Dean, financial specialist with the county court system for 30 years; Timothy Brown, mechanic for Barry County Transit for five
years; IT Coordinator David Shinavier, 30 years of service with the county’s IT department; Patricia Farnum, custodian with the
building and grounds department; Cheryl Hartwell, a 10-member of the sheriff’s department administrative staff; and Amber
McQueen, five years as a court service specialist at Barry County Trial Court, district division. (Photo by Rebecca Pierce)Breathing in space
Hey Dr. Universe, we have a question:
Why can’t we breathe in space?
Thanks, from Mrs. Barnes’ fifth grade classDear Mrs. Barnes’ fifth grade class,
On Earth, humans have oxygen to
breathe. But there’s very little oxygen to
breathe in space.
Space is actually a kind of vacuum,
which means there isn’t a whole lot of
matter, or stuff, out there between the
planets and the stars.
For Earthlings like you and me, oxygen
is an essential part of life. While 21 per-
cent of Earth’s atmosphere is oxygen, my
friend Yimo Liu reminded me it wasn’t
always that way.
As a professor of biology at Washington
State University, she is curious about life
on our 4.6 billion-year-old planet.
She said billions of years ago, tiny liv-
ing things called cyanobacteria started to
produce oxygen. Cyanobacteria make
oxygen through photosynthesis, a process
in which they use energy from the sun to
make their food.
As these little cyanobacteria made oxy-
gen, the oxygen molecules built up in
Earth’s atmosphere.
“After we have that first oxygen, other
organisms that require oxygen start to
evolve,” Liu said.
Different organisms get the oxygen they
need to survive in different ways, too. Fish
breathe in oxygen through their gills.
Some amphibians absorb oxygen into
their skin. We humans and many other
animals breathe it through our lungs.
When oxygen reacts with some of the
molecules that make up parts of your food,
it also allows your body to make energy.
All living organisms require energy to
grow, move and survive.
In space, there’s not enough breathable
oxygen to allow these processes to hap-pen. Plus, in a low-pressure environment
like space, even if someone did have air in
their lungs, it’s likely the air would expand
quickly and their lungs would burst. That’s
why astronauts need space suits to give
them oxygen and air pressure.
While humans can’t breathe in space,
scientists and engineers have developed a
safe and innovative place where people
from all around the world can explore the
final frontier: The International Space
Station.
Astronauts aboard the ISS have to think
about finding a source of oxygen, too.
They often get deliveries of oxygen tanks
from Earth. Water is another important
resource they can use to create oxygen,
too.
Just as atoms are like the building
blocks that make up everything, we can
sometimes also break these blocks apart.
Water is made up of hydrogen and oxygen
atoms. Scientists have figured out how to
break the water molecules apart using
electricity. Through this process, we can
split the water molecules to get hydrogen
and oxygen.
You know, oxygen is just one of the
many gases that make up the air we
breathe. Perhaps you can do some research
of your own to learn more about atmo-
spheres in our galaxy. See if you can find
out what gases make up the atmospheres
of other planets. Or find out what other
molecules make up the air on Earth and
what each of them can do for you and
other living things on our planet.Dr. UniverseDo you have a question? Ask Dr.
Universe. Send an email to Washington
State University’s resident scientist and
writer at [email protected] or visit
her website, askdruniverse.com.