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M O N DA Y, M A RC H 14 , 2 0 2 2
Sea Center reopens
Farmers hit hard by price increases as food price spike looms
Return of Stearns Wharf icon one of several SB Museum of Natural History events
By CASEY HARPER THE CENTER SQUARE
(The Center Square) – Goods and services around the country are becoming increasingly more expensive, but farmers may be among the hardest hit as inflation, supply chain issues, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are expected to send food prices soaring even higher. That impact is being felt by farmers around the country. “The cost of fertilizer is up as much as 500% in some areas,” said Indiana Farm Bureau President Randy Kron. “It would be unbelievable if I hadn’t seen it for myself as I priced fertilizer for our farm in southern Indiana. Fertilizer is a global commodity and can be
KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS
Visitors view sealife in the touch tank at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center on Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara on Sunday.
U.S. journalist killed by Russian troops as airstrikes continue By KATHERINE ZEHNDER
By KATHERINE ZEHNDER
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
On Saturday, the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center on Stearns Wharf was reopened. The center will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The reopening comes after six months of work, including an infrastructure upgrade. “It went really well. We had a members preview day on Friday, and then opened to the public Saturday. Everyone was really happy we were reopening. Everything looked clean and beautiful. Downstairs we have hands-on exhibits such as touch pools. …We wanted to make sure we opened before spring break, because that is when tourist season starts at the end of March,” Briana Sapp, Director of Marketing and Communications, told the News-Press. The upstairs exhibit, “Dive In: Our Changing Channel” has also been revamped. The exhibit features animals native to the Santa Barbara Channel, and includes the giant Pacific seahorses who have migrated up from Baja and San Diego due to warming waters, Ms. Sapp explained. “There are several different habitats in the Santa Barbara Channel, including a kelp forest. The exhibit shows a variety of different habitats in a regional space, it is a biodiversity hot-spot and a marine protected area,” said Ms. Sapp. The exhibit also features moon jellies (a type of jellyfish), a California moray eel and a twospot octopus. There is also a temporary exhibit called “What’s In Our Drawers,” located in the museum’s Maximus Gallery for a look behind the scenes at scientists’ work and their favorite items from our collections.
“It is one of the first exhibits we have done featuring curators and their favorite items from our collections. The exhibit profiles curators who are opening their collection drawers to show favorite specimens and tell stories about the specimens,” said Ms. Sapp. The exhibit closes on March 31 and is included in admission. The Museum of Natural History also hosted it’s Star Party on Saturday night at 7 p.m. at the Palmer Observatory. The observatory opened its roof, sharing a remarkable Please see SEA CENTER on A4
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authorities have accused Russia of preventing the evacuation of residents. The Ukraine invasion is now in its third week and is facing economic consequences and sanctions from the U.S. and other countries. “In terms of servicing debt obligations, I can say that we no longer think of Russian default as [an] improbable event. Russia has the money to service its debt, but cannot access it,” Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund said on “Face the Nation.” Ms. Georgieva is saying that a Russian sovereign default is a possibility. On Sunday morning, Kyiv awoke to air raid sirens as Russian missiles were launched at a military base near the Polish border killing at least 35 people, reported NBC News. NBC News said that they have not verified the missile strikes. The base is about 20 miles from the Polish border and information on victims was not immediately available. Since 2015, the U.S. has regularly sent instructors to the base. The base has also hosted NATO drills. An additional 135 people were injured in an airstrike on the International Center for Peacekeeping and Security in Yavoriv, said Maksym Kozytskiy, head of Lviv regional administration. More than 30 missiles were fired, killing nine people. President Joe Biden has authorized the State Department to provide an additional $200 million in military assistance to Ukraine. According to Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, this brings the total U.S. security assistance to Ukraine to more than $1.2 billion. email: kzehnder@newspress.com
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One American journalist was killed, and a second was injured, on Sunday by Russian gunfire. Brent Renaud, an American photojournalist, was killed on Sunday when Russian troops opened fire on a car in Irpin, a town about 30 miles outside of Kyiv. Forty-six year old Juan Arrendo, also an American journalist, was rushed to the hospital with shrapnel wounds from the same incident. Mr. Arrendo told Annalisa Camillim, an Italian journalist, that the two of them were filming refugees fleeing the area. As their car stopped at a checkpoint, the Russians began shooting, and Mr. Renaud was shot in the neck. “Of course, the profession of journalism carries risks. Nonetheless, U.S. citizen Brent Renaud paid with his life trying to highlight the deceit, cruelty and ruthlessness of the aggressor,” said officials in a statement obtained by USA Today. Mr. Arrendo was fifty years old and frequently collaborated with his brother Craig on film and television projects. Brent and Craig Arrendo covered the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as the earthquake in Haiti, political turmoil in Egypt and Libya, extremism in Africa, cartel violence in Mexico and the youth refugee crisis in Central America. Elsewhere in Ukraine, Russian forces have made gains in their attempt to seize the port city of Mariupol. “Conditions in the city are dire, with civilians trapped there with limited food, water and electricity,” reported CNBC. The AP reported on Sunday that more than 1,500 have died in the attacks on Mariupol. Ukrainian
Above and at right, children get the opportunity to interact with starfish and other sealife at the Sea Center.
influenced by multiple market factors, including the situation in Ukraine, and all of these are helping to drive up costs.” Ukraine is a significant supplier of both crops and fertilizer materials, adding to the concern that the invasion will likely lead to shortages and price increases. Fertilizer prices for nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium, called NPK, have exploded since December 2020. “Because of the seasonal aspects of … this agriculture industry, it takes about six to nine months for the impacts felt in the impact market to really work its way through the supply chain and reach the Please see FARMERS on A4
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Saturday’s SUPER LOTTO: 11-14-17-19-43 Mega: 13
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Sunday’s DAILY 3: 7-6-4 / Midday 1-4-5