Ellsworth County commissioners approved a one-month county-wide burn ban Monday, effective immediately.

The ban will remain in effect until May 6, at which time commissioners will review their decision. They could also rescind the ban before the onemonth period ends.

The burn ban was recommended by Kerianne Ehrlich, county health department supervisor, and Keith Haberer, emergency management director for Ellsworth and Russell counties. The ban was also approved by the local fire chiefs in the county via a telephone call with Haberer.

“We’re supposed to get some rain sometime this week,” Commissioner Kermit Rush said.

“It’s not so much about the rain, it’s about the smoke we’re producing and people with COVID-19 are already having respiratory issues,” Haberer said.

Ehrlich said now is also the time of increased allergies.

“Then we throw COVID-19 on top of it, we don’t know if we’re dealing with asthma, allergies or COVID-19, because they all basically portray the same symptoms,” she said.

Ehrlich said if an elderly person, for example, who already has a respiratory problem were to contract COVID-19, along with all of the smoke in the air, they would have all those factors working against them.

“It’s nothing weather related,” she said. “It’s all symptomatic and health related at this point.”

Haberer said the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the Kansas Department of Agriculture have not mandated a burn ban, but highly recommend a voluntary reduction in burning.

In other business:

• Stacie Schmidt, director of the Ellsworth County Economic Development, gave an update on small businesses in the county in light of the COVID-19 crisis.

“There are lots of concerns, obviously, about whether our businesses will sustain this,” she said.

“I hope so,” Rush said.

“It’s going to have a deep economic impact, that’s for sure,” Schmidt responded.

Rush said he is also concerned because the amount of sales tax collected will be down, as well as oil and gas revenue.

Rush said he has been considering a 2 to 3 percent reduction in the budgets of county departments in light of the drop in the economy due to the COVID-19 crisis.

“I don’t know if that would work or not,” he said. “I absolutely don’t want to raise taxes this year, because people are having a tough enough time as it is.”

Schmidt said she has been pushing out information on the various small business relief packages submitted by federal and state officials as soon as she gets it.

She encouraged small businesses to act now and apply for the funds in the relief packages — the Payroll Protection Plan and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan.

“Because the money is going to run out,” she said.

Schmidt said the weekly video conference call she hosts with local small businesses has been going well.

She has rolled out a new website, ellsworthstrong.com, which contains information on business finance resources.

“That’s been helpful,” she said.

In conjuction with Gene’s Heartland Foods, Schmidt also rolled out Gene’s Click List, a call-in grocery ordering service designed to reduce the number of people inside the store.

“It’s working,” she said.

Schmidt said she is currently focusing on business retention. She has directed the revolving loan fund to small business emergency financing. She also lowered the interest rate and differed payments.

“We’ve got applications pending on that,” she said. “I’m still waiting on them to get me all the information.”

Schmidt said she also rolled out a new media grant where businesses can apply for $300 to use for print marketing, digital marketing, digital design, additional signage or website expense.

“We still have money in that fund,” she said.

• A resolution declaring the intention to issue General Obligation Bonds not to exceed $145,000 to pay for the new pit at the county landfill was approved.

• Ellsworth farmer Jake Svaty visited with commissioners about the farm ground he leases from the county. Svaty expressed his desire to continue the lease, so a new five-year lease will be drawn up.

It was noted Svaty leases 55.8 acres of cropland at the county landfill along with 28.5 acres of hay meadow.

The next meeting of the Ellsworth County commissioners will be at 9 a.m. Monday, April 13, at the county courthouse.