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On Valley Edition: Ending Homelessness; Water Quality; Fresno Fair

On this week's Valley Edition we talk about efforts to end homelessness in the Valley. We also hear about the big water pollution problems facing the communities of rural Tulare County, and get a preview of the Big Fresno Fair.

Segment 1: Housing the Homeless
Even before the recession, the issue of homelessness was a big problem for many Valley communities. Both Bakersfield and Fresno have adopted a "housing first" strategy as part of their plans to end chronic homelessness in the next ten years. How are those plans progressing? And is it really as simple as just offering shelter to those living on the street? Host Juanita Stevenson talks about these issues and more with Fresno's homeless prevention and policy manager Greg Barfield, and and Stephen Pelz, Executive Director of the Kern County Housing Authority.

Segment 2: Water Quality
Many of us take clean safe tap water for granted. But for residents of Tulare county communities like Seville and Tooleville, pollution from nitrates is forcing residents, many of whom are already in poverty, to buy expensive bottled water. The unhealthful water conditions have even drawn the attention of a United Nations official, comparing the situation in Seville to that of "third world" nations. In this segment of Valley Edition, Laurel Firestone of the Community Water Center in Visalia, Kara Brodfuehrer of California Rural Legal Assistance, and Dr. David Zoldoske California Water Institute, join host Juanita Stevenson to talk about the problem, and what can be done to fix it.

Segment 3: Fair season in the Valley
It's October and that means its time for the Big Fresno Fair. Guest Stacy Rianda will tell us what's new this year, and what attendees can expect at this venerable Central California tradition.

Juanita Stevenson has lived and worked in Fresno for the past 24 years. She is perhaps best known to Valley residents as a longtime reporter and news anchor with local television station ABC30, and has also worked at stations KJWL, KYNO and ValleyPBS. She is the recipient of the 2001 Associated Press Award for Best Reporting, and the 1997 Radio & Television News Directors Association Regional Edward R. Murrow award for Best Reporting.
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