Oct. 18, 2001 — Concerns about anthrax have forced the closing of Delegate Donna Christian Christensen’s Washington, D.C., office and those of her colleagues in the House of Representatives until Tuesday.
The action was taken to ensure that the Capitol and all the congressional office buildings are free of anthrax, Christensen said.
She said the House leadership decided to close the Capitol and the House office buildings from 7 p.m. Wednesday until 5 a.m. Tuesday.
The decision was made after the office of Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle received a letter found to contain anthrax, which has affected at least 30 members of his staff. Testing found anthrax spores in various areas of the Senate complex.
"The House leadership on both sides of the aisle thought it was prudent to do an environmental assessment of all offices to ensure the safety of members and staff," Christensen said in a release Wednesday. "However, our district offices will remain open, our D.C. staff will work from home, and all calls to the Washington offices will be forwarded to the Virgin Islands phones."
She added, "We have to be cautious, but there is still work to be done; so, if constituents have any questions or concerns, they should direct all inquiries to the St. Thomas and St. Croix offices."
Christensen said she will return to the Virgin Islands on Sunday evening and will meet with territorial officials on a number of economic, health and security issues on Monday and Tuesday before returning to the nation's capital for a congressional session on Tuesday evening.
PANEL TABLES BILL TO BAN WASTE INCINERATION
Oct. 17, 2001 – Although mostly praised for its intent, a bill to ban incineration as a solid-waste disposal method was tabled by the Senate Planning and Environmental Protection committee Wednesday.
Waste management experts, government officials and private organization representatives agreed that incineration can pose serious health hazards; however, they said the bill is too restrictive. The committee chair, Sen. Donald "Ducks" Cole, concluded, "This is the wrong time to limit technologies."
The concern expressed was that new waste-management technologies may incorporate incineration in one form or another. Banning the process totally could prevent the territory from taking advantage of new processes. In the words of one expert, "We shouldn't throw the baby out with the bath water."
The bill's sponsor, Sen. Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg, said he had originally introduced it in the 23rd Legislature, where it died. "This bill was written prior to technologies that are in place now," he said, "It is not meant to shut out any new proposals." Donastorg said he hoped the hearing would bring out new ideas to enhance the present legislation.
It brought out no end of new ideas. Dean Plaskett, Planning and Natural Resources commissioner, was explicit in his objections. DPNR's Environmental Protection Division regulates the V.I. Air Pollution Control Act and enforces the federal Clean Air Act. Reading from testimony he gave at the bill's first hearing in 1999, Plaskett reiterated his views. "While no one who holds themselves out as an environmentalist will tout the virtues of incinerations," Plaskett said, "no honest evaluation of the state of incineration as part of a comprehensive solid and hazardous waste program will conclude that incineration should be banned altogether."
Further, Plaskett continued, "innovative waste-disposal techniques coming into fruition now are hybrids of incineration. Incineration should be part of a comprehensive solid and hazardous waste plan; it should not be relied upon as the be-all and end-all of waste management."
The bill does not cite any study findings to substantiate its basic premise regarding the health hazards of incineration, Plaskett noted. He said that could pose problems for DPNR in implementation if the bill were to become law and might provoke a legal challenge. Plaskett also noted there is no definition of "agricultural waste," which the bill exempts from the ban, along with "yard waste."
Erva Denham, League of Women Voters president, also wanted to know why the burning of yard waste would still be permitted. "Who is going to check to see that plastics or other excluded materials are not mixed in when it is burned?" she asked.
Denham said this is not the first time the League has been asked to testify on such legislation. She suggested another "long look at landfills and other methods of handling solid waste, as well as legislation to create a waste management authority."
Sonya Nelthropp, Public Works Commissioner Wayne Callwood's technical assistant on waste management, said at a PWD workshop on St. Croix last week that an interim plan is in place to handle solid waste by the December 2002 deadline the Federal Administration Agency has set for the government to close the Anguilla landfill on St. Croix.
The FAA has threatened to close the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport adjacent to the landfill if the deadline is not met, because the landfill poses an aviation hazard. Nelthropp said bids were being taken for a proposed interim facility on St. Croix.
To deal with the territory's solid waste long term, the Turnbull administration has chosen Caribe Waste Technologies to build a $180 million waste-to-energy gasification plant, a project that could take up to three years. Donastorg's bill, drafted in 1999, doesn't address the CWT plant.
Bill Turner, representing the St. Croix Environmental Association, said his group found no fault with the incineration bill.
But John Levering, president of John Levering and Associates on St. John, said the measure was "admirable in intent, but it may inadvertently limit options that can protect human health." Levering suggested his own company's "commercially proven conventional combustion waste to-energy plan." CWT's gasification plant is not "commercially proven," an objection stressed by energy consultants at a WAPA board meeting last week.
Cole and some other senators said they didn't like the idea of barging St. Thomas and St. John waste to St. Croix, which is an element of the CWT plan.
All of the experts suggested postponing a decision on the bill. Jack Thomas of Brownfields Recovery Corp. said, "There's no simple answer. It's unwise to eliminate an important part of a larger solution."
Lucien Moolenaar, Health Department deputy commissioner for public health services, asked if the bill would close the door on the possibility of crematoriums in the territory. "With cemetery space running short rapidly, cremation may well prove an acceptable alternative," he said. He also wondered about the disposal of human body parts, which the bill doesn't address. He approved of the bill's stipulation allowing hospitals five years to convert from incineration to another form of disposal.
The bill's most vociferous proponent was Roan Creque, a Public Works special assistant, who said he was speaking as a private citizen. "Incineration kills," he declared repeatedly throughout the hearing. He said the territory "has spent $20 million on waste-management consultants" and that no incinerator can "meet EPA specs."
The bill was held in committee by a vote of 3-2, with Sens. Cole, Roosevelt David and Carlton Dowe voting to table the bill and Donastorg and Celestino A. White Sr. opposed. Sens. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen and Adelbert Bryan were absent.
In other action, the committee approved a Coastal Zone Management minor permit for the Joseph John Markus Trust to build a dock and install three moorings at Lovango Cay off the northwest end of St. John.
Prior to hearing from Tom Bolt, attorney for the Markus Trust, Cole showed a video of the site taken Monday when he, Dowe and Rafe Boulon, chief of resource management for the V.I. National Park, visited the area.
Markus has owned the property for about three years, Bolt said, and he plans to keep it a private residence. The dock needs to be replaced, as the previous dock was destroyed by a hurricane.
Boulon said he felt the landowners had a right to construct a dock giving access to their land from the sea, but he had environmental concerns. He said the proposed location for the dock poses a threat to coral heads in the area and should be changed. Also, he said, the permit application shouldn't refer to a "replacement" of the former dock, as the proposed new one is "substantially larger."
Denham also testified on the CZM permit. She said the LWV had concerns about turbidity and sediment control and the monitoring of silting and turbidity once the dock is completed. Bolt produced a turbidity report and assured Denham the project would be closely monitored. He endorsed Boulon's recommendation to move the dock to a deeper-water location.
Bolt said the project could have the effect of bringing "multimillion dollars in tax revenues" to the Virgin Islands because the trust's holders plan to establish the V.I. as their legal residence.
The permit was approved on a unanimous vote by Cole, David, Donastorg Dowe and White, with Hansen and Bryan absent.
Waste management experts, government officials and private organization representatives agreed that incineration can pose serious health hazards; however, they said the bill is too restrictive. The committee chair, Sen. Donald "Ducks" Cole, concluded, "This is the wrong time to limit technologies."
The concern expressed was that new waste-management technologies may incorporate incineration in one form or another. Banning the process totally could prevent the territory from taking advantage of new processes. In the words of one expert, "We shouldn't throw the baby out with the bath water."
The bill's sponsor, Sen. Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg, said he had originally introduced it in the 23rd Legislature, where it died. "This bill was written prior to technologies that are in place now," he said, "It is not meant to shut out any new proposals." Donastorg said he hoped the hearing would bring out new ideas to enhance the present legislation.
It brought out no end of new ideas. Dean Plaskett, Planning and Natural Resources commissioner, was explicit in his objections. DPNR's Environmental Protection Division regulates the V.I. Air Pollution Control Act and enforces the federal Clean Air Act. Reading from testimony he gave at the bill's first hearing in 1999, Plaskett reiterated his views. "While no one who holds themselves out as an environmentalist will tout the virtues of incinerations," Plaskett said, "no honest evaluation of the state of incineration as part of a comprehensive solid and hazardous waste program will conclude that incineration should be banned altogether."
Further, Plaskett continued, "innovative waste-disposal techniques coming into fruition now are hybrids of incineration. Incineration should be part of a comprehensive solid and hazardous waste plan; it should not be relied upon as the be-all and end-all of waste management."
The bill does not cite any study findings to substantiate its basic premise regarding the health hazards of incineration, Plaskett noted. He said that could pose problems for DPNR in implementation if the bill were to become law and might provoke a legal challenge. Plaskett also noted there is no definition of "agricultural waste," which the bill exempts from the ban, along with "yard waste."
Erva Denham, League of Women Voters president, also wanted to know why the burning of yard waste would still be permitted. "Who is going to check to see that plastics or other excluded materials are not mixed in when it is burned?" she asked.
Denham said this is not the first time the League has been asked to testify on such legislation. She suggested another "long look at landfills and other methods of handling solid waste, as well as legislation to create a waste management authority."
Sonya Nelthropp, Public Works Commissioner Wayne Callwood's technical assistant on waste management, said at a PWD workshop on St. Croix last week that an interim plan is in place to handle solid waste by the December 2002 deadline the Federal Administration Agency has set for the government to close the Anguilla landfill on St. Croix.
The FAA has threatened to close the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport adjacent to the landfill if the deadline is not met, because the landfill poses an aviation hazard. Nelthropp said bids were being taken for a proposed interim facility on St. Croix.
To deal with the territory's solid waste long term, the Turnbull administration has chosen Caribe Waste Technologies to build a $180 million waste-to-energy gasification plant, a project that could take up to three years. Donastorg's bill, drafted in 1999, doesn't address the CWT plant.
Bill Turner, representing the St. Croix Environmental Association, said his group found no fault with the incineration bill.
But John Levering, president of John Levering and Associates on St. John, said the measure was "admirable in intent, but it may inadvertently limit options that can protect human health." Levering suggested his own company's "commercially proven conventional combustion waste to-energy plan." CWT's gasification plant is not "commercially proven," an objection stressed by energy consultants at a WAPA board meeting last week.
Cole and some other senators said they didn't like the idea of barging St. Thomas and St. John waste to St. Croix, which is an element of the CWT plan.
All of the experts suggested postponing a decision on the bill. Jack Thomas of Brownfields Recovery Corp. said, "There's no simple answer. It's unwise to eliminate an important part of a larger solution."
Lucien Moolenaar, Health Department deputy commissioner for public health services, asked if the bill would close the door on the possibility of crematoriums in the territory. "With cemetery space running short rapidly, cremation may well prove an acceptable alternative," he said. He also wondered about the disposal of human body parts, which the bill doesn't address. He approved of the bill's stipulation allowing hospitals five years to convert from incineration to another form of disposal.
The bill's most vociferous proponent was Roan Creque, a Public Works special assistant, who said he was speaking as a private citizen. "Incineration kills," he declared repeatedly throughout the hearing. He said the territory "has spent $20 million on waste-management consultants" and that no incinerator can "meet EPA specs."
The bill was held in committee by a vote of 3-2, with Sens. Cole, Roosevelt David and Carlton Dowe voting to table the bill and Donastorg and Celestino A. White Sr. opposed. Sens. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen and Adelbert Bryan were absent.
In other action, the committee approved a Coastal Zone Management minor permit for the Joseph John Markus Trust to build a dock and install three moorings at Lovango Cay off the northwest end of St. John.
Prior to hearing from Tom Bolt, attorney for the Markus Trust, Cole showed a video of the site taken Monday when he, Dowe and Rafe Boulon, chief of resource management for the V.I. National Park, visited the area.
Markus has owned the property for about three years, Bolt said, and he plans to keep it a private residence. The dock needs to be replaced, as the previous dock was destroyed by a hurricane.
Boulon said he felt the landowners had a right to construct a dock giving access to their land from the sea, but he had environmental concerns. He said the proposed location for the dock poses a threat to coral heads in the area and should be changed. Also, he said, the permit application shouldn't refer to a "replacement" of the former dock, as the proposed new one is "substantially larger."
Denham also testified on the CZM permit. She said the LWV had concerns about turbidity and sediment control and the monitoring of silting and turbidity once the dock is completed. Bolt produced a turbidity report and assured Denham the project would be closely monitored. He endorsed Boulon's recommendation to move the dock to a deeper-water location.
Bolt said the project could have the effect of bringing "multimillion dollars in tax revenues" to the Virgin Islands because the trust's holders plan to establish the V.I. as their legal residence.
The permit was approved on a unanimous vote by Cole, David, Donastorg Dowe and White, with Hansen and Bryan absent.
DOWE DEMANDS THAT HEALTH CHIEF BE NAMED
Oct. 17, 2001 – Sen. Carlton Dowe, chair of the Senate Rules Committee, wants Gov. Charles W. Turnbull to name a commissioner of Health — a position that has been vacant for more than six months — and to fill long-vacant positions on commissions and boards that the committee is charged with approving.
In a letter he sent Turnbull on Wednesday, Dowe wrote that "… for the fourth time, I must demand that you name a permanent commissioner of Health. I note with great interest your media statements of last week in which you referred to Dr. Mavis Matthews as the acting commissioner of Health."
He reminded the governor that Matthews' authority to act as commissioner expired Sept. 20. "Since the Legislature has not agreed to extend her time beyond the statutory six months, we presently do not have a legally acting commissioner," he wrote.
With the current anthrax scare, he added, the lack of a Health Department head could "generate panic" throughout the community.
At a Rules Committee hearing on Wednesday, Dr. Lucien Moolenaar, Health deputy commissioner for public health services and former acting commissioner, testified, representing the department. Dowe said during the meeting, "Governor, I know you're watching on the TV. Where is our commissioner of Health?"
He asked Turnbull "to execute your sworn duty and nominate someone to be our next commissioner of Health. The time has long passed for the foot dragging to stop."
Dowe also noted that two boards frequently can't muster a quorum to conduct business.
The nine-member Board of Land Use Appeals has three vacancies, the senator said, and one of the six sitting members is a Public Works employee who has to recuse himself when government projects come before the body. As a result, Dowe said, some projects have been stalled for years.
The five-member Housing Finance Authority Board has two vacancies. Three members constitute a quorum, Dowe said, but one current member is the Office of Management and Budget director, whose other responsibilities prevent him from attending many meetings.
In a letter he sent Turnbull on Wednesday, Dowe wrote that "… for the fourth time, I must demand that you name a permanent commissioner of Health. I note with great interest your media statements of last week in which you referred to Dr. Mavis Matthews as the acting commissioner of Health."
He reminded the governor that Matthews' authority to act as commissioner expired Sept. 20. "Since the Legislature has not agreed to extend her time beyond the statutory six months, we presently do not have a legally acting commissioner," he wrote.
With the current anthrax scare, he added, the lack of a Health Department head could "generate panic" throughout the community.
At a Rules Committee hearing on Wednesday, Dr. Lucien Moolenaar, Health deputy commissioner for public health services and former acting commissioner, testified, representing the department. Dowe said during the meeting, "Governor, I know you're watching on the TV. Where is our commissioner of Health?"
He asked Turnbull "to execute your sworn duty and nominate someone to be our next commissioner of Health. The time has long passed for the foot dragging to stop."
Dowe also noted that two boards frequently can't muster a quorum to conduct business.
The nine-member Board of Land Use Appeals has three vacancies, the senator said, and one of the six sitting members is a Public Works employee who has to recuse himself when government projects come before the body. As a result, Dowe said, some projects have been stalled for years.
The five-member Housing Finance Authority Board has two vacancies. Three members constitute a quorum, Dowe said, but one current member is the Office of Management and Budget director, whose other responsibilities prevent him from attending many meetings.
DOWE DEMANDS THAT HEALTH CHIEF BE NAMED
Oct. 17, 2001 – Sen. Carlton Dowe, chair of the Senate Rules Committee, wants Gov. Charles W. Turnbull to name a commissioner of Health — a position that has been vacant for more than six months — and to fill long-vacant positions on commissions and boards that the committee is charged with approving.
In a letter he sent Turnbull on Wednesday, Dowe wrote that "… for the fourth time, I must demand that you name a permanent commissioner of Health. I note with great interest your media statements of last week in which you referred to Dr. Mavis Matthews as the acting commissioner of Health."
He reminded the governor that Matthews' authority to act as commissioner expired Sept. 20. "Since the Legislature has not agreed to extend her time beyond the statutory six months, we presently do not have a legally acting commissioner," he wrote.
With the current anthrax scare, he added, the lack of a Health Department head could "generate panic" throughout the community.
At a Rules Committee hearing on Wednesday on St. Thomas, Dr. Lucien Moolenaar, Health deputy commissioner for public health services and former acting commissioner, testified, representing the department. Dowe said during the meeting, "Governor, I know you're watching on the TV. Where is our commissioner of Health?"
He asked Turnbull "to execute your sworn duty and nominate someone to be our next commissioner of Health. The time has long passed for the foot dragging to stop."
Dowe also noted that two boards frequently can't muster a quorum to conduct business.
The nine-member Board of Land Use Appeals has three vacancies, the senator said, and one of the six sitting members is a Public Works employee who has to recuse himself when government projects come before the body. As a result, Dowe said, some projects have been stalled for years.
The five-member Housing Finance Authority Board has two vacancies. Three members constitute a quorum, Dowe said, but one current member is the Office of Management and Budget director, whose other responsibilities prevent him from attending many meetings.
In a letter he sent Turnbull on Wednesday, Dowe wrote that "… for the fourth time, I must demand that you name a permanent commissioner of Health. I note with great interest your media statements of last week in which you referred to Dr. Mavis Matthews as the acting commissioner of Health."
He reminded the governor that Matthews' authority to act as commissioner expired Sept. 20. "Since the Legislature has not agreed to extend her time beyond the statutory six months, we presently do not have a legally acting commissioner," he wrote.
With the current anthrax scare, he added, the lack of a Health Department head could "generate panic" throughout the community.
At a Rules Committee hearing on Wednesday on St. Thomas, Dr. Lucien Moolenaar, Health deputy commissioner for public health services and former acting commissioner, testified, representing the department. Dowe said during the meeting, "Governor, I know you're watching on the TV. Where is our commissioner of Health?"
He asked Turnbull "to execute your sworn duty and nominate someone to be our next commissioner of Health. The time has long passed for the foot dragging to stop."
Dowe also noted that two boards frequently can't muster a quorum to conduct business.
The nine-member Board of Land Use Appeals has three vacancies, the senator said, and one of the six sitting members is a Public Works employee who has to recuse himself when government projects come before the body. As a result, Dowe said, some projects have been stalled for years.
The five-member Housing Finance Authority Board has two vacancies. Three members constitute a quorum, Dowe said, but one current member is the Office of Management and Budget director, whose other responsibilities prevent him from attending many meetings.
DOWE DEMANDS THAT HEALTH CHIEF BE NAMED
Oct. 17, 2001 – Sen. Carlton Dowe, chair of the Senate Rules Committee, wants Gov. Charles W. Turnbull to name a commissioner of Health — a position that has been vacant for more than six months — and to fill long-vacant positions on commissions and boards that the committee is charged with approving.
In a letter he sent Turnbull on Wednesday, Dowe wrote that "… for the fourth time, I must demand that you name a permanent commissioner of Health. I note with great interest your media statements of last week in which you referred to Dr. Mavis Matthews as the acting commissioner of Health."
He reminded the governor that Matthews' authority to act as commissioner expired Sept. 20. "Since the Legislature has not agreed to extend her time beyond the statutory six months, we presently do not have a legally acting commissioner," he wrote.
With the current anthrax scare, he added, the lack of a Health Department head could "generate panic" throughout the community.
At a Rules Committee hearing on Wednesday on St. Thomas, Dr. Lucien Moolenaar, Health deputy commissioner for public health services and former acting commissioner, testified, representing the department. Dowe said during the meeting, "Governor, I know you're watching on the TV. Where is our commissioner of Health?"
He asked Turnbull "to execute your sworn duty and nominate someone to be our next commissioner of Health. The time has long passed for the foot dragging to stop."
Dowe also noted that two boards frequently can't muster a quorum to conduct business.
The nine-member Board of Land Use Appeals has three vacancies, the senator said, and one of the six sitting members is a Public Works employee who has to recuse himself when government projects come before the body. As a result, Dowe said, some projects have been stalled for years.
The five-member Housing Finance Authority Board has two vacancies. Three members constitute a quorum, Dowe said, but one current member is the Office of Management and Budget director, whose other responsibilities prevent him from attending many meetings.
In a letter he sent Turnbull on Wednesday, Dowe wrote that "… for the fourth time, I must demand that you name a permanent commissioner of Health. I note with great interest your media statements of last week in which you referred to Dr. Mavis Matthews as the acting commissioner of Health."
He reminded the governor that Matthews' authority to act as commissioner expired Sept. 20. "Since the Legislature has not agreed to extend her time beyond the statutory six months, we presently do not have a legally acting commissioner," he wrote.
With the current anthrax scare, he added, the lack of a Health Department head could "generate panic" throughout the community.
At a Rules Committee hearing on Wednesday on St. Thomas, Dr. Lucien Moolenaar, Health deputy commissioner for public health services and former acting commissioner, testified, representing the department. Dowe said during the meeting, "Governor, I know you're watching on the TV. Where is our commissioner of Health?"
He asked Turnbull "to execute your sworn duty and nominate someone to be our next commissioner of Health. The time has long passed for the foot dragging to stop."
Dowe also noted that two boards frequently can't muster a quorum to conduct business.
The nine-member Board of Land Use Appeals has three vacancies, the senator said, and one of the six sitting members is a Public Works employee who has to recuse himself when government projects come before the body. As a result, Dowe said, some projects have been stalled for years.
The five-member Housing Finance Authority Board has two vacancies. Three members constitute a quorum, Dowe said, but one current member is the Office of Management and Budget director, whose other responsibilities prevent him from attending many meetings.
SERVE SHRIMP SALAD WITH — AND IN — AVOCADOS
Oct. 17, 2001 – On some islands, an avocado is known as a "pear" due to its shape, or "butter" because of its rich, creamy taste. In the Virgin Islands, this oblong green fruit is renowned as delicious and enjoyed in numerous ways.
Native to the tropics, the avocado comes in many varieties, its skin ranging from thick to thin, its outer color from green to purplish black, its contour from round to pear-shape. No matter what the outside looks like, its flesh is usually pale yellow-green. Its weight at maturity can range from as little as 3 ounces to as much as 4 pounds.
When an avocado is ripe, the flesh is soft and has a nut-like flavor. Nutritionally, the fruit is high in fat — but it is the heart-healthy unsaturated form of fat. Half of an 8-ounce avocado contains 140 calories plus a fair amount of vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, potassium and dietary fiber.
Like many other fruits, avocados ripen best after being picked. When shopping for avocados, look for those that are unblemished and relatively heavy for their size. To hasten the ripening process of green avocados, place several of them in a paper bag and set it out at room temperature for two to three days. Ripe avocados can be stored in the refrigerator for several days.
Once the fruit is cut open and the flesh is exposed to the air, it tends to discolor quickly to a brownish-black green. To minimize this effect, as soon as you cut the avocado into slices, rub them with lemon or lime juice.
Avocados are widely used in the United States as veggie salad makings and for guacamole, but in other places they are used in popular desserts such as avocado cheesecake, pudding and ice cream. One of the simplest and most delicious ways to serve this fruit is as a salad "boat." After slicing an avocado in half lengthwise and removing the pit, use the hollow from the pit as a holder for meat, poultry or seafood salads. Shrimp salad-stuffed avocado is one of my family's favorites.
Caribbean Shrimp and Avocado Salad
8 oz. frozen small shrimp, cooked
1/2 onion, chopped fine
1 green bell pepper, chopped fine
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Dash hot pepper sauce
2 avocados, cut in half lengthwise with pits removed
Leaf lettuce leaves
Combine shrimp, onion, green pepper, lime juice, garlic, parsley, oil, vinegar, salt, black pepper and hot pepper sauce in a mixing bowl. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate overnight. When ready to serve, line four salad plates with leaf lettuce. Place one avocado half on each plate. Fill avocado halves with equal amounts of shrimp salad.
Makes 4 servings. Per serving: 310 calories, 21 gms fat (58 percent fat calories), 111 mg cholesterol, 140 mg sodium.
Native to the tropics, the avocado comes in many varieties, its skin ranging from thick to thin, its outer color from green to purplish black, its contour from round to pear-shape. No matter what the outside looks like, its flesh is usually pale yellow-green. Its weight at maturity can range from as little as 3 ounces to as much as 4 pounds.
When an avocado is ripe, the flesh is soft and has a nut-like flavor. Nutritionally, the fruit is high in fat — but it is the heart-healthy unsaturated form of fat. Half of an 8-ounce avocado contains 140 calories plus a fair amount of vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, potassium and dietary fiber.
Like many other fruits, avocados ripen best after being picked. When shopping for avocados, look for those that are unblemished and relatively heavy for their size. To hasten the ripening process of green avocados, place several of them in a paper bag and set it out at room temperature for two to three days. Ripe avocados can be stored in the refrigerator for several days.
Once the fruit is cut open and the flesh is exposed to the air, it tends to discolor quickly to a brownish-black green. To minimize this effect, as soon as you cut the avocado into slices, rub them with lemon or lime juice.
Avocados are widely used in the United States as veggie salad makings and for guacamole, but in other places they are used in popular desserts such as avocado cheesecake, pudding and ice cream. One of the simplest and most delicious ways to serve this fruit is as a salad "boat." After slicing an avocado in half lengthwise and removing the pit, use the hollow from the pit as a holder for meat, poultry or seafood salads. Shrimp salad-stuffed avocado is one of my family's favorites.
Caribbean Shrimp and Avocado Salad
8 oz. frozen small shrimp, cooked
1/2 onion, chopped fine
1 green bell pepper, chopped fine
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar
Salt and black pepper, to taste
Dash hot pepper sauce
2 avocados, cut in half lengthwise with pits removed
Leaf lettuce leaves
Combine shrimp, onion, green pepper, lime juice, garlic, parsley, oil, vinegar, salt, black pepper and hot pepper sauce in a mixing bowl. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate overnight. When ready to serve, line four salad plates with leaf lettuce. Place one avocado half on each plate. Fill avocado halves with equal amounts of shrimp salad.
Makes 4 servings. Per serving: 310 calories, 21 gms fat (58 percent fat calories), 111 mg cholesterol, 140 mg sodium.
CHAMBER BUSINESS AFTER DARK
The St. Thomas-St. John Chamber Business After Hours will be held at the Pistarckle Theater located in Tillett Gardens. Hosts will be the Pistarckle Theater, Emerich Associates Architects, 4-Sea-2Be Consultants and Tillett Gardens.
Join the Chamber for a chance to win tickets to "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)".
Members, guests and potential members are encouraged to attend.
Complimentaary horsd'oevers will be served as well as the famous Chamber $2 bar.
Join the Chamber for a chance to win tickets to "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)".
Members, guests and potential members are encouraged to attend.
Complimentaary horsd'oevers will be served as well as the famous Chamber $2 bar.
CHAMBER BUSINESS AFTER HOURS
The St. Thomas-St. John Chamber Business After Hours will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 25, at the Pistarckle Theater located in Tillett Gardens.
Hosts will be Pistarckle Theater, Emerich Associates Architects, 4-Sea-2Be Consultants and Tillett Gardens.
Join the Chamber for a chance to win a ticket to "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (bridged)."
Members, guests and potential members are encouraged to attend. Complimentary horsd'oevers will be served as well as the famous Chamber $2 bar.
Hosts will be Pistarckle Theater, Emerich Associates Architects, 4-Sea-2Be Consultants and Tillett Gardens.
Join the Chamber for a chance to win a ticket to "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (bridged)."
Members, guests and potential members are encouraged to attend. Complimentary horsd'oevers will be served as well as the famous Chamber $2 bar.
CHAMBER BUSINESS AFTER HOURS
The St. Thomas-St. John Chamber Business After Hours will be hosted by Pistarckle Theater, Emerich Associates Architects, 4-Sea-2Be Consultants and Tillett Gardens at the Pistaarckle Theater located in Tillett Gaardens.
Join the Chamber for a chance to win tickets to "The Complete Works of William Shakespearre (Abridged)." Members, guests and potential members are encouraged to attend.
Complimentary horsd'oevers will be served as well as the famous Chamber $2 bar.
Join the Chamber for a chance to win tickets to "The Complete Works of William Shakespearre (Abridged)." Members, guests and potential members are encouraged to attend.
Complimentary horsd'oevers will be served as well as the famous Chamber $2 bar.
BUSINESS AFTER HOURS
The St. Thomas-St. John Chamber Business After Hours will be from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 25, hosted by Pistarckle Theater, Emerich Associates Archtects, 4-Sea-2Be Consultants at Tillett Gardens.
Join the Chamber for a chance to win tickets to "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)". Members, guests and potential members are encouraged to attend.
Complimentary horsd'oevers will be served as well as the famous Chamber $2 bar.
Join the Chamber for a chance to win tickets to "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)". Members, guests and potential members are encouraged to attend.
Complimentary horsd'oevers will be served as well as the famous Chamber $2 bar.
