The incident occurred just before 2:30 a.m. at 15135 Lakeshore Drive, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Acting Watch Commander Dominic Ramirez said Officer Travis Lenz had spotted the motorhome sitting in the middle of the roadway, with a male subject pushing it backwards.

Lenz pulled up to see what was happening, and after he got out of his patrol car, the motorhome rolled backward and hit it, Ramirez said.

Ramirez said Lenz was fine, but his vehicle had moderate damage as a result, with damaged fenders and its door pinned shut.

“The vehicle is out of commission for right now,” Ramirez said.

A CHP officer arrested the motorhome’s driver, 43-year-old Jill Marie Robbins of Clearlake Oaks, on misdemeanor charges of use of a controlled substance, driving while on a suspended license and driving under the influence, according to jail records.

Lenz arrested Robbins’ passenger and the subject who had been pushing the motorhome, 24-year-old Christopher Hoffman of Redding, for a parole violation. Jail records showed that Hoffman was being held on a no-bail hold.

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This color view of a mineral vein called "Homestake" comes from Opportunity's panoramic camera. Opportunity examined it in November 2011 and found it to be rich in calcium and sulfur, possibly the calcium-sulfate mineral gypsum. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell/ASU.

NASA's Mars rover Opportunity has found bright veins of a mineral, apparently gypsum, deposited by water near the rim of Endeavour Crater.

The discovery was presented Wednesday, Dec. 7, at the American Geophysical Union's conference in San Francisco.

“This tells a slam-dunk story that water flowed through underground fractures in the rock,” said Steve Squyres of Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., principal investigator for Opportunity. “This stuff is a fairly pure chemical deposit that formed in place right where we see it.1 It's the kind of thing that makes geologists jump out of their chairs.”

The vein examined most closely by Opportunity is about the width of a human thumb (1 to 2 centimeters) and 40 to 50 centimeters long.

Observations by the rover reveal this vein and others like it within an apron surrounding the rim of Endeavour Crater.

Nothing like it was seen in the 33 kilometers of crater-pocked plains that Opportunity explored for 90 months before it reached Endeavour, nor in the higher ground of the crater's rim.

Last month, researchers used the Microscopic Imager and Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer on the rover's arm and multiple filters of the Panoramic Camera on the rover's mast to examine the vein, which is informally named "Homestake."

The spectrometer identified plentiful calcium and sulfur, in a ratio pointing to relatively pure calcium sulfate.

Calcium sulfate can exist in many forms varying by how much water is bound into the minerals' crystalline structure. The multi-filter data from the camera suggest gypsum, a hydrated calcium sulfate. On Earth, gypsum is used for making drywall and plaster of Paris.

Observations from orbit had detected gypsum on Mars previously. A dune field of windblown gypsum on far northern Mars resembles the glistening gypsum dunes in White Sands National Monument in New Mexico. The origin of that windblown gypsum is, however, uncertain.

"It is a mystery where gypsum sand on northern Mars comes from," said Opportunity science-team member Benton Clark of the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colo. "At Homestake, however, we see the mineral right where it formed. It will be important to see if there are deposits like this in other areas of Mars."

The Homestake deposit, whether gypsum or another form of calcium sulfate, likely formed from water dissolving calcium out of volcanic rocks.

The calcium combined with sulfur that was either leached from the rocks or introduced as volcanic gas, and it was deposited as calcium sulfate into an underground fracture that later became exposed at the surface.

The discovery of gypsum fits the emerging picture of an ancient wet environment.

Throughout Opportunity's long traverse across Mars' Meridiani plain, the rover has driven over bedrock composed of magnesium, iron and calcium sulfate minerals that also indicate the presence of water billions of years ago.

The highly concentrated calcium sulfate at Homestake could have been produced in conditions more neutral than the harshly acidic conditions indicated by the other sulfate deposits observed by Opportunity.

"It could have formed in a different type of water environment, one more hospitable for a larger variety of living organisms," Clark said.

Opportunity has been exploring Mars for nearly eight years, far exceeding than the rover's original 3-month mission, which began in 2004.

Gypsum veins are just the latest example of an important discovery about wet environments on ancient Mars that may have been favorable for supporting microbial life.

Opportunity's equally productive twin, Spirit, stopped communicating in 2010. Opportunity continues exploring, currently heading to a sun-facing slope on the northern end of the Endeavour rim fragment called "Cape York" to keep its solar panels at a favorable angle during the mission's fifth Martian winter.

For more information about the rovers, including NASA's newest rover Curiosity now en route to Mars, visit http://www.nasa.gov/rovers and http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov.

Dr. Tony Phillips works for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

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This close-up view of a mineral vein called "Homestake" comes from the microscopic imager on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity. The vein is about the width of a thumb and about 18 inches (45 centimeters) long. Opportunity examined it in November 2011 and found it to be rich in calcium and sulfur, possibly the calcium-sulfate mineral gypsum. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell/USGS.

Through its “Start Smart” driving curriculum, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) is hoping to help teens develop into responsible drivers as they embark on their driving future.

“Many teens are eager to get their driver license when they turn 16 and may not realize the huge responsibility that comes with that privilege,” said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow.

Every year, thousands of collisions occur in California involving teen drivers.

According to the Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS), from 2007 through 2009, there were more than 31,000 fatal and injury crashes involving at least one teen driver between the ages of 15 and 19. Those same collisions resulted in 743 people killed and more than 48,000 injuries.

However, it’s worth noting that over the course of those three years, fatal and injury collisions involving teens decreased by approximately 30 percent and 22 percent, respectively.

In Lake County during that same time period, there were 118 fatal and injury crashes involving teen drivers between the ages of 15 and 19, with seven fatalities and 139 injuries, according to SWITRS data.

“Through continued education we can keep the momentum going in the right direction,” said Commissioner Farrow. “We invite new teen drivers, parents and guardians to attend a ‘Start Smart’ class in their community to better prepare them for the road.”

CHP personnel will conduct “Start Smart” presentations throughout the state at venues ranging from youth events to community activities. The target audience for the two-hour presentations is teens, 15 through 19 years old, and their parents or guardians.

The Clear Lake CHP office has held the trainings for local teens as part of its efforts to protect young drivers.

“Start Smart” driving classes are designed to provide an interactive safe driving awareness class which will illustrate how poor choices behind the wheel of a car can affect the lives of numerous people.

“Start Smart” also focuses on responsibilities of newly licensed drivers, their parents and guardians, and collision avoidance techniques.

Funding for the program is provided by a grant awarded by the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

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A feller-buncher operates cutting trees and gathering them together to move to a landing area in the Alder Springs project area on the Mendocino National Forest. The feller-buncher is one of several types of mechanical equipment that is frequently utilized to complete ecological restoration projects. Courtesy photo.

California’s landscapes are under siege from a host of threats – catastrophic wildfire, climate change, invasive species and increasing human population put these delicate ecosystems at risk.

The U.S. Forest Service has recognized and battled these threats for decades, but recently the agency recognized the need for a more focused approach on ecological restoration as the primary goal for all land management actions.

The goal is to retain and restore ecological resilience of the National Forest lands to achieve sustainable ecosystems that provide a broad range of services and value.

Ecologically healthy and resilient land­scapes, rich in biodiversity, have greater capacity to adapt and thrive in the face of natural disturbances and large scale threats.

The Forest Service recognizes that it cannot achieve its goals alone.

“The emphasis will be placed on expanding and developing partnerships to increase organizational capacity and the use of large-scale stewardship contracts operating at the landscape level to achieve restoration goals,” said Pacific Southwest Regional Forester Randy Moore.

In Northern California, the Eldorado and Mendocino National Forests and the Lake Tahoe Basin have been working hard on various Ecological Restoration projects.

On the Eldorado National Forest, restoration activities continued this year in the Bassi Falls-Millionaire Camp area on the Pacific Ranger District.

In the past, vehicles drove across a web of user-created roads both on public and private lands to access Bassi Falls.

In 2002, the Pacific Ranger District coordinated with the adjacent land owner, Sierra Pacific Industries, to improve watershed conditions by closing user-created roads, blocking access and replanting denuded areas.

A nonmotorized hiking trail was constructed to allow access to Bassi Falls and a parking area was identified in the Millionaire Camp for access to a popular dispersed camping area along Big Silver Creek.

Shortly after the original restoration project, the private land in the area was acquired by the Forest Service through the Silver-Pearl land exchange.

Restoration efforts on this project have continued over the past several years with a focus on improving conditions on those lands acquired through the land exchange.

There are several areas where large amounts of soil have eroded away from motorized vehicle impacts, and are still eroding despite the removal of motorized vehicles. In addition, much of the hiking trail, which is made up of old user-created roads have poor drainage and erosion issues.

Current restoration activities include repairing hillsides that have old roads that are currently causing problems in various streams and rivers.

The work includes a variety of activities primarily to prevent water running down the middle of roads. In some cases, small dams will be constructed to catch sediment before it gets to streams and rivers.

Water quality problems will be resolved by removing some dirt roads and returning the hillside to a more natural state.

To do this, some roads will be plowed with heavy equipment so trees and other vegetation will grow where the road was located. We will also repair some streams in meadows that are eroding along the streamsides.

The Alder Springs area following a prescribed burn at Long Point on the Mendocino National Forest. Prescribed fire is an important tool for ecological restoration, reintroducing fire into the eco-system during precise weather conditions to safely reduce hazardous fuels, as well as returning nutrients to the soil and improving wildlife habitat. Courtesy photo.

The Mendocino National Forest has a variety of ecological restoration projects, including marijuana site restoration and fuels reduction.

Illegal marijuana cultivation not only poses a risk to public and employee safety, it also directly harms the environment.

The illegal use of pesticides can cause extensive long-term damage to natural resources. For example, the supply of public drinking water for hundreds of miles may be impacted due to one marijuana growing site.

Overall, the negative impact of marijuana sites on natural resources is severe. Human waste and trash are widespread, contamination from sites affects fish and wildlife habitats, and soil erosion is common.

In addition, water usage is extreme because each marijuana plant is estimated to require a gallon of water per day – water that is critical to native vegetation, wildlife and public drinking water sources.

“Reclaiming sites damaged by illegal marijuana cultivation is an important part of Ecological Restoration efforts,” said Mendocino National Forest Supervisor Lee Johnson. “All resources are touched by this activity – water, soils, wildlife and the overall health of the forest. Restoration efforts help not only the forest resources, but also benefit the public that uses the National Forest System lands for recreation, as well as for clean water and clean air.”

Another Ecological Restoration project on the Mendocino National Forest is the Alder Springs Fuel Reduction Project which was begun to thin the dense second-growth conifer stand that developed after a fire in the 1920s.

The intent was to improve forest health and reduce the risk of a stand-replacing fire in the future.

The Alder Springs project also included prescribed burning of adjacent non-conifer vegetation to expand the fuels reduction work and to maintain fire processes.

A carbon budget study was integrated into project implementation in partnership with Wheelabrator and Winrock International.

“The Alder Springs Project is an example of how Ecological Restoration has been essential to managing the resources on the Mendocino National Forest,” said Johnson. “Ecological Restoration on the Forest includes an integrated approach across all resources, utilizing opportunities on a broader landscape for better results, working with partners, finding opportunities for research for further understanding and development, and continuing the project through maintenance and developing a unified vision for future management.”

The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit recently completed the latest phase of tree thinning aimed at restoring the health of meadows, aspen groves and forest uplands near Big Meadow Creek.

Contract crews worked to thin conifers on 55 acres surrounding the popular Scotts Lake Trail, off Big Meadow Trailhead near Luther Pass on Highway 89.

In all, the Forest Service expects to treat about 640 acres, piling the material to burn later.

The tree-thinning is part of a larger project, the Big Meadow Creek Watershed Fire Regime Restoration, which will continue for several years.

Prior to the recent practice of actively suppressing fires, ground fires occurred naturally. The Washoe Tribe also deliberately used fire to encourage the growth of desired plant and tree species, such as willow and aspen, and attract the wildlife that depend on this vegetation. Without periodic fires that destroy conifer seedlings, the trees overtake aspen stands and meadows and can lead to forest die-off from insect infestation, drought or fire.

Once the initial thinning and pile burning are complete, the Forest Service will begin meadow burns that more closely simulate the natural role fire once played in the ecosystem.

“Thinning trees reduces competition for water, nutrients and sunlight, which helps meadow vegetation and aspens thrive and allows the remaining trees in forested area to grow larger,” said Forest Supervisor Nancy Gibson. “This work, funded through the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act, will help to restore the Big Meadow ecosystem, providing important wildlife habitat and preserving one of our special places in the Lake Tahoe Basin.”

“Ecological Restoration crosses land boundaries and includes many different projects,” said Moore. “Ultimately we want to create landscapes that survive and thrive in a changing environment and provide goods, services and recreation opportunities now and for generations to come.”

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Big Meadow Creek Watershed Fire Regime Restoration area after the project. Courtesy photo.

And some VA facilities might be “gaming” appointment dates so they appear to comply with a rule that veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, begin treatment within 14 days of seeking care.

Those were just two of many complaints leveled at VA officials who oversee the department’s burgeoning mental health care program during a hearing Nov. 30 of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.

The most disturbing testimony came from Michelle Washington, coordinator of PTSD services and evidence-based psychotherapy at the VA medical center in Wilmington, Delaware.

She said staff shortages are impacting patient care as needed therapy for severe PTSD cases gets delayed by weeks or months, and scheduled appointments are sacrificed to management’s higher goal of boosting new patient enrollment figures.

“Due to chronic short staffing at my facility, and the inability to manage my patient appointments based on their individual needs, I am frequently frustrated in my ability to provide that care,” Washington said.

The evidence-based psychotherapy she uses for severe or complex PTSD cases, said Washington, involves 10 to 12 consecutive weekly sessions during which patients “re-experience” the trauma and address “erroneous beliefs” about the event so they “better process” trauma memory.

But scheduling patients for a series of weekly appointments “is very difficult at my facility,” Washington said.

Patients wait as long as six weeks for their first appointment. While waiting, some patients lose their motivation for treatment while others see their PTSD worsen.

“Also, because scheduling clerks are under great pressure to bring new veterans in within 14 days, they may take one of my PTSD patient’s regular appointments for a new patient appointment, which hurts the effectiveness of my patient’s treatment,” said Washington.

The Wilmington center appears on paper to schedule appointments for PTSD patients within the mandated 14 days.

But the first visit often will involve paperwork and patient history and no therapy, allowing statistical records to indicate treatment has begun.

“As long as scheduling continues to be driven by clerks pressured by management to make the numbers look good, and as long as mental health providers have little or no say about where and when to best serve their patients,” Washington said, “this will keep happening.”

She also described a “pervasive shortage of primary care providers” that results in patients being referred erroneously to mental health care for lack of an initial comprehensive care assessment to diagnosis properly conditions that require medical care and not a mental health provider.

John Roberts, executive vice president for mental health at the Wounded Warrior Project, said many veterans still can’t get timely mental health appointments because staff hires aren’t keeping pace with the needs of veterans, particularly those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Why, after 10 years, do warriors have to struggle to get effective care for the signature wound in this war,” Roberts asked. “Why isn’t the under secretary for health … moving beyond measuring baseline access to initial mental health evaluations to systematically tracking access to sustained follow up care? If leaders spent more time speaking with the veterans, and their own clinicians, they would realize that the problems with VA mental health system run far deeper than even their data suggests.”

VA mental health care staffs have increased by 48 percent since 2006 while the number of veterans using mental health service has climbed 34 percent to reach 1.2 million in fiscal 2010.

Roberts urged VA to enhance mental health by using its authority to refer patients to civilian providers when VA resources don’t allow timely care, and by expanding peer support programs so that PTSD patients get mentoring and encouragement from veterans successfully treated.

The veterans affairs committee held its last hearing on mental health staff shortages in July with testimony of two veterans with PTSD who had attempted suicide and still couldn’t get denied timely appointments.

At the time Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), committee chairman, directed VA to survey some frontline mental health care providers to determine whether they had sufficient resources to give timely care.

At the Nov. 30 hearing Murray announced that the results “were not good.”

Forty percent of providers said they could not schedule an appointment in their clinic within the VA-mandated 14-day window and 70 percent said they did not have adequate staff or space to deliver timely care.

Yet VA officials in July told Congress that 95 percent of veterans were getting appointments within the 14-day window.

Murray asked Mary Schohn, director of VA mental health operations, to explain the “disconnect.”

Schohn conceded that Dr. Washington from Wilmington might have hit on the reason “that patients are not having access to the evidenced-based therapies in the way that we expect they should be.”

The query of VA mental health care providers did indicate, Schohn said, that “there’s access to the system but not necessarily access to the specific therapies in the time they should occur. And we are working on ensuring that that happens.”

Schohn said clarifying guidance on the 14-day rule has gone out to hospitals and clinics, and site visits are planned “to find ways to solve the issues that Dr. Washington presented here today.”

Sen. Richard Burr (N.C.), the committee’s ranking Republican, noted that VA’s mental health budget jumped by 25 percent in 2011 to $5.7 billion. He demanded that Schohn provide a full accounting of how that was spent.

Schohn conceded some “variability” in access to care across the VA system. But overall VA leads the private sector, and any other health system in the world, in delivering quality mental health care.

“I am personally concerned when I hear these stories about that not happening,” she said.

To comment, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., write to Military Update, P.O. Box 231111, Centreville, VA, 20120-1111 or visit: www.militaryupdate.com.

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The AccuWeather.com Long-Range Forecasting Team reported that while the worst of winter will be focused over the Midwest and Northwest, it does not mean other parts of the country are off the hook.

A weak to moderate La Niña is a key factor in the 2011-2012 Winter Forecast with more typical La Nina winter conditions expected.

"La Niña, a phenomenon that occurs when sea surface temperatures across the equatorial central and eastern Pacific are below normal, is what made last year's winter so awful for the Midwest and Northeast," AccuWeather.com Meteorologist Heather Buchman stated in the initial release of the 2011-2012 Winter Forecast.

La Niña winters feature a stronger Northern jet stream, an area of strong winds high above the Earth's surface. This positioning and strength of the jet stream tends to cause storms to track across the northern tier, spelling harsh winters from the Northern Plains to the Ohio Valley.

Typically, the southern tier of the U.S. ends up mild and dry in a La Niña winter. There will be some exceptions to that this year with wet weather anticipated for parts of the Lower Mississippi Valley.

Another big factor in the winter forecast is the potential for a blocking pattern to develop with the NAO, or North Atlantic Oscillation, possibly turning negative for a time. This essentially means that a large area of high pressure could set up over Greenland, forcing cold blasts to reach the U.S.

"The lack of sea ice has been believed to contribute to the development of blocking. This past summer and early fall, sea ice reached near-record low levels," according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center.

Paul Pastelok and the Long-Range Forecasting Team that he leads still think Old Man Winter will leave the biggest impression on the northern Rockies, northern Plains and the Midwest.

It will be a snowier-than-usual season for the Midwest, which will lie to the north and west of the frequent storm track, or in the "sweet spot" of the storms.

Typical of a La Niña year, the harshest cold will blast the northern Plains and northern Rockies.

Winter looking wetter for California, still stormy for Northwest

The 2011-2012 Winter Forecast was updated to show even more rain and snow for northern and central California with the Pacific jet stream expected to hover over this area for most of the winter season.

Farther inland, this winter is expected to be another active one for the northern Sierra and interior Northwest with above-normal snowfall forecast.

In contrast, the Pacific Northwest, including much of Washington and western Oregon, will get some breaks from the wet weather.

"Watch for a 'Pineapple Connection' during the mid- to late season that will send some areas well above-normal precipitation," Pastelok said. This means "snow in the mountains and rain and mudslides in the valleys."

Also known as the "Pineapple Express," the Pineapple Connection is a phenomenon that occurs when a strong, persistent flow of tropical moisture sets up from the Hawaiian islands to the West Coast of the U.S. This phenomenon often leads to excessive rain and incredible snow events.

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Steelhead and Chinook in the Napa River in 2008. Courtesy photo.

NAPA COUNTY, Calif. – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Napa County officials on Friday announced the details of nearly $3.3 million in federal, state and local funding aimed at restoring water quality and riparian and aquatic habitats in the Napa River watershed.

As part of two major restoration efforts covering 15 miles of the Napa River, more than 40 landowners have committed to converting nearly 135 acres of farmland to wildlife habitat.

Regional steelhead and Chinook salmon populations have suffered steep declines as a result of high concentrations of fine sediment in the Napa River, which clouds spawning gravel.

In-stream erosion has degraded the once complex channel, severely reducing rearing habitat for these species.

The river, which runs 55 miles from Mt. St. Helena to the San Pablo Bay, is also prone to seasonal flooding from November to April.

“Despite long-term habitat degradation and falling fish populations, the Napa River represents one of the most important watersheds within the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary for the recovery of regional steelhead populations,” said EPA Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest, Jared Blumenfeld. “This $1.5 million EPA grant will help manage erosion, improve spawning gravel, and create habitat for critically endangered salmon.”

At a press conference along the banks of the Napa River in Rutherford, with fall run Chinook salmon spawning below, U.S. EPA Administrator Jared Blumenfeld was joined by U.S. Congressman Mike Thompson, County Supervisor Diane Dillon, and key federal, state and local officials to highlight the pioneering private-public partnership designed to improve water quality and salmon habitat and address eroding streambanks within this important agricultural area.

The Napa River has cut down so much that it’s up to three times deeper than it once was, creating vertical stream banks up to 30 feet high. In some locations the banks have become unstable and subject to catastrophic collapse. The river channel is also much narrower than before, making flows more erosive.

To stabilize river banks and create wildlife habitat, vineyard owners in the Rutherford area have committed to converting 20 acres of agriculture land back to river habitat.

Landowners are continuing the restoration of the Napa River south of Rutherford between Oakville and Oak Knoll in the Napa Valley and in total, have committed to restoring more than 115 acres.

“Today’s announcement is a win for our environment, wildlife, and economy,” said Rep. Thompson (D-St. Helena). “We are reducing erosion and sediment runoff, we are improving steelhead and Chinook salmon habitat, and we are strengthening the Napa River which is at the heart of our economy, giving life to agriculture and our thriving wine industry that pumps more than $61 billion into our economy every year. I thank the grape growers and landowners for their partnership and commitment to this restoration process.”

The Napa River historically supported a run of 6,000 to 8,000 steelhead, but by the late 1960s those numbers had declined to an estimated 2,000 adults. Today the steelhead run is estimated to be less than a few hundred adults.

The EPA grant will help restore Napa River water quality by implementing several priority actions of the Napa River Sediment total maximum daily load (TMDL) and habitat enhancement plan.

The grant, with nearly $1.8 Million in matching and leveraged funds, will restore a nearly mile-long section of the Napa River in Rutherford to improve steelhead and Chinook habitat and water quality, complete restoration design along an additional 3.9 miles of the Napa River in Oakville and eradicate five acres of invasive non-native Giant Reed and plant native riparian trees.

It also will assist ranchers to reduce erosion on 80 percent of Napa watershed grazing lands in the watershed, implement BMPs to reduce sediment runoff from rural roads and stream crossings throughout the watershed and establish a tracking system to advance water quality improvements through increased accountability.

The primary grant recipient is Napa County, in partnership with the Napa County Resource Conservation District, the California Land Stewardship Institute, U.C. Cooperative Extension and the Rutherford Dust Restoration Team of the Rutherford Dust Society landowner group.

The grant builds on more than two decades of local stewardship involving landowners, the County, elected officials and partner agencies.

“We are very grateful to be receiving this grant from EPA and also grateful to all our other project partners in restoring the Napa River, including the voters in Napa County who approved County Measure ‘A,’ which has been vital in making all this possible,” said Napa County Supervisor Diane Dillon.

The Napa River watershed has many active stakeholders showcasing environmental innovation and leadership, and represents an opportunity to succeed in minimizing polluted runoff, restoring impaired waters, maintaining native fisheries and implementing pollution standards.

“The River Restoration Project is striking a balance between economy and ecology,” said local vintner and land manager Davie Pina. “Landowners, the community, and government are investing equitably in the preservation of our environmental and agricultural heritage for the benefit of future generations.”

The EPA has been active in the Napa River watershed providing technical and financial assistance since the early 1990s. Since 2007, Napa has received approximately $4.8 Million in EPA grants for sediment management.

The grant funding source is $22 million appropriated since 2008 for San Francisco Bay, currently supporting 38 projects, with 53 organizations leveraging and matching more than $42 million.

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Local volunteers will be on the lookout for ospreys and other birds that make their home in Lake County, Calif., during the annual Clear Lake Christmas Bird Count on Saturday, December 17, 2011. Photo courtesy of the Clear Lake State Park Interpretive Association.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County’s Redbud Audubon Society is preparing to participate in the national Audubon Society’s 112th annual Christmas Bird Count.

The national Christmas Bird Count takes place this year between Wednesday, Dec. 14, and Thursday, Jan. 5.

Individual counts are held on specific days, and in Lake County, the 37th annual Clear Lake Christmas Bird Count, will take place on Saturday, Dec. 17.

Gary Langham, chief scientist for the National Audubon Society, calls the annual bird count “a globally recognized example of crowd-science.”

The National Audubon Society said the annual bird counts collect data important to the long-term health of North America’s diverse bird populations, and helps track how those populations have changed since the first bird count was held.

“Data from Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count are at the heart of hundreds peer-reviewed scientific studies,” Langham said. “CBC data have informed the U.S. State of the Birds Report, issued by the Department of the Interior, and modeled after Audubon’s annual reports begun in 2004. For example, in 2009, CBC analyses revealed the dramatic impact climate change is already having on birds across the continent."

The inspiration for the first count in 1900 came from Frank Chapman, founder of “Bird-Lore” – today’s “Audubon” magazine – who suggested that people hunt birds only to count them. The National Audubon Society said Chapman’s proposal was an alternative to “side hunts” in which teams of hunters competed to shoot the most animals and birds.

The 2010 national bird count included a record 2,215 counts from all 50 states, all Canadian provinces and 107 count circles in Latin America, the Caribbean and the Pacific Islands, the National Audubon Society reported. Approximately 62,624 people tallied more than 60 million birds.

“Everyone who takes part in the Christmas Bird Count plays a critical role in helping us focus attention and conservation where it is most needed.” said Audubon Christmas Bird Count Director Geoff LeBaron.

LeBaron said the work is the foundation of Audubon’s “WatchList,” which identifies species in need of conservation help.

The national organization said the count also helps spotlight success stories, such as the comeback of the bald eagle and increases in other populations that have benefited from conservation.

In preparation for the local bird count, Redbud Audubon will hold a meeting to discuss bird identification on Thursday, Dec. 15, at 7:15 p.m. at the Kelseyville Presbyterian Church Social Hall, 5430 Third St.

Society member and photographer Brad Barnwell will lead a discussion on bird identification and characteristics of birds that count participants may see in the field.

Everyone from beginners to veteran birders are welcome to take part; beginners can learn from more experienced observers and experts during the count.

Each count group has a designated circle of 15 miles in diameter, according to the National Audubon Society.

First-time counters will be invited to participate in one of two count teams: the Anderson Marsh State Historic Park team led by Field Trips Leader Pat Harmon or the Clear Lake State Park team led by Barnwell.

Both groups start at 8 a.m. at either the Anderson Marsh parking lot or the Clear Lake State Park Visitor Center parking lot.

After the completion of the Clear Lake Christmas Bird Count on Dec. 17, participants are invited for a pizza dinner at Kelseyville Pizza at 6 p.m., where the group will compile the tally of birds sighted that day.

Anyone interested in participating in the bird count is asked to contact Darlene Hecomovich at 707-928-5591 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews, on Tumblr at www.lakeconews.tumblr.com, on Google+, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews .

Todd Allen Drawdy, 45, whose booking sheet lists his occupation as self-employed in the construction business, was arrested on Nov. 30 by Det. Kellie Joseph, who recently joined the sheriff’s office detective division, according to jail records.

Drawdy is being held at at the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility on felony charges of lewd and lascivious acts with a child under 14, oral copulation with a child under 14, oral copulation with a person under 18, sexual penetration with a foreign object, aggravated sexual assault of a minor by force, continuous sexual assault of a minor by force and violation of his probation.

Capt. James Bauman said sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to Kelseyville High School on Nov. 18 where faculty had developed information that one of their students had been the victim of sexual abuse.

Further investigation revealed that Drawdy had allegedly been committing continued acts of molestation and sexual abuse on at least one victim for the past eight years. Bauman said the case was then turned over to the Sheriff’s Major Crimes Unit.

With the assistance of the Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office, on Nov. 29, Lake County detectives coordinated an extensive interview with the victim in Sonoma County where she has been staying with relatives since the investigation began, Bauman said.

The following day, on Nov. 30, sheriff’s detectives located Drawdy at his home in Lucerne and arrested him, according to Bauman.

Earlier this year, the Lake County District Attorney’s Office had turned over two other cases involving Drawdy to the Attorney General’s Office because Don Anderson, elected district attorney last year, had previous legal-related interactions with Drawdy, which created a conflict of interest for his office, as Lake County News reported in April.

The earlier cases turned over to the Attorney General’s Office involved charges against Drawdy of misdemeanor annoying or molesting a child and a probation violation, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

Because of that existing conflict, Bauman said it’s anticipated the most recent case against Drawdy also will be filed with the Attorney General’s Office.

Sheriff’s detectives also anticipate identifying additional victims as their investigation continues, Bauman said.

Anyone who may have information regarding this case is encouraged to contact Det. Joseph at 707-262-4233.

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This vehicle went off of Highway 20 in Lucerne, Calif., and rolled over but shopped short of going completely into Clear Lake on Thursday, December 8, 2011. Photo by Nicole McQ.

LUCERNE, Calif. – A Thursday vehicle rollover that ended up with a car on the lakeshore resulted in no injuries, according to initial information provided by the California Highway Patrol and witnesses.

The single-vehicle incident occurred shortly before 4:30 p.m. on Highway 20 at Bel Ray Avenue in Lucerne, according to the CHP.

The vehicle, heading eastbound, went off the road, rolled over and came to rest on its wheels on the lake’s edge, about 30 feet off the roadway, according to the CHP and witness reports.

A young man was driving the vehicle with an older man sleeping in the passenger seat when the vehicle went off the road. A witness reported that the driver said he was blinded by the sun, which led to him going off the road.

The car’s two occupants were able to get out of the car and reported they were OK, according to reports from the scene.

The men were seen by medical personnel; the CHP’s preliminary report indicated they were not injured.

A tow truck was called to the scene, as reports indicated the vehicle would need to be pulled up over boulders in order to get it off the shoreline.

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