LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Local hospitals are dealing with an influx of patients due to the COVID-19 delta variant, and in one case it has resulted in a new employee vaccination policy.

To help protect its patients, workforce and communities from the highly contagious COVID-19 delta variant, not-for-profit Sutter Health — the parent organization of Sutter Lakeside Hospital in Lakeport — on Wednesday announced a new policy requiring its workforce to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Sept. 30.

“Our integrated network has a shared commitment to protecting the health and safety of our patients and the communities we serve,” said Sarah Krevans, president and CEO of Sutter Health. “I am grateful the majority of our workforce and allied physicians have already demonstrated their leadership and their confidence in the COVID-19 vaccines by getting fully vaccinated.”

Sutter joins a growing number of leading organizations across the country who are requiring employees to get vaccinated to help protect against the virus.

The new policy at Sutter comes as the highly infectious delta variant is rapidly increasing the number of COVID-19 cases.

“Our rigorous COVID-19 infection prevention protocols have so far helped protect the health and safety of our patients and our workforce,” said William Isenberg, M.D., Ph.D., Sutter Health’s chief quality and safety officer. “However, these measures alone are not enough against the increasing threat of highly infectious variants like delta.”

Isenberg said the only way to get ahead of this virus once and for all is for everyone who is eligible to get vaccinated as soon as possible. “The unfortunate reality is that the delta variant is driving a surge in hospitalizations throughout our network and around the country, mostly among unvaccinated people.”

Lake County Public Health officials have reported in recent weeks that both Adventist Health Clear Lake and Sutter Lakeside Hospital have had more COVID-19 patients than ER beds.

That’s because Lake County’s case rate per 100,000 over a seven-day average has remained the highest in the state for the past month. On Wednesday, it was 57 per 100,000, according to the California Department of Public Health.

Over the weekend, Charlie Evans, MD, Lake County’s acting Public Health officer, had reported that the critically high county case rate had been putting the two hospitals under strain for the previous two weeks.

The situation prompted Evans to ask people not to overuse the county’s limited intensive care and emergency medicine resources, but to seek testing, vaccination and care for mild symptoms through other health care facilities and clinics.

Kim Lewis,a spokesperson for Adventist Health, told Lake County News that Lake County is currently at a positivity rate of 17%, where the rest of the state is around 6%.

“We are seeing an influx of patients with COVID-19 related symptoms and are providing them with appropriate care,” said Lewis.

Lewis said that because patients’ needs change daily, the hospital isn’t able to provide an exact count. “We have a 25 bed in-patient capacity, but can expand as needed.”

Lewis added, “As we continue to treat patients with COVID-19, we would like to remind our community and neighbors of the important role we all must play. Getting vaccinated and following CDC and state guidelines supports the health and well-being of community members and the physicians and nurses on the front lines.”

Ahead of its vaccination policy announcement, Sutter Health earlier this week said it was having challenges with growing numbers of COVID-19 patients.

“As much as we’re all ready to be done with the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s not yet done with us. The highly contagious delta variant is driving an increase in hospitalizations throughout our network and around the country, mostly among unvaccinated people,” the organization said in a statement.

Sutter Health urged people to get vaccinated, to be tested if necessary and informed them that they will need to wear masks at all of the organization's facilities.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The state reported this week that all nine properties in Lake County whose owners enrolled in California's statewide Consolidated Debris Removal Program have cleared the entire debris removal process and been returned to county officials to begin the permitting process for reconstruction.

Those Lake County properties were burned in last year’s LNU Lightning Complex.

The return to county officials of the final outstanding property by state debris officials makes Lake County the second Bay Area county with every participating property returned as ready for the start of the permitting process.

Earlier, state debris officials returned the last of 28 participating properties in Mendocino County to county officials.

Properties are returned to officials in their respective county after the abatement of bulk quantities of asbestos containing materials; the removal of burned metal, concrete, ash and contaminated soils; confirmation by a certified laboratory that soil samples taken from the property meet state health and environmental standards; the implementation of erosion control measures; the removal of hazardous trees; and a final walk-through by state debris officials to make sure debris removal operations on the property meet the standards of the program.

To date, debris officials have returned an additional 471 properties to officials in four other Bay Area counties as ready to start the permitting process.

State debris officials have returned 227 participating properties to officials in Napa County. The 227 returned properties represent 70.5% of the 322 properties whose owners chose to take part in either the full debris removal program or the program's hazardous trees only element.

The state also has returned 160 or 65.6%, of 244 participating properties in Sonoma County as well as 75, or 98.7%, of 76 participating properties in Santa Clara County to local officials.

In addition, state officials have sent back nine, or 30%, of the 30 participating properties in San Mateo County to local officials.

As of Aug. 4, 2,254, or 50.1%, of the 4,497 properties statewide participating in either the full debris removal program or the hazardous trees only element of the program have been returned to their respective county to begin the permitting process.

In 2020, more than 8,000 climate-induced wildfires burned 4.2 million acres of California, destroying more than 5,700 homes.

Property owners incur no direct costs for participation in the state-managed clean up and recovery program, administered by the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, or CalRecycle, and the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services, or Cal OES, in collaboration with 25 participating counties.

Major clearing work: 98% complete

To date, the remains of 2020 wildfire survivors’ homes and property — burned metal, concrete, ash, and contaminated soil — have now been cleared from 98.3% of the properties enrolled in California’s statewide Consolidated Debris Removal Program.

Most properties still need critical soil testing, erosion control, and hazard tree removal to ensure the lots are safe for families to rebuild.

Wildfire survivors had the option to either use their own contractor or enroll in the state-managed program. Of the 5,991 properties with damage from the 2020 fires, 3,842 signed up to have the remains of their homes and other structures cleared by the state.

An additional 655 property owners signed up to participate in the Hazardous Trees Only element of the program.

As of Aug. 4, state-managed crews cleared burned metal, concrete, ash and contaminated soil from 3,775 of the properties throughout the state participating in the full debris removal program.

In Napa County, crews have removed eligible debris from 310, or 99.4%, of the 312 properties taking part in the full program.

Earlier, crews have cleared debris from the last of 214 Sonoma County properties participating in the full program, as well as from all 72 Santa Clara County participating in the full program.

State contractors also have cleared eligible debris from all 28 Mendocino County properties participating in the full program; as well as all 13 San Mateo County and all nine Lake County properties participating in the full program.

Before homeowners can begin rebuilding, cleared properties need additional work including:

— Separate contractors collect soil samples for verification at a state certified laboratory that they meet state environmental health and safety standards.

— Contractors next may install erosion control measures.

— Certified arborists or professional foresters assess wildfire-damaged trees in danger of falling on the public or public infrastructure for removal by separate contractors.

— Finally, state officials inspect the property to verify all completed work meets state standards. Debris officials submit a final inspection report to local officials to approve the property for reconstruction.

Property owners can track the above data on the Debris Operations Dashboard for the 2020 statewide wildfires. The dashboard is updated every hour and provides users with the ability to search by county or address.

 

For many Americans, buying fresh local food at one of the estimated 9,000 farmers markets across the U.S. is one of summer’s pleasures. But farmers markets aren’t just nice amenities. Over the past 18 months, many have filled food supply gaps caused by COVID-19 shutdowns.

While numerous farmers markets shut down at the start of the pandemic, many soon reopened under state or local guidelines that mandated masks, social distancing and other precautions.

When grocery store supply chains were disrupted, consumer interest in local foods spiked, along with concerns about exposure to the coronavirus while shopping. Farmers market managers adapted swiftly, experimenting with options like prepackaged goods and drive-thru pickup.

In fact, many farmers markets enjoyed their strongest-ever sales in 2020. Affluent shoppers became more interested in buying local food, while lower-income buyers were able to use federal benefits like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Stepping into this expanded role was no mean feat – but we know from our research in city planning and urban food systems that with adequate support, marketplaces respond vigorously to crises and opportunities.

The fall and rise of urban farmers markets

Farmers have been selling their goods at public markets in the U.S. for centuries. Many U.S. cities evicted or sidelined street vendors in the mid-20th century to make room for large-scale retail stores. But in the 1970s and ‘80s, farmers markets started reappearing in middle-class communities and suburbs.

This resurgence, which reflected the rise of the environmental movement, was most evident in university towns like Berkeley, California, and Madison, Wisconsin. In these communities, restaurants, farmers markets and educated consumers converged around the idea of eating locally produced food. Consumers wanted to taste flavors they remembered from childhood, and a new generation of growers were learning and practicing ecologically friendly farming methods.

At the same time, the U.S. Department of Agriculture became interested in the related phenomena of organic products and local foods sold directly to consumers. In the 1990s, the agency began to document the number of U.S. farmers markets.

Cities like Des Moines, Iowa, and San Antonio began to promote “placemaking” initiatives around markets, using them to help create quality public spaces. By the 2000s multifunctional markets became common, often serving racially and economically diverse populations.

For example, by 2019 Chicago had 27 outdoor farmers markets across the city, offering goods such as clothing and furniture along with food. Some cities repurposed sites such as fairgrounds and drive-in theaters to house outdoor markets.

Governments began to view markets as policy tools for promoting food security, fostering new farmers and supporting place-based community development. Advocacy organizations supporting farmers markets also emerged to help markets attract public and private support. In 2008 the Farmers Market Coalition, a California-based nonprofit, was launched to represent markets around the country.

Filling COVID gaps

The pandemic worsened food insecurity in the U.S., where it already was a serious concern. A lack of reliable access to healthy food contributes to many long-term health issues, and has severe implications for child development.

According to the nonprofit organization Feeding America, food insecurity in the U.S. rose dramatically because of the pandemic. In 2020, 45 million people – including 15 million children – experiencing food insecurity, up from 35 million in 2019.

Farmers markets have become important tools for reducing food insecurity over the past 15 years. Most studies that measure food access focus on two factors: households’ proximity to food sources and access to transportation. Food sources can include supermarkets, discount stores, convenience stores, farmers markets and food pantries. Among these options, consumers purchase healthy food mostly at supermarkets and farmers markets.

Federal funding distributed through the U.S. Department of Agriculture transformed food security during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Coronavirus Food Assistance Program took a variety of steps to move locally and regionally produced food into schools, food banks and farmers markets.

About US$19 billion went to these various outlets. Farmers markets helped to expand access to food, with most states declaring them to be essential services.

While there are no uniform national statistics, surveys and media reports show that many food-insecure people shopped at farmers markets during the pandemic. A survey by the Farmers Market Coalition found that in the summer of 2020, purchases using SNAP benefits – the largest federal food assistance program – increased over 2019 levels at nearly 40% of markets that responded. From central Texas to western North Carolina to Connecticut, farmers markets reported dramatic increases in customers using SNAP and Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer cards.

Farmers markets for the 21st century

As the pandemic showed, farmers markets make communities more resilient during catastrophic events. We are working to help markets become more effective and efficient so that they can play even larger roles in their communities.

We have developed a toolkit called Farm 2 Facts for market managers to help them collect and analyze economic, ecological and other data to address a wide range of questions. For example, markets have used the program to track visitor counts and demographic trends, conduct outreach to low-income and minority shoppers and estimate the markets’ local economic impacts.

We also are developing ecosystem metrics to help farmers and markets educate consumers about farmers markets’ important ecological benefits. This tool will enable farmers to measure how their products promote environmental goals such as biodiversity and soil health.

[Over 100,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletter to understand the world. Sign up today.]

Technology investments are helping farmers markets to grow. One priority is having the capability to process electronic benefits transactions so that the markets can serve customers at all income levels. And decision-support software like Farm 2 Facts can help them document how farmers markets promote health, equality and sustainability.

The next time you visit a farmers market, look past the corn and cucumbers. You’ll see an organization that’s promoting health and wellness, contributing to the local economy and bringing people together.

Edna Ledesma, Assistant Professor of Planning and Landscape Architecture, University of Wisconsin-Madison and Alfonso Morales, Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor of Planning and Landscape Architecture, University of Wisconsin-Madison

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The California Highway Patrol said a Ukiah woman died in a head-on wreck on Highway 20 at Blue Lakes on Saturday afternoon.

Brittany Marie Turner, 31, was identified as the crash victim, said Lt. Corey Paulich of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

In its Wednesday report on the crash, the CHP’s Clear Lake Area office said the crash occurred at 2:50 p.m. Saturday on Highway 20 west of Blue Lakes Road.

Brittany Turner was driving a 1997 Mazda Protege sedan eastbound with 34-year-old Patrick Turner of Ukiah riding as her passenger, the CHP said.

Driving westbound and approaching the Mazda was 18-year-old Robert Fetzer of Redwood Valley in a 2001 Volkswagen Jetta, with passenger Taylor Travis, 19, of Ukiah, the CHP said.

The CHP said that for reasons still under investigation, Brittany Turner’s Mazda sedan crossed over the solid double yellow lines and collided head-on into Fetzer’s Volkswagen.

Both vehicles became disabled within the westbound lane, the CHP said.

The CHP said Brittany Turner was extricated from the vehicle but, after life saving measures, she succumbed to her injuries on scene.

Neither alcohol nor drugs are suspected with the parties involved in the crash, the CHP said.

The CHP said Patrick Turner, who was not using his safety equipment, suffered major injuries. Fetzer had minor injuries, as did Travis.

The crash at Blue Lakes was the second fatal automobile wreck in Lake County on Saturday. Earlier in the day, a Hidden Valley Lake man died after his pickup was hit by a box truck near Middletown, as Lake County News has reported.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — A Hidden Valley Lake man died Saturday morning in a crash on Highway 29 south of Middletown.

William James Wight, 51, was identified as the man who died in the wreck, said Lt. Corey Paulich of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

The California Highway Patrol’s Clear Lake Area office said in a Wednesday report that the crash happened at 8:37 a.m. Saturday on Highway 29 south of Mirabel Road.

Frederick Gibson II, 34, of Roseville was traveling north on Highway 29 in a 2016 International truck, the CHP said. Reports from firefighters at the scene said the vehicle was a large box truck carrying mail.

At the same time, Wight was driving a 2020 Ford pickup truck southbound, the CHP said.

The CHP said that for an undetermined reason, Gibson allowed his truck to travel off the east road edge.

When Gibson reentered the road, the truck traveled out of control across both lanes of traffic, broadsiding Wight’s pickup on the west shoulder, the CHP report said.

The report said Wight had attempted to avoid the crash by moving his pickup onto the west shoulder.

The CHP said Wight died of his injuries at the scene.

Gibson suffered minor injuries in the crash, according to the report.

Alcohol and drugs were not factors in the crash, the CHP said.

The crash was the first of two fatal wrecks reported in Lake County on Saturday. Later in the day, a Ukiah woman would die in a head-on wreck on Highway 20 at Blue Lakes.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved an urgency ordinance to once again require masking in county facilities and also passed an updated workplace protocol as Lake County’s COVID-19 case rate continues to climb.

Supervisor Jessica Pyska, who last month presented a resolution urging Lake County residents to mask in indoor public settings as the case rate started to rise, brought the urgency ordinance requiring masking in county-run facilities, regardless of vaccination status.

Pyska, the newest member of the board, also helped start the meeting by asking the community to contemplate how to work through fears, anxieties and anger and come together to fight the COVID-19 battle on a united front as a prelude to the board’s moment of silence.

Before taking up the urgency ordinance, the supervisors got a COVID-19 situational update from Dr. Gary Pace, formerly the county Public Health officer, and epidemiologist Sarah Marikos.

Pace, who left his position with the county in the spring, is now back in clinical practice. He gave the update as Dr. Charlie Evans, the acting county Public Health officer, traveled to Kenya this week to work at a clinic he helped found there.

Pace, now sporting a full white beard, said the situation in Lake County right now is “very concerning.”

The state COVID-19 case statistics dashboard on Tuesday showed Lake County continued to lead California for its cases per 100,000. For a seven-day average, the county is now at 57 cases per 100,000. That rate has tripled over the last three weeks.

It was also reported on Tuesday that both hospital intensive care units were full, with the Sutter emergency room having more COVID-19 patients than ER beds.

The concerns were further explained in Mariko’s report, which noted that Lake County has had its 66th death over the past week, the third in the past month. She said Lake County also had the highest COVID-19 case rate statewide for all of July.

As of July 31, there were 13 Lake County residents hospitalized for COVID-19, numbers that Marikos said are reaching the county’s winter surge. Those numbers, she added, don’t cover patients transported out of the county.

At the same time, she said only about 53% of eligible Lake County residents are vaccinated.

However, Marikos noted some good news — indications are that vaccinations are increasing across Lake County and California as a whole.

Pace said the situation is worrisome, with a lot of vulnerable, unvaccinated people.

“The most important thing to remember is that the vaccine continues to be very protective against serious illness and death. This is really a blessing,” said Pace.

He said the situation has become more confusing for the public because some vaccinated people are getting the virus.

Pace said the data is very clear that 90% of people in hospitals are unvaccinated and tend to be younger, ranging from those in their 20s to 40s. At the same time, the Delta variant appears to be much more contagious than originally believed, so vaccinated people can get and spread it.

Masking discussions are the result, with Pace saying that vaccination is not adequate to stop the spread. He suggested that had the county not had the vaccination push over the last several months, the hospitals would probably be overwhelmed.

Pace said many Bay Area health departments are making indoor masking mandatory now, with businesses responsible for enforcing the mandates. He added he thinks indoor masking is only common sense.

Looking ahead to September and October, Pace said it should be expected to get worse.

He said new things are being learned everyday about the virus. “This virus is changing, the guidance is evolving and we’re probably not going to be reaching herd immunity anytime soon.”

As such, Pace said we’ll be dealing with COVID-19 for awhile, and eventually our immune systems will get used to it, like flu or the common cold. “Right now our immune systems have not seen this thing before and we’re struggling to keep up with it.”

Pace encouraged everyone to take the situation very seriously, noting the community is now in a new phase and things are becoming more complicated.

Supervisor Tina Scott asked about putting back up barriers. Pace said he thinks barriers help, however, they primarily prevent droplet spread. That doesn’t address the aerosol component, the tiny particles that stay in the air and circulate. “The mask is preferable. The mask is better.”

“We’re clearly in a dangerous place right now,” said Pyska, noting her worries for people and the economy.

Three people have died this month. “That is real,” she said, and she said connecting those statistics to faces might convince people that the pandemic is a reality.

“Ultimately we have to come together and we have to work through this as a community,” and that’s difficult when so much disinformation swirling around us, said Pyska.

Board discusses urgency ordinance, workplace rules

In introducing the urgency ordinance, which was added as an extra item to the Tuesday agenda, Pyska said it was time for the board to make the difficult position to return to masking in county facilities, just like the Superior Court had done on the courthouse’s fourth floor.

She said the county is having outbreaks within its ranks, with staff out and quarantining or recovering, and they can’t risk productivity.

“This is a temporary Band-Aid fix until more of our county can become vaccinated and we can begin to move out of this pandemic together. We’ve done this before and we can do this again,” said Pyska.

County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson said she polled more than 20 department heads on the urgency ordinance and got 18 responses. Of those, 17 supported the masking proposal and one said they would uphold it if the board passed it. The president of the county’s largest employee union also offered her support.

Board Chair Bruno Sabatier said he wanted a trigger for when masking would no longer be necessary.

Huchingson said the ordinance language had a trigger — that masking must be observed while the present COVID-19 State of Emergency continues to exist, or until otherwise ordered by the Board of Supervisors. However, Sabatier wanted something more specific, like a case number threshold, pointing out that the county has been in an emergency for 18 months.

Sheriff Brian Martin said he also supported it, but like Sabatier he wanted a trigger.

County Counsel Anita Grant said some care should be taken to determine a trigger, explaining that another set of circumstances could arise that could make it a good idea to continue the urgency ordinance.

County Librarian Christopher Veach told the board he agreed with requiring everyone to mask.

Veach explained that the honor system with regard to requiring unvaccinated visitors to mask isn’t working. He said many people are entering the libraries unmasked who are likely unvaccinated, such as children.

As a result, Veach said he’s heard from library patrons or staff who are concerned about CVOID-19 and who feel that the library is not a safe place.

Pyska offered the urgency ordinance, which the board approved 5-0. It went into effect immediately and will remain in effect for 45 days unless the board decides to end it earlier or extend it.

Also on Tuesday, Human Resources Director Pam Samac presented an updated county COVID-19 workplace protocol that, in anticipation of the masking urgency ordinance’s approval, required staff and the public entering the building to immediately begin masking.

The board voted unanimously to add that item as an extra item as Huchingson said it was necessary to keep the protocol in line with the urgency ordinance.

Sabatier raised his concerns about exceptions in the updated protocol, such as allowing staff to drink and eat together unmasked in break rooms.

Sheriff Martin also raised questions about exceptions, noting challenges his dispatchers had with masking.

Huchingson said county staff had managed masking for months, and questioned why it couldn't now be managed.

To help clarify the situation, and to ensure the protocol was properly in line with the ordinance, at Grant’s suggestion the board voted to reopen the urgency ordinance discussion, adding a line that said the board directed the Count Administrative Office to prepare protocols to carry out the mandate in a manner reasonable for county employees, subject to board approval.

The board approved the urgency ordinance with those changes and then returned to the workplace protocol discussion, approving it unanimously.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. — The Clearlake City Council is set to consider whether to give its approval to the sale of the company that is the city’s franchise waste hauler.

The council will meet in closed session at 5 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 5, to discuss potential litigation as well as a lawsuit against the county treasurer-tax collector and an opioid lawsuit against Amerisourcebergen Drug Corp. and hold negotiations with Burbank Housing Corp. for property at 6885 Old Highway 53, before the public portion of the meeting begins at 6 p.m. in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.

The meeting will be broadcast live on the city's YouTube channel or the Lake County PEGTV YouTube Channel. Community members also can participate via Zoom or can attend in person.

The agenda can be found here.

Comments and questions can be submitted in writing for City Council consideration by sending them to City Clerk Melissa Swanson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. You can also visit the city’s town hall site and submit written comments at https://www.opentownhall.com/portals/327/Issue_9055. Identify the subject you wish to comment on in your email’s subject line or in your town hall submission.

To give the council adequate time to review your questions and comments, please submit your written comments before 4 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 5.

Each public comment emailed to the city clerk will be read aloud by the mayor or a member of staff for up to three minutes or will be displayed on a screen. Public comment emails and town hall public comment submissions that are received after the beginning of the meeting will not be included in the record.

The council on Thursday will present a proclamation promoting tolerance, respect, equity and inclusion, and get an update on the progress of the city’s 2021 Chip Seal Project.

Under council business, the council will be asked to approve the sale of its franchise waste hauler, Clearlake Waste Solutions, to Waste Connections.

City Manager Alan Flora’s report to the council notes that the city entered into a franchise agreement with Clearlake Waste Solutions in 2011 for waste services.

“The franchise agreement requires that the City approve any sale of stock outside of the three primary stockholders. The owners have negotiated a sale to Waste Connections in July and are asking for the City’s approval of the sale,” Flora said.

He said city representatives have met with both the owners of Clearlake Waste Solutions and representatives of Waste Connections.

After the sale Waste Connections will be hiring Bruce McCracken, the vice president of Clearlake Waste Solutions, to run the company locally, and the name and other operations of Clearlake Waste Solutions will remain the same.

“Staff believe that with the retention of Mr. McCracken and the process of allowing continued local control of the operations, the positive partnership the City has enjoyed with Clearlake Waste solutions will remain in place,” Flora wrote.

In a letter written to Flora dated July 14, McCracken and David Carroll, Clearlake Waste Solutions’ president, wrote that due to factors including increasing costs and the ever-changing regulatory environment, they had been considering a “stronger partner.”

Ultimately, they chose the Texas-based Waste Connections US Inc., whose subsidiaries serve 25 other California communities.

“Why WCI? We chose WCI as our suitor because of their proven commitment to staying local,” McCracken and Carroll wrote.

They added, “WCI ownership provides everything necessary to ensure the continued strength and success of both CWS and the CIty of Clearlake.”

Also on Thursday, staff also will update the council regarding the status of ongoing Code Enforcement cases at 14541 and 14525 Lakeshore Drive and consider rejecting bids for the Sulphur Fire Roadway Disaster Repair Project.

In other business, the council will consider authorizing the city manager to prepare and submit two program income only applications for $420,000 through the California Housing and Community Development CDBG Program for the Senior Community Center Rehabilitation Project and Red Bud Park Facilities Improvement and Safety Enhancement Project; consider a resolution certifying the appointment of David Deakins as Building Inspector II; hold the first reading of Ordinance No. 256-2021, an amendment to Chapter 17 of the Clearlake Municipal Code repealing and replacing floodplain management regulations, and consider joining the Joint Powers Authority of the Lake County Community Risk Reduction Authority.

On the meeting's consent agenda — items that are not considered controversial and are usually adopted on a single vote — are warrants, minutes of the June 9 Lake County Vector Control District Board meeting, continuation of the declaration of local emergency issued on March 14, 2020, and ratified by council action on March 19, 2020, for COVID-19, and continuation of the declaration of local emergency issued on Oct. 9, 2017, and ratified by council action Oct. 12, 2017, for the Sulphur fire.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKEPORT, Calif. — Some of the best grillers in Lake County will fire up their barbecues and pit their skills against one another Saturday, Aug. 7, in one of the hottest contests this summer, and the public is invited to help choose the winners.

Attendees will enjoy samples and cast votes for their favorite grillers while supporting improvements at Westside Community Park at this year’s “Grillin’ on the Green,” returning after the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the 2020 event.

Barbecue amateurs and experts will vie for bragging rights during the family fun event at the park, 1401 Charlie Jolin Way, between 5 and 7:30 p.m.

Additionally, the popular barbecue competition will feature plenty of food, drink, and entertainment for all ages.

Presented by the Westside Community Park Committee, the event is an annual fundraiser for development of the park, which is home to soccer fields, a dog park, baseball and softball diamonds, horseshoe pits, and a bicycle pump track.

The committee is also working to establish a horse park on a separate site located off State Highway 175, west of Lakeport.

Local organizations, individuals and professionals go head-to-head in the Grillin’ on the Green cook-off, preparing their best barbecue recipes for attendees who then cast People’s Choice votes for their favorites.

A group of celebrity judges will select their favorites as well, with Celebrity Choice and Rookie Griller awards to be presented. Honoring area first responders, this year’s celebrity judges are Lake County Sheriff Brian Martin, Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen and Lakeport Fire Protection District Chief Jeffrey Thomas.

Event attendees will enjoy a variety of barbecued dishes, accompanied by side dishes and beverages, and entertainment including live music by the LC Diamonds, children’s water activities and a car show featuring vintage vehicles from local car clubs. An award for People’s Choice Favorite Vehicle will be presented.

Tickets purchased in advance of the event are $25 per adult, $10 per child between the ages of 5 and 12, and no charge for children 4 years old or younger.

Adult tickets purchased at the event will cost $30 per adult. All proceeds benefit the Westside Community Park development. Call Cindy Ustrud, 707-349-0718, or Dennis Rollins, 707-349-0969, for more information.

Advance tickets for “Grillin’ on the Green” may be purchased at the Lake County Chamber of Commerce in Lakeport and at Polestar Computers in Kelseyville.

“Grillin’ on the Green gets better every year with incredible barbecue dishes created by our participating teams and lots of fun, family entertainment,” said event chair Ustrud. “Attendees call the fare the best barbecue around, and what a great way to raise funds for continuing improvements to our community park. We hope to see you there.”

This year’s grill competitors include several teams who have competed in previous years. Teams confirmed for the event include the Kiwanis Club of Lakeport, Rotary Club of Lakeport, City of Lakeport, Adam Bruch, Jessie Richardson, Aaron Ustrud-Rollins, Alfred Silva, Jared Brownscombe and Andy Williams.

Side dishes will be available to attendees. Beer and wine will be available for purchase.

“We thank the many sponsors helping us to present this year’s event and support the development of our park,” said Rollins.

Major sponsors include Lake County News, KNTI, the Keeling-Barnes Family Foundation, Susan King, the Ustrud-Rollins Family, Community First Credit Union, Sutter Lakeside Hospital, James and Alice Holmes, the Lake County Tribal Health Consortium, and Tomkins Tax Consultants.

Rollins also expressed gratitude for the in-kind contributions from Lake Event Design, Steele Wines, O'Meara Brothers Brewing, and Disney Trophies & Awards.

Information about the event can be found on the park’s website, www.westsidecommunitypark.org, or on Westside Community Park’s Facebook page.

Westside Community Park is a regional recreational facility that is operated by the City of Lakeport and the Westside Community Park Committee. It has been in development for 19 years.

The nonprofit Park Committee is developing the park in conjunction with the city of Lakeport, volunteers, and numerous contributions by individuals and businesses dedicated to constructing a recreational facility for the youth and adults of Lake County.

 

You try to use your credit card, but it doesn’t work. In fact, no one’s credit card works. You try to go to some news sites to find out why, but you can’t access any of those, either. Neither can anyone else. Panic-buying ensues. People empty ATMs of cash.

This kind of catastrophic pan-internet meltdown is more likely than most people realize.

I direct the Internet Atlas Project at the University of California, Berkeley. Our goal is to shine a light on long-term risks to the internet. We produce indicators of weak points and bottlenecks that threaten the internet’s stability.

For example, where are points of fragility in the global connectivity of cables? Physical cables under the sea deliver 95% of the internet’s voice and data traffic. But some countries, like Tonga, connect to only one other country, making them vulnerable to cable-clipping attacks.

Another example is content delivery networks, which websites use to make their content readily available to large numbers of internet users. An outage at the content delivery network Fastly on June 8, 2021, briefly severed access to the websites of Amazon, CNN, PayPal, Reddit, Spotify, The New York Times and the U.K. government.

The biggest risks to the global internet

We take measurements at various layers of the internet’s technological stack, from cables to content delivery networks. With those measurements, we identify weak points in the global internet. And from those weak points, we build theories that help us understand what parts of the internet are at risk of disruption, whom those disruptions will affect and how severely, and predict what would make the internet more resilient.

Currently, the internet is facing twin dangers. On one side, there’s the threat of total consolidation. Power over the internet has been increasingly concentrated primarily in the hands of a few, U.S.-based organizations. On the other side, there’s fragmentation. Attempts to challenge the status quo, particularly by Russia and China, threaten to destabilize the internet globally.

While there’s no single best path for the internet, our indicators can help policymakers, nongovernmental organizations, businesses, activists and others understand if their interventions are having their intended effect. For whom is the internet becoming more reliable, and for whom is is it becoming more unstable? These are the critical questions. About 3.4 billion people are just now getting online in countries including Fiji, Tonga and Vanuatu. What kind of internet will they inherit?

A US-controlled internet

Since at least 2015, the core services that power the internet have become increasingly centralized in the hands of U.S. corporations. We estimate that U.S. corporations, nonprofits and government agencies could block a cumulative 96% of content on the global internet in some capacity.

The U.S. Department of Justice has long used court orders aimed at tech providers to block global access to content that’s illegal in the U.S., such as copyright infringements. But lately, the U.S. federal government has been leveraging its jurisdiction more aggressively. In June, the DOJ used a court order to briefly seize an Iranian news site because the department said it was spreading disinformation.

Due to interlocking dependencies on the web, such as content delivery networks, one misstep in applying this technique could take down a key piece of internet infrastructure, making a widespread outage more likely.

Meanwhile, U.S.-based technology companies also risk wreaking havoc. Consider Australia’s recent spat with Facebook over paying news outlets for their content. At one point, Facebook blocked all news on its platform in Australia. One consequence was that many people in Fiji, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu temporarily lost a key news source because they rely on prepaid cellphone plans that feature discounted access to Facebook. As these skirmishes increase in frequency, countries worldwide are likely to suffer disruptions to their internet access.

A splinternet

Naturally, not everyone is happy with this U.S.-led internet. Russia throttles Twitter traffic. China blocks access to Google.

These domestic maneuvers certainly threaten localized meltdowns. India now regularly shuts down the internet regionally during civil unrest. But, in aggregate, they present a more global threat: internet frgamentation. A fragmented internet threatens speech, trade and global cooperation in science.

It also increases the risk of cyberattacks on core internet infrastructure. In a global internet, attacks on infrastructure hurt everyone, but walled-off national internets would change that calculus. For example, Russia has the capacity to disconnect itself from the rest of the world’s internet while maintaining service domestically. With that capacity, it could attack core global internet infrastructure with less risk of upsetting its domestic population. A sophisticated attack against a U.S. company could trigger a large-scale internet outage.

The future of the internet

For much of its history, the internet has been imperfectly, but largely, open. Content could be accessed anywhere, across borders. Perhaps this openness is because, rather than in spite, of the U.S.‘s dominance over the internet.

Whether or not that theory holds, the U.S.’s dominance over the internet is unlikely to persist. The status quo faces challenges from the U.S.’s adversaries, its historical allies and its own domestic tech companies. Absent action, the world will be left with some mixture of unchecked U.S. power and ad-hoc, decentralized skirmishes.

In this environment, building a stable and transnational internet for future generations is a challenge. It requires delicacy and precision. That’s where work like ours comes into play. To make the internet more stable globally, people need measurements to understand its chokepoints and vulnerabilities. Just as central banks watch measures of inflation and employment when they decide how to set rates, internet governance, too, should rely on indicators, however imperfect.

[Understand new developments in science, health and technology, each week. Subscribe to The Conversation’s science newsletter.]

Nick Merrill, Research Fellow, University of California, Berkeley

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — A feasibility study on a county recreation and aquatic center has been completed and is being presented to local officials.

The phase one recreation center feasibility study was presented to the Clearlake City Council during a July 15 workshop.

Brian Whitmore, president and chief executive officer of Studio W Architects, and Michael Shellito, president of Shellito Training and Consulting, said it was the first of three presentations to be given to the cities of Clearlake and Lakeport, and the county of Lake. The Lake County Recreation Task Force is a study partner.

The Lakeport City Council will consider the report on Tuesday, Aug. 3, and the Board of Supervisors will get a presentation on Aug. 10.

The version of the plan to be presented to the Lakeport City Council this week is published below. Because of its size, it may take a few minutes to load.

Earlier this year, the cities and county entered into a cost-sharing agreement to cover the study’s first phase.

The process of creating the study began on March 24, with the Lake County Recreation Task Force holding regular meetings and facilitating site tours.

The task force includes the cities of Clearlake and Lakeport, the county of Lake, the Lake County Office of Education, Konocti Unified School District, Lakeport Unified, Upper Lake Unified, Mendocino College, Woodland Community College, First 5 Lake County, Lake Family Resource Center, Lake County Channel Cats, Hope Rising, Westside Park Committee, Redwood Community Services, Sutter Health, Adventist Health and Tribal Health.

The study looked at cost estimates and management structures, funding opportunities and potential project locations.

The group also identified what they want to see included in a recreation center program, including multiuse and racquetball courts, cardio and weight areas, training rooms, game area, restrooms, locker rooms, a lobby/reception area, and areas for custodial, storage and equipment. The space required for those amenities total nearly 15,000 square feet or 0.34 acres.

They presented several options for an aquatic center, based on centers around the state.

Estimated costs for an aquatic center range around $21 million to $22 million, based on configurations.

The options include:

Option one: a 4,880-square-foot pool, with a lap area and teaching peninsula, similar to that in the city of Patterson. Total site area: 24,762 square feet. Parking: 28,530 square feet, or 81 spaces. Estimated cost: $22,376,400.

Option two: a 5,737-square-foot pool, with a wide lap area allowing for 10 lanes, like Yuba City’s Gauche Aquatic Park. Total site area: 23,787 square feet. Parking: 33,600 square feet, or 96 spaces. Estimated cost: $22,801,879.

Option three: a 5,881-square foot pool, with a 9-lane lap area, like one in north Natomas. Total site area: 24,351 square feet. Parking: 34,300 square feet, or 98 spaces. Estimated cost: $22,919,666.

Option four: a 3,575-square-foot pool with a 6-lane lap area. Total site area: 19,784 square feet. Parking: 21,000 square feet, or 60 spaces. Estimated cost: $21,116,673.

All of the aquatic centers also included a 2,000-square-foot sprayground proposal.

In the city of Clearlake, where officials are looking at a recreation center with no pool, the estimated cost is $12.4 million.

The report finds that such facilities could have cost recovery totaling a couple hundred thousand dollars annually.

The management structures the report considered include a joint development and use project such as that used for the Roseville Aquatics Center and the Agoura Hills Calabasas Community Center; the joint use agreement used by the Spath Aquatic Center; and a special district for recreation, like the Truckee Donner Recreation and Park District.

As for potential project locations, they wanted to find locations with community park proximity, shared parking and co-location to libraries, centers, schools and pools.

The presentation didn’t go into a lot of detail, only touching on considered locations including the existing and out-of-commission Westshore Pool, Quail Run Fitness Center — which could be purchased — and Westside Community Park.

In Clearlake, there are existing synergies for the Burns Valley area, where the city in December purchased a 31-acre property it intends to develop. That property is near the Redbud Library, the Highlands Senior Center, parking, and shopping and restaurants on Olympic Drive.

Whitmore and Shellito suggested facilitating a strategic market analysis, narrowing down a location and funding opportunities to provide a map for future facilities.

They also recommended embarking on the next phase of the report, which includes conceptual layout and design of facility, a capital cost estimate based on the concept design, operational analysis based on the concept design and finalizing the report.

Clearlake Mayor Dirk Slooten asked why they didn’t identify any locations in southern Lake County. Whitmore said it was a matter of there not being a high need and the county not being a huge dollar partner.

They also looked at funding opportunities, including community facility districts and bond measures, Quimby Act funds from subdivision developments, state grants, property asset sales, tax assessments, development funding, Prop 68 funding, federal funds such as the American Recovery Act and cannabis industry related funding.

Whitmore said bonds didn’t work well across California in early 2020 but later had a near-record pass rate. He said he thinks they will see a lot of districts pursuing bonds in 2022.

The presentation gave the following recommendations for moving forward:

— Facilitate a strategic market analysis utilizing surveys conducted via social media.
— Narrow down location and funding opportunities to provide a road map for the
future recreation and aquatic facilities.
— Embark on phase two of the report, which includes conceptual layout and design of the facility, capital cost estimate and operational analysis based on the concept design, and finalize the report.

City Manager Alan Flora said the whole process started with the situation in Lakeport, where voters were promised a pool in the Lakeport Unified School District bond but didn’t get one.

“The timing is really good,” Flora said of the project, adding Clearlake is probably in a position to get a new sports complex faster than Lakeport.

He said he’s speaking with the school superintendent and other organizations about a plan for a Clearlake facility. “I really feel like there is interest and probably available funding there for us to do this sooner than expected.”

Flora said the city has redone its Burns Valley Project design to add a recreation center as a central part of the plan.

There is no room for a pool, he said. “Our school district doesn't see as much of a need for that.”

Rather, the district wants after school programs for children.

A pool would be a next phase project somewhere else in the city, Flora said.

Flora asked for — and received — council direction to move forward with phase two.

He said the cities and the county supported the first phase financially. They will need to come up with funding for the next phase. Flora said he plans to seek that money from a large group of partner organizations.

As for funding the city’s Burns Valley project, which includes new ball fields and a recreation center, Flora said the plan is to apply for a State Parks grant in November to cover part of the project.

He said that the process will have a requirement for public meetings, so there will be a lot of opportunities for public input.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

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LAKEPORT, Calif. — For the first time this year, mosquitoes have tested positive for West Nile virus in Lake County.

The mosquitoes, Culex tarsalis (western encephalitis mosquito), were collected in traps near Upper Lake on July 21, the Lake County Vector Control District reported.

“West Nile virus activity is increasing statewide, including in Lake County,” said Jamesina Scott, Ph.D., district manager and research director of the Lake County Vector Control District. “This serves as a reminder to avoid mosquito bites to avoid West Nile virus.”

Scott said mosquitoes thrive in still water. Dump out or drain water in backyard water sources, or contact the district for free mosquito-eating fish for water that can’t be drained, like unmaintained (green) swimming pools and spas, ornamental ponds, or animal watering troughs, she advised residents.

The district encourages residents to reduce their risk of contracting West Nile virus and other mosquito-borne diseases:

— Dump or drain standing water to prevent mosquitoes. Mosquitoes need water to complete their life cycle.
— Defend yourself. Use repellents containing DEET, Picaridin, IR3535, or Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus. Follow the label directions.
— Avoid being outdoors when mosquitoes are present, typically dawn and dusk.

So far this year, West Nile virus activity has been detected in one mosquito sample in Lake County.

Statewide, 21 California counties have detected WNV this year, mainly in mosquito samples.

As of July 23, three human cases of West Nile virus illness have been reported in California residents this year.

For more information about West Nile virus, visit https://westnile.ca.gov/.

Lake County Vector Control District provides mosquito control services to the community. If you would like help with a mosquito problem, including reporting a neglected pool or spa, or have an in-ground yellowjacket nest on your property that you want treated, contact the Lake County Vector Control District at 707-263-4770 or submit a service request on their website at www.lcvcd.org.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA — Authorities on Monday released the names of four people whose bodies were found in a downed helicopter near Colusa on Sunday afternoon.

The Colusa County Sheriff’s Office on Monday identified the four individuals as William Bernard Vann, 67, Suzanne Marie Vann, 60, and Bobbie Lee Keaton, 62, all of Williams, and Charles Thomas Wilson, 71, of Rocklin.

William and Suzanne Vann are longtime almond growers in Colusa County and part of a family that has farmed there for more than a century.

The sheriff’s office said it received a report of the downed helicopter in the area of Highway 45 at Reservation Road at 1:15 p.m. Sunday.

Upon arrival, deputies and paramedics found all four people who had been riding in the helicopter dead, authorities said.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are leading the investigation.

On Monday, an FAA accident report posted online said there was one crew member and three passengers on the helicopter, identified as a Robinson R66, a five-seater reported to have a top speed of 161 miles per hour and an engine manufactured by Rolls-Royce.

The description of the incident so far notes that the aircraft crashed under “unknown circumstances.”

The information released by federal investigators has not stated who the pilot was.

However, the FAA’s aircraft registration showed the helicopter, which had been built in 2013, is registered to William Vann.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.