NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – End-of-life health care often is difficult and stressful for an individual and their family.
More than 79 percent of individuals needing end-of-life care require hospitalizations. For the 79 individuals who participated in Partnership HealthPlan of California’s (PHC) Partners in Palliative Care pilot program, less than half required hospitalization.
In September 2015, PHC launched Partners in Palliative Care, which focused on patient and family-centered care by anticipating, preventing and treating suffering during end-of-life care.
For every dollar spend to administer the pilot, three dollars were saved in hospital costs.
Four organizations – ResolutionCare (Humboldt County), Collabria Care (Napa County), Interim Healthcare (Shasta County), and Yolo Hospice Care (Yolo County) – provided care that included assessment, pain management services, care coordination, access to care giver support and case management.
From enrollment to death, 55 percent those participating in the pilot avoided hospitalization, compared to 21 percent of matched comparison beneficiaries.
Only 35 percent of pilot participants died within 30 days of a hospital admission versus more than 70 percent of comparison beneficiaries.
A UCSF study from 2010 to 2013 showed that 76 percent of safety-net patients, individuals with disabilities, low-income, and/or uninsured, were hospitalized in the last six months of life. Of those, 45 percent were hospitalized in the last month of life, 33 percent died in the hospital and 21 percent had multiple admissions in the last month of life.
Although the pilot is now over, the Partners in Palliative Care pilot will guide PHC’s implementation of palliative cares services and hospice services for those with cancer, end stage liver disease, congestive heart failure and chronic obstructive disease.
PHC is a nonprofit community based health care organization that contracts with the State to administer Medi-Cal benefits through local care providers ensuring Medi-Cal recipients have access to comprehensive, cost-effective health care. PHC provides quality health care to over 565,000 Medi-Cal members.
Beginning in Solano County in 1994 PHC now provides services to 14 Northern California counties – Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Marin, Mendocino, Modoc, Napa, Shasta, Siskiyou, Solano, Sonoma, Trinity and Yolo.
On Wednesday, Northern California Representatives John Garamendi (D-CA) and Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) introduced H.R. 1241, the “American Food for American Schools” Act.
The bill is designed to bring more accountability and transparency to the “Buy American” provisions of the National School Lunch Act.
Under current law, school districts are required to use domestically-sourced products for school lunches wherever practical but may request a waiver from the Department of Agriculture if the cost of domestic sourcing is significantly higher. Unfortunately, these waiver requests do not always occur.
This bipartisan legislation would legally require school nutrition providers to seek a waiver in order to use taxpayer dollars to purchase foreign commodities and products.
Additionally, waiver requests must be made available to the public to ensure accountability and provide American farmers and food providers an opportunity to seek out school districts that need affordable American-grown food.
“Northern California produces some of the highest quality food in the world, unfortunately, school districts too often look elsewhere to provide students with foreign food that is not held to the same standards of safety and quality,” Congressman LaMalfa said. “The Buy American provisions of the National School Lunch Act were created to ensure our children enjoy fresh, local produce instead of potentially less healthy alternatives from overseas.”
He added, “This bill increases transparency for schools who request a waiver to use foreign products in school lunches and helps to ensure our tax dollars are used to buy American produce and to support American agriculture. I appreciate the work of my colleague, Mr. Garamendi, on this issue and I hope we can continue to gather bi-partisan support for buying American products and improving child nutrition.”
“One of the best ways to make sure our kids have local produce is to enforce the existing Buy American provisions of the National School Lunch Act,” said Congressman Garamendi. “These provisions are designed to ensure taxpayer dollars support U.S. jobs and businesses, and they have the added benefit of increasing the amount of American-grown food our children enjoy through the school lunch program.”
Garamendi continued, “We have seen too many instances of school districts, including some in my district, importing foreign food unnecessarily without the proper disclosure. Recently, we’ve even seen recalls of imported foods owing to disease outbreaks when that same produce could have been sourced locally right here in California, subject to the highest food safety standards in the world. That’s why my colleague Doug LaMalfa and I have written legislation that will increase transparency and strengthen enforcement of these important standards.”
The legislation has already earned support from key agricultural groups. "When local school districts use taxpayer dollars to purchase and import food products that are readily available here, it is a real slap in the face to American farmers who are required to comply with a host of laws and regulations to ensure they are producing the safest supply of food in the world,” said Rich Hudgins, president and CEO of the California Canning Peach Association. “Yet China is notorious for environmental, human rights and food safety violations so why are we using taxpayer dollars to buy their food products and risk the health and safety of our children?”
Rob Larew, senior vice-president of Public Policy and Communications for the National Farmers Union, said, “The school lunch laws were designed to ensure all school-age children have access to high quality, nutritious food products, like those grown and produced by U.S. farmers and ranchers. By improving transparency and enforcement of the Buy American provisions, through the American Food for American Schools Act, we can better support both American agriculture and child nutrition.”
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The city of Lakeport on Wednesday reopened a city street and a portion of another that had been closed due to recent flooding.
The city said Royale Avenue and Lakeshore Boulevard between Lange Street and the city limits at Beach Lane had been reopened.
Still closed is Lakeshore Boulevard east of Giselman to Lange Street, as the result of continued flooding.
The city will continue to provide updates on the flood conditions through city of Lakeport and Lakeport Police Department Facebook, Twitter and Nixle accounts.
For additional information contact the city of Lakeport Emergency Operations Center at 707-263-5614 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.
This article has been updated, the age of the victim was first reported as 20 while the correct age is 18.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – A young Lakeport man suffered major injuries on Tuesday evening when he was hit by a vehicle while riding his bicycle.
Oscar Dominguez, 18, was injured in the crash, which occurred at approximately 6:16 p.m. Tuesday, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The CHP said the driver in the crash was Amanda Gonzalez, 23, of Lucerne.
Gonzalez was driving a 2010 Jeep Liberty westbound on 11th Street and preparing to turn left onto southbound Highway 29, while at the same time Dominguez was riding his Greg Lemond bicycle eastbound, approaching the intersection with the southbound Highway 29 onramp, the CHP said.
As Gonzalez made her left turn, Dominguez struck the right front of Gonzalez’s vehicle. The CHP said he was thrown from his bike, struck the Jeep’s windshield and then landed on the asphalt roadway.
Lakeport Fire and the CHP responded to the scene, requesting a REACH air ambulance, according to the report.
The CHP said Dominguez was flown to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with a broken left femur, broken left hand, broken rib, bruised lung and several contusions.
No alcohol or drugs are suspected to have contributed to the collision, which remains under investigation by Officer Randy Forslund, the CHP said.
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.
Commercial and sport anglers have received unwelcome news on the predicted return of Chinook salmon this year to California waters.
State and federal fishery scientists presented updates on the numbers of spawning Chinook and the expected abundance for the upcoming fishing season at the annual Ocean Salmon Information Meeting held in Santa Rosa on Wednesday.
Forecasts suggest there are 230,700 Sacramento River fall run Chinook adults in the ocean this year, along with 54,200 Klamath River fall run adults.
Both forecasts are lower than those of recent years, with the forecast for Klamath fall run being among the lowest on record.
Salmon from these runs typically comprise the majority of salmon taken in California’s ocean and inland fisheries.
“With a poor forecast for Klamath fall run and continued concerns over the winter run, California anglers will see reduced Chinook fishing opportunity as compared to last year,” said Brett Kormos, a senior environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, or CDFW.
Chinook that will be harvested in ocean fisheries in 2017 hatched two to four years ago, and were deeply affected by poor river conditions driven by California’s recent drought.
CDFW and federal fish agency partners have expended millions of dollars on measures to minimize the impacts of the drought.
These efforts have included trucking the majority of hatchery salmon smolts to acclimation pens in the lower Delta, improving hatchery infrastructure to keep juvenile fish alive under poor water quality conditions and partnering with sport and commercial fishermen to increase smolt survival.
Though all of these efforts helped, other environmental factors – such as unusually warm water conditions in the ocean – were beyond human control.
The 2017 forecasts, in addition to information on endangered Sacramento River winter Chinook, will be used over the next two months by fishery managers to set sport and commercial fishing season dates, commercial quotas, and size and bag limits.
Season dates and other regulations will be developed by the Pacific Fishery Management Council and California Fish and Game Commission over the next two months.
For more information on the salmon season setting process or general ocean salmon fishing information, please visit the Ocean Salmon Project Web site or call the salmon fishing hotline at 707-576-3429.
NOTICE OF INTENT TO ADOPT A CATEGORICAL EXEMPTION AND NOTICE OF PROPOSED MINOR USE PERMIT BY THE LAKE COUNTY ZONING ADMINISTRATOR
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Lake County Zoning Administrator of the County of Lake, State of California, will consider approving Minor Use Permit 16-34 with no public hearing if no written request for a public hearing is submitted by 5:00 P.M., February 22, 2017 to the Community Development Department, Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport, California. Should a timely request for hearing be filed, a public hearing will be held on March 1, 2017 at 2:30 p.m. in Conference Room C, 3rd Floor of the Courthouse.
Minor Use Permit 16-34. Location: 5141 Baylis Point Drive, Lower Lake, APN 043-270-06. Applicant: Ryan Villanueva. Project: In accordance with Lake County Code to allow a 25% reduction of the front yard setback from 30 feet to 22 feet to rebuild a garage. Project planner: Mark Roberts, 707-263-2221 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
Copies of the application, environmental documents, all reference documents, and staff reports associated with each project are available for review through the Community Development Department, Planning Division; Telephone, 707-263-2221.
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT Robert Massarelli, Director
By: ____________________________________ Michalyn DelValle, Principal Planner
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – One of Lake County’s well-known wineries has new owners.
Myron and Marilyn Holdenried of Wildhurst Winery welcome Michael and Tanya Hat to the Kelseyville community with their recent purchase of the winery and tasting room business.
This transaction caps the long winery industry career for Myron Holdenried.
In 1966, Holdenried, along with his cousin Reid Dorn – both fifth-generation Lake County farmers – along with his neighbor Walt Lyon and his Big Valley friend, Floyd Silva, planted winegrapes within a week of each other, thus beginning the rebirth of the wine industry for Lake County.
Holdenried planted Zinfandel in the pasture on Gaddy Lane. He sold his grapes to John Parducci and Barney Fetzer of Ukiah, and to Jess Jackson at his Lakeport winery, Kendall-Jackson.
By 1991, Holdenried, with the partnership of the four Collin brothers from the Central Valley, took the leap to establish Wildhurst Winery.
The first winery and tasting room were located in Lower Lake at the former Stuermer Winery location. The first winemaker was Kathy Redmond, a native of South Africa. Jed Steele also made his first wines there, and served as a consultant to Redmond.
At the time, the Lake County wine industry included only three other wineries: Konocti Guenoc, and Kendall-Jackson. With the addition of Wildhurst and Steele Wines, the total number of wineries in the county grew to five. Wildhurst Winery made the permanent move to Kelseyville in 1997, with the opening of the tasting room on Main Street, in the old, historic I.O.O.F. Hall. Their wines were produced at the winery facility on Benson Lane, Kelseyville.
Today, there are more than 30 wineries in Lake County, with five tasting rooms now in Kelseyville.
Holdenried was a founding member of the Lake County Winegrape Commission, and worked on the creation of the well-known Clear Lake and Big Valley appellations.
“Over the past 25 years, it has been exciting to be part of the Lake County wine industry,” Holdenried said. “Marilyn and I have enjoyed and appreciated being in our home town and watching the industry grow. We are thankful for all of the support from our friends and customers. It is a pleasure to see the tasting room venue continue with the Hats, both of whom have the passion and energy.”
The Holdenrieds thank their Wildhurst team for their continued loyalty and support.
“We have been very fortunate, through our many years, to have had talented, dedicated and loyal staff members from winemakers, cellar masters, office personnel, outside sales, and tasting room employees. They are the ones who helped build the quality reputation that Wildhurst has enjoyed,” Holdenried said.
Michael Hat, a third-generation grape grower, and his wife, Tanya, live in Manteca, but look forward to working in the Lake County area and participating in the many winery events.
“We were amazed, and continue to be, by the Holdenrieds’ long history in this area and the sincere respect they have earned,” Michael Hat said.
The Hats invite the community to stop in for a visit, taste the new wines, and enjoy the new colors and ambiance.
“We have wonderful surprises in store for our wine club members and new friends,” Tanya Hat said. “The same friendly Wildhurst staff looks forward to pouring the new wines for you.”
Myron and Marilyn Holdenried continue to produce winegrapes in their vineyard on Gaddy Lane and Clark Drive in Kelseyville.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Hundreds of residents of the city of Lakeport remain under a mandatory evacuation order and dozens of homes have been red-tagged, with officials working to get people back home as quickly and safely as possible.
Those were among the main updates offered by the city staffers manning the Lakeport Emergency Operations Center, which hosted a community flood information meeting on Tuesday evening in the council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.
More than 60 community members were at the meeting to hear the latest flood-related information from city department heads and county officials. Also in attendance were Mayor Stacey Mattina and Mayor Pro Tem Mireya Turner, representatives from the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services and four National Guard members.
Lakeport Police Officer Victor Rico also was on hand to interpret for Spanish speakers in the audience.
In response to the flooding, the worst in 19 years, city staff have been manning the Emergency Operations Center around the clock since mandatory evacuations for Aqua Village, Lucky Four and Will-O-Point trailer parks and the Esplanade neighborhood from Main to K streets were ordered on Feb. 20.
Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen told Lake County News that, altogether, 225 people were evacuated from within Lakeport’s city limits.
At Tuesday night’s meeting, Rasmussen introduced four National Guard members, explaining their mission and role in assisting with the Lakeport flood emergency.
He said the National Guard’s 579th Engineer Battalion based in Santa Rosa is providing a high clearance vehicle with operators to get police into flooded areas in case of medical or law enforcement emergencies.
“We have several sites in the city that still have significant water on streets and we want to be able to safely get in and get out without destroying or damaging vehicles that shouldn’t be doing that,” he said.
Rasmussen said the National Guard is on standby to respond as long as he feels it’s necessary to have them at the ready.
Community Development Director Kevin Ingram, also acting as the center’s public information officer, gave the group an update on lake and weather conditions.
At the time of the meeting, Clear Lake’s elevation was at about 10 feet on the Rumsey gauge. Flood stage is 9 feet Rumsey and above.
With no rain, there is about an inch and a half of reduction in the lake level each day, Ingram said.
At total saturation level – which is what the county is now experiencing – new rain events add one inch of rise on the lake for every one third of an inch of rain received, Ingram said.
He said the Lake County Water Resources Department has told the city that, even with no additional rain events, Clear Lake won’t get under 8 feet Rumsey by the end of March.
The city is monitoring the forecasts, which call for rain to begin on Saturday and continue through the following Thursday, March 9. However, Ingram noted, “It doesn’t appear to be a significant event,” with half an inch to an inch of rain expected on Saturday and Sunday.
Ingram said the city also is watching the forecast for any sign of wind, which has caused a lot of damage, especially winds coming from the south and the east. So far, there is no wind in the forecast like the high winds the county experienced week before last.
He said the city will send out public notices if there are any changes in that weather forecast.
The update then switched to the matter of the mandatory evacuations.
“All of our evacuation orders still remain in effect, unchanged,” said Rasmussen. “Our goal is to lift those as soon as we can, but before we do that, we need to make sure areas are safe. Some areas are more impacted than others, with more significant issues that we have to address.”
He said the city continues to run its emergency operations center, which is making plans and reviewing issues daily in an effort to get people home as soon as they can.
Rasmussen also gave an update specifically about the situation at Will-O-Point, where he said the evacuation order is expected to last longer than the other areas of the city.
That’s because the California Department of Housing and Community Development has red-tagged all 41 homes in Will-O-Point, Rasmussen said.
He said the police department is working to organize a vehicle recovery operation for Will-O-Point residents. That operation is taking time to set up, with Rasmussen explaining that police have to work with a number of agencies and organizations to evaluate the area for contaminants. He said a notice will be issued once they’re ready to proceed.
“When you see delays, it’s always because of our desire to do these things safely, for you and for our staff,” he said.
Rasmussen said the city also is aware that many Will-O-Point residents have important things they need to recover from their homes, and once the vehicle recovery is completed they will organize a day to take residents in to get those items.
He said that will entail dealing with safety concerns similar to those involving vehicle recovery, noting it will be more complex to set up for homes.
Public Works Director Doug Grider said many road closures remain in place, with just a few lifted. He said they will take a hard look at Royale Avenue on Wednesday with a view to possibly reopening it, depending on whether the water recedes further and there is damage to the road.
Regarding Lakeshore Boulevard from Lange Street to the city limits at Beach Lane, on Wednesday Grider’s staff will conduct debris removal and a street assessment. “If everything comes out the way we think it’s going to, we’ll be opening that section back up to travel.”
He said there are major concerns about the area of Lakeshore Boulevard from Giselman to Lange Street, where they’ve identified severe road damage, including undermining of the pavement on the lake side.
“We can’t tell how far that undermining goes,” he said, adding that it extends at least 200 feet.
Grider said the city is strategizing about how to deal with getting traffic back on Lakeshore Boulevard. Once the water recedes enough to get the southbound lane open, he anticipated putting a timed signal in place to control traffic in that one lane.
He also reminded people to not drive in the water in areas that are closed. That’s important because of concerns about the possibility of sinkholes and debris. Grider said it also causes wakes that can go into nearby homes that aren’t otherwise flooded.
A woman asked Grider about concerns about sewage in the water. Grider said it didn’t come from Lakeport’s municipal sewer system. “We know for a fact that we’ve had no leaks, no spills.”
Rather, he said any fecal matter is believed to be coming from inundated farmlands and backyards, and actually is more animal waste.
Paul Harris, the city’s utilities superintendent, oversees the water and sewer systems. He said flooding is always challenging for a wastewater system, as the water finds its way in, so they’ve been proactive in checking manholes and cleanouts.
There has been stormwater inflow into the system, and pumper trucks were set up at the C Street pump station to keep up with the flow, Harris said.
“We’ve been trying to stay ahead of it. The flows are coming back down,” he said.
He said the city sent out an advisory asking the community conserve water, which helped the system, and he thanked the community for their efforts.
“We’ve had no sewer spills through this event at all,” Harris said, adding that the city is actively preparing for future rains, thinking about the city’s long-term storage reservoir and monitoring pump stations.
Harris reiterated the city’s request that people take precautions regarding the flood water, noting that there are septic and private systems that could have failed or been compromised.
In response to questions about the impacts on drinking water, Harris replied, “The water supply has always been fine,” explaining that it’s well water from the Scotts Valley area.
Denise Pomeroy, director of the Lake County Public Health Department, also was on hand to urge people to avoid contact with the lake water and to follow law enforcement rules for safety.
“Our team is out doing health assessments now,” she said, explaining that the assessments of homes, restaurants and the water began on Monday and involve her agency and the planning department. Reports will be released to the public when they’re completed.
The city received high marks from community members for the proactive efforts to keep people informed and handle the emergency.
The following is a rundown of important topics for evacuees and city residents.
The Lakeport Emergency Operations Center
The center remains open. It had run around the clock since Feb. 20, and on Tuesday was scaled back to Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. City residents with questions are urged to call the center’s information line at 707-263-5614.
How to find a roundup of city alerts and information
The city of Lakeport’s Web site at http://cityoflakeport.com/hot-details.aspx?id=205 has a full rundown of city health and safety advisories issued for the flood event, from issues regarding not driving on closed roadways to avoiding flood water contact, to school dropoffs, assembling emergency kits and how to sign up to receive messages from the city’s emergency telephone notification system.
How to sign up for Nixle text and email alerts
One of the ways the city of Lakeport issues notifications and emergency notices to community members is through the Nixle alert system.
To sign up for text alerts, text your zip code to 888777. To get email alerts, go to www.nixle.com and sign up for a free account.
Evacuation centers
There are two evacuation centers open for community members displaced by the floods.
The shelters are located at the Lakeport Seventh-day Adventist Church, 1111 Park Way, telephone 707-263-6002, and the Lakeport National Guard Armory, 1431 Hoyt Ave.
If your home or business is inundated, contact the Lake County Community Development office at 707-263-2221 and Lake County Environmental Health at 707-263-1164 before reoccupying the structure.
Employ professional service for septic system repair and maintenance.
Because flood waters can contain unhealthy substances, potentially increasing transmission of communicable diseases. The following general precautions are advised:
– Reduce flow into your drains with strict water conservation measures. – A void contact with floodwaters. – Wash your hands frequently. – Disinfect or discard objects that have been in floodwater.
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.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – The latest state snow survey on Wednesday showed that the Sierra Nevada snowpack continues to build during one of the wettest winters in California’s recorded history.
Wednesday’s manual snow survey by the Department of Water Resources, or DWR, at Phillips Station in the Sierra Nevada found a snow water equivalent of 43.4 inches.
February’s Phillips survey found 28 inches of snow water equivalent, and January’s reading was 6 inches. The March 1 average at Phillips is 24.3 inches, officials said.
Snow water equivalent is the depth of water that theoretically would result if the entire snowpack melted instantaneously. That measurement is more important than depth in evaluating the status of the snowpack.
On average, the snowpack supplies about 30 percent of California’s water needs as it melts in the spring and early summer, the DWR reported.
More telling than a survey at a single location are DWR’s electronic readings from 98 stations scattered throughout the Sierra Nevada.
Statewide, the snowpack today holds 45.5 inches of snow water equivalent, or 185 percent of the March 1 average (24.6 inches), the DWR said.
On Jan. 1 before a series of January storms, the snow water equivalent of the statewide snowpack was 6.5 inches, just 64 percent of the New Year’s Day average. On Feb. 1, the statewide snow water equivalent was 30.5 inches, 174 percent of average for that date, according to the DWR.
Measurements indicate the water content of the northern Sierra snowpack is 39.2 inches, 159 percent of the multi-decade March 1 average. The central and southern Sierra readings are 49.0 inches (191 percent of average) and 46.4 inches (201 percent of average) respectively.
Separately, in the Mendocino National Forest, snow levels also are much improved.
According to the California Data Exchange Center, the snow depth at Anthony Peak – at 6,200 feet elevation – on Feb. 1 was 71 inches, with 21 percent water content. A more recent measurement hasn’t yet been posted.
That’s the most snow at that site since March 2011, when snow depth measured 135.8 inches and 50.1 percent water content, based on the state data.
Measurements for Plaskett Meadows, the other site monitored for snow in the Mendocino National Forest, haven’t yet been posted.
State Climatologist Michael Anderson said the winter season has been “historic,” especially in the central and southern Sierra where elevations are higher and where snowfall has been near the 1983 record amount.
The Phillips snow course, near the intersection of Highway 50 and Sierra-at-Tahoe Road, is one of hundreds surveyed manually throughout the winter. Manual measurements augment the electronic readings from about 100 sensors in the state’s mountains that provide a current snapshot of the water content in the snowpack.
Frank Gehrke, chief of the California Cooperative Snow Surveys Program, conducted Wednesday’s survey at Phillips.
“It’s not the record, the record being 56.4 (inches), but still a pretty phenomenal snowpack … January and February came in with some really quite phenomenal atmospheric river storms, many of which were cold enough to really boost the snowpack,” he said.
Gehrke said the central and southern regions in the Sierra Nevada are tracking close to 1983, which had the maximum recorded snowpack statewide.
“Most of the snow courses are well over their April 1 accumulations, which at (Phillips) is 25 inches,” Gehrke said, “so we’ve busted through April 1 values pretty much at all snow courses throughout the state.”
Water Year 2017’s heavy precipitation is particularly remarkable because of the five dry years that preceded it.
Since Oct. 1, the Northern California, San Joaquin and Tulare Basin indices’ rainfall totals are, respectively, 76.5 inches (average is 34.7), 60.7 inches (average is 27.4) and 41.0 inches (average is 19.4). Collectively, the three regions had a total of 178.2 inches of rainfall, or 218 percent of the five-month average (81.5 inches), DWR reported.
Many Californians continue to experience the effects of drought, and some Central Valley communities still depend on water tanks and bottled water. DWR said groundwater – the source of at least a third of the supplies Californians use – will take much more than even an historically wet water year to be replenished in many areas.
California’s climate is the most variable of any state, according to DWR. Historically, it swings from drought to flood and back to drought.
In addition, as global warming drives up average temperatures in California, more precipitation will fall as rain, not as snow stored in the Sierra Nevada and other mountains.
To help prepare for these ever-wider extremes, Californians can learn ways to save water every day by visiting www.SaveOurWater.com .
While recreational marijuana cannot be sold in California until January 2018, existing medical marijuana growers and future recreational marijuana growers will be eligible as of March 1 for Pacific Gas and Electric’s agricultural energy rate.
The passage of Proposition 64 in November 2016 allows the state to license and regulate recreational marijuana cultivation and businesses.
“Cannabis is a legal crop in our state, like almonds and tomatoes. Agricultural growers now will be eligible for the same rate and energy efficiency programs as farmers of other crops,” said Deborah Affonsa, vice president of Customer Service at PG&E.
PG&E customers are eligible for agricultural energy rates if they have received a permit from their local jurisdiction for the cultivation of cannabis and if 70 percent or more of the annual energy use on the meter is for agricultural end-uses such as growing crops, pumping water for agricultural irrigation or other uses that involve agricultural production for sale which do not change the form of the product.
The agricultural energy rate applies both to customers who grow cannabis outdoors and those who grow indoors in commercial greenhouses.
The agricultural energy rate does not apply to residential customers who can legally grow up to six marijuana plants inside a private residence per the state Adult Use of Marijuana Act.
Previously, medical marijuana was not considered an agricultural product by PG&E, and growers were not eligible for the agricultural energy rate.
Because medical marijuana can be grown and sold in California currently, licensed growers of medical marijuana are immediately eligible for the agriculture energy rate.
Cannabis growing operations can use an extremely large amount of electricity and are considered to be equivalent to other energy-intensive operations such as data centers.
“We’ve met with representatives of the emerging legal cannabis industry and listened to their needs. We are here to help our customers make smart, efficient and affordable energy choices. Now that cannabis is in California’s future, our next step is to work with these new agricultural customers and make this industry as energy efficient as possible,” said Affonsa.
PG&E’s agricultural rates are under the jurisdiction of the California Public Utilities Commission and the state of California.
Agricultural customers with questions about rates, rules and energy efficiency programs can learn more at www.pge.com/ag or contact PG&E’s dedicated Agricultural Customer Service Center at 1-877-311-3276.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Three men have been sentenced for crappie fishing violations.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff said Eugene Law, Freeman Law and Lawrence Law were convicted in related cases.
In September of 2015, local California Department of Fish and Wildlife, or CDFW, wardens started receiving citizen complaints that Freeman Kwei Law, a resident of Paradise Cove in Lake County, was catching over-limits of crappie from Clear Lake and possibly selling them in the Bay Area, Hinchcliff said.
Hinchcliff said it is illegal to possess more than 25 crappie at a time, illegal to sell sport caught fish in California, and illegal to transport live fish from the waters where they are caught.
In September of 2015 wardens with the CDFW Special Operations Unit, with the assistance of local game wardens, began a surveillance operation into Freeman Law’s fishing activities, Hinchcliff said.
The lead warden in CDFW’s Special Operations Unit contacted the Lake County District Attorney’s Office. Hinchcliff, who handles the fish and wildlife prosecutions in Lake County, assisted wardens with obtaining a surveillance warrant for the operation and later search warrants.
Numerous CDFW wardens assisted in the undercover surveillance investigation from September 2015 to April 2016, Hinchcliff said.
Hinchcliff said the investigation involved Law’s illegal fishing activities in Lake County, as well as his activities in San Francisco, where he owned a second home.
During the operation, investigators also identified two other suspects in the illegal fishing activities, Lawrence Sil Law and Eugene Kwei Law, both relatives of Freeman Law and residents of San Francisco, Hinchcliff said.
During the months-long surveillance, Hinchcliff said investigators obtained evidence that Freeman Law gave some of the fish away as gifts, which is not illegal, but also that some of the fish were being sold illegally.
Hinchcliff said they also obtained evidence that Freeman Law was catching over-limits of crappie, possessed over-limits of crappie and was illegally transporting live crappie from Clear Lake.
On April 14, 2016, search warrants were served on three locations, including Freeman Law’s residences in Lake County and San Francisco, and Lawrence Law’s residence in San Francisco, Hinchcliff said.
Lawrence and Eugene Law were observed leaving Freeman Law’s residence at 5:30 a.m. and the three warrants were simultaneously served when they reached Lawrence Law’s residence at 8:20 a.m., according to Hinchcliff.
Lawrence and Eugene Law were found in joint possession of 169 crappie they had just transported from Clear Lake. Hinchcliff said Lawrence Law also had five crappie in his freezer and 12 crappie in a pond in his yard.
At Freeman Law’s residence in San Francisco warden’s found approximately 100 crappie in his freezer, while at his residence in Lake County wardens found 187 frozen crappie and 148 live crappie, Hinchcliff said.
In total, more than 600 crappie were located in the three locations and only 75 were legally possessed, according to Hinchcliff.
In addition, Hinchcliff said wardens seized Freeman Law’s Toyota truck and Boston Whaler fishing boat.
He said wardens also seized fishing equipment at Freeman Law’s residences, much of it in unopened packaging, including 57 fishing poles, 53 reels, ice chests, an under water camera, two trolling motors, terminal tackle, and hundreds of fishing lures. Wardens estimated the seized fishing equipment to be worth approximately $20,000.
On Oct. 3, 2016, Hinchcliff filed complaints against the suspects in the Lake County Superior Court, charging them with numerous fish and game violations occurring in Lake and San Francisco counties. Freeman and Lawrence Law also were charged with conspiracy to commit fish and game violations.
On Jan. 17, Eugene Law pleaded no contest to illegal possession of crappie, Hinchcliff said.
Hinchcliff said Eugene Law was placed on three years’ probation and fined $5,948. The probation can be terminated after one year if he pays the fine in full and does not violate probation.
On Feb. 24, Lawrence Law pleaded no contest to two counts of illegal possession. He was placed on three years’ probation and fined $5,520. Hinchcliff said the probation can be terminated after two years if he pays the fine in full and does not violate probation.
On Feb. 24, Freeman Law pleaded no contest to two counts of illegal possession and one count of unlawful sale of crappie. He was placed on 5 years’ probation, fined $30,138, and the fishing equipment valued at approximately $20,000 was ordered forfeited, Hinchcliff said.
Hinchcliff said the truck and boat will be returned. The probation can be terminated after two years if he pays the fine in full and does not violate probation.
The terms of probation for the Law’s include search conditions for fish and game violations, fishing license revocation and no fishing of any kind, they cannot be in the presence of anyone who is fishing, they can not possess any live fish, and they cannot possess any sport caught fish, Hinchcliff said.
Hinchcliff and local wardens are planning on having the CDFW and the District Attorney’s Office work together to have the forfeited fishing equipment donated to a good cause in Lake County.
At this time, he said they are looking into donating to children who like to fish and who lost their possessions in the Valley fire or Clayton fire, to a local high school bass fishing club or some other similar project.
