Saturday, 07 September 2024

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REDDING, Calif. — On April 25, the USDA Forest Service and partners, including the Army Corps of Engineers and the city of Redding, will celebrate the completion of Phase one in a five-year, $28 million project to expand airtanker loading capabilities by 132% at the Redding Interagency Air Attack Base.

The upgrades allow for simultaneous loading of five aircraft, up from two previously. This base is vital in providing initial and extended attack for wildfires across the Western United States.

In 2021, the base loaded three million gallons of fire retardant. The new configuration offers the potential to load over six million gallons.

Plus, airtankers will no longer have to wait to be loaded, with direct access from the taxiway to reduce turnaround times.

“Completing this phase is a huge milestone, greatly increasing our ability to accommodate five Next Generation airtankers and fill them at the same time. Our firefighting crews and the communities we serve will directly benefit from these efficiencies,” said Yolanda Saldana, deputy director of fire, fuels, and aviation management for the Pacific Southwest Region.

“And now onto next steps — Phase two to replace the 70-year-old hangar — giving firefighters a safe, efficient place to operate from. Lots to celebrate being done, lots of work ahead,” Saldana said.

Originally opened in the late 1960s, the Redding Air Attack Base has long served as a critical hub for wildfire suppression by loading airtankers with fire retardant to support aerial firefighting.

In its early days, the base served as a modest facility for a limited number of aircraft and firefighting operations. Small fixes have improved existing buildings over the years but, until now, had not kept up with expanding operational needs.

Airtankers are a vital resource supporting firefighting efforts nationwide. These planes are only one piece of the wildland firefighting tool kit that assist firefighting efforts on the ground.
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The Department of the Interior on Thursday announced a $19 million investment from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to install solar panels over irrigation canals in California, Oregon and Utah, simultaneously decreasing evaporation of critical water supplies and advancing clean energy goals.

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water and Science Michael Brain and Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton made the announcement alongside state and local officials at the Delta-Mendota Canal floating solar project, set to receive $15 million from today’s funding.

“Through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, we have historic new resources to invest in innovative solutions that advance our clean energy goals and make Western communities more resilient to drought and climate change,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water and Science Michael Brain. “In partnership with state, Tribal and local stakeholders, the Interior Department will continue to invest in essential water infrastructure projects that mitigate the worst impacts of climate change and invest in communities across the country.”

“As with so much of our work, Reclamation could not achieve our mission without the valuable engagement of our partners,” said Reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton. “We look forward to working collaboratively on this novel idea to conserve water and generate renewable energy with funding from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda. These project swill help inform similar projects to better understand their impacts and make that information publicly available so that we can all understand the scale and corresponding benefits they provide.”

Installing solar panels in irrigation canals has the potential to provide a variety of benefits, including:

• Generating renewable energy;
• Reducing evaporation losses of the canal;
• Increasing efficiency of and production from solar panels because of the cooling effect of the water beneath the panels;
• Creating land savings for open space and agricultural use;
• Reducing facility maintenance by mitigating algae and/or aquatic plant growth; and
• Reducing the energy footprint and carbon emissions required to operate and maintain the facility.

President Biden’s Investing in America agenda represents the largest investment in climate resilience in the nation’s history and provides much-needed resources to enhance Western communities’ resilience to drought and climate change.

The projects in California, Oregon and Utah are part of an initiative to study the water efficiency gains and amount of clean energy produced for future larger scale implementation. They are being funded by the Inflation Reduction Act, which makes available $25 million for the design, study and implementation of projects to cover Reclamation-related water conveyance facilities with solar panels.

The projects announced Thursday include:

• $15 million for the San Luis and Delta-Mendota Water Authority, Delta-Mendota Canal Floating Solar Project in California: The San Luis and Delta-Mendota Water Authority, Reclamation and the University of California-Merced will collaborate through a public-private-academic partnership to assess the impacts of floating photovoltaic solar arrays on the Delta-Mendota Canal. The pilot intends to deploy potentially up to three floating solar technologies to assess the viability, costs, and benefits of floating solar over canal technologies on large conveyance facilities like the Delta-Mendota Canal. The initiative will also validate floating photovoltaics design for moving water, identify and address issues related to maintaining a canal with panels on it, explore the power generation potential, and develop methods to quantify impacts on water quality.

• $2.55 million for the North Unit Irrigation District, Main Canal Floating Photovoltaics Project in Oregon: The North Unit Irrigation District will construct floating photovoltaic solar panels on the Main Canal of the Deschutes Project. The project will evaluate the impact of floating solar panels on water efficiency gains and amount of clean energy produced.

• $1.5 million for the Weber Basin Water Conservancy District, Solar Panels Over the Layton Canal Project in Utah: The Weber Basin Water Conservancy District will cover existing canals with canal-spanning solar panel structures in the upper portion of the Layton Canal. The project will serve as a five-year demonstration of data collection and monitoring to evaluate the technical capability, economic feasibility, and viability for full scale implementation for both Reclamation and the district. The project expects to increase water quality by reducing algal blooms along the canal, produce renewable energy to offset pump station use or sell back to the utility, and significantly reduce water loss to evaporation.

Thursday’s announcement builds on the $5.65 million announced for the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona to construct and install solar panels over the Casa Blanca Canal.

Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Reclamation is also investing $8.3 billion over five years for water infrastructure projects, including rural water, water storage, conservation and conveyance, nature-based solutions, dam safety, water purification and reuse, and desalination. Over the first two years of its implementation, Reclamation has allocated nearly $3 billion for 425 projects.

This funding is also advancing President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to ensure that 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain climate, clean energy, and other federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.
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NORTH COAST, Calif. — The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office is working to identify a woman whose body was found in the Russian River.

At 4:30 p.m. Sunday a kayaker on the Russian River called the Ukiah Police Department to report they had possibly observed a human body in the river.

The police department notified the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office of the incident as the location was in the county jurisdiction.

Sheriff's office personnel along with numerous fire agencies responded to the area of Morrison Creek and Old River Road and began searching the area for the possible body.

Fire personnel utilized an unmanned aerial vehicle to search the river area. At about 5:35 p.m. Sunday, fire personnel located a deceased subject in the river, authorities said.

The sheriff’s office said fire personnel trained in swift water rescue entered the fast-moving water and were able to safely remove the deceased from the waterway.

Sheriff's deputies were on scene and began a coroner's Investigation. The female adult decedent was in a state of advanced decomposition which made it impossible to identify the subject. It appeared the decedent had been in the water for some time, and no obvious signs of external trauma were observed.

The case is currently under investigation and anyone with information related to this investigation is requested to contact the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office at 707-463-4086.

Information can also be provided anonymously by calling the Sheriff's Office nonemergency tip line at 707-234-2100.

Additional information regarding this investigation and the identification of the decedent will be released when it becomes available.
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SHASTA COUNTY, Calif. — In a unanimous decision, the city of Shasta Lake has voted 5-0 to stand in solidarity with Shasta County's rejection and opposition to the Fountain Wind project.

Emphasizing the principles of local governance and transparency, the City's letter underscores the necessity to honor Shasta County's denial of the Fountain Wind Project.

The decision was reached during the April 2, 2024, City Council meeting, where the matter was extensively deliberated upon.

“There are several hundred thousand residents who call Shasta County their home and ultimately have a right to determine projects that will affect their quality of life,” the letter states.

It further acknowledges Shasta County's exhaustive evaluation process, marked by substantial public engagement, leading to the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors' unanimous rejection of the project.

While the city of Shasta Lake did not previously take a position on the Fountain Wind Project itself, it now extends its support to Shasta County, its democratic process, the expressed will of its residents and businesses, and to the principle of local governance.

At issue is AB 205, signed into law in 2023, which shifts the authority to approve or deny such projects to the California Energy Commission, or CEC, which is headed by five of the California governor’s appointees and is based in Sacramento.

This law offers project developers the ability to seek approval of their project either through the local jurisdiction (Shasta County) or the CEC (Sacramento-based regulatory agency).

Consequently, in cases where projects face repeated denials from local authorities, applicants may seek approval from the CEC, thereby circumventing local decisions.

The transfer of authority from local governance to a central State agency poses a considerable threat to local decision-making and community input statewide.

Despite assurances from the governor's administration that AB 205 would not undermine local governance, recent events have proven otherwise.

CEC approval of the Fountain Wind Project could establish a perilous precedent for similar projects across California, disregarding local concerns and preferences.

For more information on the Fountain Wind Project and its potential implications for Shasta County and the State of California, visit www.StopFountainWind.com.
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NORTH COAST, Calif. — The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office said it has identified the woman whose body was found in the Russian River late last month.

The woman was identified as Caitlin Bunger, a 37-year-old female who was reportedly a transient in the Ukiah area.

Her body was found by a kayaker in the area of Morrison Creek and Old River Road on the afternoon of Sunday, March 24.

On March 27, a post-mortem examination was conducted as a part of this coroner's investigation.

Sheriff's office personnel researched recent missing person investigations and identified a subject who was a possible match to the physical characteristics of the decedent from this case.

During the post-mortem examination, medical records for the subject reported as missing were compared to the decedent from this investigation. From examining these medical records, the decedent was identified as Bunger.

As a part of this continuing investigation, representatives from the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office Coroner's Unit contacted the legal next-of-kin for Bunger and notified them of her death.

According to Bunger's family, she had moved to California approximately five to six months prior to this investigation.

From researching sheriff's office records, Bunger had been reported as a missing person to the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office in October and again in March.

During previous investigations, it was reported that Bunger was homeless and frequented the Perkins Street Bridge area in Ukiah.

The cause and manner of Bunger's death are still being investigated and there are no preliminary findings that can be released at this time from the post-mortem examination.

Anyone with information related to this investigation is requested to contact the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office at 707-463-4086.

Information can also be provided anonymously by calling the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office non-emergency tip line at 707-234-2100.
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CDFW forensics laboratory testing of DNA samples. Photo courtesy of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife has confirmed that the mountain lion euthanized in a remote area near Georgetown on Saturday was the same animal involved in a fatal attack earlier in the day.

CDFW’s Wildlife Forensics Laboratory determined on Sunday that DNA samples collected from the scene match samples taken from the lion carcass.

The male mountain lion weighed approximately 90 pounds and appeared to be in healthy condition.

On March 23, CDFW wildlife officers responded to a reported mountain lion attack involving 18- and 21-year-old brothers.

The men had been antler shed hunting in a remote area near Georgetown in El Dorado County when they were attacked.

The younger brother sustained injuries but was able to call 911; the older brother was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency responders.

In the interest of public safety, CDFW authorized a professional trapper, who was able to locate and euthanize the mountain lion within a few hours of the incident.

“First and foremost, our hearts go out to the families and loved ones affected by this tragic incident. Our thoughts are with them during this difficult time,” said CDFW Director Charlton H. Bonham.

Mountain lion encounters are uncommon in California but do occasionally occur. Most of the state is suitable mountain lion habitat.

However, this is the first confirmed fatality from a mountain lion attack in California since 2004.

CDFW will remain in close coordination with the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office as standard pathology and other assessments of the lion are completed. Forensic scientists will continue analyzing necropsy results to determine whether there were underlying health conditions related to this particular animal.

Learn more: Mountain Lions in California.

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9Sep
10Sep
09.10.2024 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Farmers' Market at Library Park
10Sep
09.10.2024 3:00 pm - 5:30 pm
City of Clearlake community open house
14Sep
14Sep
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17Sep
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21Sep
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Farmers' Market at the Mercantile
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21Sep
09.21.2024 4:30 pm - 10:00 pm
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