Saturday, 07 September 2024

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The Employment Development Department, or EDD, announced Tuesday it has awarded more than $648,000 for the Supply Chain and Worker Readiness Program, an integral part of Humboldt County’s groundbreaking offshore wind energy project.

The program is designed to facilitate workforce development efforts over the entire offshore wind project lifecycle and will utilize funds for research, community preparation, and workforce partner development.

The funding will also be applied towards the education and capacity building of local businesses to meet Humboldt County’s long-term workforce needs while this new industry is established.

“This offshore wind project will give regional workers access to industry-focused training, supportive services, and employment opportunities,” said EDD Director Nancy Farias. “As our economy evolves, EDD and its regional workforce development partners are focused on preparing California’s workforce for these new opportunities.”

The program will be administered by Humboldt County’s Economic Development Division in tandem with the Humboldt County Workforce Development Board, or WDB.

WDB staff will work with program beneficiaries to develop an emerging offshore wind workforce by connecting beneficiaries with partner grants, loans, and technical assistance.

While offshore wind is expected to create jobs within construction and skilled trades, such as manufacturing, fabrication, welding, construction, and safety, it also has the potential to grow other local industries including medical, housing and childcare.

To meet the extensive demands of the long-term offshore wind project, the Program will provide supportive services to Humboldt County as it strategically plans to integrate this new industry into its community.

Specialized training and education will be made available through partnerships with Cal Poly Humboldt, College of the Redwoods, and labor unions.

These programs will provide direct path opportunities that transition participants into employment with businesses that are part of the offshore wind system supply chain. In addition, the program will support widespread community education and outreach pertaining to offshore wind energy.

Funding for this grant was provided through the discretionary funds made available to Governor Gavin Newsom in accordance with the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and administered by the EDD and the California Labor & Workforce Development Agency.

For more information on this program, contact Humboldt County’s Economic Development Division Director Scott Adair at 1-707-476-4800.
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SACRAMENTO — Sen. Bill Dodd, D- Napa, is calling for transparency regarding the acquisition of thousands of acres of farmland in Solano County by a group of Silicon Valley billionaires for development of a new city.

“Solano County contributes greatly to California’s reputation as being America’s breadbasket, so people in my district are understandably alarmed at a shadowy investment group buying up large tracks of farmland, purportedly to build a new city,” Sen. Dodd said.

“But we don’t really know what’s going on because the investors have not shared anything with locals,” Dodd said. “While California certainly needs more housing, we need to be intentional about how and where we develop. We need to be able to continue to produce food and avoid suburban sprawl. I’m calling on these developers to be fully transparent in their dealings and to abide by state and local land use regulations. Trying to subvert agricultural protections, public scrutiny and thoughtful decision making doesn’t fly.”

Sen. Dodd was speaking Tuesday about the Flannery Associates land purchases during an informational hearing of the Senate Agriculture Committee entitled “Navigating Threats to California Agriculture.”

The hearing can be found here.

Dodd represents the Third Senate District, which includes all or portions of Napa, Yolo, Sonoma, Solano, Sacramento and Contra Costa counties.
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On Wednesday, Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-04) announced that the project to elevate part of State Route 37 is receiving $155 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

“State Route 37 is an essential thoroughfare that faces significant risk from rising sea levels, threatening the commute for the millions who rely on it every year,” said Thompson. “The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is the most significant investment in our country’s infrastructure since President Eisenhower’s interstate system, and now the State Route 37 project is receiving a major boost from this historic law.. I was proud to vote for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in Congress and I am glad to see the federal funding coming to our community to improve State Route 37, protect habitats, and combat the climate crisis.”

The federal funding will help guard against future flooding on a vital regional corridor that connects Marin, Sonoma, Napa, and Solano counties and enhance habitat connectivity for San Pablo Bay. The other $25 million is being funded by the State of California.

The $180 million project will raise the roadway by 30 feet over Novato Creek by 2029, well above the projected year 2130 sea-level rise.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, also known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, was signed into law on November 15, 2021.

The law includes around $550 billion in new federal investment in America’s roads and bridges, water infrastructure, resilience, internet and more.
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on Sept. 15 that households impacted by power outages due to a public safety power shut-off in California that occurred Aug. 30 through Aug. 31, 2023, could be eligible for replacement of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP/CalFresh benefits.

This is one of many recent steps USDA has taken to ensure California residents in need have food to eat.

Rather than require SNAP households to report food losses individually, USDA allowed the state of California to approve automatic mass replacements for residents of certain counties and zip codes who lost food because of the power outage.

USDA authorized the mass replacement of 25 percent of regular benefits for households that were issued in August 2023.

The waiver request applies to eight zip codes in the following five counties: Colusa, Glenn, Humboldt, Shasta, and Tehama. More details will be made available through the  California Department of Social Services.

USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service works to end hunger and improve food and nutrition security through a suite of more than 16 nutrition assistance programs, such as the school breakfast and lunch programs, WIC and SNAP.

Together, these programs serve 1 in 4 Americans over the course of a year, promoting consistent and equitable access to healthy, safe, and affordable food essential to optimal health and well-being.

FNS also provides science-based nutrition recommendations through the co-development of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. FNS’s report, “Leveraging the White House Conference to Promote and Elevate Nutrition Security: The Role of the USDA Food and Nutrition Service,” highlights ways the agency will support the Biden-Harris Administration’s National Strategy, released in conjunction with the historic White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health in September 2022.

To learn more about FNS, visit www.fns.usda.gov and follow @USDANutrition.
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Firefighters on one of the wildland fires caused by lightning in Northern California. Photo courtesy of the National Park Service.

ORICK, Calif. — On the afternoon of Aug. 14, a thunderstorm rolled through Northern California that started numerous wildfires.

Quick responses from multiple agencies and partners were able to slow or stop many fires, but several have developed into large, uncontrolled wildfires.

Within the southern portion of Redwood National and State Parks three fires were detected, and the park responded with full suppression tactics.

Two of the fires, the Glen and the Devil, are both 100% contained and in patrol status.

The Glen fire smoldered in several redwood trees and was controlled primarily with an innovative sprinkler system, pioneered by local California Department of Parks and Recreation staff, installed over 100 feet up in the trees.

The third fire, named the Lost fire, burning in the Lost Man Creek watershed, is now over 700 acres and 0% contained.

A fast response from federal crews, Cal Fire and Green Diamond Resource Co. prevented the fire from burning into private timber lands. Additional crews have continued to arrive, with over 400 firefighters working to contain the spread of the fire to an area as small as possible.

A majority of the Lost fire is in second growth forest that was logged and replanted decades ago. However, the westernmost flank has reached old growth, where fire activity has diminished in the more humid environment.

All these fires are part of the Six Rivers Forest Lightning Complex and Redwood Lightning Complex that is being managed by California Incident Management Team 2.

More information and daily updates on the fires can be found here.

The same thunderstorm on Aug. 14 also started fires that are burning outside the north-eastern border of the park.

These fires are part of the Smith River Complex, and are being jointly managed by California Incident Management Teams 13 and 15. Information about this complex of fires can be found here.

While these fires are outside the boundary of Redwood National and State Parks, they have multiple impacts to park operations.

The primary access highway to the area, Highway 199, has been closed for several days and is not expected to reopen to normal conditions for many days to come.

The main electrical transmission lines to the area were also de-energized to prevent new fire starts and to protect responders working in the area.

This outage has caused the closure of the Hiouchi Visitor Center, Jedediah Smith Campground, and Mill Creek Campground.

Howland Hill Road has also been closed at the request of emergency responders to improve safety and travel routes for incident personnel.

“Our primary concern and focus on these incidents is the safety of firefighters and the public,” said Redwood National and State Park Superintendent Steve Mietz stated. “Multiple organizations are coming together to aggressively engage the fires in ways that ensure everyone can go home when the fires are out. I am proud of the collaborative spirit from our neighbors and partners who have come to help the park during this tough time. We are grateful for the support and understanding of park visitors at this challenging time.”

A full list of impacts and closures within the park can be found here.

\Additional updates are regularly posted on the Facebook pages for Redwood National and State Parks and the Six Rivers Forest.
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As the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals hears San Francisco’s appeal of a court order constraining the city from addressing homelessness, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday announced an additional $38 million to help local communities clean up encampments throughout the state.

In total, under the Newsom Administration, the state is providing $750 million to local governments to connect individuals living in encampments to housing and services.

“In California, we are cutting red tape and making unprecedented investments to address homelessness, but with each hard-fought step forward, the courts are creating costly delays that slow progress. I urge the courts to empower local communities to address street encampments quickly and comprehensively,” said Newsom.

Throughout the country, decisions handed down by judges from Phoenix to San Francisco are paralyzing local government’s ability to address homelessness.

These decisions prohibit cities from enforcing reasonable limits on sleeping and camping on public sidewalks, and allow unsafe encampments with makeshift, dangerous housing structures to grow unchecked — running counter to common-sense approaches to address the challenges on our city streets.

The $38 million announced today is provided through the Encampment Resolution Fund which was designed by the administration and the Legislature to provide communities of all sizes with the support to move people living in encampments into housing.

As the state continues to invest dollars and resources to assist individuals living on the streets, it is critical that the judicial branch not constrain these efforts.

This most recent round of funding will support seven communities statewide, connecting approximately 1,250 people experiencing homelessness in encampments to needed services and housing. Six of the seven projects will resolve encampments along state rights-of-way.

The following communities are receiving the funding announced Wednesday:

• San Joaquin County will receive $11.1 million.
• The Bakersfield/Kern County Continuum of Care will receive $7 million.
• The city of Thousand Oaks will receive $5.8 million.
• The city of Long Beach will receive $5.3 million.
• The city of Visalia will receive $3.6 million.
• Sonoma County will receive $2.8 million.
• The Pasadena Continuum of Care will receive $2.1 million.

San Francisco previously received two Encampment Resolution awards totaling over $17 million.

Collectively, the Newsom Administration has committed more than $30 billion to address housing and homelessness since taking office, with $3.5 billion for homelessness in the 2023 state budget alone.

Upcoming Calendar

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
09.14.2024 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Farmers' Market at the Mercantile
17Sep
09.17.2024 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Farmers' Market at Library Park
21Sep
09.21.2024 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Farmers' Market at the Mercantile
21Sep
09.21.2024 4:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Passion Play fundraiser
21Sep
09.21.2024 4:30 pm - 10:00 pm
Lake County Wine Auction

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