UPPER LAKE, Calif. – Upper Lake High School will host the Academic Decathlon on Saturday, Feb. 2.

Students from Kelseyville, Upper Lake, Lower Lake, Clear Lake and Middletown High Schools will come together to complete their regional competition.

This year’s national theme is Russia.

The community is welcome to attend the Super Quiz Bowl, where teams will test their knowledge in seven subjects including art, science and economics.

The Super Quiz will begin at 3:45 p.m. in the gym followed by the awards ceremony.

Only one team will go on to represent Lake County at the state competition in March. Upper Lake High is the defending county champion.

This event is free to the public.

Upper Lake High will be sponsoring a raffle during the event. Prizes include gift from Flowers by Jackie, Brassfield Winery, Rosa d’Oro Winery, Lavender Blue Wine, Blue Wing Saloon, Noggle Winery, Shed Horn Cellars, Lake Family Resource and more.

Tickets will be available for $2 each or 4 for $6.

All proceeds from the raffle will go directly to the team that advances to state.

For questions regarding the Academic Decathlon please contact Tammy Serpa at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 707-995-9523.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The results are in from Lake County’s first comprehensive look at homelessness.

Last Friday, Jan. 25, Lake County conducted the count as part of the eight-county Dos Rios Continuum of Care, a partnership of private and public agencies working to provide services for the homeless or those at risk of becoming homeless, as Lake County News has reported.

All homeless continuums are required by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, to conduct a “point-in-time” count of homeless individuals and families during a specified week each year.

According to Lake County’s point-in-time count on Jan. 25, approximately 188 homeless individuals were reported around the county.

That breaks down as follows: Clearlake/Clearlake Oaks, 109; Lakeport, 37; Lucerne, 27; Kelseyville, 11; Middletown, three; and Upper Lake, one.

Based on the most recent estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau of Lake County’s population – 64,323 – the homeless documented in this month’s count amounts to 0.29 percent of the county’s total population.

That’s lower than California’s 0.36 percent rate but higher than the nationwide rate of 0.21 percent, according to www.statehealthfacts.org , a project of the Kaiser Family Foundation. Those numbers are based on findings for 2010, the most recent year analyzed.

Organizers currently are in the process of putting the information into a database so they can look at it more closely.

The conclusion so far, however, is that it illustrates that a need for services for the homeless does exist in Lake County, which has no homeless shelter.

The results provide an important baseline for local groups to plan for meeting the needs of Lake County’s homeless, according to organizers.

Gloria Flaherty, executive director of Lake Family Resource Center, one of the participating agencies, said the count will help qualify them for grants through HUD.

Flaherty said the local continuum committee looks for funding opportunities and collaborates on the development of proposals.

HUD reported last month on the final nationwide results of the January 2012 point-in-time homeless count, reporting that there was a slight decline in homelessness in 2012 based on reports from more than 3,000 cities and counties.

Among veterans and those experiencing long-term or chronic homelessness, HUD reported a 7-percent drop in homelessness in 2012.

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.

Agricultural irrigation in California's Central Valley doubles the amount of water vapor pumped into the atmosphere, ratcheting up rainfall and powerful monsoons across the interior Southwest, according to a new study by University of California, Irvine scientists.

Moisture on the vast farm fields evaporates, is blown over the Sierra Nevada and dumps 15 percent more than average summer rain in numerous other states.

Runoff to the Colorado River increases by 28 percent, and the Four Corners region experiences a 56 percent boost in runoff.

While the additional water supply can be a good thing, the transport pattern also accelerates the severity of monsoons and other potentially destructive seasonal weather events.

“If we stop irrigating in the Valley, we'll see a decrease in stream flow in the Colorado River basin,” said climate hydrologist Jay Famiglietti, senior author on the paper, which was published online Tuesday in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

The basin provides water for about 35 million people, including those in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Phoenix.

But the extra water vapor also accelerates normal atmospheric circulation, he said, “firing up” the annual storm cycle and drawing in more water vapor from the Gulf of Mexico as well as the Central Valley.

When the additional waves of moisture bump into developing monsoons, Famiglietti said, “it's like throwing fuel on a fire.”

He and colleague Min-Hui Lo, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California Center for Hydrologic Modeling who is now at National Taiwan University, painstakingly entered regional irrigation levels into global rainfall and weather models and traced the patterns.

“All percent differences in the paper are the differences between applying irrigation to the Central Valley and not applying it,” Famiglietti said. “That's the point of the study – and the beauty of using computer models. You can isolate the phenomenon that you wish to explore, in this case, irrigation versus no irrigation.”

Famiglietti's team plans to increase the scope of the work to track how major human water usage elsewhere in the world affects neighboring areas too.

A better understanding of irrigation's impact on the changing climate and water availability could improve resource management in parched or flooded areas, the team suggested.

CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – A Middletown man died Thursday evening after his van went off Highway 20 and hit a tree.

The California Highway Patrol did not release the name of the 59-year-old south county resident, pending notification of kin.

The CHP said the man, who was traveling alone, was driving a 1992 Ford van eastbound on Highway 20 in the vicinity of Beryl Way west of Clearlake Oaks at an unknown speed at approximately 5:50 p.m.

According to witnesses, the driver passed another vehicle on a blind curve, lost control of his van and slid sideways into a tree, the CHP said.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the CHP.

Unsafe speed, unsafe passing and failure to wear a seat belt are factors in the wreck, the CHP said.

The CHP said it is not known at this time if alcohol was a factor.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – A popular Kelseyville restaurant’s plans to move to a Lakeport facility have hit a snag, with the county’s top planning official reporting that the new location doesn’t have the proper zoning or permits.

As Lake County News reported earlier this week, Jan Mezoui, owner of Zino’s Ristorante, closed her Soda Bay location Dec. 30, and planned to have a grand reopening on Thursday, Feb. 14, at Rancho de la Fuente, located at 2290 Soda Bay Road.

Mezoui said she planned to hold dinners at Rancho de la Fuente three days a week.

Community Development Director Rick Coel got back to work Wednesday morning after a bout of the flu to find out about the plans, with Rancho de la Fuente’s neighbors complaining to the agency of the restaurant plan.

Coel said Rancho de la Fuente, owned by Frank Perez, is zoned agriculture. While Perez has a number of permits for a variety of uses – including a winery, bed and breakfast, farm labor camp, produce stand, cottage industry for food preparation and liquor sales permit, and can hold up to 24 special events a year – that doesn’t include weekly restaurant-style dinners.

Nobody had bothered to check with planning before announcing the Zino’s opening, said Coel.

Mezoui said she already has 60 reservations for the Valentine’s Day dinner, and Coel said he gave her clearance for that event, which will count toward the 24 events Perez is allowed to have during the year.

On Wednesday, Coel gave Perez a two-page letter explaining that the restaurant use wasn’t permitted, and that it would not be in compliance with his agricultural zoning or existing land use permits.

“Please be advised that enforcement action, including possible revocation of existing use permits, will be taken if it is determined that a Restaurant does begin operating at this location,” Coel said.

The letter also indicated that Coel spoke to Lake County Environmental Health staff, who said Perez did not have the correct permits from their agency for a restaurant.

On Wednesday, Mezoui told Lake County News that she should not have announced that she was reopening the restaurant, but that she was switching gears to do special events and catering at Rancho de la Fuente.

Separately, Perez – who also explained that they should not have called the new endeavor a “restaurant” – said he still planned to have Mezoui do three weekly dinners in connection with his winery tasting room.

His previous caterer recently retired and he said he felt working with Mezoui was a great fit.

“This all kind of happened spontaneously,” said Perez, noting that they hadn’t had time to think through everything and that they’re “working into this slowly.”

Coel, however, maintained that three dinners a week aren’t allowed under Perez’s existing permits. Three dinners a week would equate to 156 special events a year, well more than the permitted 24.

While he wishes Mezoui all the best in terms of her business, it can’t be at Rancho de la Fuente, Coel said, noting the entire situation has become confusing.

Perez said he picked up an application on Wednesday to modify his winery permit because he wants to pursue unlimited pairing dinners in conjunction with his winery tasting room, which he intends to be separate from the 24 special annual events. He said he plans to file the permit Thursday.

Coel confirmed that Perez asked for – and Coel handed him – an application form for a minor modification to his minor use permit. He said he also told Perez that it would need to be scheduled for a hearing before the Lake County Planning Commission.

Coel said Perez has a winery permit “in title only.”

“I also told him that the zoning ordinance changes stipulate that he has to have an actual winery and 10 acres of planted vineyard to qualify for the wine and winery related special events,” said Coel.

Coel said the Community Development Department would not be able to support the request, “but Mr. Perez has the right to apply for it.”

If the permit is to be amended, “we would need to review the cumulative impacts of new additional events on top of the 24 events he is permitted for under a different use permit,” Coel said.

The issues that arose with Zino’s are the latest in a series of land use disagreements centered on Rancho de la Fuente, which has been the source of ongoing neighbor complaints and concerns from county planners.

Over the years neighbors of the property have voiced concerns at planning hearings about Perez trying to build an “event center” in the middle of an agricultural area.

Coel said he and Perez have different interpretations of how the Lake County Zoning Ordinance applies to Perez’s property.

Perez acknowledged that he and the county haven’t seen eye to eye on his projects.

“I’ve been down this road with the county before,” he said.

Coel said Perez has done a beautiful job with the property, but there have been repeated land use violations.

If it keeps up, Coel said he’s prepared to go to the Lake County Planning Commission to revocation of Perez’s minor use permit. “We’ve had too many problems over the years.”

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 Super Bowl is one of America’s most-anticipated and watched sporting events of the year, an opportunity for family, friends, and fans to gather together and root for their team.

However, the celebration can quickly turn to tragedy when partygoers exercise poor judgment and fail to designate a non-drinking driver.

The California Highway Patrol (CHP) joins with the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the National Football League and TEAM (Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management) to spread an important safety message to the public about designating a sober driver on Super Bowl Sunday – Fans Don’t Let Fans Drive Drunk.

“Make the responsible decision to designate a driver who can provide a safe ride home, someone who is abstaining from drinking that day,” said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. “Impaired drivers destroy thousands of lives every year by simply getting behind the wheel of a vehicle.”

According to the CHP’s Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System, alcohol was involved in nearly 25 percent of collisions on Super Bowl Sunday 2010, the most recent year that finalized collision data is available.

Those 211 alcohol-involved collisions resulted in the death of six people and injuries to 124 others throughout California.

The CHP will work with law enforcement agencies throughout the state to discourage the public from driving under the influence (DUI), and to try to remove those drivers who are impaired before they injure or kill themselves or others.

On average, the past three years (2010-2012), the CHP has made nearly 450 DUI arrests on Super Bowl Sunday throughout the state.

The public is also encouraged to be a team player by calling 911 if they suspect a drunk driver. Callers should be prepared to provide the vehicle’s description, license plate number, location and direction of travel.

CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – A single-vehicle crash near Clearlake Oaks claimed a life Thursday evening.

The crash was reported shortly before 6 p.m. on Highway 20 near Garden Court west of Clearlake Oaks, and was partially blocking the roadway, according to radio and California Highway Patrol reports.

The vehicle involved was reported to have been a white cargo van, the CHP reported.

CHP reports indicated that a witness in another vehicle said the van tried to pass them on a corner, flipped and hit a tree.

The victim, reported to be a male, was found still moving, according to a report from a nurse who had called in from the scene, based on the CHP reports.

Firefighters arriving at the scene confirmed that the crash victim had died, and that major extrication would be needed to pull the individual from the wreckage.

A Lake County Sheriff’s deputy also was responding, according to radio reports.

One way traffic control was in effect around the crash, the CHP said.

The highway was reopened and all units had cleared the scene just after 7:45 p.m., according to the CHP.

Additional details will be posted as they become available.

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. – Lakeport Fire Protection District competed with a number of fire districts around the region in the seventh annual Bucket Brigade Blood Drive Challenge, placing second for its effort.

The event, which began late last year, brought in more than 800 donors and 700 units of life-saving blood, according to Blood Centers of the Pacific.

The flu and weather impacted December and January collection efforts, but the blood drives by the various fire districts helped the blood bank maintain an adequate blood supply.

Windsor Fire Protection District took first place for the fourth straight year with 134 donors, followed by Lakeport Fire with 110 donors.

Geyserville Fire Protection District and Healdsburg Fire Department tied for third place, with each bringing in 75 donors.

Cal Fire Petaluma/Wilmar Volunteer Fire Department placed fourth with 73 donors, with Sebastopol Fire Department’s 70 donors earning it fifth place.

Thanks to efforts like these, Blood Centers of the Pacific provided more than 100,000 pints of blood to patients last year throughout the 50 Northern California hospitals it serves – including all Sonoma, Lake and Mendocino county hospitals.

Over the past week, patients who received blood included a 12 year old boy and a 3 year old boy with leukemia, a 30 year old man with lymphoma, a 19 year old girl with cystic fibrosis, an infant girl with respiratory failure, a 9 year old girl with heart failure, a 28 year old woman who needed fetal transfusion and a 20 year old male with a heart defect.
 
For more information about Blood Centers of the Pacific and how you can help visit www.bloodheroes.com .

LAKEPORT, Calif. – A pedestrian was injured Tuesday evening after being hit by a vehicle.

The crash occurred at about 6:30 p.m. on S. Main Street and Lupoyoma Avenue, according to radio reports. Lakeport Fire Protection District firefighters and Lakeport Police responded.

The vehicle involved was reported to have been a minivan, with reports from the scene indicating that the victim was a female.

Radio reports indicated that firefighters initially asked for an air ambulance to land at Sutter Lakeside Hospital, then asked for the helicopter to land closer, at the old Natural High School property in the 800 block of N. Main Street.

REACH 6 reported lifting off at about 7 p.m., headed for Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital.

Additional details will be posted as they become available.

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 service of two search warrants by the Lake County Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force on Wednesday resulted in two arrests and the seizure of marijuana and firearms.

Nathan Paul Southern, 42, of Hidden Valley Lake and Miles Leon Barrett, 61, of Clearlake Park were arrested as a result of the search warrant service and subsequent findings of drugs and weapons, according to Lt. Steve Brooks.

On Tuesday narcotics detectives secured a search warrant for a residence and property located in the 11000 block of Patterson Drive in Clearlake Park, Brooks said. The following day, at approximately 10 a.m., detectives served the warrant at the residence.

Brooks said they contacted and detained Barrett and Nathan Southern, along with Petra Deaver, 49, of Clearlake Oaks and 42-year-old Julie Patrice Southern of Hidden Valley Lake without incident.

While conducting a search, narcotics detectives located what was described as a large, sophisticated, indoor marijuana growing operation. Brooks said the interior of the residence along with the attached two car garage had been converted into cultivation sites.

Detectives located 347 growing marijuana plants which were at different stages of maturity. A large quantity of processed was also located inside the residence, Brooks said.

The investigation led detectives to secure another search warrant for a residence and property located in the 17000 block of Knollview Drive in Hidden Valley Lake, according to Brooks.

At 1 p.m. Wednesday narcotics detectives served the warrant at the residence. While conducting a search, detectives located another indoor marijuana growing operation, Brooks said.

He said the attached two car garage and exterior porch were being used as cultivation sites for 72 marijuana plants. Numerous firearms, concentrated marijuana and processed marijuana were located inside the home.

Brooks said Nathan Southern was arrested for felony cultivation of marijuana, possession of marijuana for sales and being armed in the commission of a felony. Miles Barrett was arrested for felony cultivation of marijuana and possession of marijuana for sales.

He said both were transported to the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility and booked. Bail for each was set at $15,000, and both later posted the necessary percentage of bail and were released, according to jail records.

Brooks said Julie Southern and Petra Deaver were released from the scene, however, the report will be submitted to the Lake County District Attorney’s Office for review and complaint against both Southern and Deaver.

Anyone with information that can assist the task force is encouraged to call the anonymous tip line at 707-263-3663.

Snow surveyors on Tuesday reported that water content in California’s mountain snowpack is below average for the date.

Manual and electronic readings taken Tuesday morning record the snowpack’s statewide water content at 93 percent of average for this time of year. That is 55 percent of the average April 1 measurement, when the snowpack is normally at its peak before the spring melt.

The snowpack normally provides about a third of the water for California’s homes, farms and industries as it slowly melts into streams, reservoirs and aquifers in the spring and early summer.

“We’re still seeing decent snowpack conditions due to storms in late November and early December,” said Department of Water Resources Director Mark Cowin. “Those early season storms also erased the deficit in our reservoir storage, but relatively dry weather this month is once again a reminder that the weather is unpredictable and we must always practice conservation.”

Electronic readings indicate that the water content in the northern mountains is 97 percent of normal for the date and 59 percent of the April 1 seasonal average.

Electronic readings for the central Sierra show 90 percent of normal for the date and 54 percent of the April 1 average.

The numbers for the southern Sierra are 91 percent of average for the date and 51 percent of the April 1 average.

The Department of Water Resources and cooperating agencies conduct manual snow surveys around the first of the month from January to May.

The manual measurements supplement and check the accuracy of real-time electronic readings from sensors up and down the state.

The Department of Water Resources currently estimates that it will be able to deliver 40 percent of the slightly more than 4 million acre-feet of State Water Project water requested for this calendar year by the 29 public agencies that supply more than 25 million Californians and nearly a million acres of irrigated farmland. The delivery estimate may increase as more winter storms develop.

The final allocation of State Water Project water in calendar year 2012 was 65 percent of requested deliveries.

The allocation was 80 percent in 2011, 50 percent in 2010, 40 percent in 2009, 35 percent in 2008, and 60 percent in 2007.

The last 100 percent allocation – difficult to achieve even in wet years because of restrictions on Delta export pumping to protect sensitive fish species – was in 2006.

Lake Oroville in Butte County, the State Water Project’s principal reservoir with a capacity of 3.5 million acre-feet, on Tuesday was at 75 percent of capacity, 113 percent of average for the date. Shasta Lake north of Redding, the federal Central Valley Project’s principal storage reservoir with a capacity of 4.5 million acre-feet, today is at 76 percent of capacity, 111 percent of normal for the date.

An acre-foot is 325,851 gallons, enough to cover one acre to a depth of one foot.