The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, or ABC, encourages the public to celebrate July 4 responsibly by designating a sober driver for celebrations involving alcohol.
Licensees can help keep the public safe by checking IDs and not serving obviously intoxicated patrons.
“If you choose to celebrate with alcohol, make sure to designate a sober driver or arrange a ride with an app or taxi service,” said ABC Director Eric Hirata. “We can all do our part to keep communities safe by preventing drinking and driving.”
ABC suggests licensees offer nonalcoholic drinks for designated sober drivers and monitor who is drinking alcohol.
If you see people leaving who have been drinking alcohol, check on how they are getting home and offer alternate transportation if needed.
The California Highway Patrol has deployed extra patrol officers over the holiday weekend as part of a maximum enforcement period, or MEP, that began at 6:01 p.m. on Friday, June 30, and continues through 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, July 4.
There were 44 people killed in crashes on California’s roadways during the 2022 Independence Day MEP, and CHP made 998 arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
In addition to speeding violations, officers will be on the lookout for distracted drivers and motorists suspected of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
The average cost of a first-time DUI arrest is approximately $13,500, accounting for vehicle impound fees, fines, attorney fees, auto insurance hikes and other penalties.
Scott A Imberman, Michigan State University and Katharine O. Strunk, Michigan State University
The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work.
The big idea
The COVID-19 pandemic had a stark negative impact on students’ math scores, new data from Michigan shows. Math achievement growth over the three-year period from spring 2019 through spring 2022 was substantially lower – approximately 7 national percentiles – than among comparable students the three years prior.
There were even larger decreases among students who are Black or Latino, low income or who attended the majority of schools that taught remotely for at least part of the 2020-2021 academic year.
Effects on scores for English language arts, which include reading and writing, were small and generally not statistically significant.
To arrive at these findings, we looked at individual test scores and other data from Michigan.
First we looked at how math and English language arts test scores on Michigan’s annual statewide M-STEP exam grew between 2019 and 2022 for a group of students in third grade through fifth grade in spring 2019.
We compared these students’ test score growth with growth achieved by similar students who were in those same grades three years earlier, before the pandemic began. This provides us with a broad view of the impact of the pandemic on school learning as measured through test scores.
We also looked at scores from a series of benchmark tests taken between fall 2020 and spring 2022 to measure how achievement growth changed within each school year leading up to and following the height of the pandemic.
While other studies also show how the pandemic set back student achievement, our research looks at how achievement was affected over the course of the pandemic rather than just the end result. And the picture is pretty clear: Using a set of exams given at the beginning and end of each school year, we found a large drop in achievement between fall 2020 and spring 2021.
While student achievement began to improve in spring 2021, that recovery has been too slow to enable students to reach pre-pandemic expectations for test scores.
And, just as Black, Latino and low-income students suffered the largest drops in test scores during the pandemic, their math recovery has also slightly lagged behind white students and students who were more affluent.
Why it matters
This study adds to the research on how the pandemic appears to have exacerbated racial and economic achievement gaps. These gaps are important because lower achievement among disadvantaged groups could lead to lower college enrollment rates and, in turn, lower earnings.
What still isn’t known
Research is starting to show how quickly students are recovering and whether students are catching up at a rate fast enough to overcome pandemic learning disruptions. Some interventions, such as tutoring and after-school programming, are in place to attempt to speed up the recovery, but we do not yet know how effective they are.
We also don’t know for sure why there were disproportionate learning delays in math relative to English language arts. One possibility is that families found it easier to supplement reading instruction at home compared to math.
What’s next
Our next study looks at how the pandemic affected how students were identified for special education services. We are assessing how the inability to have in-person contact between teachers, school professionals and students made it harder to assess and serve students who might benefit from special education. Delays in access to these services could have substantially affected their academic, developmental and behavioral progress.
While some states, like Vermont, eliminated the property voting requirement in the 18th century, this shift became more popular in the 1820s and the 1830s.
Congress passed the 15th Amendment in 1870, giving Black men and others the right to vote, regardless of race.
State lawmakers also used bureaucratic measures, such as a poll tax, renewed attempts at a property requirement and literacy tests, to prevent African Americans from voting.
The fight over African American suffrage continued for decades, and many courageous Americans protested and were arrested or killed in the struggle to exercise their voting rights.
In the 1960s, Congress passed additional legal measures to protect the voting rights of Black Americans. This included the 24th Amendment, which outlawed the use of poll taxes, and the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which prohibited any racial discrimination in voting.
Women’s turn
In 1920, women gained the right to vote with the addition of the 19th Amendment, following another decadeslong struggle.
Having self-governed for centuries, Native Americans were not legally recognized with voting rights until Congress approved the Indian Citizenship Act in 1924.
While that supposedly gave Native Americans the same rights as other Americans, Native Americans faced the same tactics, like violence, that white racists used to prevent Black Americans from voting.
But equality for women, young people and racially marginalized groups did not change overnight.
Social equality remains far off for many people, including undocumented immigrants, for example, and LGBTQ+ individuals.
Current limitations to ‘We the People’
The government has recognized that citizens over the age of 18 have a right to participate in self-government. But there are still political and legal attempts to restrict people’s ability to vote.
While some states have passed new laws that make it harder to vote in recent years, other states have made it easier.
North Carolina passed new ID requirements in April 2023 that make it difficult for those without current state identification to vote.
Twenty-five states, meanwhile, including Hawaii and Delaware, have passed laws over the last few years that make it easier to vote. One of these measures automatically registers people to vote when they turn 18.
There are more examples. The bottom line is, voters have fewer protections when it becomes harder to vote, and American democracy is not as democratic as it could be.
The big picture
Voting is not the only form of recognition and participation in a democracy. People can be respected at work, paid what they are worth and treated with dignity. Community members can be treated fairly by police, school officials and other authorities, given an equal opportunity for justice and education to improve their lives.
People can also contribute to the social and economic well-being of a democracy in ways other than voting, doing everything from planting a tree in a public park to attending a political rally.
But the overall expansion of voting rights and a historical understanding of “We the People” shows that everyone belongs in a democratic society, regardless of wealth, achievement or other differences.
Do low-calorie sweeteners help with weight management? And are they safe for long-term use?
This is among the most controversial topics in nutritional science. In early May 2023, the World Health Organization issued a statement that cautions against the use of nonsugar sweeteners for weight loss except for people who have preexisting diabetes.
Based on its interpretation of that large-scale review, the WHO recommended against using artificial sweeteners for weight control and concluded that there may be health risks associated with habitual consumption of nonsugar sweeteners over the long term. However, the WHO also acknowledged that the existing evidence is not conclusive and that more research needs to be done.
As neuroscientists, we study how dietary factors such as sweeteners affect the brain’s ability to perform critical functions, including metabolism, appetite, and learning and memory.
We found the WHO’s advisory surprising based on the study’s equivocal results. Determining the answers to these questions is immensely challenging, and public health messaging around recommendations can send mixed messages.
‘Healthy’ versus ‘unhealthy’ sugars
Natural sugars like glucose and fructose, together with fiber and other nutrients, are found in many food sources that are considered healthy, such as fruit. However, these simple carbohydrates have been increasingly added into manufactured food products, especially beverages. Sugar-sweetened beverages are usually high in calories and offer little else in the way of nutrition.
In the early 20th century, food and beverage manufacturers began incorporating naturally and chemically derived substances that satisfy sweet cravings but contain significantly fewer calories than natural sugars – and, in some cases, zero calories. Sugar substitutes became particularly widespread in the 1950s with the increasing popularity of diet sodas. Since then, consumers have increasingly turned to these sugar substitutes in their everyday lives.
Sugar substitutes go by many names, including high-intensity sweeteners, artificial sweeteners, nonnutritive sweeteners, low-calorie sweeteners and, as termed in the WHO report, nonsugar sweeteners.“ These include synthetic compounds like sucralose, acesulfame potassium and aspartame, and naturally derived ones, such as those from the plant Stevia rebaudiana, among many others.
Each nonsugar sweetener has a unique chemical structure, but they all activate sweet taste receptors at very low concentrations. This means that you need to add only a tiny amount of them to sweeten your coffee or tea, as opposed to heaping spoonfuls of natural sugar.
Sugar substitutes and the quest for weight loss
Obesity and its associated metabolic conditions, like diabetes and cardiovascular disease, are now among the leading causes of preventable death in the U.S. The obesity epidemic has been linked in part to an increase in added sugar consumption over the past century.
Sugar substitutes were designed to help. The math seems straightforward: Replacing your favorite 12-ounce sugar-sweetened beverage that contains 150 calories with an artificially sweetened beverage of the same volume that contains zero calories should allow you to reduce the number of calories you take in each day and reduce your body weight over time.
However, there are conflicting studies from animal modelsand humans that have not found significant body weight gain associated with nonsugar sweeteners consumption.
Parsing the health impacts
Regardless of any potential benefits nonsugar sweeteners may have for weight control, their use must also be considered in the context of overall health.
Agencies like the WHO and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration periodically review available evidence and assess the safety of various food additives, including nonsugar sweeteners, for use in foods and beverages within what is called an acceptable daily intake limit. In this context, the acceptable daily intake is based on the estimated amount of a specific nonsugar sweetener that can be safely consumed daily over one’s entire life without adverse effects on health.
Each agency sets its own daily allowance based on the best available data. But because these experiments cannot account for all possible conditions in which these substances are used in real life, it is critical that scientists continue to investigate the health effects of food additives.
The authors of the WHO report relied on three main types of published research studies to determine whether nonsugar sweetener consumption was linked to adverse health effects. The gold standard for assessing causation is what are called randomized controlled trials.
In these studies, people are randomly assigned to either an experimental group – which receives the experimental substance, such as a nonsugar sweetener – or a control group – which receives a placebo or different substance. Participants in both groups are then tracked for a period of time, typically weeks or months. The majority of studies involving randomized controlled trials on nonsugar sweeteners to date involve this type of comparison, with nonsugar sweeteners replacing consumption of natural sugar-sweetened beverages.
The analysis of almost 50 randomized controlled trials on which the WHO based its recommendation found modest benefits of using nonsugar sweeteners for weight loss and determined that the habitual use of those nonsugar sweeteners did not lead to diabetes symptoms or indicators of cardiovascular disease. But it did find that the use of nonsugar sweeteners was associated with a higher ratio of total cholesterol to HDL, short for high-density lipoprotein, which is considered the "good cholesterol.”
That means that habitual consumers of artificial sweetener had more of the low-density lipoprotein, or LDL version, in their system. That form of “bad cholesterol” is a risk factor for heart disease.
However, other potential adverse consequences of consuming nonsugar sweeteners may take more time to appear than can be identified in the limited time frame of a randomized controlled trial.
The authors also evaluated what are called prospective cohort studies. Those studies track participants’ self-reported use of sweeteners alongside health outcomes, oftentimes over many years. They also took into account case-control studies, which identify people with or without a certain health issue, such as cancer, and then use available health records and interviews to determine the extent of nonsugar sweetener use in their past.
Examination of the cohort and case-control studies found that regular consumption of nonsugar sweetener was associated with increased fat accumulation, higher body mass index and increased incidence of Type 2 diabetes. Those findings differ from the outcomes of the randomized control studies.
Analysis of the cohort and case-control studies also concluded that a history of regular nonsugar sweetener use was linked to increased frequency of stroke, hypertension, other adverse cardiovascular events and, in pregnant people, an increased risk for premature birth. The frequency of cancer in nonsugar sweetener consumers was very low in general, though saccharin, an FDA-approved sweetener found in many food products, was associated with a bladder cancer.
Caveats and takeaways
On the face of it, these results are alarming, but they need to be taken with a grain of salt. As the WHO report points out, these studies have significant limitations that need to be considered.
Take, for example, in the cohort and case-control studies, that higher body mass index, or BMI, was associated with greater nonsugar sweetener intake and poorer health outcomes. One possibility is that people with obesity used nonsugar sweeteners to help cut calories more than others without obesity. This makes it difficult to determine whether the disease is caused by sustained artificial sweetener use or by the other underlying conditions associated with obesity.
Additionally, the way nonsugar sweeteners are consumed is not controlled in these types of studies. So negative health outcomes could be associated with other affiliated harmful behaviors, such as more sugar or fat in the diet.
The picture is very mixed on both the benefits of nonsugar sweeteners for weight loss and their ties to adverse health issues. The WHO’s recommendation seems to have weighed the cohort and case-control studies over the randomized controlled ones, a decision that we found puzzling in light of the limitations of these studies for assessing whether nonsugar sweeteners have a causal role in disease.
As with all health-related choices, the science is complex. In our view, grabbing a diet drink to offset the calories in a slice of chocolate cake every once in a while will likely not be harmful for your health or lead to a significant weight change.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Lake County Animal Care and Control has new dogs — big ones, little ones, seniors and puppies — waiting to be adopted this week.
Dogs available for adoption this week include mixes of Anatolian shepherd, Belgian malinois, Catahoula leopard dog, Chihuahua, German shepherd, hound, mastiff, pit bull, plott hound, pointer and terrier.
Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.
The following dogs at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption.
Call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278 or visit the shelter online for information on visiting or adopting.
Female terrier
This 6-year-old female terrier has a gray coat
She is in kennel No. 68, ID No. LCAC-A-5393.
Male German shepherd puppy
This 6-month-old male German shepherd puppy has a black and tan coat.
He is in kennel No. 2, ID No. LCAC-A-5315.
‘Zeus’
“Zeus” is a 2-year-old male mastiff with a short brown coat.
He is in kennel No. 3, ID No. LCAC-A-5070.
Female German shepherd
This 3-year-old female German shepherd has a black and tan coat.
She is in kennel No. 4, ID No. LCAC-A-5396.
Anatolian shepherd-mastiff mix
This 3-year-old male Anatolian shepherd-mastiff mix has a short fawn coat.
He is in kennel No. 5, ID No. LCAC-A-5276.
‘Zeta’
“Zeta” is a 1-year-old female pit bull terrier with a black and tan coat.
She is in kennel No. 6, ID No. LCAC-A-5427.
Female pit bull terrier
This 3-year-old female pit bull terrier has a brown and white coat.
She is in kennel No. 10, ID No. LCAC-A-5400.
Female hound-shepherd mix puppy
This 3-month-old female hound-shepherd mix puppy has a black and tan coat.
She is in kennel No. 11, ID No. LCAC-A-5370.
Male Catahoula leopard dog puppy
This 3-month-old male Catahoula leopard dog puppy has a short tan and white coat.
He is in kennel No. 13, ID No. LCAC-A-5354.
Female pointer-retriever mix
This 9-year-old female pointer-retriever mix has a short white coat with brown markings.
She is in kennel No. 15, ID No. LCAC-A-5404.
Male German shepherd
This two and a half year old male German shepherd has a black and tan coat.
He is in kennel No. 16, ID No. LCAC-A-5337.
Male German shepherd
This 1 year old male German shepherd has a black and tan coat.
He is in kennel No. 17, ID No. LCAC-A-5324.
Male plott hound
This 2-year-old male plott hound has a short brown coat.
He is in kennel No. 18, ID No. LCAC-A-5143.
Female pit bull terrier
This 5-year-old female pit bull terrier has a short gray and white coat.
She is in kennel No. 19, ID No. LCAC-A-5321.
Male Chihuahua-terrier mix
This 2-year-old male Chihuahua-terrier mix has a short white coat.
She is in kennel No. 20, ID No. LCAC-A-5381.
Female Chihuahua
This 2-year-old female Chihuahua has a short brown and white coat.
She is in kennel No. 21, ID No. LCAC-A-5379.
Male shepherd
This 2-year-old male shepherd has a black and tan coat.
He is in kennel No. 22, ID No. LCAC-A-5423.
Male pit bull terrier
This 5-year-old male pit bull terrier has a short white coat with red markings.
He is in kennel No. 23, ID No. LCAC-A-5322.
Female pit bull terrier
This 6-year-old female pit bull terrier has a short tan coat.
She is in kennel No. 24, ID No. LCAC-A-5410.
Male shepherd
This 1 and a half year old male shepherd has a short tricolor coat.
He is in kennel No. 26, ID No. LCAC-A-5424.
Female shepherd
This 2-year-old female shepherd has a short yellow and white coat.
She is in kennel No. 27, ID No. LCAC-A-5369.
Male pit bull puppy
This 5-month-old male pit bull puppy has a white coat.
He is in kennel No. 29, ID No. LCAC-A-5325.
Male Belgian malinois
This 1 and a half year old male Belgian malinois has a tan and black coat.
He is in kennel No. 30, ID No. LCAC-A-5409.
Male shepherd
This 2-year-old male shepherd has a short tan coat with white markings.
He is in kennel No. 31, ID No. LCAC-A-5344.
Male shepherd mix puppy
This 6-month-old male shepherd mix puppy has a black coat with white markings.
He is in kennel No. 32, ID No. LCAC-A-5408.
Female shepherd
This 10-month-old female shepherd has a tricolor coat.
She is in kennel No. 34, ID No. LCAC-A-5323.
‘Jojo’
“Jojo” is a one and a half year old female pit bull terrier with a short tricolor coat.
She is in kennel foster care, ID No. LCAC-A-5312.
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.
There are 101 new CHP officers, with some of those graduates heading to the North Coast.
On Friday, the newest members of the California Highway Patrol were sworn in during a graduation ceremony at the CHP Academy in West Sacramento.
The 101 officers are part of the CHP’s multiyear recruiting campaign to fill 1,000 vacant officer positions by hiring qualified individuals from California’s diverse communities.
The agency reported that one of the graduates is being assigned to the Clear Lake Area office in Kelseyville, with one each to go to the Crescent City and Humboldt offices.
“I want to commend these men and women, not just for the hard work they put in the past several months while training at the Academy, but for their willingness to serve the public,” said CHP Commissioner Sean Duryee. “These new officers are valued members of the CHP who are committed to improving safety in California for many years to come.”
“This diverse group of officers represents the best of California,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom. “I’m profoundly grateful they have chosen to answer the call to serve — and committed themselves to improving public safety and building trust across the Golden State.”
With the addition of these new officers, CHP — the largest state police agency in the United States — now has over 6,550 sworn officers assigned across California.
Next month, a new class of 128 cadets is expected to join the two existing cadet classes at the CHP Academy, bringing the total number of CHP cadets in training to 366.
This will mark the highest number of cadets in training in over 14 years.
CHP Cadet Training Class I-23 is one of six cadet classes scheduled to attend the Academy in 2023.
After completing 26 weeks of instruction at the CHP’s live-in training facility, the newly sworn officers will report to various CHP offices throughout the state.
At the CHP Academy, cadet training starts with nobility in policing, leadership, professionalism and ethics, and cultural diversity. Additionally, cadets receive instruction on mental illness response and crisis intervention techniques.
Training also covers vehicle patrol, crash investigation, first aid, and the apprehension of suspected violators, including those who drive under the influence.
Cadets also receive training in traffic control, report writing, recovery of stolen vehicles, assisting the motoring public, issuing citations, emergency scene management, and various codes, including the California Vehicle Code, Penal Code, and Health and Safety Code.
The “Join the CHP 1,000” campaign launched in 2022 to appeal to a wide array of prospective applicants who may not be aware of the life-changing opportunities that awaits with a CHP career.
Apply today and be one of the 1,000 new CHP officers ready to make a difference.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — In 2016, the Woodland-based nonprofit Tuleyome purchased 1,280-acres along a portion of the north fork of Cache Creek in Lake County.
Known as Silver Spur Ranch, the property is located in the heart of the 330,780-acre Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument.
Since the purchase, Tuleyome has been working with multiple agencies and partners on several ongoing scientific studies.
The California Department of Water Resources has a water quality monitoring station on Cache Creek as it flows through Silver Spur.
The Department of Water Resources California Data Exchange Center installs, maintains and operates an extensive hydrologic data collection network including snow reporting gages for the Cooperative Snow Surveys Program as well as precipitation and river stage sensors for flood forecasting. The monitor has been collecting data since late 2000.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife, or CDFW, uses Silver Spur as one of its annual deer survey locations. Their study utilizes game cameras and the collection of fecal pellets to study DNA.
The annual, five-week study has taken place since 2017, shortly after Tuleyome acquired the ranch.
While Tuleyome does not permit hunting on the property, hunters are allowed pass through the ranch to utilize the Bureau of Land Management-managed lands to the west, east, and north.
In 2018, the Pawnee fire burned through Silver Spur Ranch. Tuleyome applied for and received funding from the Sacramento Zoo to study how wildlife, especially mammals, returned to the area after the burn. A dozen wildlife cameras were set up in different habitat types to monitor the property.
The cameras provided us the opportunity to see what happens when humans are not around. It became clear that deer, bear, bobcats and mountain lions utilize Silver Spur.
The fire in 2018 also put Silver Spur on the radar of Dr. Timothy Stark from the University of Illinois -Urbana Champaign. He and his team are monitoring the impact of wildfires on landslides in Lake County.
There are multiple landslides of varying sizes — some have burned, some have not. Dr. Stark has installed weather stations on Silver Spur as part of a USDA-funded study. The weather stations collect data including precipitation, wind speed and direction, temperature, and soil moisture.
The most recent study to utilize Tuleyome’s Silver Spur Ranch is CDFW’s Vegetation Classification and Mapping Program.
This program is conducting vegetation surveys in Lake County to include in their North Coast and Ranges Vegetation Classification and Mapping Project.
They will use the information to create a description of plant communities (vegetation types) and a vegetation map of a section of the North Coast, including Del Norte, Humboldt, Mendocino, and portions of Lake counties.
Tuleyome’s Silver Spur Ranch is a gorgeous place in the heart of Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument. These studies are helping us understand the importance and uniqueness of the Monument and will provide information when the Monument Management Plan is being developed by the BLM and U.S. Forest Service.
Nate Lillge is the adventures and engagement director for Tuleyome.
What's up for July? Mars and Venus go their separate ways, Saturn cruises with a dusty young star, and it's prime time for the Milky Way.
You'll find Venus and Mars in the west after sunset throughout July. The pair moved ever closer in the sky during June, and they begin July appearing quite near to each other, but it's time for them to part company. You'll notice them trending lower as the month goes on, with Venus in particular being noticeably lower each night.
During the second week of July, reddish-colored Mars will appear very close to the blue-white star Regulus. Mars is quite distant from Earth right now, and appears at its dimmest for the year in July and August.
This month it appears at about the same brightness as Regulus, and you should easily be able to see the difference in their color with your eyes, or a pair of binoculars. They're closest together on July 9 and 10.
And on July 20, the Moon will pass through, appearing just next to Mars. Mercury also pops up – quite low in the sky – in the second half of July, for those with views of the horizon.
During July, you'll have giant planets Jupiter and Saturn keeping you company in the late night and early morning hours. And notably, you'll find Jupiter shining brightly beneath the crescent moon on the morning of July 11. Now, Jupiter appears quite a bit brighter than Saturn, and it's not just because Jupiter's a little bigger.
See, the farther away something is in space, the fainter it tends to be, and Saturn's certainly farther away from Earth than Jupiter. But it's also farther away from the Sun, and being more distant means it receives much less sunlight than Jupiter to begin with.
So it's the combination of being both farther from the Sun and farther from Earth that makes Saturn appear so much fainter.
Now, Saturn cruises across the sky with bright star Fomalhaut in July. At around 440 million years old, Fomalhaut is a fairly young star. NASA's Webb Space Telescope recently revealed new details in the dusty debris disk that surrounds it.
Webb showed that there's more structure in the disk than was previously known, with three distinct belts made of debris from collisions of larger bodies, probably not unlike the asteroids and comets in our own planetary system.
And researchers think the belts most likely are carved by the gravitational forces produced by unseen planets. It's a nice reminder that most stars you gaze upon represent entire planetary systems. Each one is a sun, and most have a family of worlds in orbit around them.
Finally, a reminder that July is prime time for viewing the bright core of our home galaxy, the Milky Way.
The Milky Way core is visible looking toward the south in July, as a faint, diagonal band of light, as soon as it's fully dark.
Packed with enormous numbers of stars, along with dark clouds of dust, you can view its faint glow with your own eyes from locations away from bright urban centers.
So if you have the opportunity to go camping or skywatching away from the city, it's truly one of the most awe inspiring sights of the night sky, and not to be missed!
Stay up to date with all of NASA's missions to explore the solar system and beyond at www.nasa.gov.
Preston Dyches works for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Millions of dollars are heading to Lake County for road repairs thanks to the latest action by the California Transportation Commission.
The California Transportation Commission, or CTC, last week invested nearly $2 billion into improving the state’s transportation infrastructure while approving an additional $2.3 billion for future projects.
The nearly $2 billion allocation reflects more than $571 million in funding from the 2021 federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, or IIJA, and more than $257 million in funding from Senate Bill (SB) 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017.
The $2.3 billion comprises $1.75 billion representing the third funding cycle of programs established by SB 1 and $540 million in active transportation projects sponsored by local metropolitan planning organizations, charting the course for future allocations.
“SB 1 and IIJA funding are helping rebuild and transform California’s transportation future, and we are putting that investment to work to create a system that allows all of us to travel in an equitable, safe and sustainable way,” said Caltrans Director Tony Tavares.
Lake County projects selected for funding include $2.4 million in support allocations toward roadway and guardrail upgrades, the construction of left-turn lanes, installation of lighting, pedestrian activated flashing beacons and sidewalk and curb ramps on Route 29 near Middletown from south of Central Park Road to north of Young Street in Lake County.
Another $2.7 million has been awarded for emergency allocations toward embankment repairs and drainage improvements on Route 175 near Lakeport in Lake County.
In addition, $1.9 million was approved for emergency allocations for embankment, roadway and guardrail repairs on Route 175 west of Arroyo Vista Road to west of Socrates Mine Road near Whispering Pines in Lake County.
Finally, $11.2 million will go toward emergency allocations for roadway and drainage repairs along with the removal of hazardous trees at various locations on U.S. 101 and Routes 1, 20, 29, 53, 128 and 175 in Humboldt, Mendocino and Lake counties.
Other projects that the CTC approved in its nearly $2 billion worth of investments include:
• $5.5 million in federal IIJA funding toward guardrail and roadway improvements along Route 1 from north of Route 128 to south of Navarro Ridge Road near Albion in Mendocino County.
• $3.2 million including more than $2.9 million in federal IIJA funding and $98,000 in SB1 funding toward roadway and drainage upgrades on Route 1 at Navarro Ridge Road near Albion in Mendocino County.
• $3 million in support allocations toward roadway and guardrail improvements and bridge replacement on Route 36 near Carlotta from west of Fisher Road to west of Wilder Road in Humboldt County.
• Approximately $1 million in SB1 funding in support allocations toward drainage and fish-passage improvements on U.S. 101 near Cooks Valley in Humboldt County.
• $2 million in SB1 funding in support allocations toward drainage and lighting upgrades at various locations along U.S.101 from the Eel River Bridge to north of the Mendocino County line near Cooks Valley in Humboldt County.
• $1.4 million including more than $1.2 million in federal IIJA funding in support allocations toward mitigation work for freshwater wetland expansion and tidal restoration of salt marsh habitat at various locations on U.S. 101 from 11th Street in Arcata to the Eureka Slough Bridge in Humboldt County.
• $947,000 including more than $838,000 in federal IIJA funding in support allocations toward mitigation work for freshwater wetland expansion and tidal restoration of salt marsh habitat at various locations on U.S. 101 from south of Jacobs Avenue in Eureka to north of the Bayside Cutoff in Humboldt County.
• $612,000 including more than $541,000 in federal IIJA funding and $40,000 in SB 1 funding in support allocations toward mitigation work for freshwater wetland expansion and tidal restoration of salt marsh habitat at various locations on U.S. 101 between Arcata and Eureka from south of the Jacoby Creek Bridge to north of the Gannon Slough Bridge in Humboldt County.
• $7.1 million of emergency allocations toward drainage and roadway repairs as well as the removal of hazardous trees at various locations on U.S. 101 and U.S. 199 and Route 169 and Route 197 in Humboldt and Del Norte Counties.
• $6.5 million of emergency allocations toward drainage, embankment and roadway repairs on Route 254 near Miranda from north of Redwood Lane to Cathey Road in Humboldt County.
The $1.75 billion for future investments cover three SB 1 competitive grant programs: $1.08 billion for the Trade Corridor Enhancement Program, or TCEP; $532.8 million for the Solutions for Congested Corridors Program, or SCCP; and $142.5 million for the Local Partnership Program, or LPP.
The programs included, for the first time, input from the new Interagency Equity Advisory Committee in the evaluation of projects. This funding round also marks the first cycle to incorporate all principles of the state’s Climate Action Plan for Transportation Infrastructure.
The TCEP funding will go to 26 projects that support infrastructure improvements on corridors that carry a high volume of freight traffic with the goal of increasing efficiency, improving safety, and constructing an equitable and sustainable freight system.
More than a third (10 of 26) of the TCEP projects include zero-emission technology components to support the deployment of a zero-emission freight transportation system and invest in light, medium and heavy zero-emission vehicle infrastructure.
The SCCP funding will go to 10 projects to achieve a balanced set of transportation, environmental, and community access improvements to reduce congestion throughout the state. All 10 SCCP projects are multimodal, and five include active transportation improvements.
The LPP funding will go to 11 projects that support counties, cities, districts, and regional transportation agencies where voters have approved fees or taxes dedicated solely to transportation.
Local LPP projects include approximately $6 million to fund the city of Ukiah Urban Core Rehabilitation and Transportation Project in Mendocino County.
The CTC also adopted the 2023 MPO Active Transportation Program, totaling $540 million for future investments. The 134 projects approved for funding include a broad range of active transportation infrastructure improvements, including more than 120 miles of new bikeways, 60 miles of new sidewalks, and many other improvements to intersections, crosswalks, shade and signage.
More than 90% of the funding, $494 million, will fund projects benefiting disadvantaged communities, and $290 million (54%) will fund Safe Routes to School projects.
MPO active transportation projects include $2.3 million to fund the city of Eureka C Street Bike Boulevard in Humboldt County and $9 million toward the city of Eureka Bay to Zoo Trail in Humboldt County.
The IIJA, also known as the “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,” is a once-in-a-generation investment in our nation's infrastructure to improve the sustainability and resiliency of our energy, water, broadband and transportation systems.
Since November 2021, California has received more than $20 billion in federal infrastructure funding.
That includes more than $15.1 billion in federal transportation funding to upgrade the state’s roads, bridges, rail, public transit, airports, electric vehicle charging network, ports, and waterways.
These transportation investments alone have already created nearly 48,000 jobs.
The influx of federal funding is on top of California’s multiyear infrastructure investments in transit and intercity rail projects, safe walking and biking options, and upgrades to the state’s economy-powering supply chain, in addition to SB 1, which provides $5 billion in transportation funding annually that is shared equally between state and local agencies.
Road projects progress through construction phases more quickly based on the availability of SB 1 funds, including projects that are partially funded by SB 1.
To review the latest news and information on state and federal infrastructure investments, visit RebuildingCA.ca.gov, which contains data on the increased funding. Website visitors can learn more about the different state and federal infrastructure programs, track the amount of funding California is receiving, and find projects on an updated interactive map.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — The Clearlake Police Department is attempting to locate a missing man.
They are seeking information about Charles Ness.
Police said Ness was on Friday between 6 and 6:30 p.m. in the area of 6101 Old Highway 53 in Clearlake. He was possibly headed to J&L Market on a mountain bike.
Ness is described as a white male adult, 6 feet, 1 inch tall, and 250 pounds, with brown hair shaved on sides and short on top, with hazel eyes.
When last seen, he was wearing a shirt of unknown color and blue baggy jeans.
If you have any information regarding Ness’ whereabouts please contact the Clearlake Police Department at 707-994-8251, Extension 1.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Health officials and forecasters are warning of extreme heat this weekend and urging community members to take measures to protect themselves.
The National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory for Lake County and other parts of Northern California through Sunday night due to the increasing temperatures.
The advisory, in effect through 9 p.m. Sunday, warns of temperatures as high as 108 degrees.
Temperatures are expected to top the century mark on Saturday and Sunday before dropping into the 90s by Monday. By Thursday, temperatures are forecast to drop into the high 80s.
“This weekend, millions of people across five states will experience unusual heat. Human-caused climate change made this event more likely and more intense,” said Dr. Andrew Pershing, vice president of science at Climate Central, an independent group of scientists and communicators who research and report the facts about the changing climate and how it affects people’s lives.
Climate Central said forecasts indicate a three-day stretch of “anomalous and extreme heat” is expected across California and the rest of the southwest through Monday.
The California Department of Public Health urged Californians to protect themselves from extreme heat over the Fourth of July weekend and remaining summer months by staying cool, hydrated, connected and informed.
“Summer heat waves can be dangerous, especially for young children, older adults, people with chronic diseases and disabilities, outdoor workers, people who are unhoused and those who are pregnant,” said CDPH Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Tomás Aragón. “It's important to protect yourself and your loved ones by checking in on friends and family who may need assistance, monitoring weather forecasts, staying hydrated, limiting time outdoors, and visiting cooling centers.”
CDPH said extreme heat is defined in most of the U.S. as an extended period — two to three days — of high heat and humidity with temperatures above 90 degrees.
Extreme heat often results in the highest annual number of deaths among all weather-related disasters, the agency said.
California is experiencing more frequent episodes of extreme heat, posing a greater danger to Californians from heat-related illness, state health officials reported.
Community members are urged to follow the following guidelines to stay safe.
Stay cool (during the hottest times of the day):
• Those without air conditioning should check with their city or county for cooling centers or visit public locations such as a library or shopping mall. • Avoid physical exertion or exercising outdoors. • Wear lightweight, light colored, loose clothing, hats, sunglasses and sunscreen.
Stay hydrated:
• Drink plenty of fluids, especially water, even when not thirsty; drink sports drinks (in moderation with water) to help replace electrolytes lost during exercise. • Avoid sugary, alcoholic, and very cold drinks. • Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables.
Stay connected:
• Monitor those at high risk of heat-related illness including infants and young children; people 65 years of age or older; individuals with chronic illness, disabilities or who are pregnant. • Use a buddy system when working in the heat.
Stay informed:
• Check the local news for weather forecasts, extreme heat alerts and cooling centers.
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.