A spectacular sky show will take place on Saturday night.
The conjunction of Venus and Jupiter will occur within an hour after sunset.
See the video above for the full details.
NORTH COAST, Calif. – A record number of whales are suffering from entanglements in California waters – 2015 saw 57 whales entangled off our coast, which is the highest total since the National Marine Fisheries Service started keeping records in 1982.
Just in the first half of this year alone, there were another 40 reports of entangled whales off California’s coast. Many of these whales are becoming entangled in lost or abandoned crab fishing gear.
North Coast Sen. Mike McGuire’s legislation that will help permanently protect whales by removing lost and abandoned crab fishing gear from the ocean has been approved by both houses of the State Legislature and will now head to Gov. Brown’s desk.
SB 1287 received widespread and overwhelming support in the Senate and was approved Thursday by a vote of the full State Assembly.
“We need this legislation, now more than ever. Whale entanglement numbers are skyrocketing off the California coast and we’re bringing together crabbers and environmentalists to get this common sense bill signed into law,” McGuire said.
The Whale Protection & Crab Gear Retrieval Act, which was proactively initiated by the thousands of hard working men and women who make up California’s mighty crab fleet, would create a regulatory program with incentives for fishermen to retrieve Dungeness crab fishing gear that would otherwise be lost in the ocean.
It’s estimated that thousands of pots are lost every season and these pieces of gear could have hundreds of feet of rope attached to a locater buoy.
The lost gear has created marine debris and entanglement hazards for whales and other marine life, along with others in the crab and salmon fleets.
“In light of the record number of whale entanglements over the last several months, we need to get this bill passed and retrieval programs in place to ensure California’s beloved humpbacks and blue whales will have the protection they need to thrive,” McGuire said. “I’m grateful for Assemblyman Wood’s partnership to get this bill passed.”
“The people who rely on a healthy ocean environment for their living along the Pacific coast have come together to protect whales and other marine life,” said Wood, “and is it such a wonderful example of everyone understanding the mutual benefit of working together to solve this growing problem.”
Crab fishermen continue to take the lead on the whale entanglement issue and many are already taking part in a voluntary pilot project that was initiated two years ago.
Approximately 1,500 lost crab pots have been collected in that program. SB 1287 builds upon the successful pilot project by advancing a statewide solution to the growing problem.
Based on recommendations from the Dungeness Crab Task Force, SB 1287 will call on the Department of Fish and Wildlife to establish a retrieval program. One hundred percent of the program will be paid for by industry related fees, not the taxpayers.
Dungeness crab fishermen, who obtain a retrieval permit through this program, will collect old crab traps after the crab season has closed each year. Those fishermen will be paid a recovery bounty for each trap retrieved from the ocean.
The bill also establishes a fee to be paid by the owner that lost or abandoned the crab trap. A crab fisherman who doesn’t buy back their lost or abandoned crab traps will not be able to get their vessel permit the next season.
The creation of a self-perpetuating program to recover fishing gear is a necessary action of the commercial Dungeness crab fishing industry to continue operating as a responsible, sustainable fishery.
“The Dungeness crab fishery is in the top tier of California’s commercial seafood catch and the entire industry has weathered a challenging few years, including the historic delay of this year’s Dungeness crab season,” McGuire said. “This gear retrieval program will be a great step forward in cleaning up our oceans and making a safer environment for the people who work the Pacific for their living and the whales and marine life that call the ocean home.”
A broad coalition of fishing and environmental groups are unified in supporting SB 1287 which will increase mariner safety while reducing marine debris and the potential for whale entanglement, including: Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Sierra Club, Californian’s Against Waste, California Coastkeeper Alliance, Earthjustice, Golden Gate Salmon Association, Golden Gate Fishermen’s Association, Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom, The Marine Mammal Center, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Trinidad Bay Fishermen’s Marketing Assn, Crescent City Fishermen’s Assn, Half Moon Bay Seafood Marketing Assn, the Morro Bay Commercial Fishermen’s Assn, Natural Resources Defense Council, Ocean Conservancy, Oceana, Surfrider and many more.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Planning Commission on Thursday gave the go ahead for the preparation of a final environmental impact report for an expanded vineyard and new winery project near Hidden Valley Lake.
With District 3 Commissioner Gladys Rosehill absent for the meeting, after a discussion that lasted more than two hours the other four commissioners reached consensus to move forward with the final environmental document for Wild Diamond Vineyards.
Wild Diamond Vineyards LLC, owned by Florida attorney Robert Bowling, has applied for major use and grading permits, and a lot line adjustment to build the project at 15087, 15591, 15663 and 158078 Spruce Grove Road, just north of Hidden Valley Lake.
There currently are about 41 acres of vineyard to the property, according to county documents.
At full buildout, the vineyard would be 148 acres, with a 17,850-square foot winery that would produce up to 52,800 cases of wine per year, an 11,340-square-foot tasting room with commercial kitchen and retail sales, and self-guided interpretive center.
The Thursday meeting featured the second public hearing the commission has held this month on the project. On Aug. 11, it also took public comment on the draft environmental impact report, or EIR, which Wild Diamond Vineyards attorney Tina Wallis said was first submitted to the county in February.
The draft environmental impact report can be found online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Community_Development/Wild_Diamond_Vineyards_Project_Draft_EIR.htm .
Wallis said former Planning Director Rick Coel had been willing to accept a mitigated negative declaration for the project, but Bowling had volunteered to pay for the environmental impact report at his own expense, which so far is upwards of $250,000.
Bob Brown of SHN Consulting Engineers and Biologists of Redding, the firm Bowling hired to complete the document, sat alongside Wallis and went through the document and key areas including chemicals, noise, water, aesthetics and traffic.
They also had several experts on hand to give their opinions on specific aspects of the project.
During that testimony, it was stated that the project's ongoing water usage is estimated to be 1 percent of the groundwater within the storage area, and will come from a different groundwater basin that the Coyote Groundwater Basin that supplies Hidden Valley Lake.
Steve Greenberg, Ph.D., who lives in Hidden Valley Lake, questioned the adequacy of the work done to study noise impacts, pointing out that people already are complaining of machinery noise, even without the more than two dozen special events the project seeks to host annually.
Pointing out the project's close proximity to Hidden Valley Lake, where an estimated 6,000 people – or about 10 percent of the county's total population – live, Greenberg said they needed to protect the community.
Kirk Cloyd, the new general manager for Hidden Valley Lake Community Services District, said he thought the document's study on hydrology was well done.
However, he suggested that there be a baseline monitoring report for impacted creeks, streams and tributaries. He also wanted to know about any off-site wells under Wild Diamond Vineyards' purview.
Otherwise, Cloyd emphasized that the community services district was neutral on the project.
Like Cloyd, geologist David Adam, another Hidden Valley resident, wanted to know more about spring discharges and data. Later in the meeting, he would bring up the safety issues on Spruce Grove Road.
Victoria Brandon of the Sierra Club said several of the group's existing concerns – such as buffers and tributary setbacks – were addressed. She said rare plants such as the Konocti manzanita would need a maintenance and monitoring plan.
“The remaining thing is the noise,” she said.
While she said the analysis sounds thorough, she said she's been in that room before with angry neighbors due to amplified events and music.
While she said the Sierra Club didn't think that a lot of the extreme concerns about the project's impacts are warranted, she suggested the developer set up a complaint process so people's concerns can be addressed.
Elizabeth Montgomery, who lives about half a mile from project, said she was there to represent the community outrage at the project.
She read from a statement from Southern California attorney Amy Minteer, an expert in the California Environmental Quality Act, regarding Wild Diamond Vineyards' draft EIR, which Minteer said attempted to hide behind a failure to disclose and analyze impacts to support its claim that it would have no impacts.
Montgomery said there have been multiple complaints about existing impacts that haven't been addressed in the draft EIR or at the Thursday meeting.
To say there will be no environmental impact when there already have been impacts is a discrepancy that Montgomery said should be addressed. An impact that she said she had personally endured was smoke from burning vegetation cleared from the property, which she said had caused her to sleep under a blanket with air filters going.
She also said she planned to submit a petition with more than 200 signatures asking for a hydrology study suggested by Adam.
Thomas Nickel, a director for the Scotts Valley Water Conservation District, said large vineyard developments like Wild Diamond Vineyards will harm watersheds.
Nickel said vineyards will harm the county’s habitat. “Where do we stop?” he asked, citing the number of vineyards already in the county. “Enough is enough.”
Hank Lecher, who has a ranch next door to Wild Diamond Vineyards, said a lot of the comments at the meeting were about activities already permitted on the property, adding he has never experienced any smoke coming off that vineyard.
When he first heard of the project, he said he called Bowling, who he said is a very nice guy who has been accommodating of neighbors' concerns.
“I think that you can count on him to responsibly and appropriately mitigate any concerns that you might have and any recommendations that you might come up with,” Lecher said.
Addressing biological assessment issues
One of the matters that had been brought to the commission's attention at the Aug. 11 meeting – and which was cited by several people testifying on Thursday – was the use of a preliminary biological assessment done by Steve Zalusky, principal biologist for the locally based Northwest Biosurvey, who was hired as a subcontractor to SHN.
Zalusky told Lake County News in an interview this week that in speaking at the Aug. 11 meeting he did something he had never done before – raise concerns about how his work was used.
However, he also has emphasized that he has nothing to say about the project's merits – positive or negative. “We must be an objective third party.”
On Aug. 11, he had told the commission, “Having a client rewrite our reports to suit their own needs completely defeats the purpose of our third party review.”
He said the text, tables and maps his firm completed were lifted, attribution stripped and placed under a separate cover that claimed SHN authored it. In his 19 years as a consultant, Zalusky said he had never seen anything like it.
This week, he explained, “Our biggest concern was that we made it very clear in our contract that if they wanted a report in May or earlier, it could not be anything other than a preliminary biological assessment.”
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife has protocol for botanical surveys that require that a floristic level botanical survey must be done throughout the season and into July, Zalusky said, adding he had made it clear in his work that such a survey should be done.
He said the reference to his work being a preliminary survey was removed from the final report submitted by SHN, which also turned it into a natural resource assessment.
Zalusky said he had no idea if there are rare plants in the project area, as a full survey wasn't completed within the necessary time frame this year.
He said his firm followed up in July to do an additional survey and was told it was done. “Maybe they did have one done, I just don't know,” he said. “Nothing in the public record of hearing that says that a second survey was done.”
Assistant Resource Planner Peggy Barthel told Lake County News that county staff had requested Zalusky's full report from SHN in order to review it, but that it hadn't been provided. However, Wallis said Thursday that a full biological study had been completed.
Throughout Thursday's meeting, Montgomery and other people testifying in opposition to the project had raised Zalusky's previous comments as cause for concern.
During the commission's discussion, commissioners said their major concerns had included issues such as water and the study area raised by Zalusky.
However, by Thursday, Zalusky – who gave brief additional testimony – said the bulk of his concerns had been addressed, explaining that the primary issue had remained that a full season biological assessment be done. “That's the one issue that we feel needs to be resolved.”
Wallis explained that the study had been prepared and would be included in the final EIR. She said the project also has input from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife on that study, and the agency is satisfied with it.
With those matters resolved, the commissioners said they were comfortable directing the preparation of the final document begin.
The commission intends to have more hearings on the project at its upcoming meetings on Sept. 8 and Sept. 22. Planning staff said the final EIR could be turned around in just a matter of weeks, based on the applicant's previous estimates.
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.
Unlike federal bankruptcy law, California’s enforcement of judgment law does not protect the various types of qualified higher education savings accounts, including so-called “529 College Savings Plans.”
Thus, for example, if a California resident owns a 529 College Savings Plan and owes money to a judgment creditor then the judgment creditor can proceed against the 529 College Savings Plan just like any other asset not exempt from judgment collections.
Unless a debtor files for and obtains relief through a federal bankruptcy petition before the creditor levies on the account, or else lives in one of 27 or more other states that do protect college savings accounts, the college savings account owned by the debtor may be lost to their judgment creditors.
So how can a California resident protect the money he or she has set aside to pay the future college tuition costs, etc., of his or her children, grandchildren, or other relatives, from levies by his or her own creditors?
One possibility is to gift the money, sooner than later, so that the account is no longer available to that person's subsequent creditors.
A simple approach, but not without risk, is to gift the money to a trusted relative who lives in another state where college tuition plans are protected from claims by creditors of the account owner. Have the relative establish the college savings plan.
For example, a parent gifts money to an aunt or uncle of one of his or her children. The aunt or uncle then establishes a section 529 college savings plan for the parent's children.
Naturally, as the account owner, the aunt or uncle has important powers over who benefits from the plan including controlling who benefits. So the parent, in this scenario, would only use this approach if he full confidence in the aunt or uncle.
Alternatively, the parent might establish an irrevocable trust for the education of the parent's children and/or grandchildren, and then gift the money to the trustee, who would establish college savings plans owned by the trustee.
The irrevocable trust approach is a completed gift of the money because unlike the revocable living trust the irrevocable trust is not available to pay the settlor’s needs and debts.
An irrevocable trust also offers much more assurance and estate planning flexibility for the parent's intended beneficiaries than gifting to a trusted relative.
The trust can also serve other purposes than paying for education. A trust, however, entails attorney fees to establish the trust and may entail trust tax return preparation fees.
Timing is everything. Whenever a person makes a gift there is always a chance that the person's creditors may later seek to reverse the gift claiming that it was a so-called “fraudulent conveyance.”
To avoid this, the parent, in our scenario, would be making periodic gifts either to the trusted relative or else to the trustee of the irrevocable trust before anything bad happens that subsequently results in a lawsuit.
What if the parent were to make a large gift either soon after an event occurs that results in a lawsuit (such as an accident) or worse yet soon after an adverse court judgment is entered against that person? Those gifts might arguably be reversed as fraudulent conveyances.
Saving for higher education costs involve balancing many unforeseen risks. Unfortunately, living in California means one of these risks is that qualified higher savings accounts are available to one's creditors, just like any other non exempt asset.
Knowing this risk, a person may choose to act proactively and to legitimately put the money beyond the reach of one's creditors. Doing so, however, all depends on acting timely.
Dennis A. Fordham, Attorney, is a State Bar-Certified Specialist in estate planning, probate and trust law. His office is at 870 S. Main St., Lakeport, Calif. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and 707-263-3235. His Web site is www.DennisFordhamLaw.com .
SACRAMENTO – Cal Fire announced this week that it will be awarding nearly $16 million for fire prevention grants to local fire departments and fire safe councils to reduce the threat of large wildfires.
The 2016-17 State Responsibility Area Fire Prevention Fund and tree mortality grants are aimed at reducing the threat wildfires as well as dead and dying trees in and around communities within the State Responsibility Area (SRA).
“In just the last couple of weeks, we have seen how destructive this fire season has already been and the critical role fire prevention projects play in helping us protect lives and property,” said Chief Ken Pimlott, Cal Fire director. "As the drought continues, and millions of more trees die off, we must take every step to prepare our neighborhoods and communities from wildfire.”
The 2016-17 Cal Fire grants have a one-time appropriation of 10 million dollars that is intended to address the risk and potential impact of wildfire and dead and dying trees on habitable structures in the SRA.
The grants also provide a one-time allocation of six million dollars for fire prevention projects that are not limited to the SRA.
The target audiences for the grants include, but are not limited to, local government agencies, fire districts and fire safe councils to augment recent fire prevention projects.
The grant amount will be limited to a maximum of $200,000 per project. This will allow for broad distribution of grant funds to local government agencies and organizations throughout the state.
The 2016-17 grant applications are due Sept. 28, 2016, by 3 p.m.
Cal Fire is encouraging a wide range of applicants throughout the state to apply for this funding.
Interested parties can get more information at Cal Fire's grants Web page at http://www.fire.ca.gov/grants/grants.php .
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – On Thursday, the Walmart store in Clearlake presented a check of $30,000 from the Walmart Foundation to The Salvation Army for the Clayton fire recovery in Lake County.
The contribution will benefit any immediate needs and long-term assistance services in the affected area.
“The Salvation Army does a tremendous job of responding to the needs in our community,” said Travis Peck, Clearlake Walmart store manager. “We are proud to support their efforts to address residents’ immediate needs of food, hydration, shelter support, supplies as well as their long-term disaster based social service case management program that helps families affected by the wildfires rebuild and reestablish their lives.”
This is the second significant donation The Salvation Army has received from Walmart since the start of the Clayton fire response.
Last week, the Clearlake Walmart store also donated multiple boxes of nonperishable and perishable food items and beverages.
“We absolutely appreciate the incredible generosity shown by the Walmart Foundation and the Clearlake Walmart store,” said Major Ivan Wild, divisional commander of The Salvation Army Del Oro Division. “Time and time again Walmart has shown a heart to give back to the community. I’m sure this donation will go a long way to helping so many families who have been affected by the recent fire damage.”
Currently, Salvation Army staff is providing case work at the Local Assistance Center in Lower Lake.
Since last week, more than 200 Lake County residents have applied and have been assisted with immediate needs inquiries.
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Lake County Zoning Administrator will consider approving MINOR USE PERMIT MUP 16-23 of Terry Kowing and Cheryl Brown in accordance with Lake County Code to allow a solid six (6) foot fence in the required front yard setback located at 21047 & 21057 Berry Street, Middletown, CA and further described as APN 024-362-15 & 16.
The Planner processing this application is Mark Roberts (707) 263-2221 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
The Zoning Administrator will approve this Minor Use Permit if no written request for a public hearing is submitted by 5:00 p.m, on September 7, 2016 to the community Development Department, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport, CA.
Should a timely request for a public hearing be filed, one will be held on September 14, 2016 at 2:00 p.m. in Conference room C, 3rd Floor of the Courthouse.
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
Robert Massarelli, Director
By: ______________________________________
Danae Bowen, Office Assistant III
LOWER LAKE, Calif. – County and fire officials are planning to move into the next phase of providing information and services for Clayton fire survivors.
The county's Clayton Fire Local Assistance Center has been extended through 7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27.
The center, located the former Lower Lake Bank building at 16195 Main St., is offering a variety of services, including replacement of vital records; information on unemployment, cleanup and building; insurance counseling, help from the Red Cross; and vouchers or gift cards for those who lost their homes.
This coming week, the center will transition into a more informal mini assistance center at Lake County Adult Services, 16170 C Main Street in Lower Lake. That center will offer information and contacts for agencies.
Lake County Fire's Lower Lake Station 65 will be open until 8 p.m. Saturday for those needing to pick up protective gear for cleanup, water and other donated items, including dog and cat food.
The station plans to move out of doing daily distribution services at 5 p.m. Sunday, but will make resources available on an as-needed basis.
They also will have a bulletin board available with updated information on the recovery effort.
For more information call 707-994-2170.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Lake County health officials said they are investigating a possible human case of West Nile virus, while there also have been new detections of the virus in chickens and mosquito samples.
The Lake County Public Health Department is evaluating the case, which is potentially the first West Nile infection involving a human so far this year in the county.
If laboratory tests eventually confirm this case, it is likely that the infection would have been contracted in the last week of July, officials said.
“Avoidance of mosquito bites is the only way to prevent West Nile virus infection and this is the time of year when it is especially important to take protective measures,” Lake County Health Officer Dr. Karen Tait said.
Since 2004, eight Lake County residents have been diagnosed with West Nile virus, officials reported. Two human cases were reported last year.
In addition, the Lake County Vector Control District confirmed that two chickens and seven mosquito samples tested positive for West Nile virus this week, with public health officials also investigating a possible human case.
The chickens are from Upper Lake, and the mosquitoes were collected in Clearlake, Clearlake Oaks, Kelseyville, Lakeport and Upper Lake, the district reported.
So far in 2016, West Nile virus has been detected in 29 mosquito samples, thee dead birds and two sentinel chickens in Lake County, according to the district's latest report.
“We’re at the peak of West Nile virus activity now. In most years West Nile virus activity remains high in September throughout California, including Lake County,” explained Jamesina Scott, Ph.D., district manager and research director for the Lake County Vector Control District.
“The mosquitoes that carry West Nile virus come from backyard water sources like wading pools, ponds, buckets, swimming pools and spas that aren’t being maintained, and any other place where water sits for more than three days,” said Scott.
Residents are urged to help reduce their risk of contracting mosquito-borne diseases by following these guidelines:
– Dump or drain standing water. Mosquitoes can't begin their lives without water.
– Defend yourself. Use repellents containing DEET, Picaridin, IR3535, or Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus.
– Avoid being outdoors when mosquitoes are present, typically dawn and dusk.
– Maintain swimming pools and spas. Just one unmaintained swimming pool can produce more than 1 million mosquitoes and affect people up to five miles away.
– Report dead birds to the state hotline, 877-968-2473, or by visiting the California Department of Public Health's Web site ( http://www.westnile.ca.gov/report_wnv.php ). All reports are crucial to the West Nile virus surveillance program.
For a current list of West Nile virus activity in Lake County this year, visit the Lake County Vector Control District's Web site, www.LCVCD.org , and for statewide information, visit the California Department of Public Health’s West Nile Virus Web site at http://www.westnile.ca.gov/ .
The Lake County Vector Control District, an independent special district and public health agency, serves all of Lake County and is located at 410 Esplanade in Lakeport.
Call the district at 707-263-4770 or request service online at http://www.LCVCD.org/Services/RequestService/index.html for mosquito problems, or visit the office between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday to get free mosquitofish for ornamental ponds, livestock water troughs or neglected swimming pools.
John Thomas Bigley
Nov. 27, 1958 – Aug. 20, 2016
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – John passed away peacefully after a long battle with lung cancer.
He is survived by his daughter, Shannon Spivack; grandchildren, twins, Kolbee and Korbin; sister, Chris (Rodney) Barnes; niece, Jessica (Dave) Estes; great-nephew, Abel Estes and mother, Sharon Hubman.
There will be no services and his ashes will be scattered as John wished.
Arrangements by Chapel of the Lakes Mortuary, 707-263-0357 or 707-994-5611, or visit www.chapelofthelakes.com .
Do you have what it takes to be a California wildlife officer?
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is currently accepting applications for Fish and Game warden cadet (wildlife officer), with a final filing deadline of Oct. 17, 2016.
CDFW is particularly interested in recruiting applicants with a love of the outdoors, a passion for conservation and knowledge of fishing and hunting activities.
For information on minimum qualifications and other requirements to become a wildlife officer cadet, please visit https://jobs.ca.gov/public/bulletin.aspx?examcd=6fg13 .
The CDFW Law Enforcement Division typically receives more than 600 cadet applications per hiring cycle.
All prospective candidates are encouraged to extensively review materials on the department’s Web site (www.wildlife.ca.gov/enforcement/career) before contacting CDFW with questions.
CDFW wildlife officers are fully sworn California peace officers with a fundamental duty to serve and protect the public. They have the authority to enforce all California laws, including the Vehicle Code, Penal Code, Health and Safety drug laws and more.
The primary mission of a wildlife officer is to enforce hunting and fishing laws; to protect California waterways and habitat from destruction, pollution, and litter; provide the public with hunting and fishing information; and to promote and coordinate hunter education and safe weapons handling.
Wildlife officers investigate illegal sales of wildlife, fight against illegal drug trafficking and respond to natural disasters. They are also federally deputized to enforce federal fish and wildlife laws.
Wildlife officers patrol the mountains, valleys, deserts, creeks, streams, rivers and ocean. They frequently work alone and cover both rural and urban areas.
California’s diverse ecosystem spans 159,000 square miles divided into 58 counties, with a human population in excess of 39 million. The state has 1,100 miles of coastline, 30,000 miles of rivers and streams, 4,800 lakes and reservoirs and 80 major rivers.
Wildlife officers patrol utilizing trucks, ATVs, personal watercraft, boats, snowmobiles and airplanes, making contact with Californians in the great outdoors. Wildlife officers work undercover, conduct surveillances and complete full-scale investigations, including writing and serving search warrants. CDFW has special operations teams focused on wildlife and drug trafficking, a dive team and a K-9 program.
Annually, wildlife officers make contact with more than 295,000 people and issue more than 15,000 citations for violations of the law.
Successful applicants will attend a Peace Officer Standards of Training (POST) certified law enforcement training academy, conducted by CDFW at Butte College, near Chico in northern California. Following the academy, cadets will work with a seasoned field training officer for several more weeks, learning to apply their training in practical circumstances.
The state application is available online.
LOWER LAKE, Calif. – The California Highway and the Lake County Fire Protection District will hold a child safety seat checkup event for Clayton fire survivors on Sunday, Aug. 28.
The event will be held from 9 a.m. to noon at Lake County Fire Protection District Fire Station 65, located at 16354 Main St. in Lower Lake.
Child safety seat technicians will be on site providing free child safety seats and will assist and demonstrate the proper installation.
Any seats that were damaged or destroyed in the fire and any seats which are expired will be replaced, while supplies last.
For more information call Officer Kory Reynolds at the Clear Lake Area CHP office at 707-279-0103.
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