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COBB – On Aug. 9 Rob Roy Golf Course had its first “Red, White, and Brew” event to raise funds for RAKE, Random Acts of Kindness and Encouragement and Literacy for Golf.

The event, which ran from 4:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., featured several wineries from Lake County which poured their wines, along with food vendors, local artisans and music.

There also were games and a dunk tank. The resort's owners, John and Colleen McDonald, tried to convince businesswoman Kathy Fowler to go into the tank, an idea Fowler didn't take to at first.

But after the McDonalds went in, Fowler offered to follow if she could raise $500 for the Lake County Resource Center's Freedom House domestic violence shelter project.

The challenge proved irresistible to those attending the event, who pitched in to raise the $500, and Fowler went in.

It was the resort's chef who finally hit the paddle and sent Fowler into the water.

 

 

 

 

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Written by: Editor

Published: 03 September 2008

 

LAKE COUNTY – A milestone was reached last week when Lake County Community Co-op created their farm fresh Purist Community Supported Agriculture box from produce grown exclusively in Lake County.

The Co-op’s Community Supported Agriculture boxes are intended to support small local farmers. The Buying Club has been offering regionally supplied boxes for a few months with the goal of becoming more local as soon as possible.

“Localization of our food supply is vital to our overall vision of food security. By providing locally grown food to the community we are strengthening the local economy, protecting the small farmer, and helping to build a sustainable community,” said JoAnn Saccato, co-op chair.

Organic produce is provided by local farms and suppliers including Yoxagoi, Elderbroc, Barber's Country Farm, Leonardis Organics and Lake County Walnuts, all from Kelseyville, and Irene Farms in Lower Lake.

This week's Purist Community Supported Agriculture box included cantaloupes, pears, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, squash and "edible bouquets" of herbs and flowers.

"This is such a critical time for our future, and anytime we can meet our food needs locally, we save not only money (this week's box was the best value we've had so far for our members), but we save valuable resources by not having our food trucked in,” said Saccato. “Foods purchased in local grocery stores travels, on average, 1,200 miles to reach the shelves. By keeping our food supply local, we reduce pollution and provide more local jobs. Also, we get more nutrition and flavor in our food, because it is picked at its absolute peak.”

For those interested in participating in the buying club, and particularly in the Community Supported Agriculture boxes, contact Ann Breen at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. For more information about Lake County Community Co-op and its visions, go to www.lakeco-op.org.

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Written by: Lorna Sue Sides

Published: 02 September 2008

SACRAMENTO – The California Legislature has approved SB 1016, a bill by Sen. Patricia Wiggins (D-Santa Rosa) designed to provide a more accurate assessment of waste diversion efforts by cities and counties.

As a result, the bill next heads to the desk of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger for his consideration.

Existing law (the California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989) required cities and counties to divert 25 percent of their solid waste from landfill disposal or transformation (through source reduction, recycling and composting activities) by Jan. 1, 1995 – and to divert 50 percent of their solid waste after Jan. 1, 2000.

The law also requires each city, county, or regional agency to submit annual reports to the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB) summarizing their progress in reducing solid waste, and requires those reports to include calculations of annual disposal reduction, information on changes in waste generated or disposed, progress in diverting construction and demolition waste material.

Wiggins, who was a member of the CIWMB prior to her election to the Senate in 2006, said SB 1016 shifts the focus, from 50 percent diversion to 50 percent disposal reduction, of the current requirement that a local jurisdiction reduce its solid waste disposal over what it would have been given local growth factors.

“The benefits of moving to a disposal-based system include increased timeliness and accuracy, and a streamlining of the review process by allowing jurisdictions that are in compliance to be reviewed every four years instead of every two,” Wiggins said.

According to the CIWMB, California diverted more than 46 million tons of solid waste away from landfills into recycling, composting and transformation programs in 2005, for an estimated statewide diversion rate of 52 percent.

Diversion has increased nine-fold since the Integrated Waste Management Act was passed in 1989. The CIWMB notes that almost 70 percent of jurisdictions have received approval for their diversion rates while 30 percent have either been granted a time extension or are on compliance orders.

Among other things, the Wiggins bill:

• Requires that beginning Jan. 1, 2009, CIWMB will determine compliance with the diversion goals established by the 1989 act by comparing each jurisdiction's "per capita disposal rate" with the jurisdiction's "50 percent percent equivalent" per capital disposal rate on Jan. 1, 2007;

• Specifies that CIWMB consider the per capita disposal rate when determining compliance with the act (but also that the rate is not the only factor). Also requires the waste management board to evaluate the need for a review of a jurisdiction's program implementation should the rate exceed the 50 percent equivalent;

• Authorizes CIWMB to use an alternative per capita factor for developing the per capita disposal rate if a representative rate cannot be determined using the specified factors;

• Specifies how CIWMB determines the 50 percent equivalent disposal rate using years 2003-2007 waste generation information;

• Retains the waste management board's authority to establish an alternative per capita disposal rate for rural jurisdictions;

• Revises the 10 percent diversion "credit" for transformation to reflect the per capita disposal rate.

“SB 1016 creates a paradigm shift in the way California will identify its waste stream in the future by measuring disposal, because it is a real number that can be decreased with greater implementation of diversion programs,” Wiggins said. My goal is to ensure that recycling, reuse and reduction are the guiding principles of California’s future integrated waste management plan.”

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Written by: Editor

Published: 30 August 2008