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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Lake County’s June unemployment rate was 5.7%, compared to the revised May rate of 5% and 6% in April, and the June 2023 rate of 5.2%.
Overall, 180 additional people were reported to be out of work in Lake County in June, for a total of 1,590 unemployed individuals.
Most of Lake County’s job categories declined in June, with the key month-over exceptions of information, which grew by 14.3%; federal government jobs, 6.7%; state government jobs, 5.6%; mining, logging and construction, 5.4%; good producing, 4.7%; retail trade, 2.3%; and trade, transportation and utilities, 2.1%.
Lake County ranked No. 36 for its June rate, according to the report.
Lake’s neighboring county jobless rates and ranks in June were: Colusa, 11.6%, No. 57; Glenn, 6.5%, No. 46; Mendocino, 4.9%, No. 23; Napa, 5%, No. 5; Sonoma, 4%, No. 7; and Yolo, 5.2%, No. 27.
On the national level, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that June’s unemployment rate was 4.1%, compared to 4% in May and 3.6% in June 2023.
On the state level, California’s employers added 22,500 nonfarm payroll jobs in June as the unemployment rate held steady at 5.2%, according to data released by the Employment Development Department, or EDD.
The report said California’s job market expansion officially entered its 50th month.
The California unemployment rate was 5.2% in May 2024, down slightly from the previous month. California payroll jobs totaled 18,033,900 in May 2024, up 43,700 from April. and up 207,700 from May of last year, the EDD said.
The EDD reported that since April 2020, California has gained 3,122,500 jobs, which averages out to 62,450 per month. June’s job gain follows a revised job gain of 43,300 for May 2024.
California gained 107,100 nonfarm payroll jobs in the first six months of 2024, which is more than double the number of nonfarm payroll jobs the State gained during the same time period last year, when the number was 38,400.
The number of Californians employed in June was 18,346,200, an increase of 17,500 persons from May’s total of 18,328,700, but down 93,900 from the employment total in June 2023, the state said.
The EDD said the number of unemployed Californians was 999,990 in June, a decrease of 10,300 over the month, but up 119,100 in comparison to June 2023.
Total nonfarm jobs in California’s 11 major industries amounted to 18,056,000 in June — a net gain of 22,500 from May. This followed a downward revised month-over gain of 43,300 jobs in May, the EDD reported.
The EDD said total nonfarm jobs increased by 223,600, a 1.3% increase, from June 2023 to June 2024 compared to the U.S. annual gain of 2,611,000 jobs, a 1.7% increase.
Seven of California's 11 industry sectors gained jobs in June with the largest increase in Trade, Transportation, and Utilities (+9,800), adding jobs for the fourth consecutive month. This sector overall has gained 21,700 jobs from March through June, due in part to increased traffic at California’s ports and other seasonal activities.
The number of jobs in the agriculture industry increased from May by 4,200 to a total of 414,800 jobs in June. The agriculture industry had 4,300 fewer farm jobs in June 2024 than it did in June of last year.
At the same time, Lake County’s farm industry was down by 4.8%, a loss of 50 jobs.
The lowest unemployment rate in California in June was in San Mateo, 3.5%, while the highest was in Imperial, 16.4%.
The EDD also released data on Unemployment Insurance benefits during the June 2024 sample week, when there were 381,123 people certifying for benefits. That compares to 379,955 people in May and 384,841 people in June 2023.
Concurrently, 45,162 initial claims were processed in the June 2024 sample week, which was a month-over increase of 6,269 claims from May and a year-over increase of 1,707 claims from June 2023, the EDD said.
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- Written by: Lake County News reports
NORTH COAST, Calif. — On Tuesday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, announced the awards that are recommended for funding under the Transformational Habitat Restoration & Coastal Resilience grant program, with Mendocino College to be among the grantees.
The Nature Conservancy California has been recommended to receive $18 million over three years to launch the Pacific Coast Ocean Restoration Initiative, a comprehensive, collaborative statewide effort aimed at restoring and recovering degraded marine ecosystems across California.
This funding will enable TNC and a coalition of partners spanning the state — including the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, California Ocean Protection Council, Greater Farallones Association, Mendocino College, The Bay Foundation, Aquarium of the Pacific, the California Academy of Sciences, Sunflower Star Laboratory, Paua Marine Research Group, and University of California Santa Barbara — to lead efforts to help recover the federally endangered white abalone and the International Union for Conservation of Nature critically endangered sunflower sea star.
Additionally, the initiative will further advance restoration efforts for California’s kelp forests and will also pilot an innovative marine conservation workforce development program in collaboration with a community college, potentially scaling across the state's community college system.
“This ambitious, partnership-driven initiative will leverage the incredible work done to date, and the contributions from a diverse suite of partners, to advance a new model for coordinated and effective marine restoration and endangered species recovery that can deliver transformative impact for rocky reef ecosystems and coastal communities in this region,” said Norah Eddy, Ocean Recovery Program director at TNC California. “It also serves as a model for similar efforts elsewhere around the country and world.”
Kelp forest and rocky reef ecosystems are vital, supporting thousands of marine species and coastal communities from San Diego to the Oregon border, contributing hundreds of millions of dollars to California’s economy annually.
However, warming waters, disease, and human impacts have severely disrupted these ecosystems.
The white abalone, listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 2001, and the sunflower sea star, which experienced a catastrophic decline from 2013 to 2016 due to disease, illustrate the urgent need for intervention.
These changing ocean conditions have led to a proliferation of purple urchins, which in part, have decimated bull kelp forests by over 96% in northern California.
“This project and its partnerships enable Mendocino College to enhance our workforce development curriculum, specifically supporting the creation of a marine ecosystem restoration program, aimed at building a diverse and climate-resilient workforce,” said Tim Karas, president/superintendent of Mendocino College. "As a Minority Serving Institution and Hispanic Serving Institution, we are committed to providing opportunities for historically underserved communities. This project will help us develop the necessary infrastructure and curriculum to equip our students with the skills needed for ocean restoration, significantly impacting workforce development and marine restoration efforts in our region."
The Pacific Coast Ocean Restoration Initiative is poised to address these challenges. For over a decade, scientists and practitioners through the leadership of groups like the above-mentioned Initiative partners have laid the groundwork for important restoration efforts across California’s coast.
The NOAA grant, funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, will support critical infrastructure investments necessary to expand these restoration efforts.
"NOAA is proud to be supporting The Nature Conservancy and partners as they launch this innovative initiative," said Carrie Selberg Robinson, director of the NOAA Fisheries Office of Habitat Conservation. "Their work to catalyze and coordinate restoration across California will support the many species that rely on rocky reef and kelp habitats."
As the coalition partners embark on this groundbreaking initiative, the vision is clear: this is just the beginning of a series of milestones aimed at recovering endangered and threatened species and revitalizing marine habitats.
Officials said the Pacific Coast Ocean Restoration Initiative represents an exciting and transformative step forward in ensuring the health and resilience of California’s coastal ecosystems for generations to come.
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- Written by: Lake County News reports
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — The Clearlake Police Department is trying to locate a missing woman.
Tammy Lynn Spurling, 55, was last seen in the area of the Clearlake Safeway.
She is described as a white female adult, 5 feet 1 inch tall, 148 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes.
It is unknown what she was wearing when last seen.
If you have any information regarding her whereabouts, please contact the Clearlake Police Department at 707-994-8251, Extension 1.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The fire, burning since Saturday afternoon on Walker Ridge along the Lake and Colusa County line, remained at 2,756 acres on Tuesday evening, with containment up to 35%.
Evacuation orders and warnings for eastern Lake County in the fire area were lifted over the weekend.
The fire has burned wildland and threatened 50 structures, none of which so far have been reported damaged or destroyed.
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