LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The National Weather Service is forecasting that three incoming storm systems will impact Lake County and the North Coast region until early next week.
The incoming storms are expected to bring modest rainfall to Lake County, where precipitation for the season so far is well below normal, according to National Weather Service data,
Forecasters said the first of the storms will arrive on Thursday, the second on Saturday and the third on Monday.
The storms will bring rain, snow in high altitudes and gusty winds, the agency said.
The National Weather Service’s forecast anticipates Lake County could receive a little more than an inch of rain from Thursday through Monday.
The Lake County forecast predicts up to half an inch of rain during the day on Thursday and another quarter of an inch that night, accompanied by winds of just under 10 miles per hour.
On Friday, daytime conditions are expected to be partly sunny before rain and winds of up to 15 miles per hour arrive on Friday night, with gusts of more than 20 miles per hour in the south county. Less than a tenth of an inch of rain is expected.
Rain is forecast during the day on Saturday, with as much as a quarter of an inch of precipitation, again with lighter winds of about 7 miles per hour.
The forecast calls for chances of rain on Sunday night and during the day on Monday, with conditions to be mostly sunny on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Nighttime temperatures through early next week will range from the high 30s to low 40s. Daytime temperatures will be in the low to high 50s.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Local leaders are asking a state agency to adjust a business relief program to make it more equitable to Lake County and other rural communities.
The outreach is part of an ongoing effort by county and community leaders to help local businesses struggling to overcome challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Late last year, the Lake County Small Business COVID-19 Recovery Team was established as a collaborative advocacy group, with the intent of ensuring Lake County businesses have a fair and equitable opportunity to access high demand COVID-19 relief funding programs, such as the state’s California Relief Grants and the Federal Paycheck Protection Program.
Rural communities, such as Lake County, frequently have fewer businesses, even in the best of times.
U.S. Census Bureau data from 2018 and 2019 show that there are just over 17 “employer establishments” for every 1,000 Lake County residents, significantly lower the ratios of neighboring Mendocino, Sonoma and Napa Counties, which range from 28.5 to 31.3 per 1,000.
The loss of one Lake County business has a significant community effect and the representatives of the county of Lake, cities of Clearlake and Lakeport, Lake County Chamber of Commerce, Lake County Economic Development Corp. and Middletown Area Merchants Association that comprise the Lake County Small Business COVID-19 Recovery Team want to see that fact recognized in the distribution of public COVID-19 relief funding.
On Tuesday, the group approved a letter to the California Office of the Small Business Advocate, or CalOSBA, urging the following changes to the California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant Program:
· An equitable share of grant funding for Lake County businesses;
· An equitable share of grant funding for California’s rural counties;
· Consideration of the “economic weight” a business carries within a county in the prioritization formula for distribution of funds.
The letter, which can be seen below, demonstrates the alignment of Lake County leaders across sectors.
Local business owners are likewise encouraged to add your voices, and share your stories, with Director Isabel Guzman and CalOSBA, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Pacific Gas and Electric Co. is planning an interactive safety town hall to gather input on its efforts to reduce wildfire risks in Lake and Napa counties.
The meeting will take place from noon to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 17.
A biologist examines microplastics found in sea species at the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research in Greece, Nov. 26, 2019. Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP via Getty Images
Trillions of barely visible pieces of plastic are floating in the world’s oceans, from surface waters to the deep seas. These particles, known as microplastics, typically form when larger plastic objects such as shopping bags and food containers break down.
Researchers are concerned about microplastics because they are minuscule, widely distributed and easy for wildlife to consume, accidentally or intentionally. We study marine science and animal behavior, and wanted to understand the scale of this problem. In a newly published study that we conducted with ecologist Elliott Hazen, we examined how marine fish – including species consumed by humans – are ingesting synthetic particles of all sizes.
In the broadest review on this topic that has been carried out to date, we found that, so far, 386 marine fish species are known to have ingested plastic debris, including 210 species that are commercially important. But findings of fish consuming plastic are on the rise. We speculate that this could be happening both because detection methods for microplastics are improving and because ocean plastic pollution continues to increase.
Researchers at California’s Monterey Bay Aquarium have found microplastic particles from the surface to the seafloor, where they can be ingested by a wide range of sea creatures.
Since then, well over 100 scientific papers have described plastic ingestion in numerous species of fish. But each study has only contributed a small piece of a very important puzzle. To see the problem more clearly, we had to put those pieces together.
This story is part of Oceans 21 Our series on the global ocean opened with five in depth profiles. Look out for new articles on the state of our oceans in the lead up to the UN’s next climate conference, COP26. The series is brought to you by The Conversation’s international network.
We did this by creating the largest existing database on plastic ingestion by marine fish, drawing on every scientific study of the problem published from 1972 to 2019. We collected a range of information from each study, including what fish species it examined, the number of fish that had eaten plastic and when those fish were caught. Because some regions of the ocean have more plastic pollution than others, we also examined where the fish were found.
For each species in our database, we identified its diet, habitat and feeding behaviors – for example, whether it preyed on other fish or grazed on algae. By analyzing this data as a whole, we wanted to understand not only how many fish were eating plastic, but also what factors might cause them to do so. The trends that we found were surprising and concerning.
Leopard sharks swim past plastic debris in shallow water off southern California.Ralph Pace, CC BY-ND
A global problem
Our research revealed that marine fish are ingesting plastic around the globe. According to the 129 scientific papers in our database, researchers have studied this problem in 555 fish species worldwide. We were alarmed to find that more than two-thirds of those species had ingested plastic.
One important caveat is that not all of these studies looked for microplastics. This is likely because finding microplastics requires specialized equipment, like microscopes, or use of more complex techniques. But when researchers did look for microplastics, they found five times more plastic per individual fish than when they only looked for larger pieces. Studies that were able to detect this previously invisible threat revealed that plastic ingestion was higher than we had originally anticipated.
Our review of four decades of research indicates that fish consumption of plastic is increasing. Just since an international assessment conducted for the United Nations in 2016, the number of marine fish species found with plastic has quadrupled.
Similarly, in the last decade alone, the proportion of fish consuming plastic has doubled across all species. Studies published from 2010-2013 found that an average of 15% of the fish sampled contained plastic; in studies published from 2017-2019, that share rose to 33%.
We think there are two reasons for this trend. First, scientific techniques for detecting microplastics have improved substantially in the past five years. Many of the earlier studies we examined may not have found microplastics because researchers couldn’t see them.
Second, it is also likely that fish are actually consuming more plastic over time as ocean plastic pollution increases globally. If this is true, we expect the situation to worsen. Multiple studies that have sought to quantify plastic waste project that the amount of plastic pollution in the ocean will continue to increase over the next several decades.
Risk factors
While our findings may make it seem as though fish in the ocean are stuffed to the gills with plastic, the situation is more complex. In our review, almost one-third of the species studied were not found to have consumed plastic. And even in studies that did report plastic ingestion, researchers did not find plastic in every individual fish. Across studies and species, about one in four fish contained plastics – a fraction that seems to be growing with time. Fish that did consume plastic typically had only one or two pieces in their stomachs.
In our view, this indicates that plastic ingestion by fish may be widespread, but it does not seem to be universal. Nor does it appear random. On the contrary, we were able to predict which species were more likely to eat plastic based on their environment, habitat and feeding behavior.
For example, fishes such as sharks, grouper and tuna that hunt other fishes or marine organisms as food were more likely to ingest plastic. Consequently, species higher on the food chain were at greater risk.
We were not surprised that the amount of plastic that fish consumed also seemed to depend on how much plastic was in their environment. Species that live in ocean regions known to have a lot of plastic pollution, such as the Mediterranean Sea and the coasts of East Asia, were found with more plastic in their stomachs.
Effects of a plastic diet
This is not just a wildlife conservation issue. Researchers don’t know very much about the effects of ingesting plastic on fish or humans. However, there is evidence that that microplastics and even smaller particles called nanoplastics can move from a fish’s stomach to its muscle tissue, which is the part that humans typically eat. Our findings highlight the need for studies analyzing how frequently plastics transfer from fish to humans, and their potential effects on the human body.
Our review is a step toward understanding the global problem of ocean plastic pollution. Of more than 20,000 marine fish species, only roughly 2% have been tested for plastic consumption. And many reaches of the ocean remain to be examined. Nonetheless, what’s now clear to us is that “out of sight, out of mind” is not an effective response to ocean pollution – especially when it may end up on our plates.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – With more COVID-19 vaccine doses arriving this week, Lake County Public Health said it’s opening up a limited number of appointments for county residents aged 65 and older to receive their first dose.
Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace told the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday morning that the increase in new COVID-19 cases is slowing in Lake County.
About 10 percent of Lake County’s 64,000 residents have received the first dose of the vaccine so far, while about 1,000 people have received both doses, he said.
Altogether, he said the county has 50,000 residents age 18 or older who are eligible to receive the vaccine when their respective priority tiers open.
The challenge remains the supply, with Pace explaining that his department is trying to line up appointments with available vaccine doses one week at a time.
He said Lake County’s latest allocation is for 1,000 doses that is to arrive this week.
Both Sutter Lakeside Hospital and Adventist Health Clear Lake Hospital have been receiving their own supplies, but Pace said they’ve had to slow down their vaccination effort due to supply issues.
“They’re a big part of why we’ve been able to get so many people vaccinated so quickly in the county,” Pace said.
He said Public Health will be switching its vaccination efforts to a drive-thru model starting next week.
Pace said they have been getting a lot of help with running their clinics from volunteers.
“The community just keeps showing up day after day,” he said, adding that Public Health staff can’t do it by themselves.
Public Health said later on Tuesday that it’s opening up a limited number of vaccination appointments for Friday, Feb. 12, and Saturday, Feb. 13, in Clearlake for those age 65 and older.
Residents 65 and older who do not have the ability to schedule online can call 707-993-4644 for assistance. Staff at that number do not have access to any additional appointments. Do not call this number if appointments are filled.
Appointments will fill up quickly. If you are eligible to be vaccinated, check the above link often, as additional appointment links will be added as they receive the vaccine.
For those health care providers and educators who are eligible for vaccination but missed earlier opportunities, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and you will be contacted when a spot is available.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – During a short meeting on Tuesday night, the Clearlake Planning Commission approved a new drive-thru bakery and coffee shop.
The commission gave unanimous consent for the new drive-thru at 15090 Olympic Drive, proposed by Pascal Hue De Laroque, who owns a drive-thru in Clearlake Oaks, Marcel’s French Bakery & Cafe, as well as a coffee shop by the same name in downtown Lakeport.
The city’s zoning code defines drive-thrus as a “special use” that are required to secure a use permit.
Senior Planner Mark Roberts’ written report to the commission noted that drive-thrus are recognized as having some “objectionable characteristics, such as noise, idling vehicles and traffic conflicts,” so that “special regulation review” of these special uses is necessary.
Assistant Planner Susanna Amaro-Gutierrez told the commission that the drive-thru aspect of the project triggered review, otherwise, it would have been an over-the-counter business license check.
Roberts told the commission that Hue De Laroque’s proposal does not currently include indoor or outdoor sitdown dining.
The building that will be used for the shop – previously a single-family residence – was remodeled in 2017 for the use of a bakery, Classy Cakes, which operated in that location until recently, according to the staff report.
Roberts said the project involves minor renovations, including the installation of a drive-thru window on the west side of the building and new signage, upgrading the exterior lighting fixtures, trimming the overgrowth off the entryway tree, installing a brand-new security system with generous coverage of traffic on Olympic Drive, and other aesthetic improvements.
He said there will be one-way traffic through the drive-thru, with customers to enter through the existing 19-foot-wide driveway located on the eastern portion along Olympic Drive. They would exit on the western portion of Olympic Drive through another existing driveway which is 35 feet wide.
Commissioner Lisa Wilson asked if a traffic study was conducted for the project. Roberts said no, as it wasn’t required.
As proposed, Hue De Laroque’s drive-thru would accommodate stacking of up to seven vehicles at a time, with two employees present at any given time, according to the staff report.
Commissioner Erin McCarrick asked Hue De Laroque if people would be able to wait for orders in parking spaces. He said they would have stalls to pull into, so they would be able to stack a total of 15 vehicles.
Commissioner Fawn Williams asked about signage to indicate the one-way traffic through the site. Hue De Laroque said he plans on putting up “do not enter” signage and paint on the pavement to direct traffic.
During public comment, Roberts read emails that included messages from two individuals who are negotiating with the city to open a drive-thru coffee kiosk, a Mudslingers franchise, near the recycling center in the Burns Valley Mall.
They said their project will not have an impact on traffic on Olympic Drive, and questioned the close proximity of Hue De Laroque’s project to theirs; mapping shows the two sites are about a third of a mile apart. One of the Mudslingers representatives asked for his project to be denied.
On the issue of fairness raised by Mudslingers, Commissioner Robert Coker asked if it’s fair to allow the Mudslingers drive-thru to locate near the Sisters Coffee House, which also is in the Burns Valley Mall.
Roberts said the city gives everyone equal opportunity to apply to open a business, operate, bring revenue and better the community.
“I’m good with that answer,” Coker said.
Commission Chair Kathryn Davis asked Hue De Laroque if he would still want to do a drive-thru if it weren’t for COVID-19.
He replied that he wanted to put in a drive-thru in Clearlake two years ago, before he opened his drive-thru in Clearlake Oaks, but at that time there wasn’t a location available.
Davis also asked him about his hours of operation. He said he wants to operate 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week.
McCarrick moved to approve a resolution approving the use permit application, which Coker seconded and the commission approved 5-0.
City Manager Alan Flora told Lake County News that Clearlake has only one other drive-thru coffee shop currently operating, Catfish Coffee. A Starbucks on Dam Road that hasn’t been built yet also has been permitted for a drive-thru.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Deputies’ ability to administer Narcan saved the life of a female inmate at the Lake County Jail over the weekend.
Narcan, also known as Naloxone, is a medication used to reverse the effects of opioid drugs, including overdose.
Lt. Corey Paulich of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said the incident involving the female inmate, whose name was not released, occurred on Saturday.
Paulich said that at 2:40 p.m. Saturday jail inmates reported to a tower officer that there may be an inmate overdosing in a female dorm.
He said deputies rushed to check the status of all inmates and found a female inmate lying on her side.
The woman didn’t appear to be breathing and was blue in the face, Paulich said.
Paulich said the correctional deputies administered a dose of Narcan. They also requested jail medical staff respond as well as paramedics.
When nurses from jail medical staff arrived, Paulich said they found it necessary to administer two more doses of Narcan to the inmate.
Shortly afterward, the Narcan began to take effect and within 10 minutes the inmate began to slowly regain consciousness and was breathing on her own, Paulich said.
Paramedics from the Lakeport Fire Protection District arrived and transported the inmate to Sutter Lakeside Hospital by ambulance. Paulich said the woman was treated and later returned to the jail facility.
“We do not have the results of what she may have taken,” Paulich told Lake County News.
Deputies conducted a search of the dormitory as well as the inmates but didn’t locate any contraband. The inmates from that dorm were tested to determine if they recently used drugs, but all tests were negative, Paulich said.
Paulich said sheriff’s correctional staffers use several different methods in an attempt to keep contraband from entering the facility, but controlled substances are easy to conceal and hard to detect.
He said this was the third time Narcan has been administered at the jail in the two years the sheriff’s office has provided Narcan for use by its personnel.
Law enforcement agencies in neighboring counties also are using Narcan in medical emergencies.
In Mendocino County, the sheriff’s office began to issue Narcan to deputies in April 2019 as part of their assigned personal protective equipment due.
Since then, the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office has reported numerous incidents during which deputies have administered Narcan to individuals having drug-related medical emergencies.
The Mendocino Sheriff’s Office also reported that in December Narcan saved a jail inmate there. The corrections deputy who found the inmate also later needed a dose himself after having been exposed to a plastic bundle that had been in the inmate’s possession and which was found to contain fentanyl, a powerful and deadly opiate.
In Sonoma County, the sheriff’s office reported its first use of Narcan in July, when a sheriff’s deputy used it to save the life of a man who had just been arrested.
By that time, Sonoma County Sheriff’s deputies had been carrying Narcan in their patrol cars for about six months, the agency reported.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office reminded the public that taking any medication or pills that have not been prescribed to you by a physician or provided to you by a pharmacist is dangerous.
Opiates such as fentanyl can be fatal with the ingestion of only 2 to 3 milligrams, Paulich said.
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.
MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Area Town Hall will meet this week to discuss items including Middletown’s stop signs and rescheduling the group’s monthly meetings.
MATH will meet at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb.11, via Zoom. The meeting is open to the public.
To join the Zoom meeting click on this link; the meeting ID is 935 1671 5770. Call in at 888-788-0099.
At 7:10 p.m., the group will discuss and vote on a proposal to change the MATH meeting to the third of the month.
MATH also will host a discussion on stop signs in Middletown.
There also will be opportunities for public input and discussion of items to place on the March 11 agenda.
The MATH Board includes Co-Chairs Rosemary Córdova and Monica Rosenthal, Secretary Lisa Kaplan, and Ken Gonzales and Paul Baker.
MATH – established by resolution of the Lake County Board of Supervisors on Dec. 12, 2006 – is a municipal advisory council serving the residents of Anderson Springs, Cobb, Coyote Valley (including Hidden Valley Lake), Long Valley and Middletown.
For more information email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – On Monday, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. filed a proposal with the California Public Utilities Commission in which the company outlined its plans to continue efforts to reduce wildfire risk and use new technologies that increase situational awareness.
The company said the ongoing strategy detailed in its 2021 Wildfire Mitigation Plan is meant to help keep customers and communities safe by enhancing its Community Wildfire Safety Program.
It is subject to public review and approval by the CPUC. Customers and communities can follow the proceeding and offer comments through the CPUC website.
The Community Wildfire Safety Program, which PG&E launched in March 2018 – five months after fires caused by its equipment tore through the North Bay, including Lake County – is designed to address the growing threat of severe weather and wildfires across PG&E’s 70,000-square-mile service area that stretches across Northern and Central California.
“The last few years have demonstrated how California’s wildfire season continues to grow longer and more devastating. We are continuing to evolve to meet the challenging conditions to more effectively reduce wildfire risk,” said Sumeet Singh, senior vice president and chief risk officer. “We are accountable to our customers and our communities that we are privileged to serve. The safety actions and programs outlined in our Wildfire Mitigation Plan provide details for our continued commitment to the critical work of providing safe and reliable service.”
PG&E said its new plan focuses on key areas including reducing wildfire potential by inspecting and repairing equipment, conducting enhanced vegetation management, and investing in grid technology and system hardening; improving situational awareness by installing weather stations and high-definition cameras throughout PG&E’s service area, investing in PG&E’s Wildfire Safety Operations Center that monitors high-fire threat areas in real time, and investing in meteorology to monitor weather conditions; and continuing to make the PSPS program better and build on the improvements from the 2020 program by upgrading the electric system to ensure PSPS is a last resort and improving support for impacted customers and communities when PSPS is necessary.
In Lake County, upgrades that PG&E spokeswoman Deanna Contreras said are part of the plan include the building of two new microgrids, one in Lucerne and one in Middletown.
Contreras pointed out that PG&E’s efforts to continue to improve the PSPS program also impacted Lake County, where far fewer customers were impacted by proactive power shutoffs in 2020 than in 2019.
As of the end of 2020, Lake County had 30 weather stations and seven cameras installed and being used by PG&E to monitor conditions. Contreras said 12 of those weather stations were installed in 2020.
PG&E said the forecasted cost of wildfire mitigation programs described in the plan is about $3 billion each year for two years – 2021 and 2022.
The costs reflect what the company said is its best estimate of the costs for the proposed programs as of Feb. 5. Actual costs may vary substantially depending on actual conditions and requirements.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Clearlake Planning Commission this week will consider a proposal for a new drive-thru bakery and coffee shop proposed for the city.
The commission will meet virtually beginning at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 9.
Submit comments and questions in writing for commission consideration by sending them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Identify the subject you wish to comment on in your email’s subject line.
To give the planning commission adequate time to review your questions and comments, please submit written comments prior to 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 9.
The meet will be broadcast live on the Youtube channels for the city of Clearlake or Lake County PEG TV.
On the agenda is a public hearing to adopt a resolution to approve a use permit application for the operation of a drive-thru baker and coffee shop using existing facilities at 15090 Olympic Drive, and finding the project exempt from environmental review.
Pascal Hue De Laroque is applying to open the business at the former location of Classy Cakes, which operated there until July 2017, according to the staff report from Senior Planner Mark Roberts.
“While the proposed business plan utilizes the existing site facilities it should be noted that sit-down dining (indoor or outdoor) is not included at this time and has been excluded from the project analysis,” Roberts wrote in his report.
“The application does involve some minor renovations, including the installation of a drive through window on the west side of the building and new signage. Current tenant improvements involve upgrading the exterior lighting fixtures, trimming the overgrowth off the entryway tree, and installing a brand-new security system (with generous coverage of traffic on Olympic Drive), as well as various other aesthetic improvements,” he said.
Roberts said the proposed project is located within the Mixed Use Zoning District and is designated mixed use by the general plan land use map.
The city’s zoning code determines drive-thrus – which are defined as a “special use” – are allowable use upon securing a use permit, Roberts said.
“It is recognized that these facilities, by their very nature, have some objectionable characteristics, such as noise, idling vehicles and traffic conflicts. In order to protect and preserve public health, safety and welfare, special regulation review of these uses is necessary,” he said.
The commission’s members are Chair Kathryn Davis, Vice Chair Robert Coker and commissioners Lisa Wilson, Erin McCarrick and Fawn Williams.
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.
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Monday announced a new partnership of several state government agencies to establish consistent statewide standards for home and community hardening that will reduce wildfire risk, protect lives and property, and help make insurance available and affordable to residents and businesses.
Lara said the partnership includes the California Department of Insurance and Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration, including the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and the California Public Utilities Commission.
“Hardening” refers to measures that prepare homes and communities to better survive a wildfire, such as building upgrades, defensible space and fire-resistant landscaping.
While California has existing wildfire building standards for new development as established by Cal Fire, this new partnership consisting of state wildfire, catastrophe and insurance experts will establish standards that are consistent, based in fire science, and apply to retrofits for older existing homes in order to help them seek and maintain insurance coverage, thus giving policyholders and insurance companies a shared strategy for reducing wildfire risks.
“With home and community hardening standards in place, Californians can hope to save lives and property through safer homes and increase insurance availability at the same time,” said Commissioner Lara. “Our insurance market is responding to higher wildfire risk, so safeguarding homes will assist consumers in finding and keeping their insurance. I look forward to working with Gov. Newsom and his administration on this critical mitigation effort to protect homes and communities from wildfire loss.”
“Climate change is a major contributor to the increased severity and frequency of California wildfires, and to the resulting unprecedented loss of life and property in recent years,” said Kate Gordon, director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and the Governor’s Senior Policy Advisor on Climate. “Unless we take coordinated action now, these impacts will only worsen – especially in our most vulnerable communities. Identifying consistent statewide standards for home and community hardening is critical to California’s goal of reducing wildfire risk while increasing our overall resilience.”
“Development of a statewide retrofitting program that can reduce insurance loss is an important step in ensuring communities are hardened against the devastating effect of wildfire,” said State Fire Marshal Chief Mike Richwine. “Taking the necessary measures to prepare your home can help increase its chance of survival when wildfire strikes.”
“As our state continues to grapple with catastrophic wildfires, it is important that we take proactive steps to prepare and protect our communities,” said Mark Ghilarducci, director of the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services. “We look forward to working with Commissioner Lara and our partners to collaboratively strengthen California’s preparedness and mitigation efforts.”
“The CPUC welcomes this collaboration with our sister agencies on this very important issue,” said CPUC President Marybel Batjer. “We each play an important and distinct role in wildfire mitigation, community resilience, and recovery, and our work together will help ensure that Californians are aware of efforts at the state level, the assistance that is available to them, and ways they can help reduce risk.”
This partnership is the latest step to enact regulatory and administrative actions that Commissioner Lara announced on Sept. 16, 2020, using his existing regulatory authority under voter-approved Proposition 103 to protect the state’s insurance market.
Commissioner Lara held hearings on Oct. 19 and Dec. 10, 2020, to gather public input into fire mitigation and other steps to address the availability and affordability of insurance due to wildfires. Watch video of those hearings and learn more at www.insurance.ca.gov.
Last year, Gov. Newsom signed legislation to increase consumer protections for wildfire survivors, including Senate Bill 872 authored by state Sen. Bill Dodd and sponsored by Commissioner Lara, among other measures.
In his signing message for SB 872 and Assembly Bill 3012, Gov. Newsom stated that “we must do more” and directed the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, CalOES, and Cal Fire to “work with the Insurance Commissioner to evaluate and recommend ways that residents, communities and the insurance industry can work together to better mitigate wildfire risks. This work should inform the development of solutions for residents in wildfire-prone areas who continue to face the threat of policy non-renewal and rising premium costs for those policies that are available.”
This partnership is in furtherance of the governor’s signing message and to help protect residents from the increasing risk of wildfires and stabilize the insurance market.
Dodd – who formerly represented Lake County in the state Assembly and now serves all or portions of Napa, Solano, Yolo, Sonoma, Contra Costa and Sacramento counties in the California Senate – on Monday lauded the creation of the new statewide plan for home and community hardening.
“I want to thank Gov. Newsom and Commissioner Lara for following through for people who’ve endured tremendous hardship over the past several years of devastating wildfires,” Sen. Dodd said. “This has been a high priority for me and I appreciate their collaborative approach. We must deliver for Californians who deserve accessible and affordable insurance.”
The partnering agencies and departments will begin meeting this month.
A pine siskin. Photo by Vickie J Anderson, http://www.wildlifeimagesupclose.com, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons. Since December, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and wildlife rehabilitation centers have been inundated with calls from residents who are finding sick or dead finches at bird feeders.
Most reports have come from locations on California’s Central Coast, the San Francisco Bay Area and Sierra Nevada communities.
CDFW’s Wildlife Investigations Laboratory has evaluated birds from several locations and determined the cause of illness to be salmonellosis, a disease caused by salmonella bacteria.
Pine siskins, a species of finch that winters in California, are the primary species affected by the outbreak. The disease has also been reported in smaller numbers of lesser goldfinches and American goldfinches.
“Salmonellosis occurs periodically in pine siskins in some winters throughout their range. When large numbers of pine siskins congregate, the disease can spread rapidly causing high mortality. Most birds die within 24 hours of infection,” said CDFW Senior Environmental Scientist Krysta Rogers, an avian disease specialist.
Birds become infected with salmonella when they ingest food, water or come into contact with objects – such as bird feeders, perches soil – contaminated with feces from an infected bird.
Sick birds often appear weak, have labored breathing, and may sit for prolonged periods with fluffed or ruffled feathers.
Salmonellosis is almost exclusively reported from locations with bird feeders where birds congregate.
Residents can help reduce disease transmission by removing bird feeders and bird baths. Allowing birds to feed on natural seeds rather than at bird feeders reduces contact between birds and helps slow spread of the disease.
Residents can report dead birds to CDFW’s Wildlife Investigations Laboratory using the mortality reporting form, which helps biologists monitor the outbreak.
Disposable gloves should be worn and hands should be thoroughly washed after disposing of dead birds, and handling of bird feeders and bird baths.
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