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[Water_news] 5. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: AGENCIES, PROGRAMS, PEOPLE - 9/1/09

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

September 1, 2009

 

 

5. Agencies, Programs, People –

 

 

 

Perjury charge added to case against water district board member

San Bernardino County Sun

 

Water district trying to shut out public

Antelope Valley Press

 

IID to expand conflict of interest guidelines to include consultants

Imperial Valley Press

 

Nora Jaeschke; property-management leader, staunch water conservationist

San Diego Union-Tribune

 

 

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Perjury charge added to case against water district board member

San Bernardino County Sun-8/31/09

By Wes Woods II

 

A single charge of perjury was filed against Xavier Alvarez on Monday as a result of his filing a false W-4 form with the Three Valleys Municipal Water District when he was elected to the board in 2006.

 

Sandi Roth, a prosecutor with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Public Integrity Division, said Alvarez checked a box saying he was married which resulted in the withholding of the incorrect amount of taxes in his paycheck.

 

Alvarez, 51, represents south Pomona on the Three Valleys board.

 

The perjury charge against him carries a maximum of four years in state prison. Prosecutors discovered the alleged violation while preparing their case over related charges, said Roth.

 

Alvarez has pleaded not guilty for one count each of insurance fraud, grand theft and misappropriation of public funds, a case originally filed on Sept. 22.

 

He was accused of illegally registering his ex-wife for health benefits with the Three Valleys Municipal Water District, which gives medical insurance for its directors, their spouses, children and other dependents.

 

Authorities said Alvarez presented a Jan. 28, 1995 marriage certificate to the district but failed to say a divorce occurred March 2, 2002.

 

In the case, prosecutors said he added his ex-wife Juanita Ruiz on his insurance from Jan. 24 to Oct. 31, 2007, five years after his divorce was final.

 

A readiness conference for the health benefit case is scheduled for Monday.

Trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 10.

Roth said an arraignment for the perjury case is scheduled for Wednesday at Pomona Superior Court.

 

If convicted on the theft charges, Alvarez faces five years in jail.

 

In July 2008, Alvarez was fined and sentenced to probation for violating the Stolen Valor Act, which criminalizes false claims of military valor. He had claimed he had received the Medal of Honor.

 

Alvarez could not be reached for comment.#

 

http://www.sbsun.com/search/ci_13241597?IADID=Search-www.sbsun.com-www.sbsun.com

 

 

Water district trying to shut out public

Antelope Valley Press-8/31/09

Editorial

 

Palmdale Water District board members' 4-0 decision to shift their meeting time earlier will inconvenience members of the public as well as the board member who often doesn't vote the others' way.

 

Board meetings will now start with a closed session at 5:30 p.m., followed by the public meeting at 6:30 p.m.

 

The earlier time will make it harder for Palmdale Water District customers who commute long distances to and from work to attend meetings.

 

In addition, director Raul Figueroa, an aerospace engineer who is frequently the lone dissenter on board votes, said the earlier time will make it hard for him to get to the start of the 5:30 p.m. closed session.

 

"I know it's done purposely," Figueroa said later.

 

"Any way they can avoid me being there would be perfect for them."

 

The Aug. 18 vote was the third time within a year that Palmdale Water District board members have changed their meeting times.

 

Until last fall, board meetings had started with the open session at 7 p.m.

 

Directors would convene in closed session after the public session.

 

In November 2008, the meeting time switched to 6 p.m. at the recommendation of then-interim General Manager Bob Toone.

 

Directors would go into closed session, but Figueroa could not end his workday in time to participate in that portion of the board meetings.

 

The meetings continued that way until last spring when Director Linda Godin suggested the board revisit the start time issue.

 

At the May 13 meeting, the board members went back to the 7 p.m. start time.

 

The June, July and August meetings began at 7 p.m.

 

However, the Aug. 18 special meeting at which the time was changed - and from which Figueroa was absent - began at 6 p.m.

 

During the board's discussion at the meeting, board President Jeff Storm suggested starting at 5 p.m. Director Linda Godin suggested 5:30 p.m.

 

Director Dave Gomez suggested the ultimate outcome: 5:30 p.m. for the closed session, with the open meeting beginning at 6:30 p.m.

 

Palmdale resident Tracey Summerford told the board that night that the change will prevent a lot of customers from participating in meetings.

 

"I think you're trying to silence the public," she said.

 

We agree.#

 

http://www.avpress.com/n/31/0831_s7.hts

 

 

IID to expand conflict of interest guidelines to include consultants

Imperial Valley Press-8/31/09

By Megan Glenn

 

The Imperial Irrigation District is working on updating its conflict of interest policy as court decisions have expanded who needs to fill out paperwork detailing their financial obligations.

 

"That issue is being considered in our revisions," said IID attorney Jeff Garber.

 

Imperial Valley farmers such as Mike Morgan, who is suing the IID, have repeatedly called for information detailing the financial interests of a variety of consultants that the IID contracts with.

 

Morgan has alleged during IID board meetings that consultants working on water policies such as the Quantification Settlement Agreement, have conflicts of interest.

 

Garber said that the IID has a code of conduct that spells out who is required to fill out the conflict of interest forms, which includes board members and general management.

 

"It's consistent with all other local agencies in the Valley," Garber said of the code of conduct.

 

Consultants, however, operate within a gray area, as they are neither employees of a governmental agency nor are they elected representatives. However, several court cases have ruled that if they are working on contracts that affect the agency, then they need to make their other financial obligations public.

 

Garber said that the revised code of conduct will be made public soon.

 

"We have revised the code of conduct and will be bringing it back to the board," Garber said.#

 

http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2009/09/01/local_news/news04.txt

 

 

Nora Jaeschke; property-management leader, staunch water conservationist

San Diego Union-Tribune-8/31/09

By Blanca Gonzalez

 

When Nora Jaeschke lost her part-time job at a homeowners association management company in 1971, she started a business so she could help three landscapers who had also been laid off by the company.

 

The enterprise she started from the garage and living room of her Rancho Bernardo home grew to become one of the region's largest private-property-management companies, with more than 200 employees.

 

Ms. Jaeschke, a leader in the industry, also became active in water-conservation efforts and served on the San Diego County Water Authority board of directors from 1997 to 2005.

 

Ms. Jaeschke died Wednesday at her Escondido home. She was 72. The cause of death is pending, her family said.

 

Although she sold her company, N.N. Jaeschke Inc., in 2004, she stayed active and was at a meeting to help formulate a water-conservation program the night before she died. Friends and family members said she was fearless, optimistic and remarkable.

 

County Supervisor Pam Slater-Price served on the water board with Ms. Jaeschke, and the two became friends. They also served on the Red Cross board together.

 

"She always looked on the bright side, no matter what challenges she faced," Slater-Price said. "Nora always brought the same spirit of high energy, positive attitude. ... She always wanted to help people."

 

"Things can get contentious (at Water Authority board meetings), and she always tried to build consensus. She had strong leadership skills but was the most pleasant, engaging person."

 

Friends said Ms. Jaeschke's professional success was inspirational at a time when few women started and owned their own businesses.

 

"She said it was an uphill battle, (but) she wanted to be an example to her daughters," Slater-Price said.

 

Elizabeth Jaeschke de Buenrostro said her mother always looked for ways to make things work. Instead of dwelling on problems, Ms. Jaeschke preferred to focus on solutions, her daughter said.

 

"She had a heart for service. Wherever there was a need, she tried to help," de Buenrostro said.

 

In addition to her work with the Red Cross, Ms. Jaeschke volunteered with the Mentor San Diego program and was on the board of directors for St. Vincent de Paul Villages. She was founding president of Friends of the Water Conservation Garden.

 

Carlsbad Mayor Claude "Bud" Lewis, who also served on the San Diego County Water Authority board of directors, said Ms. Jaeschke understood the importance of water conservation for future generations.

 

"Nora was unsurpassed in her commitment, passion and tireless dedication to water issues," Lewis said. "She was a real go-getter. She was very energized to help San Diego become the best it could be."

 

Ms. Jaeschke also enjoyed music and learned to play the ukulele five years ago. Friend and water board colleague Fred Thompson taught her to play, and the two would often strum their ukuleles in parking lots before and after water-related meetings.

 

"Her schedule was so busy that we had to find the time to play in between meetings," Thompson said. "She was like the Energizer bunny — always going. She was brilliant. She was totally involved with the human race. She had a tremendous sense of humor and was always laughing and enjoying life."

 

Ms. Jaeschke was born Jan. 13, 1937, in Great Barrington, Mass., and was the oldest of two daughters of Thomas Francis Nugent and Mary Williams Nugent. She loved to swim and was the best swimmer at the local Boys Club, her daughter said. She was invited to the Olympic trials when she was 13 or 14, but her grandmother wouldn't let her go "because it was not very ladylike," de Buenrostro said.

 

She attended Syracuse University before marrying Charles Jaeschke in 1956. They moved to California for the warm climate and settled in San Diego in 1969. The couple had three daughters. The Jaeschkes divorced after 42 years of marriage in 1998.

 

Ms. Jaeschke is survived by her daughters, Eleanor Jaeschke Hugus of La Jolla, Christina Scott Jaeschke of Escondido and Elizabeth Jaeschke de Buenrostro of San Marcos; a sister, Beth Bartholomew of Sheffield, Mass.; and four grandchildren.

 

Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. tomorrow at El Camino Memorial in Sorrento Valley. Services will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at The Immaculata at the University of San Diego.

 

The family suggests contributions to Friends of the Water Conservation Garden, 12122 Cuyamaca College Drive W., El Cajon, CA 92019; or to St. Vincent de Paul Villages.#

 

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/aug/31/property-management-leader-staunch-water-conservat/?uniontrib

 

 

 

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DWR's California Water News is distributed to California Department of Water Resources management and staff,  for information purposes, by the DWR Public Affairs Office. For reader's services, including new subscriptions, temporary cancellations and address changes, please use the online page: http://listhost2.water.ca.gov/mailman/listinfo/water_news . DWR operates and maintains the State Water Project, provides dam safety and flood control and inspection services, assists local water districts in water management and water conservation planning, and plans for future statewide water needs. Inclusion of materials is not to be construed as an endorsement of any programs, projects, or viewpoints by the Department or the State of California.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Water_news] 4. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS-WATERQUALITY-9/1/09

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

September 1, 2009

 

 

4. Water Quality –

 

 

 

School partners with city to clear trash from Ventura River bottom

Ventura County Star

 

Plant's generator runs straight through outage

Desert Sun

 

 

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School partners with city to clear trash from Ventura River bottom

Ventura County Star-9/1/09

By Kevin Clerici  

 

Wearing blue jeans and armed with gloves and masks, more than 600 freshmen and transfer students from California Lutheran University descended Monday into the Ventura River bottom to remove trash and abandoned items.

 

The students collected soiled clothes, old food wrappers, rusted bike parts and other trash, some of it discarded by people who sleep illegally among the brush and pervasive poison oak.

 

“We grabbed a couch, a wheelchair, a musty old rug,” said Clayton Cook, 18, a freshman from Phoenix. “We found the cushions. I said, ‘We should snake these beauties for our dorm.’ We’re trying to have fun with it.”

 

The student army was part of the private Thousand Oaks university’s You Got Served program, a service project for incoming freshmen now in its fifth year. Last year, for the first time, the entire freshman class tackled the same project: cleaning the river bottom. They pulled out 5 tons of trash and materials last year.

 

“This is a side of life you don’t see very often,” said Paul Witman, an information systems professor who helped out Monday.

 

Ventura officials hailed the partnership last year and were more than happy to have the students return. The city is under increasing pressure to remove the trash as new environmental regulations cover the sensitive estuary and excessive pollution could lead to fines of up to $25,000 a day.

 

“You never want to turn down 600 to 1,200 hours of labor,” said Rosie Ornelas, Ventura’s volunteer coordinator, adding the cleanup will directly reduce the amount of waste washed into the river during rainy winter months. “It’s pretty impressive to see them working in mass.”

 

Part of CLU’s mission is a commitment to service and justice, said university President Chris Kimball, who along with Ventura Mayor Christy Weir addressed the students before the cleanup.

 

Kimball said he planned to bring next year’s freshmen back again.

 

“You learn by doing. You learn by serving others,” said Kimball.

 

People have relied on the river bottom for shelter since World War II. Although happy to have such a large work force to help with the trash problem, city officials say the underlying challenge — relocating the homeless out of the riverbed — is likely to persist until more housing options are available across the county.

 

Officials expected little interaction between students and campers because most of the homeless leave during the day.

 

City officials in recent weeks marked cleanup locations and notified campers of the upcoming effort.

 

Local garbage hauler E.J. Harrison & Sons agreed to donate large metal containers for the cleanup, which extended from the ocean to nearly a mile upstream, organizers said.

 

Other sponsors included the Salvation Army, Home Depot, the Water Store, Goodwill Industries and Costco, and donations helped purchase shovels, rakes, gloves and other supplies.

 

Working as a team, freshmen Chloe Vieira, 18, of Camarillo, Rebecca Michalak, 18, of Seattle and Claire Winters, 17, of Ventura stuffed large plastic bags with tattered clothes and yellowing newspapers.

 

The trio said they were proud to participate and help build a positive reputation for their college.

 

“It’s an interesting reality check,” Michalak said.

 

“We’re glad to be here,” Vieira said. “It feels like we’re making a difference.”#

 

http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2009/sep/01/clu-sends-students-out-to-clean-up-debris/

 

 

Plant's generator runs straight through outage

Desert Sun-9/1/09

 

Officials at Mission Springs Water District report that the Horton Wastewater Treatment Plant “performed without a glitch” despite a 12-hour Southern California Edison power outage on Sunday.

 

The outage, which started at 4:50 a.m. and was caused by a faulty underground cable, initially affected 1,400 customers, according to Edison spokesman Steve Conroy. Service was restored by 7:01 a.m. to all customers except the water district, he said.

 

A 21,000-pound backup generator, installed at the plant in 2002, kept the facility running without interruption, according to an MSWD release.

 

This is the longest the generator has had to run since it was installed, with prior outages having lasted only a few hours, the release stated.#

 

http://www.mydesert.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009909010309

 

 

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DWR’s California Water News is distributed to California Department of Water Resources management and staff,  for information purposes, by the DWR Public Affairs Office. For reader’s services, including new subscriptions, temporary cancellations and address changes, please use the online page: http://listhost2.water.ca.gov/mailman/listinfo/water_news . DWR operates and maintains the State Water Project, provides dam safety and flood control and inspection services, assists local water districts in water management and water conservation planning, and plans for future statewide water needs. Inclusion of materials is not to be construed as an endorsement of any programs, projects, or viewpoints by the Department or the State of California.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Water_news] 3. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: WATERSHEDS -9/1/09

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

September 1, 2009

 

3. Watersheds –

 

Lime Saddle operators get nod for Bidwell Marina

Chico Enterprise-Record

 

Suction dredgers left high and dry

Redding Record Searchlight

 

Phoenix Lake span cracks force closure

Sonora Union Democrat

 

Officials stunned at size of Tahoe clam invasion

Reno Gazette Journal

 

Fish trackers study movement of Tahoe bass

Tahoe Daily Tribune

 

Dam burn postponed but inspection still on

Ukiah Daily Journal

 

 

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Lime Saddle operators get nod for Bidwell Marina

Chico Enterprise-Record-9/1/09

By Mary Weston 

 

State Parks Monday announced a tentative agreement for operations at the Bidwell Canyon Marina that park officials think will allow a smooth transition for all parties involved.

 

Some boater owners say they will make waves if the contract still prohibits transferring buoy contracts if they sell their boats.

 

State Parks spokesman Roy Stearns said they have reached a tentative agreement with Forever Resorts, the same company that operates Lime Saddle Marina.

 

Details will be announced in coming weeks, Stearns said.

 

"We think this is a very positive development, and in the weeks and months to come, we think boaters will appreciate the improvements that begin to appear," Stearns said. "Lime Saddle is an example of their track record."

 

Forever Resorts and current operator Fun Time Full Time, Inc. are negotiating for a transition of the existing docks and facilities.

 

"I think it's hopeful what's in place will stay in place to be the least disruptive to boat owners," Stearns said.

 

The marina that houses more than 800 boats has been embroiled in a controversy between the boat owners, the existing operator Frank Moothart and State Parks over the transition to a new operator after Moothart's contract was not renewed.

 

In June, Moothart sent notices to boat owners to move their boats by Aug. 1, saying he had to remove his docks and facilities by December, and the water would be too low then.

 

According to the contract, anything left on the lake in January would be removed by the state, Moothart had formerly said.

To compound the issue, the bids for a new operator were all disqualified for various reasons.

 

State Parks sent out a press release late Monday announcing a tentative agreement for operation of the marina, after a board reviewed five proposals following rejection of the bids.

 

"We are looking for a smooth transition from Full Time Full Time to Forever Resorts and the improvements Forever Resorts will bring for boaters as this marina," said Jim Luscutoff, chief of concessions for State Parks.

 

Forever Resorts had made significant improvements since taking over Lime Saddle in 2007, according to State Parks.

 

Assemblyman Dan Logue will still mediate a town hall meeting Wednesday at the State Theatre to address the issue.

 

Bob Foster, Northern Buttes District superintendent of State Parks, said the state will attend the meeting. Foster said last Friday he thinks all the issues a can be worked out with a new contractor.

 

Boaters were also concerned that mooring contracts couldn't be transferred if boats were sold, and it's unclear at this time how that issue will be resolved.

 

Dan Kohrdt of Save Bidwell Marina said the buoy agreement had been pulled from the discussion at the Wednesday meeting, but boat owners wouldn't let that die because they had too large of an investment.

 

The agreement now states that if you sell your boat, you have to take it off the lake, Kohrdt said.

 

Some boats on the lake are so large that other lakes in the state won't accommodate them.

 

"A lot of people think things are going to go great for Frank, Forever Resorts and State Parks, but make no mistake, the boat owners will take legal action if the nontransferable buoy restriction stays," Kohrdt said.

 

The meeting starts at 6 p.m. Wednesday at 1489 Myers St.#

 

http://www.chicoer.com/news/ci_13244359

 

 

Suction dredgers left high and dry

Redding Record Searchlight-9/1/09

By Dylan Darling

 

The $20,000 worth of suction dredging equipment Randy Davis accumulated in 25 years of going for gold is now just decorating his backyard because of a state ban on the practice.

 

The old Volkswagen motor attached to pontoons that powered a vacuum he used to pull river gravel up and into his sluice box is now worthless because of the ban, said Davis, 56, of Weaverville. So are the seven mining claims he has for the Trinity River and Weaver Creek.

 

"Now with the ban, I'm not able to work them," Davis said.

 

Early last month, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the ban into law, saying it would last until the state Department of Fish and Game finishes an environmental review of suction dredging and develops new rules and regulations for it. Critics of suction dredging say it is harmful to fish - particularly salmon - because it clouds the water, churns up mercury and scatters spawning beds.

 

"It really alters the river channel," said Craig Tucker, spokesman for the Karuk Tribe on the Klamath River.

 

The tribe petitioned the DFG to ban suction dredging last winter, but the agency denied the petition. State Sen. Pat Wiggins then wrote legislation calling for the ban, which lawmakers approved in July. Schwarzenegger signed it into law on Aug. 6.

 

Along with the equipment and claims, the ban has also made DFG permits purchased by prospectors for the year worthless, Davis said.

 

"All permits that were previously issued by DFG are now invalid," said Kirsten Macintyre, a DFG spokeswoman in Sacramento.

 

The permits cost $47 for a resident and $185.25 for a non-resident, she said. The DFG had sold 3,624 permits, which were originally good until Dec. 31 this year.

 

Not being able to use his permit anymore, Jim Holder of Cottonwood said he tried to get a refund for it.

 

But the DFG isn't offering refunds.

 

Macintyre said the agency can only do so if authorized by law, and the law banning suction dredging made no such authorization.

 

Frustrated, Holder said he and other prospectors are talking about filing a class-action lawsuit.

 

He said his family has had generations of gold mines and his wife and kids regularly go out with him.

 

"We would gold mine all during the summer," he said.

 

He'd then use the money made from selling gold to buy Christmas gifts, Holder said.

 

A veteran on disability with a bad back, Davis said he used the gold brought by suction dredging to supplement his income. In good years, he'd bring in as many as seven ounces, he said. Gold has been selling for about $950 an ounce in recent months.

 

While Davis said he could pan to get gold from his claims, using a suction dredge is much more efficient.

 

"I would probably have better luck playing the lottery than panning for gold," Davis said.#

 

http://www.redding.com/news/2009/sep/01/suction-dredgers-left-high-and-dry/

 

 

Phoenix Lake span cracks force closure

Sonora Union Democrat-8/31/09

By Walt Cook

 

Structural cracking on the Phoenix Lake Road bridge over Sullivan Creek due to blasting operations prompted Tuolumne County officials to close the bridge indefinitely starting today.

 

It’s too dangerous to keep the bridge open, according to Gary Taylor, deputy director of engineering for the county Public Works Department. The ongoing blasting near the bridge appears to have damaged it, he said.

 

Project crews were blasting rock and earth last week, with blasting continuing into this week.

 

Detours include Ridgewood Drive to Highway 108 for those living west of the project area, and Creekside Drive and Crystal Falls Drive to Highway 108 for those east of the project area.

   

The Public Works Department issued the closure notice Friday morning. Taylor explained blasting is scheduled to get closer to the bridge, putting it at even more at risk.

 

The blasting had prompted the Public Works Department to close the bridge for a few hours a day through Sept. 4 to accommodate blasting crews. That order was voided when the structural damage became apparent.

 

An indefinite bridge closure may pose a problem for drivers, as the project is scheduled to continue into next summer. But, Taylor noted, a total closure may enable the project contractor, Ford Construction of Lodi, to get the new bridge and related road work completed ahead of schedule.

 

Dennis Randall, a volunteer fire captain for the Tuolumne County Fire Department, expressed concern about the closure in relation to emergency responses.

 

"It has a significant impact particularly for that immediate area because Phoenix Lake Estates is isolated from the nearest station (the Crystal Falls station),” he said.

 

Randall said the suggested detours will add several minutes to emergency response times in certain instances, but he said the routes will provide adequate access.

 

“We need to discuss this with our dispatch center so they shift the response plan,” he said.

 

School buses that run in the area, including Curtis Creek Elementary School buses, will also be forced to adjust their routes.

 

The Phoenix Lake Road bridge project has been in the works since the mid-1990s, when the county Board of Supervisors passed a resolution to seek federal funding.

 

Taylor said the county faced a deadline that could have resulted in losing funding if construction had not begun this year.

 

The roughly year-long project will involve not only replacing the bridge, which dates back to 1948, but also reconstruction of the narrow roadway approaches.

 

The new bridge will be a pre-cast reinforced concrete structure and less susceptible to damage from high water flows.#

 

http://www.uniondemocrat.com/2009083197689/News/Local-News/Phoenix-Lake-span-cracks-force-closure

 

 

Officials stunned at size of Tahoe clam invasion

Reno Gazette Journal-9/1/09

By Jeff DeLong

 

Peering into cobalt waters, U.S. Sen. John Ensign caught sight of Tahoe's latest threat.

 

Beneath the hull of a Desert Research Institute boat off Lake Tahoe's southeast shore were visible dense beds of clams.

 

"It's really shocking to see the numbers," the Nevada Republican said.

 

Asian clams, first discovered in small quantities in the lake in 2002, have exploded in number. They coat the bottom along much of Tahoe's southeast shore in depths of 3 to 30 feet, in some cases up to 3,000 clams per square yard.

 

The dime-sized clams are believed to have caused a dense algae bloom at the lake last summer and experts fear they could change water chemistry to allow other invaders, highly damaging quagga or zebra mussels, to thrive at the lake.

 

DRI President Stephen Wells, who until recently only had seen pictures of the clams, was taken aback.

 

"I had no idea they would be in that concentration. It's really bad," Wells said.

 

Participants in the annual Tahoe summit Aug. 13 agreed that clams, mussels, weeds and other invading species -- either already at the lake or threatening to arrive -- could pose a huge danger to Tahoe, the Truckee River and Pyramid Lake.

 

During the event, Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons joined California Natural Resources Secretary Mike Chrisman and top officials with the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency in signing a management strategy for aquatic invasive species.

 

"It's a constant assault on the lake," Ensign said. "This is another battle. It seems like every time we have a victory we have another battle come along."

 

"We need to get moving," U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said. "If we don't get a stranglehold on them, they will get a stranglehold on this lake."#

 

http://www.rgj.com/article/20090901/TT/909010306/1047

 

 

Fish trackers study movement of Tahoe bass

Tahoe Daily Tribune-8/29/09

By Adam Jensen  

 

Legend has it that a prehistoric beast similar to the fabled Loch Ness Monster roams the depths of Lake Tahoe.

 

While the “Tahoe Tessie” myth holds more whimsy than weight, researchers from the University of Nevada, Reno, were at Lake Tahoe this week tagging beasts that could have real consequences for the lake's historic underwater inhabitants.

 

Joined by employees of the California Department of Fish and Game, the researchers used two boats equipped with electrofishing equipment to catch 24 largemouth bass in the Tahoe Keys on Wednesday afternoon as part of a new study of warm-water fish in Lake Tahoe.

 

The largemouth bass is one of several warm-water fish species that were likely introduced — either intentionally or accidentally — into the lake by anglers in the mid-1980s and appears to be spreading around the lake's near shore areas, according to recent research.

 

The fish may be contributing to a decrease in the number of native fish species in the lake since 1960, said Sudeep Chandra, a University of Nevada, Reno professor who studies invasive species at the lake.

 

Bass are voracious predators that eat native fish — like minnows and trout — or out-compete those species for food and habitat, added Stafford Lehr, senior fisheries biologist supervisor with the California Department of Fish and Game.

 

“They are having an impact on the native fishes of Lake Tahoe,” Lehr said.

 

Some of the bass caught Wednesday weighed more than 6 pounds.

 

In addition to the University of Nevada, Reno, and the Department of Fish and Game, the study that began Wednesday is sponsored by the U.S. Forest Service and the Tahoe Resource Conservation District.

 

The study is a follow- up to a pilot project last year that showed warm-water fish species were able to leave the relatively warm refuge of the Tahoe Keys for other parts of the lake as early as July, sooner than researchers anticipated, Chandra said.

 

In the latest study, bass were stunned using electroshocking equipment and brought on shore, where researchers sedated them using club soda. Researchers then made a small incision on the bass's bellies to implant two tags, before stitching the fish back up and returning them alive near the area they were caught.

 

One tag — a computer chip similar to what are often implanted into cats and dogs — will stay useful to researchers throughout the life of the fish and may allow them to one day estimate the total number of largemouth bass in the lake, something that remains unknown to scientists, Chandra said.

 

The second tag is an acoustic tag that will operate for more than a year and will allow researchers to track movements of the bass through the Keys.

 

By studying bass movements past 13 receivers that have been placed in the Keys during the next two years to pick up signals from the acoustic tags, researchers should be able to determine how often bass leave the Keys and gain greater knowledge about what triggers them to do so, Chandra said.

 

Researchers also hope to gain a greater understanding of how warm-water fish interact with the invasive plants — like Eurasian watermilfoil and curly-leaf pondweed — that are spreading around the lake and are already ubiquitous in the Keys, Chandra said.

 

The information gathered during the latest study will likely be critical to understanding how to protect the dwindling number of native fish species in the lake, Chandra said.

 

Both Lehr and Chandra expressed doubts about whether warm-water fish species could ever be eliminated from Lake Tahoe, but said this study will be critical step to figuring out what to do next.

 

“You first have to have a good understanding of the problem,” Lehr said.

 

Because the species were introduced to the lake relatively recently, the spread of the species can likely be controlled, Chandra said.

 

Using electrofishing to remove fish from the lake and eliminating the dense underwater forests of milfoil and pondweed where the warm-water fish thrive are two ways the populations of the fish species in the lake could potentially be limited, Chandra said.#

 

http://www.tahoedailytribune.com/article/20090829/NEWS/908289979&parentprofile=search

 

 

Dam burn postponed but inspection still on

Ukiah Daily Journal-8/31/09

 

A control burn of the dam at Lake Mendocino has been postponed but is still expected before a mid-September routine inspection of the earthen dam by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

 

Lake Mendocino and the park around it is operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Army Corps inspectors are expected in Ukiah in the weeks following a rescheduled burn.

 

"Basically it's for an inspection," David Serafini, maintenance manager at the park said. "The engineers come and do a 100 percent inspection."

 

The inspection is called a pre-flood inspection and all Army Corps projects do it, Serafini said.

 

When the burn happens the dam will be divided into sections on which various fire departments can come and practice. Due to concerns that firefighters would overdraw their crews, the first date was canceled and a new date has not been set.

 

The inspection comes in anticipation of the rainy season. Lake Mendocino is scheduled to be inspected Sept. 15 to Sept. 17, according to Army Corps spokesman J.D. Hardesty.

 

Inspectors will come and visually inspect the upstream and downstream sides of the dam, Hardesty stated. According to Hardesty, removing vegetation helps to spot burrowing animals that may live in the dam's dirt, Coyote Dam's spillway and a structure that regulates the flow of water in outlet tunnels.#

 

http://www.ukiahdailyjournal.com/ci_13237815?IADID=Search-www.ukiahdailyjournal.com-www.ukiahdailyjournal.com

 

 

 

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