| This week’s column will be a bit of a potpourri. Saturday.
May 15, promises to be a great day for local families. The Countywide Fire Safe Council
will be sponsoring a Fire Wise Fair in Yreka at the Wal-Mart parking lot from 10 a.m. to 3
p.m. There will be many fire engines on display and a chance to shake the hand of some of
our local volunteer firefighters. There will be booths and displays from local fire safe
councils. If you don’t have a local Fire Safe Council, this is the place to find out
how to start one.
Also on Saturday, May 15, from 11 a.m.to 2 p.m. is the grand opening
of the new Scott Valley Family Resource Center (SVFRC.) Scott Valley FOCUS has put down
roots in the former telephone company building at 11920 Main Street in Fort Jones, (just
up from Scott Valley Bank.) The SVFRC hopes to grow into a hub of activity for family
members of all ages, including seniors. With success, it may also expand to an Etna site.
Current scheduled activities include family drumming, parenting
classes, and angermanagement. Future plans may include activities for teens, computer
courses for adults, summer fun activities and baby massage. The SVFRC facility may also be
used by local groups at a nominal rent. Use of the facility helps to ensure its
continuation. Please come to the open house, look around and give your input on what
activities and classes you would like to see offered to our community.
It won’t be long before Fall Courses will be offered by the
College of the Siskiyous. Don’t forget that several courses will be offered via
Distance Learning video conferencing at community locations in Etna and Happy Camp. In
addition, there are a variety of online (via computer) class offerings. See http://www.siskiyous.edu/schedules
or call (888) 397-4339 for more information. These range from work skills in
accounting, math and medical fields, to folk lore, history and literature.
Also, from September – November, JEDI (Jefferson Economic
Development Institute) will be holding a course at the SVFRC
called “It’s Your Business” on starting a small business. (Call
530-926-6670 for information.)
On a serious note, on January 1, 2004, the State legislature amended Fish and Game Code
1600-1616, including provisions for lake and streambed alteration agreements. Revised
Section !602 prohibits an entity from substantially
diverting or obstructing the natural flow
of, or substantially changing or using any material from the bed, channel, or bank of, any
river, stream, or lake, or depositing or disposing of debris, waste, or other material
containing crumbled, flaked, or ground pavement where it may pass into any river, stream,
or lake without proper written notification with fees to the Department of Fish and Game
(DFG.) The Department then determines if the activity, (such as diversion of water,)
substantially adversely affects existing fish or wildlife resources and issues a final
agreement to the entity that includes reasonable measures necessary to protect the
resource.
It is currently rumored that all diverters from the Scott and Shasta will soon be
receiving letters from the DFG regarding this requirement.
As authorized by
legislation, the DFG is also proposing to adopt a new schedule of fees for these lake and
streambed alteration agreements. For instance,
agreements for timber harvest start at $1,500, as do agreements for
“maintenance.” (This is a 33% increase for small projects and a 700% increase
for very large projects, with a maximum fee of $5,000.)
Additional costs are levied for additional activities. Also, DFG may charge to
recover CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) costs. (See http://www.dfg.ca.gov)
Public comments on the new fee proposal will be accepted until 5 p.m.
on June 2, 2004. Send comments to the attention of Ms. Joyce Young, Native Anadromous Fish
and Watershed Branch, Department of Fish and Game, 830 S St., Sacramento, CA 95814. On
June 2, a public hearing on the fee proposal will be held from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. at the
first floor auditorium in the Resources Building in Sacramento.
[Marcia H. Armstrong serves the communities of Scott
Valley, the mid-Klamath River (including Hornbrook,) Salmon River, Greenhorn and
Hawkinsville The Board of Supervisors usually meets the first three Tuesdays of the month
in the County Courthouse in Yreka. http://www.co.siskiyou.ca.us/ & http://www.sisqtel.net/~armstrng/index.html
] |
