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Vol. 82, No. 18 • Feather Publishing Co.,
INC. 5PIA_L TOWN PAPER5
217 WEST COTA STREET
SHELTON WA 9 ~ .....
Inc. • 530-284-7800
• Wednesday,
and all of the Indian Valley Area
March 23, 2011
P
High water, more on the way
Larry Brown heads to his home on a slightly flooded Stampfli Lane after watching the water level for a while. "There's only
about four or five inches over the road," he said before giving it gas. Photo by Alicia Knadler
anges
am
service
Alicia Knadler re-negotiated with Mountain
Indian Valley EditorLifeflight last year, the
aknadler@plumasnews.com requirement for no out-of-
pocket expense was not
How much will it cost for included. Instead, residents
an ambulance ride now? were invited to join Moun-
Directors of the Indian tain Lifeflight's membership
Valley Health Care District program for savings and
talked about their concerns benefits in case of a medical
during a regular meeting emergency.
Monday, March 7. Mountain Lifeflight offi-
There just isn't enough cials came to a special meet-
utilization, Chairman Guy ing of the ambulance service
McNett said of the ambulance authority Thursday, March
service which is available 17, to clarify minor changes
locally thanks to a subsidy in their membership pro-
from the $45 special tax gram that might actually re-
homeowners in the district sult in savings to members
pay each year. who are underinsured, ac-
At one time the service was cording to health care and
provided at no out-of-pocket ambulance service authority
expense to residents, director Kevin Goss.
Contracting for that emer- Mountain Lifeflight repre-
gency medical service were sentatives at the meeting in-
the boards of directors of the cluded their new General
Indian Valley Community Manager Keith Crosby, Casey
Services and Health Care dis- Hurlbert, Brian Gray and
tricts. Under a joint powers Tom Higgins.
agreement, they formed the In a joint effort between
Indian Valley Ambulance Mountain Lifeflight and the
Service Authority, with two authority, a new flyer about
members of each board and the membership program
one appointed member from should be distributed to resi-
the public at large, dents in the next two months,
When the contract for
ambulance service was See HCD, page 6A
Joshua Sebold tives from the California Plumas County Counsel Proposition 36 treatment-much trying to support ouroutaform.
Staff Writer Department of Alcohol and Craig Setflemire advised,in-lieu-of-incarceration pro- efforts in reestablishing the Graeagle Supervisor Jon
jsebold@plumasnews.com Drug Programs (ADP) also "Based upon these uncertain- gram for the last two years services." Kennedy said he knew every-
attended the meeting, ties regarding the funding, it but "made it very clear that The Indian Valley super- one was worried about uncer-
At a meeting Tuesday, She commented that the (is) probably not appropriate by the end of this fiscal year visor told the board the corn- tainty in the state budget,
Marchi5, thePlumas Countystate was holding more thBn to gear up and have ... they will not be in position to mittee recommended moving "however, I think we need to
Board of Supervisors (BOS) $500,000 in A&D funds in-house services provided continue to do that." forward, take a little bit of a gamble
directed staff to prepare a for Plumas County, which by county employees but it This means if the county "There's a horrendous here and progress into
proposal to begin providing could fund a year's worth of would probably be better to did nothing t-here would need," Simpson added, getting this A&D department
alcohol and drug (A&D) ser- services, have these services provided be even fewer A&D relatedEastern Plumas Supervisor together and almost immedi-
vices again in fiscal year Simpson added that the through contract." services provided next year Terry Swofford's contribu-ately start seeking out
24)11-12, ending a 30-month county owed more than He explained the county compared to the previous two tion to the discussion wasavenues to do it."
gap instate-funded aid. $100,000 in audit exceptions could contract with an inde- years, to point out that the demo- "Well we don't want a de-
BOS Chairwoman Lori from its previous A&D pendent service provider or Meacher said the funding graphics for people who partment; we're going to
Simpson explained she anddepartment, another county, but either would go away if the county used A&D services in the last contract," Simpson responded.
Indian Valley Supervisor The chairwoman voiced way someone in Plumas didn't commit to use it by three years included one Kennedy: "We don't know
Robert Meacher recently met concerns about beginning awould have to be assigned to July 1. person who was identified if we do yet, do we?"
with a committee consisting new A&D department be- monitor use of the funding to "There's a lot of positive as "other" instead of male or Simpson: "Yeah, we do."
of County Administrative cause of fears that new audit ensure "we don't have audit information that was relayed female. Kennedy: "Oh, I didn't
Officer Jack Ingstad, County exceptions could be incurred, exceptions as we had in the to us by the state department The supervisor laughed know that we did."
Public Health Director Mimi She said contracting with past." of alcohol and drug, who was and asked what that meant.Simpson: "I think that we
Hall and various local legal Lassen County to expand its He said another factor was more than willing to assist us Mea cher responded that don't want a department. I'm
officials, program and provide services that the local courts adminis- in the transition, someone might have declined
She said three representa- here would be one option, tered a drug court and a "They came up pretty to state a gender when filling See h&O, page 6A
Joshua Sebold runoff since 1950. resulted in slightly less total decreased stream flow for a proclaims that county
Staff Writer The document explained water flowing through theperiod of time after the "supports water rights"
jsebold@plumasnews.comPacific Gas & Electric watershed during the yearproject is constructed." and demands the board be
Company discovered averagebut a much more significant Morris explained in the consulted about projects
At a meeting Tuesday, annual runoff decreased byincrease in the amount ofcase of Perazzo Meadows, a affecting water rights within
March 8, the Plumas County 400,000 acre-feet between 1960 water flowing during the water diversion feeding into the county.
Board of Supervisors unani- and 2009 "despite generally April- October time window. Sierra Valley from the Little Morris said the difference
mously voted to createa reso- constant levels of precipita- In theory this means in- Truckee River had to be in Plumas County's situation
lution to ensure water rights tion." stead of having most of the cut off a month earlier than was that, as a founding mem-
were properly addressed and The company also recorded water rushing down a ravine usual because of this type of bet of the CRM and the lead
protected in all future Coor- a 59 percent decline in snow- to sit behind dams and evapo- issue, agency in projects within
dinated Resource Manage. pack at the Stover Mountain rate, the water is stored"The Tahoe National Plumas, our county board
ment (CRM) group projects, ski area in the Lake Alman0r underground and released Forest is looking at that"would basically have veto
Flood Control and Water basin since 1949. throughout the year, result- project very closely. They've authority over a project."
Conservation District Manag. The first trend seems to in- ing in more water during the committed to a five-year "The county also serves as
er Brian Morris told the dicate less water is making it times when people can use it. study to look at the effects, the lead agency to review the
board Eastern Plumas Super- through the watershed and Morris toldthe board, "The which will hopefully be environmental impacts of the
visor Terry Swofford brought down to lower tributa ries, objective has been to provide beneficial in the long term projects under the California
the request for a resolution while the second trend sug- benefits for everyone whoand actually provide in- Environmental Quality Act,"
forward in reaction to a simi- gests less precipitation is be- has an interest in the pro- " creased water supply later he added.
lar declaration the Sierra ing stored in snowpack, ject." in the season, but there are This means that signing an
County Board of Supervisors Snowpack allows flows to "That means the local people who are nervous identical resolution to the
passed, be released more evenly water users have more water about whether or not thatone Sierra County passed
Morris said the Sierra throughout the year as theavailable to them and we also will pan out." would essentially consist of
County resolution addressed snow melts instead of flowing provide downstream benefits The manager said part of the Plumas County super-
"concerns over certain types down all at once, which leads for flood control and provid- that concern was rooted in visors demanding that they
of restoration projects poten- to floods and droughts, ing that time shift of water to the fact that "the five-year consult with themselves on
tially being conducted with- Morris told the board CRM later in the year when People period is about the time the future projects.
out enough coordination projects were intended to need it more." Sierra Valley Mutual Water Morris said Plumas
with the county or other address both of those issues Company, which is the re-County's position inthe CRM
agencies and also the effects by restoring desert-like Whenthings gowrong cipient of the water, needs process would allow it to
they may have on water ravines created by erosionMorris added that in someto take action against the actually "provide assurances
supply and water rights." into revitalized marshes that circumstances, such as in the federal government if they about protecting water
capture water in the winter case of the Perazzo Meadows feel they've been harmed by supply both against the short-
Background and early spring, releasing it project on Forest Servicethe project." term impacts of constructing
The manager's backup later in the year from April land in Sierra County, there a project and also to make
material explained the county to October. can be a negative short-term Plumas and Sierra sure that there aren't any
was one of the founding Morris said this techniqueimpact to water flows, espe- Morris said the Sierra long-term adverse impacts."
members of the CRM, whose was supported by models ciaUy for people immediately County resolution was created He concluded that the
projects were funded by the created at the UC Davis below the project, in reaction to that incident county had the ability to
California Department of Hydrologic Research Labora. "There's a certain amountand "we've had a number of actually make changes to the
Water Resources and the tory and on-the-ground of time it takes to re-water a people ask Plumas County CRM process for projects in
State WaterProject to help studies of actual completed meadow and get the ground- to adopt a similar type of Plumas andaddress water
combat alarming trends of work, both of which demon,water table back up and resolution." right holders' fears instead of
diminishing amounts of strated the CRM projects you can actually observe a The Sierra resolution just signing a threatening
resolution like Sierra County
did.
Ranchers and CRM
"Before these projects were
committed, did anybody go
out and talk to the ranchers?"
Swofford asked.
"We really try to bring
in every stakeholder that
may be interested," CRM
Project Manager Leslie Mink
answered.
She also clarified that
the CRM did have backup
plans going into the Perazzo
Meadows project but they
didn't work as well as
planned.
"We had met for at least a
year with the Last Chance
Creek irrigation district
before we put that project in
and all of the downstream
users were supportive of the
project.
"We had two different
solutions for short-term wa-
ter users downstream during
construction. One was to put
water in the irrigation
ditch.
See Water, page 6A
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