The possibility of a new wastewater discharge pipeline to the county's popular Steelhead Beach in Forestville (above)  has apparently been killed by cost considerations.

 The pipeline to the proposedSteelhead Beach discharge site would have run through the quiet corridor of Osprey trail (below). Photos courtesy West County Gazette.

Brenda Adelman of theRussian River Watershed Protection Committee contends that Santa Rosa could and should reduce the amount of water flowing into the treatment plant by moving more aggressively to repair leaking sewer pipes that allow rainwater to get in.

Where there's fire there's smoke, and on Spare The Air days that's not a good thing.

 

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District has adopted new rules that prohibit district residents from using wood burning stoves or fireplaces on specified Spare the Air Days during the winter months.

 

You can subscribe to an automated email notification system for "no burn: days here. There is also an automated telephone notification system. The Spare the Air Winter alerts are also available by calling 1-877-4-NOBURN (1-877-466-2876).

Most of Sonoma County is part of the Bay Area Air Quality District, and subject to the new rules.The coastal and northern parts of the county which lie outside the  District are not covered by its regulations, and compliance in these areas is voluntary..To see a list of cities and counties covered by the Spare The Air no-burn rules, click here .

 

 

From forgotten varieties of plums and apples to grapefuit and even bananas, an impressive array of rare fruits are growing in Sonoma County.

The California Rare Fruit Growers organization is internationally known for its devotion to cultivating and perpetuating fruit varieites that may otherwise go unnoticed and even face extinction.  Even Sonoma County's favorite homegrown apple, the Gravenstein, is considered a rare or heritage variety in most other places.

 

 

The Redwood Empire Chapter of the California Rare Fruit Growers has events for local members as well as an annual community  event to showcase the organization and demonstrate their grafting and planting techniques. Visitors can even select some cuttings to take home.

 Phil Pieri, president of the Redwood Empire chapter, retired to Sonoma County to fulfill his lifelong dream of growing food for his own table.

 

 

 

 

The USDA is preparing to adopt standards defnining exactly what can be labeled organically farmed fish. Not surprisingly, that's prompted a big debate behind the scenes.

 

 A typical "open pen" at a commercial salmon farm. These pens are usually arranged in larger groupings (such as the one shown in the photo below) , linked by walkways that are used by the staff.

 

This commercial salmon fishingoperation is in a deepwatercoveoff Lucas Bay, Alaska. Most of the world's salmon farming is done in the cold northern Pacific and Atlantic waters off North America.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Urvashi Rangun (right)  is a senior scientist and policy analyst for Consumer's Union, which is advocating for rigorous new standards for farmed seafood to be labled "organic."

 

While the presidential election yesterday was a sweeping victory for Democrats from the top of the ticket on down, many local races in the north bay were much more narrowly decided.

 

 

 

To view the complete list of Sonoma County's unofficial election results, click here.

 For the statewide California election results, click here.