California is the first state in the nation to own, operate, and deploy a C-130 Hercules airtanker to fight wildfires and protect communities, the first of seven aircraft that the state is retrofitting and deploying.

Capable of flying 800 miles with a payload of 4,000 gallons of fire retardant, the C-130H now has the greatest speed and range of CAL FIRE’s airborne fleet.

“The climate crisis has made wildfires more destructive, and we need to match these threats with new resources. This aircraft will beef up Cal Fires’ ability to hit fires earlier and harder, better protecting Californians,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom. “It’s part of our overall strategy that adds more boots on the ground and state-of-the-art technologies to Cal Fire’s world-leading capabilities, along with our huge ramp up in forest management.”

Newsom — in partnership with U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, the late U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, and Representative Ken Calvert — spearheaded this initiative for California to take on ownership of these aircraft, speed up the time to have them flying firefighting operations in California, and expand Cal Fire’s firefighting capabilities.

“With the completed transfer of federal airtankers to Cal Fire, we are equipping California’s firefighters with significant new capabilities to protect our communities and save lives,” said Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA). “Since entering the Senate, I’ve made pushing the Air Force to complete this transfer a top priority, and I passed legislation to get it done as quickly as possible. Now, California will be able to respond to wildfires more quickly and effectively as we face drier conditions and increasingly devastating fires.”

The journey to bring C-130H aircraft into service as Cal Fire airtankers began in 2018 when California secured approval to acquire seven from the United States Coast Guard. After lengthy delays, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act on Dec. 14, 2023, enabling the transfer of aircraft from the federal government to California, where Cal Fire will instead complete the aircraft’s retrofitting.

“As wildfire frequency and severity increase across California, the introduction of this aircraft will undoubtedly play a crucial role in helping us achieve our initial attack goals, particularly in our efforts to keep 95% of fires at 10 acres or less,” said Cal Fire Chief Joe Tyler.

The United States Air Force and the United States Coast Guard played a crucial role in maintaining these aircraft, including the replacement of the inner and outer wing boxes and providing essential spare parts.

Once at Cal Fire’s Aviation Management Unit, the aircraft underwent significant modifications, including the installation of a 4,000-gallon tank and a specialized retardant delivery system.

Even before this, California had built up the largest aerial firefighting fleet in the world. These new C-130Hs will be strategically located throughout the state at Cal Fire bases to mobilize when needed, adding to the helicopters, other aircraft, and firefighters ready to protect Californians.

This follows California’s leadership in utilizing innovation and technology to fight fires smarter, leveraging artificial intelligence, satellites and more.

The California Assembly on Monday approved legislation from Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, that would allow Native American tribes to play a larger role in conducting controlled burns, a proven wildfire prevention method, helping to safeguard the state.

“We all know the seriousness of the wildfire threat in California,” Sen. Dodd said. “We must do everything in our power to prevent and prepare for them. That includes having the best tools in our toolbox to attack the problem. This proposal will help our communities become safer and more resilient. I thank Assembly members for their support. ”

Under Sen. Dodd’s proposal, Senate Bill 310, the process for tribal governments to participate in the time-tested wildfire prevention technique would be streamlined.

Instead of seeking separate approval from the state for each individual burn, the Secretary of Natural Resources would be authorized to reach agreements with California Native American tribes to waive state permitting and regulatory requirements related to cultural burning within the tribe’s ancestral territories.

Senate Bill 310 is supported by the Karuk Tribe and the California Farm Bureau, among many others. It passed the Assembly by unanimous vote and heads next to Gov. Gavin Newsom for a signature following a Senate concurrence vote.

“Native Americans have been conducting controlled burns with great success for thousands of years,” Sen. Dodd said. “My bill will help tribes participate in this time-tested form of wildfire prevention on tribal lands. It is an important piece of the puzzle for keeping California safe.”

Dodd represents the Third Senate District, which includes all or portions of Napa, Yolo, Sonoma, Solano, Sacramento and Contra Costa counties.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Board of Supervisors this week will get the latest on the renovations of the former Lakeport Armory, which is to house the sheriff’s office headquarters.

The‌ ‌board will meet beginning ‌at‌ ‌9‌ ‌a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 27, in the board chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport.

The‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌can‌ ‌be‌ ‌watched‌ ‌live‌ ‌on‌ ‌Channel‌ ‌8, ‌online‌ ‌at‌ ‌https://countyoflake.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx‌‌ and‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌county’s‌ ‌Facebook‌ ‌page. ‌Accompanying‌ ‌board‌ ‌documents, ‌the‌ ‌agenda‌ ‌and‌ ‌archived‌ ‌board‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌videos‌ ‌also‌ ‌are‌ ‌available‌ ‌at‌ ‌that‌ ‌link. ‌ ‌

To‌ ‌participate‌ ‌in‌ ‌real-time, ‌join‌ ‌the‌ ‌Zoom‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌by‌ ‌clicking‌ ‌this‌ ‌link‌. ‌ ‌

The‌ ‌meeting‌ ‌ID‌ ‌is‌ 865 3354 4962, ‌pass code 726865.‌ ‌The meeting also can be accessed via one tap mobile at +16694449171,,86533544962#,,,,*726865#. The meeting can also be accessed via phone at 669 900 6833.

At 10 a.m., the board will consider the update on the remodel of the National Guard Armory to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office administration facility.

Supervisors also will consider plans and specifications for the remodel and authorize the Public Services director to advertise for bids.

The sheriff’s office remains in its longtime offices on Martin Street. The new facility will create a larger campus that includes the Lake County Jail.

The project’s total cost is $20.7 million, according to the report from Public Services Director Lars Ewing.

In other business, at 9:15 a.m., the board will hold a public hearing to consider an ordinance to regulate smoking and commercial tobacco use in the unincorporated areas of Lake County.

At 11:30 a.m., the board will consider a resolution to extend temporary reduction of the cannabis cultivation tax rate, extend temporarily limiting cultivation tax to canopy area through 2025, and rescind the suspension of tax rate increases pursuant to the Consumer Price Index.

The full agenda follows.

CONSENT AGENDA

5.1: Adopt proclamation commending the Lake County Water Resources team for exemplary work orchestrating the 2024 Clear Lake Integrated Science Symposium, or CLISS.

5.2: Approve continuation of local emergency by the Lake County Sheriff/Office of Emergency Services director for the 2024 late January and early February winter storms.

5.3: Approve continuation of proclamation declaring a Clear Lake hitch emergency.

5.4: Approve continuation of proclamation of the existence of a local emergency due to pervasive tree mortality.

5.5: Approve continuation of emergency proclamation declaring a shelter crisis in the county of Lake.

5.6: Adopt resolution approving the annual Fiscal Year 2024-2025 update to the three-year Lake County Mental Health Services Act Program and Expenditure Plan.

5.7: Approve Board of Supervisors minutes for July 23, 2024, July 30, 2024, and Aug. 6, 2024.

TIMED ITEMS

6.2, 9:03 a.m.: Pet of the Week.

6.3, 9:04 a.m.: New and noteworthy at the library.

6.4, 9:05 a.m.: Consideration of lighting the Lake County Superior Courthouse in purple in recognition and honor of International Overdose Awareness Day.

6.5, 9:06 a.m.: Presentation of proclamation commending the Lake County Water Resources team for exemplary work orchestrating the 2024 Clear Lake Integrated Science Symposium, or CLISS.

6.6, 9:15 a.m.: Public hearing, consideration of an ordinance to regulate smoking and commercial tobacco use in the unincorporated areas of Lake County.

6.7, 10 a.m.: a) Consideration of update on the remodel of the National Guard Armory to the Lake County Sheriff Administration Facility; and b) consideration of plans and specifications for the remodel of the National Guard Armory to the Lake County Sheriff Administration Facility, and authorize the Public Services director to advertise for bids.

6.8, 10:30 a.m.: Consideration of the June 30, 2024, report of Lake County pooled investments.

6.9, 11:30 a.m. : Consideration of resolution to extend temporary reduction of the cannabis cultivation tax rate, extend temporarily limiting cultivation tax to canopy area through 2025, and rescind the suspension of tax rate increases pursuant to the Consumer Price Index.

6.10, 1:30 p.m.: Hearing, consideration of a) appeal (AB 23-03) of Planning Commission’s decision to revoke a major use permit (UP19-15) for Legendary Farms, at 2290 Soda Bay Road, Lakeport (APN 008-010-29) for high severity violations and deem Justin Smith and Melissa Smith responsible persons; and b) appeals (AB 23-02 Roberto Estrada; and AB 23-04 Michael Wegner) of the Planning Commission’s decision to deem these persons as responsible persons for the high severity violations at Legendary Farms (UP 19-15).

6.11, 3 p.m.: Sitting as the Lake County Air Quality Management District Board of Directors, notification of office closure and reduction of services.

UNTIMED ITEMS

7.2: Consideration of the agreement between county of Lake and BHC Heritage Oaks Hospital, Inc., for acute inpatient psychiatric hospital services and professional services associated with acute inpatient psychiatric hospitalization in the amount of $300,000 for Fiscal Year 2024-25.

7.3: Consideration of the following appointment to the Mental Health Advisory Board.

7.4: Consideration of memorandum of understanding and funding agreement between county of Lake and Rural Communities Housing Development Corporation, or RCHDC, and authorize the chair to sign.

CLOSED SESSION

8.1: Closed session item, conference with legal counsel: Decision whether to initiate litigation pursuant to Gov. Code Sec. 54956.9(d)(4): One potential case.

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.

 

By 2060, less than 60% of non-Hispanic white population and about 65% of non-Hispanic multiracial population will be working age.

The nation as a whole is getting older, but not all race and Hispanic origin groups are aging at the same pace, a pattern that promises to alter the makeup of the U.S. working-age population for decades to come.

About two-thirds of the total U.S. population was working age (ages 15 to 64) in 2022 and about 17% were 65 and older.

But the non-Hispanic multiracial population, for example, had the smallest share (about 6%) of its population age 65 and older and the non-Hispanic White population the largest share (about 22%) in 2022, clear evidence that while the nation as a whole is becoming older, not all race and Hispanic origin groups are aging at the same rate.

In this article, we use population projections to examine how the age composition of the United States would change under various immigration scenarios for different race and Hispanic origin groups.

From 2010 to 2019, the U.S. working-age population grew by only 3.1% while the 65 and older population grew by 34%. Aging baby boomers, who will all be 65 or older by 2029, and declining fertility rates are expected to contribute to a continued rise in the median age of the U.S. population.

An increasing older population and a shrinking working-age population have implications for the health care system, informal caregiving, social security programs and the economy. But increases in fertility and immigration can help mitigate the impact because a greater share of immigrants are of working age than the native-born population, and fertility rates are higher among foreign-born women than native-born women.

Age structures and immigration levels, however, differ by race and Hispanic origin, so aging may affect some groups more than others.

Last November, the Census Bureau released the 2023 National Population Projections, which project the U.S. population to 2100 based on four immigration scenarios:

• The main series, considered the most likely immigration scenario, assumes that future international immigration trends will mirror the latest trends.
• The high immigration scenario assumes a 50% increase in international immigration.
• The low immigration scenario assumes a roughly 50% decrease in international immigration.
• The zero immigration scenario assumes no international immigration and is considered a baseline for evaluating the overall contribution of immigration to population change.

The projections include demographic characteristics. Race and Hispanic origin are projected until 2060 but other characteristics like age, sex and nativity are projected to 2100.



Shrinking working-age populations projected in all race alone groups

Figures 1 through 5 use the 2023 National Population Projections to show the age distribution of various race and Hispanic origin groups in 2022 and in 2060 under the four immigration scenarios.

These race and Hispanic origin groups include non-Hispanic Whites, non-Hispanic Blacks, non-Hispanic Asians, non-Hispanic Two or More Races (or multiracial) and Hispanics.

In 2022, the greatest share (70%) of the non-Hispanic Asian population was working age (Figure 1), followed by the Hispanic (Figure 2) and non-Hispanic Black populations, each with 67% (Figure 3); the non-Hispanic White population with 63% (Figure 4); and the non-Hispanic multiracial population with 57% (Figure 5).



In 2022, 22% of the non-Hispanic White population was age 65 or older, followed by the non-Hispanic Asian (14%), non-Hispanic Black (13%), Hispanic (8%) and non-Hispanic multiracial (6%) populations.

Most race and Hispanic origin groups are projected to experience a decline in the working-age share of their populations from 2022 to 2060. However, some groups are projected to experience a larger decline in the absence of high immigration.

According to the projections, future immigration flows will particularly impact the non-Hispanic Asian population’s age structure.

With high immigration, the non-Hispanic Asian working-age population would decline from almost 70% to about 65%, while the 65 and older group would increase from 14% to about 20%.

Under the low immigration scenario, the working-age population would decrease even more to 62%, and the share of older adults would go up to about 25%. Without any Asian immigration — a very unlikely scenario — the share of the working-age population for this group would drop to about 56% and the share of those 65 and older would rise to about 35%.

Other race and Hispanic origin groups are projected to follow similar patterns, but with smaller differences. The impact of immigration on the working-age and older Asian populations may be greater because such a large number of immigrants to the United States have been arriving from Asian countries, particularly China and India; Asians now outnumber Hispanics in terms of new immigrant arrivals.



Non-Hispanic multiracial population only group projected to have working-age population increase

Unlike other race and Hispanic origin groups, the working-age share of the multiracial population is expected to increase in each immigration scenario from 57% in 2022 to about 63% in 2060 under both the main series and high immigration scenarios, and to about 64% under the low and zero immigration scenarios.

In 2020, the multiracial population was the youngest of all race groups with a median age of 29.5 (the most common age was 12). It is projected that by 2060, over 60% of this population will be working age.

The multiracial population consisted of a just 2.4% of the foreign-born population in 2018. As a result, future immigration trends will likely have a nominal effect on the working-age share of its population.

Because the non-Hispanic multiracial population was so young, its 65 and older population is expected to remain at around 10% in 2060 — the smallest percentage of all race and Hispanic origin groups.



Projected old-age dependency ratios by race and Hispanic origin

One way to assess the potential “economic burden” of an aging population on the working-age population is through old-age dependency ratios: the ratio of the population age 65 and older to the population ages 15-64.

Higher old-age dependency ratios indicate a greater number of people 65 and older who, in theory, need to be supported economically by the working-age population. Table 1 shows the old-age dependency ratios by race and Hispanic origin in 2022, as well as the projected dependency ratios in 2060 for the three alternative immigration scenarios.

In 2022, the non-Hispanic White population had the highest old-age dependency ratio at 34.9. That means that every 100 people who were of working-age supported about 35 people age 65 and older. The non-Hispanic Asian population had the next highest old-age dependency ratio at 20.3, followed by the non-Hispanic Black (19.3), Hispanic (12.3) and the non-Hispanic multiracial (11.2) populations.

Although the non-Hispanic White population had the largest old-age dependency ratio in 2022, all race and Hispanic origin groups are projected to experience an increase in 2060. But future immigration will affect some groups more than others.



For example, immigration is expected to have less of an impact on the non-Hispanic multiracial population than on other race and Hispanic origin groups. For the non-Hispanic multiracial population, the old-age dependency ratio is projected to increase at a much slower pace from 11.2 in 2022. By 2060, it is projected to increase to 15.6 under the high scenario; 15.8 in the main series; 15.9 in the low scenario; and 16.2 in the zero immigration scenario.

In other words, under each immigration scenario, every 100 non-Hispanic multiracial working-age people would support about 16 people age 65 and older by 2060.

The projected old-age dependency ratios for the non-Hispanic Asian population are most affected by expected immigration levels. For this group, old-age dependency ratios are projected to increase from 20.3 in 2022 to 31.2 under the high scenario; 35.4 in the main series; 39.9 in the low scenario; and 61.5 in the zero scenario.

For this group, high immigration would lessen the economic burden on the working-age population the most, while low and zero immigration would result in the greatest economic burden on the working-age population.

The old-age dependency ratios in 2060 are also projected to increase with less immigration for all other groups:

• Non-Hispanic White population – 50.4 in the high immigration scenario; 51.8 in the main series; 52.9 in the low immigration scenario; and 55.2 in the zero immigration scenario.
• The non-Hispanic Black population is projected to have lower old-age dependency ratios than non-Hispanic White population – 35.2 in the high scenario; 37.2 in the main series; 38.8 with low immigration; and 42.7 with zero immigration.
• The Hispanic population is projected to have lower old-age dependency ratios than all race groups except the non-Hispanic multiracial population – 27.2 in the high scenario; 28.9 in the main series; 30.2 in the low scenario; and 33.9 in the zero immigration scenario.

Chanell Washington and Line Nana Mba are statistician/demographers in the Census Bureau’s Population Evaluation, Analysis, and Projections Branch.

Last month was Earth’s warmest July on record, extending the streak of record-high monthly global temperatures to 14 successive months.

The world’s sea-surface temperatures in July were the second-warmest on record, ending a run of 15 consecutive, record-setting months, according to data and scientists from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).

Climate by the numbers

July 2024

The average July global surface temperature was 2.18 degrees F (1.21 degrees C) above the 20th-century average of 60.4 degrees F (15.8 degrees C), ranking as the warmest July in NOAA’s 175-year global record. July 2024 was also the 14th-consecutive month of record-high temperatures for the planet.

Last month’s temperatures were above average across much of the global land surface except for Alaska, southern South America, eastern Russia, Australia and western Antarctica. Africa, Asia and Europe had their warmest Julys on record, while North America saw its second-warmest July.

The global ocean temperature was the second warmest on record, ending a streak of 15 consecutive months of record-high temperatures. Sea-surface temperatures were above average over most areas, while parts of the tropical eastern Pacific and southeastern Pacific were below average.

Year to date

The year-to-date (YTD January–July) global surface temperature was 2.30 degrees F (1.28 degrees C) above the 20th-century average, making it the warmest YTD on record. Africia, Europe and South America each experienced their warmest YTD temperatures.

According to NCEI’s Global Annual Temperature Rankings Outlook, there is a 77% chance that 2024 will rank as the warmest year on record and nearly a 100% chance it will rank in the top five.

Other notable climate events

Global sea-ice coverage was below average: July had the second smallest sea ice coverage in the 46-year record at 8.49 million square miles, which was 1.09 million square miles below the 1991–2020 average. Arctic sea ice coverage was below average (by 330,000 square miles), and Antarctic sea ice extent was below average (by 760,000 square miles).

July tropical activity was below average: Seven named storms developed across the globe in July, which was below the 1991–2020 average. The Atlantic basin had two, including Hurricane Beryl, the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record; the East Pacific had three and the West Pacific, two.