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New research on Antarctica, including the first map of iceberg calving, doubles the previous estimates of loss from ice shelves and details how the continent is changing.

The greatest uncertainty in forecasting global sea level rise is how Antarctica’s ice loss will accelerate as the climate warms. Two studies published Aug. 10 and led by researchers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California reveal unexpected new data about how the Antarctic Ice Sheet has been losing mass in recent decades.

One study, published in the journal Nature, maps how iceberg calving – the breaking off of ice from a glacier front – has changed the Antarctic coastline over the last 25 years. The researchers found that the edge of the ice sheet has been shedding icebergs faster than the ice can be replaced. This surprise finding doubles previous estimates of ice loss from Antarctic’s floating ice shelves since 1997, from 6 trillion to 12 trillion metric tons. Ice loss from calving has weakened the ice shelves and allowed Antarctic glaciers to flow more rapidly to the ocean, accelerating the rate of global sea level rise.

The other study, published in Earth System Science Data, shows in unprecedented detail how the thinning of Antarctic ice as ocean water melts it has spread from the continent’s outward edges into its interior, almost doubling in the western parts of the ice sheet over the past decade. Combined, the complementary reports give the most complete view yet of how the frozen continent is changing.

“Antarctica is crumbling at its edges,” says JPL scientist Chad Greene, lead author of the calving study. “And when ice shelves dwindle and weaken, the continent’s massive glaciers tend to speed up and increase the rate of global sea level rise.”

Most Antarctic glaciers flow to the ocean, where they end in floating ice shelves up to 2 miles (3 kilometers) thick and 500 miles (800 kilometers) across. Ice shelves act like buttresses to glaciers, keeping the ice from simply sliding into the ocean. When ice shelves are stable, they have a natural cycle of calving and replenishment that keeps their size fairly constant over the long term.

But in recent decades, the warming ocean has been destabilizing Antarctica’s ice shelves by melting them from below, making them thinner and weaker. Satellite altimeters measure the thinning process by recording the changing height of the ice, but until this study, there hasn’t been a comprehensive assessment of how climate change might be affecting calving around the continent.

That’s partly because satellite imagery has been challenging to interpret. “For example,” said Greene, “you can imagine looking at a satellite image and trying to figure out the difference between a white iceberg, white ice shelf, white sea ice, and even a white cloud. That’s always been a difficult task. But we now have enough data from multiple satellite sensors to see a clear picture of how Antarctica’s coastline has evolved in recent years.”

For the new study, Greene and his co-authors synthesized satellite imagery of the continent in visible, thermal infrared (heat), and radar wavelengths since 1997. Combining these measurements with an understanding of ice flow gained from an ongoing NASA glacier-mapping project, they charted the edges of ice shelves around 30,000 linear miles (50,000 kilometers) of Antarctic coastline.

Losses from calving have outpaced natural ice-shelf growth so greatly that the researchers think it’s unlikely Antarctica can grow back to its pre-2000 extent by the end of this century. In fact, the findings suggest that greater losses can be expected: Antarctica’s largest ice shelves all appear to be headed for major calving events in the next 10 to 20 years.

Mapping 36 years of ice loss

In the complementary study, JPL scientists have combined almost 3 billion data points from seven spaceborne altimetry instruments to produce the longest continuous data set on the changing height of the ice sheet — an indicator of ice loss — from as early as 1985.

They used radar and laser measurements of ice elevation, accurate to within centimeters, to produce the highest-resolution monthly maps of change ever made of ice loss.

The unparalleled detail in the new record reveals how long-term trends and annual weather patterns affect the ice. It even shows the rise and fall of the ice sheet as subglacial lakes regularly fill and empty miles below the surface.

“Subtle changes like these, in combination with improved understanding of long-term trends from this data set, will help researchers understand the processes that influence ice loss, leading to improved future estimates of sea level rise,” said JPL’s Johan Nilsson, lead author of the study.

Synthesizing and analyzing the massive archives of measurements into a single, high-resolution data set took years of work and thousands of hours of computing time on NASA’s servers. Nilsson says it was all worth it: “Condensing the data into something more widely useful may bring us closer to the big breakthroughs we need to better understand our planet and to help prepare us for the future impacts of climate change.”

Carol Rasmussen works for NASA.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Clearlake Planning Commission on Tuesday evening voted unanimously to grant permits to allow an anti-abortion group to begin operating a clinic in the city.

The Pregnancy Counseling Center of Ukiah, doing business as Mendo Lake Women’s Clinic, will be located within an existing commercial building built in 1980 that previously housed an eye clinic, located at 14595 Olympic Drive, Suite C.

The center’s administration sought the conditional use permit, sign permit and an environmental categorical exemption for the 2,000-square-foot licensed medical clinic.

The staff report said the Mendo Lake Women’s Clinic is a nonprofit organization, with its parent clinic located in Ukiah.

Nonprofit filings show that the Pregnancy Counseling Center of Ukiah also is known as The Center for Life Choices.

Cathy Hoyt, chair of the board of directors of the Center for Life Choices, said the center is the funding agency for the new clinic, which she directs.

The Pregnancy Counseling Center’s stated mission is, “To erase the need for abortion by effectively serving pregnant, at-risk women by transforming their fear into confidence.”

Internal Revenue Service filings from 2017 to 2019 showed the organization received contributions and grants totaling around $300,000 annually.

City planning documents state that the proposed outpatient clinic will provide limited services at no charge to women with unplanned pregnancy. Services include pregnancy testing, prenatal vitamin provision, limited ultrasounds, options consultation, sexually transmitted infection testing and limited treatment and an abortion pill recovery treatment program.

The outpatient clinic will operate from 12:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursdays, and staffed by up to four employees. A maximum of five patients per day is expected, with a total of 200 patients a year.

Staff recommended approval of the project.

“We are excited about the opportunity to serve the women of Lake County as we have served Mendocino County for over 35 years,” Hoyt said.

Hoyt said the organization is not new to Lake County, and operated as a mobile clinic from October 2012 to January 2019. After the demise of the mobile clinic, they planned to establish a permanent setting, resulting in this project, Hoyt said.

She said their services include recovery for post-abortion syndrome which is a form of PTSD. “Contrary to the common narrative, abortion can be a traumatic event for many women and men, as well as family and friends, and we plan to address this silent mental health thief with an outreach that heals and brings hope.”

Hoyt said they also provide treatment for women who begin the abortion pill procedure and then regret it. When the process is started quickly enough, Hoyt claimed it has favorable results.

“The medically underserved county of Lake will benefit greatly from the presence of this clinic,” not only from the services but from referrals, she said.

Hoyt said they offer their services for free, which is made possible by their donors.

She questioned several city requirements because she said they would increase their cost to operate and delay their opening, including parking, lighting and landscape plans, explaining their renovations are for the building’s interior only.

Other requirements she asked to be waived included a requirement for a trash enclosure and a cultural resource consultant.

Senior Planner Mark Roberts explained many of those requirements were boilerplate, and in the case of some of them — for new curb and gutter on the Buckeye Street side of the building and the cultural resource consultant — the commission was willing to waive them.

However, City Manager Alan Flora cautioned against removing conditions in case things come up, explaining there are obligations from the state and federal government on some of the items, particularly if the ground is disturbed during the project.

During public comment, the project’s contractor questioned what the city’s regulations were accomplishing.

Real estate agent Dave Hughes, a former city planning commissioner representing the building’s owner at the meeting, asked why a use permit process was necessary for the new clinic. “To me this is totally unnecessary, and a waste of staff and applicant time.”

Hughes said it was an undue hardship on the property owner and applicant, suggesting the city was abusing the use permit process. He said the city also had raised its permit fees $2,200.

Commissioner Terry Stewart said he thought Hughes raised valid points and asked if the use permit process could be bypassed.

“The city municipal code says that this use requires a use permit. In fact, Mr. Hughes was on the zoning committee that recommended approval of this very zoning ordinance,” said Flora.

While the council recently had approved new fees, Flora said it didn’t impact the clinic project, and added the city’s fees are still the lowest in Lake County and the region.

“We need a consistent standard. It’s my belief that the city is extremely business friendly,” said Flora. “But you can drive around this town and see the impact that the good old boys network has had on development in the city over the years, and those days need to stop.”

Commissioner Erin McCarrick agreed that the city is a business friendly environment, with staff working on each project specifically. She said they could push the project off for two weeks to look at it more closely but added that she didn’t want to do that and delay it.

Flora encouraged the commission to approve it and move forward. If there are areas in the zoning ordinance that the commissioners have concerns about, Flora said staff is not resistant to a more streamlined process.

“We can streamline it so much that the commission has absolutely nothing to do if that’s what you and the city council would like,” but that’s a different discussion, Flora said.

He said he’s happy to take any recs from the commission to the council to streamline it. However, he said they need to make sure there are conditions of approval, and regulations are followed and that there’s “an orderly and consistent development pattern in the city moving forward.”

Commissioner Fawn Williams moved to adopt the conditional use permit, sign permit and categorical exemption to authorize the clinic’s operation. Commissioner Robert Coker seconded and the commission approved the motion 5-0.

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.

LAKEPORT, Calif. — Due to temporary staffing shortages at the Lakeport Police Department, Clearlake Police officers will begin working patrol overtime shifts in the city of Lakeport beginning Friday, Aug. 12.

The arrangement is the result of a supplemental law enforcement services agreement approved by the city councils of Clearlake and Lakeport in recent weeks.

The agreement also allows for Lakeport Police officers to work in Clearlake should that city ever need the assistance in the future. The city of Lakeport is paying the full cost for this assistance.

“We have a longstanding relationship with Clearlake and have provided each other mutual aid on many occasions,” the Lakeport Police Department said in a Thursday statement. “We have virtually the same policies, procedures and training and do not expect any differences in service provided to our community. We are also members of the same California Intergovernmental Risk Authority which simplifies the process of one agency's staff operating as agents of the other.”

Clearlake Police officers are expected to work a few shifts per week over the next few months, Lakeport officials reported.

Officers will always be wearing the Clearlake Police uniform and generally driving city of Clearlake vehicles although at times they may be in a Lakeport Police vehicle.

There will never be a time when there is not a Lakeport Police officer on duty while Clearlake Police officers are working in the city, officials said.

The arrangement supplements Lakeport’s staffing in order to provide for sufficient officer safety and continued appropriate police services to the Lakeport community, the city reported.

Should a member of the public need to request police records related to work done by Clearlake officers in Lakeport, they shall contact the Lakeport Police Department where all those records will be maintained.

“We also want the public to be aware that this arrangement will not affect the staffing at Clearlake, that is their staffing levels to the Clearlake community will not be shorted to provide coverage here. Clearlake Police officers are only working voluntary overtime when available,” the Lakeport Police Department reported.

Lakeport Police reported that it expects its current staffing to be increased to sufficient levels within the next few months. The most significant reason for the current staffing situation is that four new officers are in training and unable to staff a patrol position. As the public may be aware, for over the past 5 or more years police recruitment and retention has been a significant problem in our state and country. However, we continue to look for innovative ways to address it locally.

Gas prices continue to roll back, and are now the lowest they’ve been in five months, according to AAA.

Since Monday, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline dropped six cents to $3.99.

The national average has not been below $4 per gallon since March 5.

In Lake County on Thursday, gasbuddy.com reported the following gas prices around Lake County:

• Clearlake: $4.59.
• Middletown: $4.99.
• Upper Lake: $5.05.
• Lower Lake: $5.17.
• Kelseyville Riviera: $5.19.
• Kelseyville: $5.23.
• Nice: $5.29.
• Clearlake Oaks: $5.57.
• Lucerne: $5.59.
• Lakeport: $5.69.

In the spring, oil prices spiked in reaction to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, leading the national average to a new all-time high.

According to new data from the Energy Information Administration, gas demand increased from 8.54 million barrels per day, or b/d, to 9.12 million b/d last week. However, the rate is 307,000 b/d lower than last year.

Moreover, according to EIA, total domestic gasoline stocks decreased by 5 million barrels of crude oil, or bbl, to 220.3 million bbl.

Although gasoline demand has increased and supply has tightened, lower oil prices have helped lower pump prices. If oil prices continue to decline, drivers will likely continue to see pump prices decrease.

At the close of Wednesday’s formal trading session, WTI increased by $1.43 to settle at $91.93. Crude prices rose yesterday after the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a smaller than expected increase in inflation last month at 8.5%.

The rise in market optimism helped to boost prices despite EIA reporting that total domestic crude supply increased by 5.4 million bbl last week.

Since last Thursday, these 10 states have seen the largest decreases in their averages: Colorado (−21 cents), Arizona (−21 cents), Illinois (−19 cents), Maine (−19 cents), Ohio (−18 cents), Kansas (−18 cents), West Virginia (−18 cents), Wyoming (−17 cents), Arkansas (−17 cents) and Indiana (−17 cents).

Hotter and drier weather conditions spurred by climate change could reduce California’s water supply by up to 10% by the year 2040.

To replace and replenish what we will lose to thirstier soils, vegetation and the atmosphere, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday announced California’s latest actions to increase water supply and adapt to more extreme weather patterns caused by climate change.

Thursday’s announcement follows $8 billion in state investments over the last two years to help store, recycle, desalt and conserve the water it will need to keep up with the increasing pace of climate change, generating enough water in the future for more than 8.4 million households by 2040.

The actions, outlined in a strategy document published by the Administration called “California’s Water Supply Strategy, Adapting to a Hotter, Drier Future” calls for investing in new sources of water supply, accelerating projects and modernizing how the state manages water through new technology.

This approach to California’s water supply management recognizes the latest science that indicates the American West is experiencing extreme, sustained drought conditions caused by hotter, drier weather.

The warming climate means that a greater share of the rain and snowfall California receives will be absorbed by dry soils, consumed by thirsty plants, and evaporated into the air. This leaves less water to meet the state’s needs.

“The best science tells us that we need to act now to adapt to California’s water future. Climate change means drought won’t just stick around for two years at a time like it historically has — extreme weather is a permanent fixture here in the American West and California will adapt to this new reality,” Gov. Newsom said at the Antioch Brackish Desalination Project. “California is launching an aggressive plan to rebuild the way we source, store and deliver water so our kids and grandkids can continue to call California home in this hotter, drier climate.”

To help make up for the water supplies California could lose over the next two decades, the strategy prioritizes actions to capture, recycle, desalt and conserve more water. These actions include:

• Creating storage space for up to 4 million acre-feet of water, which will allow us to capitalize on big storms when they do occur and store water for dry periods.

• Recycling and reusing at least 800,000 acre-feet of water per year by 2030, enabling better and safer use of wastewater currently discharged to the ocean.

• Freeing up 500,000 acre-feet of water through more efficient water use and conservation, helping make up for water lost due to climate change.

• Making new water available for use by capturing stormwater and desalinating ocean water and salty water in groundwater basins, diversifying supplies and making the most of high flows during storm events.

These actions are identified broadly in the Newsom Administration’s Water Resilience Portfolio — the state’s master plan for water released in 2020 — but they will be expedited given the urgency of climate-driven changes.

To advance the infrastructure and policies needed to adapt, the strategy enlists the help of the Legislature to streamline processes so projects can be planned, permitted and built more quickly, while protecting the environment.

Over the last three years, at the urging of the governor, state leaders have earmarked more than $8 billion to modernize water infrastructure and management.

The historic three-year, $5.2 billion investment in California water systems enacted in 2021-22 has enabled emergency drought response, improved water conservation to stretch water supplies, and enabled scores of local drought resilience projects.

The 2022-23 budget includes an additional $2.8 billion for drought relief to hard-hit communities, water conservation, environmental protection for fish and wildlife and long-term drought resilience projects.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — A drinking water advisory remains in effect for households with individual water systems which use private intakes to draw from Clear Lake along the shoreline of the Lower and Oaks arms.

County officials said there is no simple remedy if you are getting your water in this way — boiling or putting chemicals in the lake or tap water does not eliminate the cyanotoxins.

Public water systems remain unaffected by this advisory and continue to provide customers with a safe supply of drinking water absent of cyanotoxins, which meets state and federal water quality standards.

Twenty five gallons per week of drinking water is available at filling stations for affected households, which is generously being provided by Golden State and Mt. Konocti Mutual Water Companies at the following locations:

• 10680 Lakeshore Drive, Clearlake: provided by Golden State Water Co., 1-800-999-4033;
• 4980 Hawaina Way, Kelseyville: provided by Mt. Konocti Mutual Water Co., 707-277-7466.

On July 26, Big Valley Environmental Protection Agency sampled 19 locations on Clear Lake’s shoreline. Visible harmful algal blooms, or HABs, were noted at 14 of the locations sampled.

Sixteen samples were submitted for microcystin toxin analysis and qPCR analysis which indicated the following:

• Five locations indicated the presence of danger levels (>20 µg/L) of cyanotoxins;
• Six locations indicated warning levels (>6 µg/L);
• Two location indicated caution levels (>0.8 µg/L);
• Three locations had toxin levels below caution levels.

The five locations with danger levels of cyanotoxins are the following (also see red danger indicators on the map provided):

• Austin Park (AP01, Lower Arm);
• Buckingham Park (BP, Lower Arm);
• Clearlake Oaks (CLOAKS01, Oaks Arm);
• Elem Indian Colony shoreline (ELEM01, Oaks Arm);
• Sulphur Bank Mercury Mine shoreline (SBMMEL01, Oaks Arm).

Recent cooler weather may have temporarily reduced cyanotoxin levels in Clear Lake. Many visible HABs have somewhat dissipated in recent days, but they will likely reappear soon as the summer heat continues.

Officials noted that, if future sample analysis indicates an improvement in the level of cyanotoxins in Clear Lake, this does not ensure it is safe to drink water from privately managed individual water systems.

Testing has shown other contaminants may also be present in these systems. People using individual water systems must make sure they are regularly maintained and tested; for cyanotoxins, nitrates, coliform bacteria and herbicides.

For households getting their drinking water from individual water systems which use private intakes to draw from Clear Lake (and who have not previously participated), testing for these contaminants is available through Big Valley EPA’s Cal-WATCH program detailed here: www.cal-watch.org.

If you live outside of the Clearlake Oaks and Lower Arms, and you have an individual water system with a private intake that draws from Clear Lake, it is important to maintain awareness of current water quality conditions and assess your risk.

The most recent cyanotoxin monitoring data is available here: www.bvrancheria.com/clearlakecyanotoxins.

Exposure to drinking water contaminated with elevated concentrations of microcystin and cylindrospermopsin could cause liver and kidney damage.

The main source of human health effects data for microcystins is from acute recreational exposure to cyanobacteria blooms.

Symptoms include headache, sore throat, vomiting and nausea, stomach pain, dry cough, diarrhea, blistering around the mouth and pneumonia.

If you are concerned you have symptoms resulting from exposure to cyanotoxins, immediately contact your primary health care provider and call County of Lake Health Services at 707-263-1090.

The table below summarizes the health effects caused by the most common toxin-producing cyanobacteria.

“Clear Lake is a beautiful natural resource, and our community has many visitors who come to the area to experience it. Together, with care and consideration, we need to adapt to these changing times, and ensure residents and guests, alike, understand risks posed by cyanotoxins,” the county reported.

For additional information about cyanobacteria and harmful algal blooms, please visit the following websites.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: www.cdc.gov/habs/index.html

Environmental Protection Agency: www.epa.gov/cyanohabs

County of Lake cyanobacteria webpage: www.lakecountyca.gov/Government/Directory/WaterResources/ClearLake/Cyanobacteria.htm

Environmental Protection Agency’s 2015 microcystins report: www.epa.gov/cyanohabs/health-effects-cyanotoxins