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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The hearing, titled “State of the 2019-20 Dungeness Crab Season and Putting Fish Friendly Highways in the Fast Lane,” will be held Tuesday, Nov. 19, from 9 a.m. to noon at the State Capitol in Room 112.
“The past five years have been some of the most challenging on record for crab fishermen up and down the coast,” Sen. McGuire said. “While we’re hoping for the best this year, the hearing will be focused on any challenges that may lie ahead including ocean heating, domoic acid levels, potential marine life entanglements as well as remaining concerns about crab size and weight. We hope folks will join us for a comprehensive overview of this top tier fishery.”
The first portion of the hearing will focus on the upcoming Dungeness crab season and any potential impacts that may be on the horizon and when consumers can expect to have crab on the holiday dinner table.
Experts from across the west will focus on ocean heating, domoic acid levels, crab quality tests, risk of whale and marine life entanglements and the recent declaration to delay the season opener.
The JCFA will also hear testimony from fisheries leaders about their perspectives and concerns regarding the Dungeness crab fishery.
The committee will also do a deep dive on fish passage barriers that currently exist on our state highways and the urgent need to protect and restore California’s native fisheries in the face of a changing climate.
Testimony will address the problem created by fish passage barriers and the urgent need for fish to access headwater habitats.
“California’s endangered fish populations are on the brink, especially in the face of a changing climate,” Sen. McGuire said. “There’s a lot this state can do to help the recovery of endangered fish species, and one of the most critical steps we can take is to remove the thousands of fish migration barriers that exist due to our state highway system. We look forward to the collaborative discussion on Tuesday and developing a long term plan to implement fish friendly highways.”
The public is welcome to attend. The hearing will also be live-streamed at www.senate.ca.gov.
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- Written by: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Northern Management Zone (Fish and Game Districts 6, 7, 8 and 9):
In a memo released Friday, CDFW Director Charlton H. Bonham delayed the Northern California commercial Dungeness crab season due to poor crab meat quality test results. The delayed area in the north includes Mendocino, Humboldt and Del Norte counties (Fish and Game Districts 6, 7, 8 and 9).
The northern Dungeness crab fishery is delayed until 12:01 a.m. on Monday, Dec.16, 2019, pending another round of testing tentatively scheduled on or around Dec. 1. If these results indicate good quality and there is no area under an additional domoic acid delay, the fishery will open Monday, Dec. 16, and be preceded by a 64-hour gear setting period that would begin 8:01 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 13, 2019.
Crab are evaluated to compare meat weight to total crab weight to determine whether they are ready for harvest under testing guidelines established by the Tri-State Dungeness Crab Committee in conjunction with tests done in Oregon and Washington. If results indicate poor crab quality, the CDFW director may delay the fishery under authority of Fish and Game Code, section 8276.2.
"This industry-supported quality test determines if Dungeness crab have filled out in time following their molting period," said CDFW Environmental Scientist Christy Juhasz.
If the next round of quality tests continues to show low quality crab, Director Bonham has the authority to delay the season an additional 15 days until Dec. 31. The season can be delayed no later than Jan. 15, which is what happened in the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 seasons.
Central Management Zone (Fish and Game Districts 10 and south):
The Central Management Area (Sonoma County and south) was delayed seven days by declaration of the Director to avoid marine life entanglements and opens at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 22 assuming no additional delays due to domoic acid. This opening is preceded by an 18-hour gear setting period that would begin no earlier than 6:01 a.m. on Nov. 21.
However, ocean waters between Point Reyes, Marin County, (38° 00.00' N. latitude) and the northern boundary of Pillar Point State Marine Conservation Area in San Mateo County (37° 30.00' N. latitude) has yet to clear for domoic acid.
The opening or delay of the fishery in this area will be announced prior to 6 p.m. on Nov. 20. If the scheduled opener in this area is declared delayed, the fleet will be informed when the area is cleared of domoic acid and, pursuant to Fish and Game Code, section 5523, will be given a 72-hour notice before pre-soak is to commence.
The fleet will be notified via press release and the Dungeness Crab Task Force email listserv as well as the CDFW Domoic Acid Fishery Closure Information Line at 831-649-2883.
All individuals planning to fish in this area are strongly encouraged to check these sources in order to confirm the opening time prior to setting their gear in this area.
For more information, please visit www.wildlife.ca.gov/crab and read CDFW's Frequently Asked Questions on the 2019-2020 Dungeness crab commercial season.
For more information on health advisories related to fisheries, please visit www.wildlife.ca.gov/fishing/ocean/health-advisories .
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- Written by: Mediacom
James Peden of Clearlake was awarded the “System Technician of the Year” award for his work as a broadband specialist. Peden has been employed with Mediacom for 12 years.
Brandan Ambrecht of Clearlake was awarded the “People’s Choice Tech Ops” award for his outstanding work as a broadband specialist. Ambrech was nominated through customer satisfactory scores and has been employed with Mediacom for two years.
Kevin Petrie of Clearlake was awarded the “Area Operations Employee of the Year” award for his excellent work as a broadband specialist. Petrie has been employed with Mediacom for eight years.
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- Written by: Official Creditors Committee of PG&E
The Official Creditors Committee of PG&E welcomed the governor’s involvement in helping ensure PG&E resolves its bankruptcy case by June 30, 2020, the state-mandated deadline to access the state’s $21 billion wildfire fund under AB1054.
“We understand the challenge of balancing numerous competing interests in a case like this, and we welcome the governor’s involvement in helping facilitate a swift and fair resolution that treats all parties fairly. With wildfire season upon us and the new year swiftly approaching, we understand the urgency to ensure PG&E emerges from bankruptcy expeditiously and we appreciate the governor’s effort in bringing parties together to help resolve this matter,” the committee said in a written statement.
The Official Creditors Committee plays a vital role in supporting PG&E’s operations and underscored at the meeting the importance of reaching a swift and fair resolution for all stakeholders.
“We advocate for a pragmatic solution that fundamentally and responsibly revamps the way PG&E does business. A new, restructured PG&E must be operationally and financially stable, with sufficient access to capital, to preserve access to reliable and affordable energy, ensure safety and protect jobs. We seek a resolution that treats wildfire victims, ratepayers and creditors fairly and ensures future safe operations, and the delivery of reliable energy to Californians,” the committee’s statement read.
The Official Creditors Committee also emphasized that it is committed partners in creating a new, restructured and financially-viable utility, one that meets all Californians’ need for safe, reliable and affordable energy.
“The Official Creditors Committee looks forward to working with Gov. Newsom, Secretary Matasantos, the new court-appointed mediator, Judge Newsome, and all parties to reach a swift resolution, and identify solutions to ensure safe, reliable and affordable energy to Californians. We are all in this together,” the committee said.
Tuesday’s meeting at the State Capitol comes just four days after Gov. Newsom announced that he would consider the extraordinarily step of a state takeover of the utility if PG&E is not prepared to reach a resolution by June 30, 2020.
Appointed by the U.S. Government, the Official Creditors Committee represents a broad constituency of individuals and businesses seeking a fair and successful resolution to the PG&E bankruptcy case.
The Official Creditors Committee represents tens of thousands of California union members and retirees, the nation’s largest producer of solar and wind energy, vital lenders and financial institutions, and innumerable small and medium sized businesses that supply critical services and materials to PG&E.
The Official Creditors Committee serves as a fiduciary, working to ensure that the interests of PG&E's creditors are heard. No one creditor, special interest or group takes priority. The group represents a critical constituency to both PG&E and the State of California, and are committed partners in the restructuring of PG&E.