A hay truck in the upcountry region lost control Monday afternoon, resulting in a dramatic wreck similar to another hay truck accident that had occurred in the same spot last year. According to witnesses at the scene, the massive 18-wheeler collided with three passenger vehicles headed East on Hwy 88. Witnesses indicated the truck had been traveling too fast in the West bound direction when it lost control, skidded into a sedan, and pushed the vehicle into a tree on the side of the road, snapping the tree like a twig and leaving both the broken tree and piles of hay atop the sedan. In the process of that collision, the hay truck also swept another car off the road like a toy and collided head on with yet another vehicle. The truck then rolled over on its top and came to rest alongside the second vehicle which was now in a ditch upside down, on the side of the road. The dramatic rescue effort involved fire fighters and law enforcement from a number of surrounding agencies. The wreck initially stopped traffic, which was then filtered past the wreck over the course of several hours. Although no severe injuries have been reported, four people were taken to the hospital, three of those by helicopter.

 

An alleged drunk driver sparked havoc across Amador County Sunday afternoon after weaving through traffic before finally wrecking her vehicle in a front yard on Ridge Road. California Highway Patrol Officers first picked up a muddled report that a white van was driving erratically on Highway 88 between Ione and Jackson. A CHP officer headed in that direction, spotted the car heading in the opposite direction on Ridge Road, and made a u-turn in an attempt to catch up with the vehicle. The officer indicated that the driver was driving so fast and taking such chances passing other vehicles that he could not safely catch up to the van. Soon, however, a report of a white auto rollover on Ridge Road near New York Ranch road would prove to be his original suspect. The female had lost control on a curve and rolled several times into the yard of a home on Ridge Road. She was injured seriously enough to require a helicopter ride to an area hospital. Initial tests indicated that she had been drinking, but a blood analysis will be done to confirm her exact intoxication level. Shaken witnesses at the scene indicated that the woman was driving erratically and had several near-misses with other vehicles. According to one witness, “She seemed to be driving in a total reckless manner with no regard to other drivers on the roadway.”

The Amador County Combined Narcotic Enforcement Team, or ACCNET, has announced the latest in a series of illegal drug busts in Amador County. On Tuesday, August 12, ACCNET, assisted by the Amador County Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team, eradicated an illegal commercial marijuana cultivation site on private property located near Highway 88 and Buena Vista Road in Ione. ACCNET had received information about the marijuana cultivation site in July and conducted surveillance of the location. Surveillance revealed that the cultivation was being tended to by a Mexican national drug trafficking organization. The Amador County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team was utilized to secure the grow site from possibly armed growers. No suspects were found at the location, but a small camp with fresh food and ammunition was discovered. A total of 800 marijuana plants were eradicated from four separate garden sites. Later that same day, ACCNET Agents eradicated a separate marijuana cultivation site located on private property near Lower Jackson Valley Road and Highway 88. A total of 31 marijuana plants, some reaching as high as 9-feet tall, were confiscated from the location. A suspect believed to be involved in this grow has been identified and both investigations are ongoing.

The Board of Supervisors granted a request by the George Reed/Jackson Valley Quarry company to expand mining operations under emergency guidelines set forth by the Governor of California – the third such request in three years. The controversial and much debated issue had been held over from last week’s meeting, where it was continued due to a lack of information. Both this weeks and last weeks debates centered on questions as to why the request actually constitutes a state of emergency. If granted, the new guidelines would significantly expand the company’s mining operations, allow it to surpass some CEQA guidelines, and allow for weekend work. According to Quarry representatives, the “emergency status” is ongoing depending on what provisions are needed in the ongoing repairs and construction of the levies on the Sacramento Delta. Although terms like “ongoing” and other language in the governor’s guidelines are debatable, County Counsel Martha Shaver agreed that it leaves open the possibility for future expansion. The debate also became an opportunity for citizens to voice their concerns over alleged impacts the Quarry operations have on the quality of life in the area. Residents who live adjacent to the Quarry spoke of potholes in the roads, noise disturbances and flying debris. The Board of Supervisors noted these concerns and the Quarry operators agreed to take whatever steps needed to ensure peace with their neighbors and cooperation with the County. In the end, the Board approved a motion for one final extension of mining operations for an additional 900 thousand tons, with the provision that the company be closely regulated by the planning department. The Board also noted that this would be the final such motion and they expected the company to prepare a new site for future expanded operations. The motion was approved unanimously, with Supervisor Rich Escamilla absent for jury duty.

During the City of Ione’s latest General Plan 101 meeting, attendees expressed their concerns over traffic, schools, recreation programs and empty storefronts downtown. The Ione General Plan Update is a blueprint of key elements designed to enhance and preserve the future of Ione. Benefits resulting from a General Plan Update are many. Ione has served as a corridor for big trucks transporting items such as brick, clay, timbers and farming supplies. The streets which they travel are both narrow and hazardous for the size and loads carried by these vehicles. Through a general plan process, a solution to this problem with both near and long term alternatives will be identified. The General Plan is intended to analyze measures to protect the historical elements of the city while implementing goals to create a thriving future. This effort is expected to include economic development and historic preservation to create programs and policies to protect and enhance downtown. In addition, the Ione General Plan Update will address revitalization, housing, circulation and land use. Public meetings will continue to be held for people to learn about the General Plan Update and to communicate their ideas and views on how to shape Ione in the years to come. For more information, you may contact City Planner Christopher Jordan at 274-2412, extension 104, or City Manager Kim Kerr at extension 111.

Mark your calendar for Friday, October 24th and plan to support the 2nd Annual Firefighters fundraiser in Ione, sponsored by the Rancho Arroyo Seco. Once again, the community will be invited to participate in raising funds for this volunteer group that contributes so much to public safety. A bar-b-que in the Big Red Barn is planned. The goal this year is to raise 20,000 with Rancho Arroyo Seco matching up to 10,000 in donations. Last year, the community contributed 8,500 that was matched by Rancho Arroyo Seco for a total contribution to the department of 17,000 dollars. Funds were used to replace all of the wildland fire protection gear.

In Sutter Creek last week, the City Council and Planning Commission held a second public workshop to discuss the provisions of the Draft Environmental Impact Report for the proposed Gold Rush Ranch and Golf Resort. The City’s review process for the project’s Draft Environmental documents, which began with the release of the DEIR on the first of July, has been encountering difficulties in keeping officials updated on a constantly changing array of documents. The architects of the DEIR, Hauge Brueck Associates, have updated the project’s documents with city official’s comments, additions, and omissions after each of four lengthy city meetings held on Gold Rush in the past month and a half. Officials are then presented with a new set of altered documents for each meeting, and have found it hard to keep up. The meeting last Wednesday was no exception; council members and commissioners were provided with four extra packets of updated information after receiving their initial agenda packet, and the first part of the meeting was spent straightening out exactly what information belonged where, and making sure everyone was on the same page. “With all due respect, this is very confusing to us. You all live and breathe this project, but we have other stuff going on, and I…am having a hard time keeping track of the details,” said Planning Commissioner Robin Peters in reference to the affect that this (VIDEO) communication overflow is having on city administrators, as well as members of the public. In addition to difficulties with the paper tiger, project administrators also faced a somewhat larger presence of local activist groups at Wednesday’s workshop than at previous meetings on Gold Rush. Kathy Allen, chairwoman for Amador Citizens for Smart Growth, questioned the absence of several Specific Studies in the DEIR that were used to formulate the analysis of biological site conditions. Chris Wright, Executive Director of the Foothill Conservancy, also spoke at the meeting. Wright stated that according to his group’s calculations, the Gold Rush Development will actually diminish the waste water disposal capacity of the site. The primary initial reason for the city’s acquisition of the property was to provide space for the disposal of treated waste water. The next public workshop has been rescheduled for September 2nd, at 6pm. Members of the public are encouraged to attend.

Amador County’s Exhibit took both the Silver and Superintendent's awards at this year’s State Fair. The exhibit, titled, “Picture Yourself in Amador County,” was designed by local sign expert Kam Merzlak and built by Merzlak and Doug Wescott, a retired metal fabricator. The ten-foot rotating carousel features eight, 4-by-6-foot photos showcasing the diverse areas of Amador County, including Daffodil Hill, historic buildings from Sutter Creek and Jackson, Silver Lake, the Kennedy Mine, Black Chasm, and the Sutter Gold Mine. Local photographers contributed to the exhibit, including Eleanor Caputo, Craig Fouts, Carolyn Fox, Larry Angier, Larry Cenatto, Lisa Boulton, Kirkwood Ski Resort, and Merzlak himself. In addition to photographers, many local individuals and organizations made the entire project possible. The exhibit also featured two large flat screen TV’s, one displaying an aerial video from high above Amador County, and the other running a slideshow of additional pictures. Merzlak says the idea for the carousel came to him after learning that their booth would be “sandwiched in-between” several other larger county’s exhibits, such as Solano, Sacramento and San Diego counties. “It’s important to note the Superintendent’s award and that we were up against these larger counties who typically have upwards of $150,000 to spend, including whole teams of designers and engineers. We were all volunteers,” says Merzlak. “We started in June and Doug (Wescott) worked on this thing every day for two months. If it weren’t for Doug, this wouldn’t have happened,” states Merzlak. The exhibit was assembled in Wescott’s garage, and then disassembled for the drive to CalExpo in Sacramento. “We looked like the Beverly Hillbillies, driving down there!” joked Merzlak. The project was funded by a 10,000-dollar donation from the Board of Supervisors, who Merzlak says was “ecstatic” after seeing a scale model of the exhibit, and also through a 2500-dollar donation from Stan Lukowicz. You can view the exhibit at CalExpo through September 1st in County Exhibit Building A.

The California Farm Bureau Federation has submitted a statement to the House Agricultural Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture, urging lawmakers to develop a system that will clearly identify the targets of food recalls. This comes after the Federal Food and Drug Administration first pointed their finger at tomatoes and then hot peppers as possible culprits in this summer’s nationwide salmonella outbreak that has mystified FDA investigators for months. Although the ongoing investigation into the cause of the outbreak has recently centered on serrano and jalapeno peppers from Mexico, California tomato and pepper growers continue to feel the dire effects of the now defunct implications on their produce. Specifically, the California tomato market has been severely impacted, with some growers estimating that it will take up to five years before the market will be able to financially recover. Ed Beckman, president of the California Tomato Farmers cooperative based in Fresno, says that tomato sales on the West Coast were down nearly 40 percent in June. According to Beckman, although the tomato market is showing signs of recovery in the food service sector, the demand for retail produce is still weak. Beckman testified last month in one of two congressional hearings that looked at the traceability of produce, as well as the damages to the tomato sector caused by the FDA’s actions. Beckman questioned the FDA’s approach to the outbreak, but could not suggest a revised procedure “until the FDA opens up and tells us what happened.” Recommendations from the Farm Bureau included more funding and staffing to investigate food borne illnesses, as well as better reporting and communication between the FDA and food handlers. In addition, the Farm Bureau is calling for revised FDA procedures that will pinpoint the culprit of a food-borne illness before a consumer alert is made. The Bureau would also like to see risk-management tools put in place that will compensate producers for losses attained through no fault of their own.

The El Dorado Irrigation District has obtained approval from the State Water Resources Control Board to transfer up to 4,000 acre-feet of water currently being drawn down from Caples Lake reservoir—under emergency conditions—to Jenkinson Lake, the District’s largest water storage facility. “We started the transfer through Hazel Creek Tunnel to Jenkinson Lake this morning,” stated EID General Counsel Tom Cumpston. “Although we hope to get as close to the 4,000 acre-foot maximum limit as possible, we will probably run short due to the drawdown that has already taken place.” In an effort to ensure that the drawdown water is not wasted, some of the water is being diverted through the EID powerhouse to generate state-certified “clean” hydroelectric power for California. Under authority granted by state law, the District’s Board declared an emergency repair situation on July 1 of this year, shortly after it was determined that badly deteriorated slide gates and other equipment was in need of replacement as soon as possible. The District began the drawdown of water in Caples Lake reservoir in mid-July in order to expedite the emergency repairs. In related news, Trout Unlimited and the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, or CSPA, are coordinating volunteers for a Department of Fish and Game-coordinated fish rescue at Caples Lake from Tuesday, August 26 through Friday, August 29. You must sign up by midnight Tuesday, August 19. "If you’ve never worked, 'in the trenches’…this is an opportunity of a lifetime. You may even get to hold a 30 pound brown trout in your hands," said one CSPA Spokesman. To apply as a volunteer, please go to the website on your screen.