The Kelseyville name-change debate may not be over. You’ll remember that voters county-wide nixed the idea in a non-binding referendum last fall. Now, Lake County News reports there is a call for the Board of Supervisors to revive the discussion. Former Supervisor Rob Brown wants the board to allow new public comment on the change. Brown says a newly elected board after the November election might have another opinion. No comment yet from the Board about what it will do next. Supporters want to change the name to Knocti and ditch a name they say is tied to a man responsible for the mistreatment of the native population in the 1840s.
The US House has passed a bill that sponsors say cuts red tape and deters lawsuits against forest management projects. The Fix Our Forests Act now goes to the Senate, where a similar bill died last fall. Environmental groups don’t like it. They say the name is misleading and that the bill would pave the way for more major logging projects while doing nothing to prevent wildfires.
Meanwhile, Congressman Jared Huffman is co-sponsoring a bill called the Community Protection and Wildfire Resilience Act. He says it would help communities defend themselves against the threat. Wildfires have become somewhat of a political football as House Speaker Mike Johnson continues to blast California Democrats for what he calls –mismanagement–of forests before the big fires in LA.
Far from the political bickering in DC, firefighters in Southern California continue to battle the Hughes fire near Castaic, which has scorched more than 10,000 acres. The forecast is finally encouraging, with lighter winds and showers that could help put out the fires expected by the weekend.
If you recently bought a space heater from Amazon, heads up about a recall. The manufacturer, Vornado, says several thousand of its V2 Whole House heaters sold in California and other states are being pulled because their power cords could cause a shock. They were sold ONLY on Amazon, but you’ll need to contact the manufacturer for a refund or replacement. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has the information.
