March 7, 2014 (San Diego's East County) - The San Diego County Sheriff's Department is asking for the public's help in finding 14-year-old Venicia Ortiz from Alpine.  Venicia was last seen on Wed. February 26. She is known to hang out along Imperial Avenue and 24th Street in the Grant Hill area of San Diego as well as National City and Chula Vista. She may be in the company of 28-year-old Edgar Morales.

By Miriam Raftery

March 6, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) – Are wind turbines safe for wildlife, livestock and humans living nearby?  A new study published in the Journal of Veterinary Sciences has found that geese living near wind turbines suffered loss of appetite, weight loss, and measurable physical changes.

Judge announces tentative ruling – before hearing arguments

By Sharon Penny

March 6, 2014 (San Diego)--On March 3, U.S. District Court Judge Janis L. Sammartino heard testimony from legal representatives for both sides in a lawsuit brought by the Protect Our Communities Foundation (POC – www.protectourcommunities.org) against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) over controversial approvals for Iberdrola's controversial Tule Wind project planned in Boulevard’s McCain Valley Recreation and Conservation Area in East County.

The POC originally filed a Motion for Summary Judgment in August 2013. This week marked the first hearing under the U.S. District Court. According to Plaintiff Donna Tisdale, POC’s attorney Stephan C. Volker had prepared for a one hour argument and was surprised by the Judge’s announcement that she had a tentative ruling in hand. The judge read that ruling aloud, took a 15 minute break for attorneys to prepare a response.  Each side was then allowed a half hour to argue their points and one minute for rebuttal.

March 6, 2014 (Crest)-- Kurt Koontz, author of A Million Steps, will be speaking and signing books at the Crest Library on Tuesday March 11^th at 6pm.

A Million Steps recounts Koontz's journey across the 500-mile El Camino de Santiago, a Spanish pilgrimage route dating to medieval times. Those million steps inspired Koontz to write about his life-changing adventure when he arrived home.

After his remarks, Koontz will answer questions from the audience. Books will be available for purchase.

By Ariele Johannson

March 6, 2014 (Crest)--Mimi Kirk has written her second book on raw food cuisine entitled Live Raw Around the World, and it abounds with multicultural recipes from France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Greece, India and Thailand. Mimi Kirk, a local author from Ramona, presents techniques and information on how to create surprisingly delicious raw food recipes at home. Her presentation included a live demonstration, creating almond milk in her food processor and using a spiral slicer to make “pasta” out of vegetables. After her demonstration, Mimi served the small gathering a sampling of stuffed mushrooms; vegetable pasta with tomatoes, olives, and cashews that resemble parmesan cheese for the topping; and small delectable cookies adorned with small carob chocolate chips.

Urgent Call—Get the Call When it Counts

March 4, 2014 (LOS ANGELES) - The founder and creator of Urgent Call™ missed the most important call of his life when his father had a heart attack. He was sleeping and his phone was on silent. This crisis inspired the creation of Urgent Call™, a service created to make sure you are available to your loved ones when they need you most. UrgentCall™ is a mobile app and service designed to notify call recipients of an emergency situation, regardless of their phone’s setting. The easy-to-use mobile app allows users to receive emergency calls from anywhere in the world, regardless of a “do not disturb” or “silent” setting, from any type of phone: mobile, landline, and VOIP telephones.

March 5, 2014 (San Diego’s East County)-- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

ENERGY ISSUES

• IRS: Renewables Companies May Be Double-Dipping Federal Subsidies
• Massive desert solar plant opens, already a threatened species (Los Angeles Times)
• Why U.S. new installed wind capacity fell 99% (Eco Report)
• Proof wind turbines take thousands off your home (Daily Mail)
• Wind farm plans in tatters after subsidy rethink (UK Telegraph)
• Montana judge won’t dismiss SDG&E wind farm case (Reader – Don Bauder)
• A case against systemic vandalism and theft in rural Ontario: Why wind turbines are not the answer  (National Wind Watch)

HEALTH

• Blood Test Provides More Accurate Prenatal Testing For Down Syndrome (NPR)
• 30,000-year-old virus comes to life (BBC)
• Study: Oral Hygiene Can Save Patients' Lives (KPBS)
• Marijuana May Hurt The Developing Teen Brain (NPR)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

March 5, 2014 (San Diego's East County)--East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL

• Storm far from a drought buster  (U-T San Diego)
• DUI victim wanted to make a difference (NBC)
• Floods force 3 families out of homes in San Carlos (NBC TV)
• Charter cities in SD County sue over prevailing wage law (UT San Diego)
• San Diego Open Government Ballot Measure Tabled By City Council (KPBS)
• Plan For San Diego Police To Wear Uniform Cameras Receives Support (KPBS)
• City’s plan to delete emails should be scrapped (UT San Diego)
• San Diego County wins round in battle with water district  (LA Times) 
• Document says Navy knew USS Reagan was dangerously contaminated by Fukushima (Common Dreams)
• Special Report: 'Teflon' Cop Avoided Serious Investigation for Years (Voice of San Diego)

STATE

• Jerry Brown signs drought relief package  (Sacramento Bee)
• California drought: Why state's big cities aren't in crisis mode (CS Monitor)
• Toni Atkins, the Assembly’s Speaker to be (Los Angeles Times)
  
   

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

March 6, 2014 (La Mesa) - - The public is invited to join in the 2014 “Spring Into Health Living” on Wednesday, /March 19 from 9 a.m. to 12 noon.  This is a health and wellness event featuring free health screenings, lectures and information for older adults provided by community service providers in the East County.

March 5, 2004 (Lemon Grove)--The painters of the Lemon Grove History Mural, Kathleen Strzelecki and Janne LaValle, will receive the esteemed Ben Dixon Award, the highest award bestowed annually by the Congress of History of San Diego & Imperial Counties, on March 8 between 11 a.m. and noon in the Marina Village Conference Center, 1936 Quivira Way, San Diego.  All are welcome to attend the annual two-day conference, Mar. 7 - 8 (www.congressofhistory.org).

The award recognizes those who have made a long term contribution to enriching and enhancing the cultural and historical resources of our region.  Between 2006 - 2013 Strzelecki and LaValle painted the five-panel history mural, an epic 65 feet wide by 18 feet tall, at 3308 Main Street in the heart of Lemon Grove.  The mural adorns a wall of the historic 1912 original general store, better known since 1980 as the famous Grove Pastry Shop.

March 3, 2014 (Pala) – Today, the Pala Band of Mission Indians hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony to announce the grand opening of the new Deli & More at the Pala Mini-Mart, located at 11152 Hwy 76 in Pala.

E - The Environmental Magazine

Dear EarthTalk: Should those of us who care about our health and the planet be concerned about the new trend in genetic engineering called synthetic biology?                          -- Chrissie Wilkins, Bern, NC

“Synthetic biology” (or “synbio”) refers to the design and fabrication of novel biological parts, devices and systems that do not otherwise occur in nature. Many see it as an extreme version of genetic engineering (GE). But unlike GE, whereby genetic information with certain desirable traits is inserted from one organism into another, synbio uses computers and chemicals to create entirely new organisms.

Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna

March 3, 2014 (San Diego's East County) - “Now is the time to change your smoke detector battery reminds Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna.  Day light savings is the traditional time to do this.  A working smoke alarm can help you and your family escape a deadly home fire.  A working smoke alarm never takes time off as it continuously scans the air for smoke, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  It never sleeps.”

March 1, 2014 (San Diego) -- ARS San Diego has provided tips to make your home healthier this winter.  Seasonal allergies can affect people at all times of year. By keeping your HVAC unit running properly and efficiently, you can improve the quality of the air you breather indoors and help fight against allergy causing bacteria in the home. Below are some key areas to focus on: