By Nadin Abbott

May 12, 2013 (El Cajon)—California Governor Edmund G. Brown declared the past week “Wildfire Awareness Week.”  On Thursday,  the top brass fromr Cal-Fire and San Diego Sheriff’s Department addressed the media. ECM also spoke with Lakeside Division Chief R. Laff.

All officials are urging San Diego residents who live in the urban-rural interface, as well as rural areas to be ready for a severe fire season that’s started early. So far Cal Fire has responded to more than 1,100 wildfires already, which is 500 more than normal for this time of year. According to Cal Fire Chief Cal Fire Chief Dale Hutchinson, Southern Region Chief 40,000 acres burned last week.

Officials are urging residents to get ready and maintain 100-feet of defensible space. This is not optional; it is the law, as Chief Hutchinson told us, for those in the urban-wildland interface. Also clean your gutters, and other places where dry vegetation might accumulate. If you do any remodeling, look into the latest fire resistant materials. In addition, remove all tree branches that are within six feet of your home.

May 8, 2013 (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/REGIONAL

• Dry conditions highlight the value of water as summer nears  (San Diego County Water Authority)
• Bags, tape, broomstick used to fix  leak at San Onofre  (10 News)
• Pauma Casino workers aim to unionize (Kumeyaay.com)
• New inquiry at San Onofre focuses on nuclear commission (U-T San Diego)
• Annual crime statistics for the region released
• Utility-rate increase: Sempra seeks more(U-T San Diego)
• $42M of Modernizing Upgrades Coming to La Mesa, Spring Valley High Schools (La Mesa Patch)
• Alessio Calls PBID Process ‘Absurd’; Council Mandates Specific Data (La Mesa Patch)
• Steele Canyon students big winners at jewelry competition (U-T San Diego)

STATE

• Calif agency says PG&E should pay $2.25B for blast (Sacramento Bee)
• Senate Public Safety Committee Approves Bill Regulating Drones in California (Scoop San Diego)
• California water supply to be drawn from storage to meet demand  (KPBS)
• California high court affirms local right to ban medical pot shops (Reuters)
• On California Prisons, It's The Governor Vs. The Courts
• JPMorgan Chase accused of rigging energy markets (CS Monitor)

For excerpts and links to full stories, scroll down.

May 2, 2013 (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/REGIONAL

• Two Former Helix Stars Selected in 2013 NFL Draft (La Mesa Patch)
• County Registrar Suggests Alternatives To Costly Special Elections (KPBS)
• East County residents complain about state fire fees; Assemblyman Jones calls fees illegal  (10 News)
• EDCO asks for rate increase (La Mesa Today)
• San Diego faces a major decision on wastewater treatment and water recycling (Groksurf)
• Water Authority launches water calculator for homeowners     (San Diego County Water Authority)
• San Diego Gas & Electric rates are nation's highest  (San Diego Reader)
• Electricity, gas rate increase considered (U-T San Diego)
• La Mesa Boy Accused of Posing As Girl on Facebook, Obtaining Nude Pics (La Mesa Patch)

STATE

• Bills aim to protect privacy as drone age dawns  (Sac Bee)
• UC admission offers up again for nonresidents (Sacramento Bee)
• First confirmed Japanese tsunami debris in Calif. (Sacramento Bee)
• Capitol Alert: Jerry Brown promises opponents 'battle of their lives' on education overhaul  (Sacramento Bee)
• Calif. bill would let non-citizens serve on juries (U-T San Diego)
• Valley fever spurs call to close 2 Calif. prisons (Sacramento Bee)

Scroll down for excerpts and links to full stories.

April 17, 2013 (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:

REGIONAL

• LMPD Was Tony Gwynn of the County in 2012 for Solving Violent Crimes (La Mesa Patch)
• Five districts have grad rate issues (U-T San Diego)
• San Diego farmers bracing for a tough year  (KPBS) 
• Where is Councilman Ryan? Council asked to extend absence through May (Santee Patch)
• Mount Miguel Has Highest Dropout Rate Locally, New Data Reveals (La Mesa Patch)
• Evacuations During Nuclear Emergency May Cause Gridlock, Report Reveals (KPBS)
• Regulators see 'no hazard' at San Onofre (U-T San Diego)
• Financial regulator responds to San Onofre concerns (U-T San Diego)
• Woman accused of kidnapping baby from Spring Valley pleads not guilty (La Mesa Patch)

STATE

• Fed court rules electricity rebates due in Calif. (AP)
• Calif. court: Motorist can't use hand-held map (Sacramento Bee)
• Judge rules Obama administration overlooked fracking risks in California mineral leases (Reuters)
• Contempt threat against Brown a rare move (Sacramento Bee)

Click "read more" and scroll down to read excerpts and links to full stories.

April 10, 2013 (San Diego's East County) -- East County Roundup brings you top news headlines of interest to East County and our region, published by other media. This week's top Roundup headlines include:

LOCAL/REGIONAL

• Flu Deaths in San Diego area hits all-time high (Lemon Grove Patch)
• Gunfight between security guard and motorist in Santee (Santee Patch)
• U-T San Diego political ad rates under scrutiny (10 News)
• Healtchare industry charging an arm and a leg (San Diego Free Press)
• 3 retired judges to decide who gets $1 million Dorner reward (Los Angeles Times)
• Anti-drone protests hit CEO's home (U-T San Diego)

STATE

• Southern California Air regulators adopt fracking rules (Los Angeles Times)
• Assembly panel approves teacher misconduct bill (Los Angeles Times)
• Abel Maldonado moves closer to 2014 run against Jerry Brown for Governor (Sacramento Bee)
• California prisons still too crowded, judge rules (Reuters)

Scroll down to view excerpts and links to full stories. 

March 28, 2013 (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/REGIONAL

• History takes a beating with sale of Warner Springs Ranch (U-T San Diego)
• SD seeks controversial `drone zone’ (U-T San Diego)
• A Decade After War's Start, Iraqi Refugees Are Transforming (El Cajon)  A California Town (KPBS)
• Utilities seek $769M from customers for faulty nuclear equipment (U-T San Diego)
• RUSD school board supports possible temporary County loan (Ramona Patch)
• Boss at ailing Calif. nuke plant made $2M in 2012 (Sacramento Bee)
• Put neighborhood solar power to good use (U-T San Diego)
• Northrop Grumman lands $433.5 million contract (KPBS)
• San Diego County Schools Get Meningitis Warning (KPBS)
• Coach’s youngest daughters released from hospital (UT San Diego)
• Craigslist job scam lures people to Mexico (UT San Diego)
• Water officials got raises amid rate hikes  ( U-T San Diego)

STATE

• Judge's Ruling On Officials' Private Emails, Texts Could Be Far-Reaching (KPBS)
• Controversial rural fire fee bills will be delayed (Sacramento Bee)
• Water price, availability in question  ( U-T San Diego)
• Former city officials in Bell, California convicted in corruption trial (Reuters)

Scroll down for excerpts and full stories.

By Nadin Abbott, photos Tom Abbott

March 12, 2013 (San Diego)—Today, Supervisor Dianne Jacob urged citizens in San Diego County to contact the Federal Aviation Adminstration (FAA) at Closurecomments@FAA.GOV  and oppose closure of the Ramona Airport’s air traffic control tower, a vital component in fighting wildfires and protecting safety of firefighting crews. Tomorrow at 1 p.m. Pacific Standard Time is the deadline for comments.

 The Board learned that the Federal Aviation Administration has targeted the Ramona Air Traffic Control Tower for closure as as early as April 7. This means, according to Cal Fire Battalion Chief Ray Cheney, that the airport would revert back to an “uncontrolled airport, where pilots have to avoid each other and announce their intentions.”  

This was the way it was back on June 21, 1995 when there was a midair collision between a United States Forest Service Beechcraft and an NTSB air tanker, leading to the deaths of the air tanker crew. An open space, instead of a controlled space, will increase the risk of mid-air collisions, since a “controlled airport controls the air traffic sequencing.”

“There is nothing altruistic about this.” – Don Renard, Boulevard resident, on planned destruction of his rural community to create an energy corridor

“I don’t know of any community facing this many energy projects.” – Donna Tisdale, Chair, Boulevard Planning Group

By Miriam Raftery

January 11, 2013 (Boulevard)--Retired tugboat captain Don Renard worked hard all his life before purchasing a little piece of heaven in San Diego's rural East County.  He bought  a historic house, the former Ruby Store, once a stage coach stop in Boulevard.  He and his family have been working to restore it—in between savoring quiet times spent watching the hawks, owls and song birds among the old oak groves around their home. 

But there’s a squall of epic proportions on the horizon.  Soon, the Renard family’s home is slated to be surrounded by an industrial solar “farm”—on all four sides.  In every direction, 360 degrees, massive panels 30 feet high or so will track the sun.  Some will be just 300 feet from his doorstep.

By Miriam Raftery

January 1, 2013 (San Diego’s East County)- Last week we posted our most-read stories of the year—those that drew the most readers, and newsmakers of the year.   Now we present the year’s top stories/issues of most significance to our region--issues with major impact, as well as milestones for our communitie, in the view of our editorial staff. Some are individual articles, others ran a series.

In case you missed these, be sure to scroll down and click the "read more" button to see the stories we think everyone should read--including some hot topics that will continue to be debated in 2013 as major decisions impacting East County remain on the horizon.

By Miriam Raftery

December 27, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – The power of social media has given rise to a new phenomenon seen across our region and around the world:  residents are taking to the streets, sending tweets, and discovering the power of the people.  They’re organizing online, launching petitions, posting viral videos on Youtube, promoting causes on Facebook.  A year aqo, in 2011, the world witnessed the power of citizen activism when the Egyptian government was overthrown.  Here at home, the rise in citizen activism in the past year has led to some remarkable achievements and some noteworthy upsets.

Here are some of the results of citizen activism in our region over the past year.

Stealth project in Cleveland National Forest could cost taxpayers $1 billion; public has just 30 days to comment

By Cindy Buxton, Chair of the Forest Committee, Sierra Club San Diego Chapter

October 23, 2012 (San Diego’s East County)--Late last week, SDG&E filed a permit request with the California  Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and  sent an announcement to several local residents of a replacement project for five 69 kV lines which currently circle the county at the end of last week and filed the project with the CPUC.  http://www.sdge.com/regulatory-filing/3792/application-sdge-permit-construct-cleveland-national-forest-power-line

These lines traverse miles of Cleveland National Forest. Unlike the switching out of wood to steel poles that we have heard about for some time, oddly, they did not tell the Cleveland National Forest about their plans.

PLEASE review the link above and send comments to the CPUC. We have a scant 30 days to turn this around and expose SDG&E for not only gaffing off environmental quality, but probably far more important this time they are side stepping basic civil rights. Tell the CPUC they must respect the US Forest Service planning!

By Nadin Abbott

September 23, 2012 (Campo)-- On arrival at the Golden Acorn Casino, a plume of smoke rose in the distance.The wildfire, named Shockey Fire by CAL-Fire, was making swift progress east towards Jacumba. Some residents forced to evacuate were looking on, concern etched on their faces, as the thick billows rose into the sky.

Did a violent film trailer trigger shootings by San Diego man? Preview depicted an attack on a movie theater 

By Miriam Raftery

July 20, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – Friends and neighbors reacted with shock at news that former San Diegan  James “Jimmy” Eagan Holmes, 24, is under arrest for the mass shooting earlyl this morning of 71 people in a Colorado movie theater. 

A night of fantasy turned deadly when Holmes allegedly burst into an Aurora, Colorado movie theater where a midnight screening of “The Dark Knight Rises,” a Batman movie was playing.

By Nadin Abbott and Miriam Raftery

June 27, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – Multiple fires in Mexico are threatening homes and a penitentiary tonight, ECM has learned.  Late this afternoon, Cal Fire informed ECM that the agency is monitoring the fire in Mexico, which at that time was eight miles from the border.

Alfredo Escobedo, state director of Civil Defense, told ECM that the fires are burning on three fronts. The first is in Loma Toba, near the state jail, about 20 km (12 miles) east of Tecate, a border town. The blaze, which has consumed 100 hectares, has burned to within 10 yards of the jail wall.

May 20, 2012 (San Diego) -- The League of Women Voters, San Diego this week presented East County Magazine with its Media Award 2012.  The honor was bestowed in recognition of ECM's coverage of developer's efforts to abolish community planning efforts.