Bringing Backup Well Online May Be First Step in Solving the Problem

By Sharon Penny

March 24, 2014 (Descanso)-- Like all backcountry communities, the town of Descanso depends on groundwater for its water needs. A high level of uranium in the town’s main well has become a concern for many residents.  

For the last three quarters of a year, the water district’s Well No. 5 has exceeded what is considered a safe level of uranium, which the California Code of Regulations lists as 20 pCi/L. Fourth quarter readings are planned for April.

By Miriam Raftery

March 27, 2014 (San Diego)—After the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Stations (SONGS) were shut down in 2012 due to faulty steam generators, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) and Southern California Edison (SCE) continued to charge ratepayers for the costs associated with replacing those generators.  Edison later announced permanent decommissioning of the nuclear facility in June 2013 due to serious safety problems.

Ratepayers will be receiving refunds from SDG&E and Edison for those charges, if a joint settlement agreement announced today is approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).  The settlement was reached SCE, the CPUC Office of Ratepayer Advocates, and The Utility Reform Network (TURN).

March 27, 2014 (Spring Valley)--A 73-year-old missing person at-risk from Spring Valley is back safe with her family. World Luz Loper was found in the Clairemont area of San Diego this morning.  

Loper walked away from her home in the 9500 block of Upland Street in Spring Valley last night. Sheriff's Search and Rescue (SAR) was activated to find Loper, who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. An off-duty member of SAR, who was not involved in the search, saw Loper's photo in the news this morning and remembered seeing Loper last night in the Clairemont area. Sheriff's SAR called San Diego Police and requested for officers to check the area. Loper was found at the intersection of Balboa Avenue and Genesee Avenue . She has been reunited with her family and will be taken to a hospital for a checkup.

The Sheriff’s Department maintains a free and confidential Take Me Home database of people who may not be able to speak to first responders if they get lost or wander away. The registry is for people with physical or mental challenges, disabilities or medical conditions (i.e. autism, Alzheimer's, Down Syndrome, etc.). This regional database is accessible only to law enforcement agencies.

By Nadin Abbott

Photos by Tom Abbott

March 26, 2013 (San Diego) A talk held yesterday at San Diego State, hosted by SDSU’s Center for Science and Media (a collaboration of the School of Journalism and Media Studies, College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts and the College of Sciences) raised important questions on how to use drones in media gathering--also demonstrating how effective drone coverage could be, as a drone whirred overhead transmitting images.

Professor Matt Waite from the College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, founder of the Drone Journalism Lab, brought a small drone to show it to the public. (For the record, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has shut his Lab down for the moment, as well as drone usage by the Washington Nationals and a beer company in Minnesota. The proposed use of Drones by Amazon.com to deliver goods is also not permitted under present rules.)

By Miriam Raftery

March 24, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) -- The $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in February 2009.

By Miriam Raftery

March 21, 2014 (Rancho San Diego) – Julian Fraire, 16, was on his way to school at Steele Canyon High School Thursday morning from his home on Mt. Helix in unincorporated El Cajon.  He never made it to class.  The minivan he was driving crossed the center line and collided with an oncoming pickup truck on Steele Canyon Road.  The teen died at the scene.

It’s far from the first tragic accident to impact the school and the families who attend Steele Canyon.  Another 16-year-old, Zachary Jannenberg was killed in March 2007 when he lost control of the Ford Explorer he was drivin while on his way to school.

By Miriam Raftery

March 21, 2014 (Santee) - A 911 call tape from August 29, 2009 reveals the terror experienced by California Highway Patrol Officer Mark Saylor and his family when the accelerator jammed in the Lexus vehicle Saylor was driving that night on State Route 125 in Santee.M

By Lori Abbott, California News Service

March 19, 2014 (Sacramento). - Many newer vehicles come with fancy GPS and on-board computers that collect data about where a person drives, how fast, and any accidents they may have had. Legislation introduced at the state Capitol on Tuesday would give vehicle owners more access to that data, which is currently controlled mostly by automakers.

Update March 20:  Missing Persons of America has advised ECM that Joseph Swett has been found and is safe.

March 17, 2014 (Santee) – San Diego Sheriff’s Department and the family of 20 year-old Joseph Swett and the San Diego Sheriff's Department requests public help in finding the missing man, who has been diagnosed with autism.  He was last seen wearing a bright orange shirt, red shorts and black shoes.  He is white, has short brown hair, brown eyes, and was unshaven.  He stands five feet 10 inches tall and weighs 150 pounds.

Swett came to Santee with his mother and brother from Los Angeles to attend a Christian college for two weeks. Shortly after 3:00 p.m. today, his mother and brother left the motel room in the 10700 block of Woodside Avenue in Santee to get lunch.  Swett remained in the motel room to take a nap. When his mother and brother returned,  Swett was gone.

March 17, 2014 (San Diego's East County) - General Motors has announced recalls of numerous vehicles due to serious safety issues including brake, ignition, and most recently, airbag problems.

County News Service

March 15, 2014 (San Diego)--Since Jan. 1, DAS has received 78 calls from the community. Last year, only 24 calls came in during that time frame.

“Our very mild winter and several heat spells are drawing the rattlesnakes out of their dens a little earlier this year,” said DAS Director Dawn Danielson.

By Miriam Raftery

March 16, 2014 (California)--A new report reveals that the risk of earthquakes in California is being dramatically increased by oil companies injecting billions of gallons of wastewater from fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, into disposal wells near active faults near major cities.  “Millions of Californians live in areas at risk for induced earthquakes,” the report concludes.

The report, titled “On Shaky Ground,” was prepared by Earthworks, the Center for Biological Diversity, and Clean Water Action.   It found that 54% of our state’s 1,553 injection wells are within 10 miles of a recently active fault, 23% are within five miles and 6% are within just one mile. 

Numerous earthquakes across the country have been linked to fracking by scientists, including temblors as high as 5.7 on the Richter scale, the report details. Fracking quakes are common in areas such as Oklahoma and Texas, producing quakes higher than ever seen in some places.

By Miriam Raftery

March 15, 2014 (El Cajon) – By a 4-1 vote, El Cajon’s City Council voted to add electronic cigarettes to the city’s tobacco ordinance.  The measure will also regulate hookahs.  Only Mayor Bill Wells voted against the measure, calling it “government overreach.”

The proposed regulations will next go before the city’s planning commission, after which the Council will hold a public hearing.

March 13, 2014 (Alpine) – A young woman driving a Jeep Cherokee at a high rate of speed lost control when she braked and swerved to avoid a slow-moving vehicle on I-8 west of Tavern Road in Alpine last night at 5:20 p.m., California Highway Patrol reports.  The Jeep plunged down an embankment, trapping her inside. She died at the scene.

Opponents say change was made without public input

By Miriam Raftery

March 13, 2014 (San Francisco)--Today, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) voted unanimously on its plan to replace power from the shut-down San Onofre Nuclear Generating System. The plan will require Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric to incorporate clean energy to replace the San Onofre system. But environmentalistssay that last minute changes in the final decision raise the odds that utilities will build gas plants instead of local, renewable energy sources.

According to the California Air Resources Board, greenhouse gas emissions rose in 2012 for the first time since 2008 because of increased reliance on gas plants after San Onofre closed.