By Ashley Welch, CBS News

These days, it seems like it’s the American way to be constantly in a rush — and eating on the way. Whether you’re scarfing down breakfast on the commute to work or grabbing a bite while you dash through the mall, it’s an all-too-familiar pattern.

Now, new research suggests that this habit of eating on the go could be doing some major damage to your waistline.

In a small study, published Thursday in the Journal of Health Psychology, researchers from the University of Surrey in the U.K. looked at 60 women, some of whom were dieting and some of whom weren’t. They were each given a cereal bar to eat under three different conditions: One group watched a five-minute clip of the television show “Friends” while eating; the second group ate while walking around the hall; and the final group ate while sitting and talking with a friend.

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The upper part of the Richardson Lake Road in the Eldorado National Forest is open for motorized vehicle use, completing the final phase of corrective work on this route.

Richardson Lake Road is on the far northeastern end of the forest, and must be accessed through roads leading from the Lake Tahoe area. This 2.65 mile road is used to access Richardson Lake for camping and fishing, and travel to the top of Sourdough Hill to enjoy the scenic vistas, including a good view toward the Rubicon Trail. The route also provides access to the Pacific Crest Trail. A four-wheel drive vehicle must be used to reach this road.

The first phase of work allowed the Richardson Lake Road to be reopened up to the Pacific Crest Trail beginning in July 2014. Recently, improvements to the upper part of the road were completed in which a rolling dip was installed; an existing sediment basin was emptied and enlarged; and rock was placed over areas of bare ground.

The Richardson Lake Trail was identified as one of 18 routes in the Eldorado National Forest travel system which needed corrections to comply with the environmental protection guidelines in the Sierra Nevada Plan. These routes were closed in 2012 to complete further analysis and make corrections to ensure the hydrologic connectivity of meadows would not be significantly impacted by motorized vehicle use.

The 19th annual Lake Tahoe Environmental Summit at Round Hill Pines brings out a cadre of elected officials to talk about how to protect the basin.

Sens. Dean Heller and Dianne Feinstein show bipartisan and bistate support for the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act. Photos/Kathryn Reed

By Kathryn Reed

ROUND HILL – Lake Tahoe’s congressional delegation wants the feds to spend more money in the basin. But they are divided on how much and where to spend it.

Money, forest health, lake clarity and transportation were the key subjects during the 19th annual Lake Tahoe Environmental Summit at Round Hill Pines on Aug. 24.

Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., is seeking $450 million in his Lake Tahoe Restoration Act reauthorization bill, while Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Elk Grove, is asking for $60 million in his bill.

Both include money for forest thinning and aquatic invasive species. The more expensive one will include transportation funds, cash for oversight and spending on other Tahoe environmental programs.

Since the inaugural summit in 1997, $1.8 billion in public and private money has been spent on environmental improvement projects in the basin. The initial push was on lake clarity. In the intervening years what does and could affect the lake’s clarity has changed and grown.

Rep. Tom McClintock, who represents the California side of the basin in the House, has introduced a scaled down bill to help Tahoe.

The other component that has been added is economic. With a healthy forest and a water body that allows people to see more than 70 feet down, it attracts tourists. Without these components, in some ways the basin becomes just another tree filled area with a potentially brown lake.

Gov. Jerry Brown pointed out that with California and Nevada’s populations expected to grow substantially in the coming years that it is impossible to stick with the status quo when it comes to solving problems.

“We are going to have to engineer at a higher level,” Brown told the more than 300 people in attendance. “We have to fight fires smarter and take care of the forests. We need to de-carbonize.”

McClintock warned, “The greatest environmental threat to Tahoe is a forest fire. The Rim Fire (two years ago near Yosemite) was 80 times larger than Angora.”

He believes since Congress has not approved the larger LT Restoration Act since 2009 that it is time to try a smaller formula and get the critical needs addressed. There are agencies in the basin that concur with this approach.

·      Casey’s in Round Hill is giving 10 percent of its proceeds to Zephyr Cove Tennis Club Foundation on Sept. 3. The nonprofit is having a U.S. Open party at the restaurant in the Safeway center starting at 5pm.

·      Camp Richardson Resort’s Oktoberfest is Oct. 3-4.

·      Fall Fish Fest at the Taylor Creek Visitor Center on the South Shore is Oct. 3-4.

·      Lake Tahoe Marathon is Oct. 9-11. It includes multiple options: 5K, 10K, half marathon, 18-miler, 144-miler, and a four-day 288-mile run. There are also swim and kayak competitions along with races for kids. Details and registration are online.

·       Northstar Open Tennis Tournament is Sept. 11-13. For more info, go online.

The Meyers Area Plan is one of the key issues that will be discussed Aug. 31 when the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors has its annual Tahoe meeting.

The meeting agenda has not been released. It must be posted 72 hours before the 2pm meeting. The agenda will be online.

The meeting will be at Lake Tahoe Airport.

It is anticipated the area plan will be heard about 3pm. Documents about it are available now online. The plan has a website.

By Kathryn Reed

Jeremy Meyers, El Dorado County superintendent of schools, was booked at the El Dorado County jail in Placerville on Aug. 22 on driving under the influence charges stemming from an incident in June. This was a condition of having pleaded no contest to the charges, which is the same as a guilty plea when it comes to sentencing.

He admitted that on June 9 he was driving under the influence with a blood alcohol level of more than 0.08 percent.

Jeremy Meyers

Although the booking statement from the weekend says there were drug charges, the criminal complaint from the district attorney does not. The latter is what ultimately matters and is what the court used for the sentencing guidelines.

The court process has been completed. All that remains is for Meyers to go through a first time DUI offenders’ course, which can take up to 18 weeks. He will also be on probation for four years.

“He was sentenced to five days in jail. That was probably because of the blood alcohol. He was treated no different than anyone else,” David Stevenson with the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office told Lake Tahoe News.

He was, however, allowed on the night of the infraction to be released into the custody of his wife and friend instead of being taken to jail. The California Highway Patrol cited him that night when they pulled him over on Highway 49.

“I sincerely apologize for this personal mistake. I have already accepted responsibility and am personally dealing with my error in judgment. Most importantly, I want everyone to know that this will not interfere with the great work of EDCOE in continuing to provide quality education for all of the children and families in our county,” Meyers, 44, said in a prepared statement issued by his attorney.

Paul Zappettini, Meyers’ attorney, told Lake Tahoe News alternative sentencing allowed Meyers not to have to spend a night in jail.

“The El Dorado County Office of Education is aware that county Superintendent Jeremy Meyers was cited for driving under the influence. He is dealing with this matter on a personal basis. EDCOE will continue to focus on delivering quality service and support to the community,” Dina Gentry, spokeswoman for the office of ed, told Lake Tahoe News.

Meyers was first appointed by the school board to the position effective July 1, 2013. He was taking over for Vicki Barber who retired. At the time Meyers was the deputy superintendent. In June 2014 he ran unopposed for a four-year term.

The El Dorado County Health and Human Services Agency, Public Health Division is hosting community meetings, focus groups and an online survey to solicit public input for its community health assessment.

Public health staff will share information about the overall health of the community.

Community meetings are:

• Sept. 14, 3-4pm at the El Dorado County Public Health Education Room,1360 Johnson Blvd, Suite 103, South Lake Tahoe.
• Sept. 17, 5-6pm at the El Dorado Hills Library, 7455 Silva Valley Parkway, El Dorado Hills.
• Sept. 28, 11:30am-12:30pm at Pioneer Park,  6740 Fairplay Road, Somerset.
• Sept. 30, 10-11am at the Georgetown Community Center, 6329 Lower Main St., Georgetown.
• Oct. 1, 1-2pm in the Placerville Library Conference Room,  345 Fair Lane, Placerville.

In addition to the community meetings, residents may provide input by completing an online survey. The survey closes Aug. 31.

The report is expected to be released in December.

By Keith Rogers, Las Vegas Review-Journal

With thieves stealing radioactive sources in Mexico while other potent materials sat idle on a mountain in Alaska, U.S. nuclear security experts used military cargo jets this summer to whisk away some of North America’s most dangerous “dirty bomb” threats.

Thirteen highly radioactive sources were loaded on Air Force C-17 Globemaster jets in late July in southern Mexico and near the Arctic Circle and flown to Creech Air Force Base at Indian Springs, 45 miles northwest of Las Vegas, according to Air Combat Command and the National Nuclear Security Administration.

They were then hauled by trucks more than 20 miles to the Nevada National Security Site and buried in a guarded, monitored landfill.

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By Alison Vekshin, BloombergBusiness

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, the largest pension in the U.S., said it earned 2.4 percent last fiscal year, below its target rate as financial-market turbulence depressed stock and bond returns.

The $300 billion fund earned 1 percent on public-equity holdings and 1.3 percent in fixed-income investments, said Ted Eliopoulos, chief investment officer. Real estate returned 13.5 percent, while private equity gained 8.9 percent.

Calpers must average at least 7.5 percent a year to match its assumed rate of return or turn to taxpayers to make up the difference. Calpers is among pensions under pressure to boost investment returns as their unfunded liabilities tripled to almost $2 trillion from 2004 through 2013, according to Moody’s Investors Service.

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