Development threatens the Dixie Valley toad. Photo/Patrick Donnelly/Center for Biological Diversity

By Benjamin Spillman, Reno Gazette-Journal

A type of toad that only lives in a remote Nevada valley could be in trouble if proposed geothermal power project becomes reality.

Ormat Nevada is seeking permission from the Bureau of Land Management to build two 30-megawatt power plants and 15 production and injection wells on federal land about 43 miles northeast of Fallon in Dixie Valley.

The problem is the area is in the habitat of the Dixie Valley toad, a rare amphibian that doesn’t live anywhere else.

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By Anita Chabria, Sacramento Bee
 
Alisa Holleron and her group of political activists were calling Rep. Tom McClintock’s offices every day for months when they started receiving what she describes as a “chilling” greeting from his staff a few weeks ago.

“They started saying that we were impeding … the functioning of a federal office and that we were in violation of a federal law,” said Holleron. “I felt like it was threatening. I felt like they were telling me I was breaking a law and if you break a law you can get in trouble.”

Annie Mascorro, another caller and a McClintock constituent, said she had a similar experience when she dialed in and spoke with a female intern.

The Garden Valley-based Republican represents Truckee and the California side of Lake Tahoe.

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A man climbs up a fire ladder out of the Truckee River on June 30. Photo/NTFPD

Tragedy was averted Friday with the help of North Tahoe firefighters.

A man needed rescuing from the Truckee River near River Ranch on June 30 at about 2:20pm.

“Apparently he was tubing down the Truckee River when he got stuck on one of the pilings of a bridge due to a complication of a rope he had attached to two inner tubes,” Beth Kenna, spokeswoman for the fire department, told Lake Tahoe News.

Assisting North Tahoe Fire were CHP and Squaw Valley Fire personnel.

“The water is swift and what you think is a safe situation can turn dangerous in seconds,” Kenna said.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

By Kathryn Reed

My book club friends say John Sandford is a great read at the beach – fast, easy and not intellectual. That sounds perfect to me.

The problem, though, is one of his latest books, “Escape Clause” (G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2016), is really bad. So bad that it seemed like torture “having” to read it. I was so slow I didn’t get it done in time for our meeting.

Still, I went to the gathering last week just to hear what others had to say. I had to know if I was the only one who found few redeeming qualities in this book. I was not alone – in fact, I was in the majority.

It’s hard to say if the story or writing was worse. Both left a lot to be desired.

It was good to hear that Sandford’s other Virgil Flowers novels are much better. I’m wary, though. I doubt I will give him another shot even though others raved about his previous works.

The two tigers being stolen from a zoo with the intent to kill them and use their body parts for medicinal purposes was intriguing. It generated a lot of discussion in my book club. This was a good premise, but not well developed.

Some of the book clubbers said they didn’t like the main character, Virgil Flowers, as much in this book, or the woman he was hooked up with. Flowers is a cop for the state of Minnesota.

I don’t have a problem with non-intellectual books, but I do want to be entertained.

I think I’ll look for another author for my beach reading.

LTCC class of 2017 graduates throw their mortar boards in celebration June 30. Photo/Kathryn Reed

By Kathryn Reed

While graduations are a time to celebrate accomplishments, they are also the demarcation of new beginnings.

And so today begins a new chapter in the lives of 151 students who on June 30 said farewell to Lake Tahoe Community College.

“Take a piece of Tahoe love and spread it across the planet and the planet will be better for it,” Lake Tahoe Community College President Jeff DeFranco told the graduates Friday night.

Steve Leer says, “I’m very excited about this moment” as LTCC board President Karen Borges hands him his diploma. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Sitting on the soccer field under a setting sun, it was mostly a time to look forward – not back; to think about the future, of pursuing dreams, tackling challenges and being true to themselves.

Family and friends show support with cameras and signs. Photo/Kathryn Reed

“Passion plus purpose equals success,” DeFranco said.

Keynote speaker Jamie Anderson spoke of how it can be difficult to be your best when there is so much chaos going on.

Jamie Anderson, center, enters the stadium flanked by Vice President of Academic Affairs Michelle Risdon and President Jeff DeFranco. Photo/Kathryn Reed

“Don’t be afraid of outside judgment,” the snowboarding Olympic gold medalist said.

Anderson grew up with her eight siblings in Meyers and is still very much part of the community. Her younger sister, Summer, was among the graduates.

Maura Jones and son Ryder accomplished a lot together. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Mark Williams, faculty senate president and music instructor, said he had struggled to find anything new to say that hadn’t been said at some other graduation. So, he broke into song – and at the end it was the students who gave him a standing ovation.

A few hundred people listen to the graduation speakers June 30. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Ten of those receiving associate of arts degrees had a 4.0 gpa. Twenty-six had grade point averages between 3.65 and 3.99. Seventy-eight of these AA degree earners also received a transfer degree, which guarantees them entry as a junior at a California State University this fall.

Jose Martinez approaches board President Karen Borges and college President Jeff DeFranco. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Also honored at the graduation were the 38 students who completed a vocational certificate program.

Diversity was evident with the reading of each student’s name as they crossed the stage to receive their diploma. Not all were of traditional college age. One woman held her young son. Four who could not attend were part of LTCC’s incarceration program. Six flags from countries other than the United States flew in recognition of the international students graduating.

By Erik Hansen, U.S. Travel Association
 
Does Washington know where to start on an infrastructure overhaul?

Fixing America’s infrastructure is an oft-repeated goal of the Trump administration, and an element of his agenda with the potential to rally bipartisan cooperation. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao has said an outline of the administration’s infrastructure plan is coming “in the next several weeks.” While we hope for a balanced approach that achieves many necessary fixes to our country’s transportation framework, there’s one place we believe the administration should start to achieve broader momentum: airports.

Over 900 million passengers passed through American airports in 2016, according to the Bureau of Transportation statistics. That number will soon swell to over one billion per year, which could be an economic boon nationwide, if our airports were able to accommodate that kind of increase.

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By Matt Stoller, Huffington Post
 
To understand the depth and breadth of Jeff Bezos’ ambitions for the company he built, type www.relentless.com into your browser. The domain Bezos registered in 1994 will redirect to Amazon, the company aptly, and ambitiously, nicknamed The Everything Store. He tells his shareholders that the company will act like an aggressive startup — that at Amazon, it is always Day One.  

Like Google and Facebook, Amazon uses technology and data to sidestep traditional restrictions on monopoly power. Our lives are increasingly organized by the platforms these companies run, platforms which now mediate the way we communicate and engage in commerce with each other. We are living in a world organized by tech monopolists, a change in power relationships that no one voted for but has been imposed upon us nonetheless.

Now, Bezos is attempting to add more power to his empire with the surprise announcement that the company will pay $13.7 billion for Whole Foods Market. Amazon will now have a store footprint in neighborhoods across America.

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By Brooke Warren and Paige Blankenbuehler, High Country News

A network of long trails crisscrosses the West, through open deserts and wild forests. Many trails follow historic routes where people made pilgrimages or embarked on exploratory expeditions.

The National Trails System, managed by the National Park Service, has officially designated some of these extensive trails.

Under the National Trails System Act, passed in 1968, national scenic trails and national historic trails are long-distance paths designated by acts of Congress. National recreation trails and connecting and side trails may be designated by the secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture with the consent of the federal agency, state or political subdivision involved.

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By Meghin Delaney, Las Vegas Review-Journal

An ambitious goal to improve Nevada students’ performance on a college readiness test might take a little longer to get moving.

For the third consecutive year, the average ACT score of more than 34,000 students in the state — the majority of them high school juniors — was stagnant at 17.4 out of 36 points on the nationwide college entrance exam.

Only 10 percent scored high enough to be considered “college-ready” by the exam’s standards, according to the state.

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Kit Bailey has been the face and voice of all things fire for LTBMU for years. Photo/LTN file

By Kit Bailey

After 38 years, I can retire knowing I’ve been a part of change and growth in the wildland fire community.

Starting out as a seasonal firefighter for California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and working my way up in the Forest Service, I set out to become a forest fire management officer within California, fulfilling that goal 15 years ago by accepting the position here in the Lake Tahoe Basin. This job, my time as a smokejumper, and then serving as a Type I operations chief have been some my greatest career successes.

Today, on my last day, I know it’s time to pass the torch to the professionals we’ve brought up.

Over the years, I’ve traveled to incidents across the nation, getting the opportunity to work alongside some amazing people on difficult and dangerous wildfires. My greatest appreciation is for the efforts done by the firefighters on the ground. Even when we work to get it right, people can still get hurt in this job. By ensuring they have necessary equipment, solid direction, and are performing their duties safely, I have put them first in every decision, every situation.

To this day, I’ve taken the duty of guardian and defender of the Lake Tahoe Basin very seriously. I have tremendous respect and appreciation for the chiefs and fire agencies around the lake. Our time together has created a strong bond of trust and protection we feel for the other, and know we will support when called. Success is truly about those relationships and collaboration with the fire, land management and regulatory agencies. When I got here, we all had areas to improve on, but we’ve come a long way and are now a national model for coordination and cooperation.

My wife, Shelly, son, Carson, and daughter, Josie, have graciously supported me through all of this. I couldn’t have had the career I have with the Forest Service without them and their understanding, selflessness and sacrifice.

Though I am retiring from the Forest Service, I will continue to serve the Tahoe basin in a new role, protecting the communities in and around California for years to come.

Kit Bailey retired June 30 as the fire chief for the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit.