By Lettie Teague, Wall Street Journal

There’s a true love connection between white wine and women. Everywhere I turn lately I’m meeting yet another woman who is white-wine exclusive for reasons ranging from refreshment to health.

My friend Gabrielle, a freelance journalist, said she converted to white from red several years ago after finding that most reds, especially tannic varieties like Cabernet and Malbec, gave her headaches. White wines did not. Save for the occasional Pinot Noir, she now mostly drinks Spanish whites like Albariño and Godello.

The women I spoke with most often cited health-related issues as their primary reason for drinking white wine. Indigestion caused my friend Kathy to reluctantly shelve her beloved red.

“I had a burning sensation whenever I drank a red,” she said. Kathy, who owns a craft store, found that the only wines that didn’t trigger side effects were whites.

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By Jill Tucker, San Francisco Chronicle

California parents who want to know more about the progress of their children’s schools will be given to a system that uses color-coded charts and graphics to offer a comprehensive assessment of classrooms that goes well beyond standardized test scores.

The new online portal, called the California School Dashboard, measures school and district performance using a variety of criteria, including graduation and suspension rates, progress of English learners and success at preparing students for college, as well as math and English test scores.

In the future, the dashboard will also include parent participation and feedback from students and parents on school safety and available support, among other things.

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Ben Houlton, director of the John Muir Institute of the Environment at UC Davis, will give a talk April 20 about the current state of carbon sinks, their vulnerability to future changes, and how global climate policies are susceptible to the sustainability of natural carbon dioxide uptake.

Humans produce carbon pollution. All around the world, habitats called carbon sinks have absorbed approximately 25 percent of this carbon pollution reducing the risk of global warming impacts without imposing a monetary cost on society.

Registration for this event is required.

The program will begin at 6pm, with refreshments and no-host bar from 5:30-6pm at on the campus of Sierra Nevada College. Seating is open at 5:30pm to guests who have pre-registered, open seating starts at 5:50pm. A $5 suggested donation will be collected at the door.

By Benjamin Spillman, Reno Gazette-Journal

Nevada lawmakers sought answers from a high ranking public land manager on everything from wild horses to wilderness study areas.

John Ruhs, Nevada state director for the Bureau of Land Management, testified Tuesday before a join committee of the Legislature’s natural resources committee.

Ruhs’ appearance before the Legislature was a routine briefing aimed at helping lawmakers better understand the role of the BLM.

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Lake Tahoe Historical Society has created the history club as a way for children to experience activities
from the past, learn a new skill, play a game, and use their imagination.

Due to limited class size, reservations are required. The cost is $20 per child.

The club will meet April 8 from 1-3:30pm at the museum in South Lake Tahoe.

To register or for more info, call 530.541.5458.

·      Aaron Abrams and Michael Adlard will continue to be the food concessionaire for Lakeview Commons in South Lake Tahoe, and Chris Brackett will operate the non-motorized boat operations.

·      Jack Johnson will now be at Harveys in Lake Tahoe on July 28 and July 29.

·      The Bicycle Advisory Committee of the South Lake Tahoe Recreation Facilities Joint Powers Authority will meet April 5 from 9-11am in the downstairs conference room at Lake Tahoe Airport.

·      Diamond Peak ski resort is extending its ski season to April 23.

·      Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce is putting on a workshop designed to take business’s social media presence to the next level. It will be April 19 from noon-1:30pm in the chamber’s conference room in Stateline. Cost is $10 for members, $20 for others. Bring a bag lunch.

By Ryan Sabalow and Phillip Reese, Sacramento Bee

While a nearly record-breaking rainy season has battered California’s dams and stretched the limits of local levees, the storms that began to hit Sacramento on Tuesday aren’t expected to put much additional strain on the state’s flood-control system.

Spanning into next week, the storms are expected to drop as much as two inches of rain in Sacramento and two feet of snow in the higher elevations of the Sierra Nevada. But federal weather forecasters said Tuesday they aren’t too worried about widespread problems.

“These series of storms are definitely wet, but they’re not what we saw in January and February, by any means,” said Michelle Mead with the National Weather Service in Sacramento. “They’re more typical of our winter-into-spring storms, meaning we’re getting into that shower and thunderstorm season.”

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Young artists and future biologists are invited to enter the California Invasive Species Art Contest sponsored by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. This year’s theme is Don’t Let it Loose!

Youths in grades 2-12 are eligible to enter. Entries should depict invasive species that might be released into California’s waters, parks and wildlands, along with appropriate messaging such as, but not limited to, the following:

• Releasing invasive species into the wild can harm the environment and California’s native plants and animals
• Description(s) of one or more species that are commonly released into waters, parks or wildlands
• Explanations or illustrations showing other ways to rehome unwanted pets or plants
• Drawings, paintings, animations, comic strips, videos, public service announcements are welome.
• Submissions must be received by May 5.

Winners will be chosen in three age divisions: grades 2-4, 5-8 and 9-12.  “Invasive Species Program Choice” Award.

Entry forms and more information are available online.

A bill introduced this week in the Nevada Legislature would eliminated plastic bags in the state.

Lawmakers are considering a five-year approach to ban the one-time use bags at grocery stores, restaurants and other retailers.

Through 2021 customers would pay 10 cents per bag. That money would be earmarked for environmental purposes.

Then in 2022 the ban would be in place. Fines would be levied against businesses that don’t comply.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

Nationwide, the U.S. Forest Service want the public’s help to select nine to 15 priority areas among its nine regions where a backlog in trail maintenance contributed to reduced access, potential harm to natural resources or trail users and/or has the potential for increased future deferred maintenance costs.

Region 5 manages more than 16,000 miles of trails.

Volunteers and partner groups contributed more than 178,000 hours in maintenance and repair of nearly 2,984 miles of trails last year.

Region 5 has until April 15 to submit at least three proposals to national headquarters. Those proposals will be weighed against proposal submitted by other Forest Service regions.

The selected sites will be part of the initial focus that will include a mosaic of areas with known trail maintenance needs that include areas near urban and remote areas, such as wilderness, are of varying sizes and trail lengths, are motorized and non-motorized, and those that incorporate a varied combination of partner and volunteer approaches and solutions.

The Forest Service manages more than 158,000 miles of trail – the largest trail system in the nation – providing motorized and non-motorized trail access across 154 national forests and grasslands. These Forest Service trails are well-loved and highly used with more than 84 million trail visits annually, helping to support mostly rural economies.

To provide ideas and suggestions on potential priority areas and approaches for incorporating increased trail maintenance assistance from partners and volunteers, contact Michelle Zuro-Kreimer,  at 530.622.5061 or mzurokreimer@fs.fed.us .