North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District’s fuels crew will continue the hazardous fuels reduction project in the Galena and Davis Creek Park areas Feb. 5-19.

This project is a cooperative effort between North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District, Washoe County Parks Department and Nevada Division of Forestry. The debris or slash piles were created as a result of a hazardous fuels reduction and defensible space project over the last year, to help minimize the risk of wildland fires in the area.

The project’s safety plan calls for cancellation of the controlled burning based on weather conditions each day, such as significant wind activity or precipitation. The burning piles are expected to produce smoke that may be visible throughout the area. Smoke resulting from the pile burns will affect the surrounding areas for approximately 24-36 hours.

People who are smoke sensitive are advised to please stay inside and close their windows and doors as much as possible until the smoke dissipates.

For further information, call (775) 831.0351, ext. zero.

A great day to carve corduroy. There is a possibility of weather moving through Thursday.

Here is the Feb. 4 ski report.

— Curtis Fong

Lake Tahoe News has a copy of “Get Out of My Crotch” to give to someone. This book is edited and published by Kim Wyatt, owner of Bona Fide Books in Meyers.

The back cover says, “We are witnessing the patriarchy’s last gasp, and it’s not going down without a fight. Using legislation, language, and women’s own silence, it seeks to return us to a time when choice and self-determination were not options.

“In this collection, twenty-one fearless writers examine reproductive rights, access to health care, violence against women, and the rise of rape apologists in the twenty-first century Untied States. Illuminating intersections of gender, class and race, these stories speak to the challenges women routinely face, the attempts to undermine their rights, and the deliberate, systemic erosion of their agency and existence as equals.”

All you have to do write a comment about why you want the book. One person will randomly be selected later in the week.

If you are not the winner of the book, they are $18 and may be ordered online.

By Kathryn Reed

Sitting in the snow, as snowboarders often do, the three friends chat about what it’s like to be on the slopes.

This is Day 2 for these fifth-graders from Sierra House Elementary School. And it’s not exactly what they thought it would be like.

Camille Dahili, Yesenia Garcia and Serena Palaroan all agree snowboarding is more difficult than they expected, but it’s way more fun, too. Balancing and stopping are the hardest, they say.

Serena Palaroan learns to use her edges from Heavenly instructor Jonathan Lyman. Photos/Kathryn Reed

For three days all fifth-graders in Lake Tahoe Unified and St. Theresa School learn to ski or snowboard at Heavenly Mountain Resort. And if they already know what it’s like to have a plank or two strapped to their feet, they are paired with an instructor who can cater to their appropriate level.

“We think three times is enough to get a taste … to learn to turn and stop, ride the lift safely, a little bit about skier and rider etiquette, and the skier responsibility code,” Mike Allen, Heavenly’s director of skier services, told Lake Tahoe News.

The program has been in place since at least the late 1980s.

Allen said this age level is ideal for first-timers.

“It’s an age when kids get their own sense of independence. They have good strength, good sense of balance,” he said.

It’s not all fun and games – even if the kids don’t realize this.

“It’s an extension of the classroom,” Sierra House Principal Ryan Galles said of the ski program. “There is the PE benefit, learning about health and safety. We live in a mountain town so safety decisions are a huge piece of the discussion. We do writing activities with this before and after.”

Lily Smith, Bryona Ziegler and Christian Arcinega-Pineda take a hot cocoa break.

For many of these kids, this is their first time to be at a ski resort. Galles estimates almost half of the kids have not skied or boarded before.

There is something about food and skiing that go together – whether it’s making a pizza with skis in the snow, or putting them together like a sandwich when taking a break, or holding poles like a cafeteria tray and not spilling.

These little triggers are ways ski school instructors help youngsters to learn to be better skiers.

Lily Smith, who isn’t new to the sport of skiing, said, “I like challenging yourself and having fun.”

She is paired with Christian Arcinega-Pineda and Bryona Ziegler.

Sierra House Principal Ryan Galles makes sure Yesenia Garcia is OK after falling.

Instructor Gavin Lynch gives them advice as a group about how to hold the poles in front of them and individual tips as they ski to him.

Arcinega-Pineda said he’s learned “how to control myself down the slope.”

Mostly it’s all smiles — except for the the snowboarders when they fall. But that is another part of the learning process.

Wesley is a nice 2-year-old Dachsund mix. He is a bit shy, but bonds really closely with his people. He likes other dogs, but because of his shyness he would be happiest in a house with older kids.

Wesley is house trained and very affectionate.

Wesley is neutered, microchipped, and vaccinated. He is at the El Dorado County Animal Services shelter in Meyers, along with many other dogs and cats who are waiting for their new homes.

Go online to see photos and description of all pets at the shelter.

Call (530) 573.7925 for directions, hours, and other information on adopting a pet.

For spay-neuter assistance for South Tahoe residents, go online.

— Karen Kuentz

By Kathryn Reed

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has sided with El Dorado County in a case brought forward by the U.S. Forest Service.

The issue is over costs related to the cleanup of the old Meyers Landfill. The county doesn’t believe it should have to pay for the cost overruns from the Forest Service’s plans for remediation at the old dump. (This April 28, 2012, LTN story has more history on the matter.)

The federal court granted the county’s motion for construction, enforcement, and modification of the partial consent decree. The Forest Service appealed. It’s that appeal that the USFS just lost.

“Where a project owner like the USFS provides detailed design plans and specifications, the government, and not the contracting party (here the county) bears the risk if such plans and specifications are ultimately determined to be deficient,” the court wrote in its January decision.

Now the matter goes back to the trial court.

“We can’t discuss the matter because litigation is ongoing,” Forest Service spokeswoman Cheva Heck said.

“Because the matter is still pending litigation I do not have any comment on the matter,” Michael Ciccozzi, attorney for El Dorado County, told Lake Tahoe News.

By Martin Griffith, AP

The Nevada wildlife commission has rejected a request by animal rights groups to ban the use of dogs for hunting bears.

The commission, at a meeting Friday in Las Vegas, voted 6-2 to deny the petition filed by six organizations, including NoBearHuntNV, the BEAR League and the Nevada Humane Society.

According to the groups, over half of the states conducting bear hunts have outlawed the use of dogs as being “unsporting” and “unnecessarily cruel” to both bears and dogs.

Dogs used to hunt bears are outfitted with GPS collars, they said, and the hunter waits until the dogs chase a bear into a tree. Dogs can chase bears for seven hours or more, they argued, and dogs can stay with a “treed” bear for up to two days before the hunter shoots the bear out of the tree.

The groups further maintain that bears can still be alive when they fall from the tree, and dogs — which can hunt in packs of up to 20 — can maul bears while they are still alive. Dogs also can be injured by bears in such cases, they added.

“Hunting with dogs has been banned in several states, and it is a disgrace for Nevada to allow this hunting method for bears,” said Beverlee McGrath of Nevada Political Action for Animals.

But commission Chairman Jack Robb of Reno said he believes the use of dogs to hunt bears involves “fair chase,” and that the issues cited by the groups have not surfaced in Nevada.

“At this point, we don’t have anything to support there’s wrongdoing in Nevada,” he told the Associated Press on Sunday. “I believe the sportsmen here know they’re under a microscope, and I believe the sportsmen are really going to police themselves.”

Commissioner Scott Raine of Eureka said he believes the use of dogs in bear hunts is “valid” and the concerns raised by the groups are exaggerated.

“To me, it’s not a big deal,” he said. “There’s no legitimate reason not to use them other than it’s an emotional deal to some people.”

Kathryn Bricker, executive director of NoBearHuntNV, said the animal rights groups support legislation to revamp the wildlife commission so it provides balanced representation for non-hunting interests in wildlife.

“The commission’s decision not to hear legitimate arguments on an issue opposed by the majority of Nevadans demonstrates why legislative change to reconfigure the wildlife commission is needed in order to give fair representation to all Nevadans,” she said in a statement.

The lone dissenters in the commission’s vote were public representative Dr. Karen Layne and conservation representative David McNinch.

The commission plans to consider various aspects of the bear hunt in the future, Robb said.

U.S. Forest Service fuels management crews will conduct prescribed fire operations on Spooner Summit beginning Feb. 5.

Crews expect to burn approximately 10 acres per day, weather permitting. Operations will continue through the week as weather and conditions allow.

Residents and visitors can expect to see smoke from this prescribed fire project area. Smoke may be visible on Highway 50.

The Forest Service strives to minimize the impacts of smoke on local communities. Smoke-sensitive residents should consider staying indoors and keeping doors, windows and outside vents closed. To directly receive prescribed fire updates, send an email to pa_ltbmu@fs.fed.us.

On Feb. 5 from 8-9:30am, Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce will kick-off Tech Tuesdays, a new workshop series.

These 90-minute workshops will cover the hottest trends in technology. The series opener will touch on the basics of social media. It will be taught by Jenn Gleckman of Strategic Marketing Group. Attendees can expect an overview including tips and tricks for using the “big” social media sites including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Instagram.

Tech Tuesdays will take place the first Tuesday of every month in the chamber’s conference room, 169 Highway 50.

Guests should bring their laptops and questions, and be ready to learn.

Subsequent courses will cover smart phones, Microsoft Outlook, blogging, e-commerce and more.

Tech Tuesday’s are free for chamber members and $15 for prospective members. For reservations or questions, contact Jessica@TahoeChamber.org or call (775) 588.1728, ext. 312.

There will be a free financial education workshop at Lake Tahoe Community College on Feb. 25 from 6-8pm.

The focus will be on financial goal setting, budgeting, money savings tips, and basic bank accounts.

The speaker will be from Wells Fargo Bank.

RSVP to (530) 541.4660, ext. 741 or email Alee@ltcc.edu. Space is limited. The event is in Room G4.

St. Joseph Community Land Trust and LTCC’s Student Support Services are sponsoring the event.