How will the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary provide economic benefits and environmental protections to the Central Coast? Let us count the ways. A 2014 study of the potential economic impacts of a national marine sanctuary off the Central Coast (conducted by Jason Scorse, director of Center for the Blue Economy at the Monterey Institute […]
Opinion
Posted inOpinion
Chin up!
Well, kids, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but just in case you don’t pay attention to anything vaguely internet-related: COVID-19 is back! The omicron variant is sweeping the country (Thanks, globalization! Thanks, anti-vaxxers!), including Santa Barbara County, and it’s more contagious than ever! Yahoo! So mask up, vax up, and keep […]
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There’s always next year
This year is over, man. And it almost feels like the only thing left to do is shake my little bird head. My takeaway from 2021 is that everything would be much easier if we all just learned how to communicate with others and genuinely sought out reality rather than ideas that strengthen our existing […]
Posted inOpinion
Sanctuaries aren’t working
One of the things I am not seeing in the discussion over a new marine sanctuary off our coast is how well are the ones we have working? As written by Lori French (“Unnecessary,” Dec. 23) there are four national marine sanctuaries designated in California since 1980. Also, there are 124 state marine protected areas, […]
Posted inOpinion
It’s the end of the year; how was it?
The past year saw a continuance of teeter-totter COVID-19 rules. It’s hard to keep up with the off-again, on-again restrictions, mandates, closures, and misinformation concerning this disease. All this confusion has led the government to use cash and political pronouncement’s once again as a cure-all for something they can’t fix. In the process of infusing […]
Posted inOpinion
Cannabis. Cannabis.
I almost felt bad for the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors on Dec. 14 when they had to decide on yet another appeal of an approved cannabis cultivation project. Only this time, the decision before them felt like it had higher stakes. Former Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado was on one side, and the Millers […]
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Designating a national marine sanctuary off the coast of the Central Coast isn’t needed to protect an already protected ocean
In 1974, President Ford established the first National Marine Sanctuary off North Carolina—The USS Monitor National Marine Sanctuary. It was established to protect the shipwreck, and is currently being considered for expansion to protect additional shipwrecks. Currently there are five National Marine Sanctuaries off the West Coast, four of which are located off the coast […]
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Undefined plans
Before I move to the dark side, I’m going to give a shoutout to the Alisal fire burn scar for making it through this last storm relatively intact! According to Santa Barbara County Public Works rain gauges, areas of the county tallied between 1.3 and 7.5 inches of rain. Wowzers! And kudos to Santa Barbara […]
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American Rescue Plan Act funds will save Lompoc, but only if council members can make up their mind
The Lompoc budget, like may other municipal budgets, covers a span of two years. A lot can happen to both revenue and expense predictions during that period. The Lompoc City Council wisely chose to have a periodic review to see where they were with the spending plan. On Dec. 7 they received that update, and […]
Posted inOpinion
Lines drawn
Well, I don’t like to say, “I told you so,” but it’s a a bit difficult to keep those words in my beak this week. Thanks to the Santa Barbara County Citizens Independent Redistricting Commission, change is in the air. The commission finalized its preferred map on Dec. 4, planned to make some tweaks early […]
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Fair and balanced, not
We had expected the county to be fair with our town. Instead, Planning and Development and its director have been anything but. This is the latest update concerning a poorly conceived development project in Los Alamos. It is an issue that will have health and safety consequences for our town, especially because of a one-lane […]
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New facility will help the community care for its aging population, who have given much to the Orcutt area over the years
Having grown up in the Orcutt area from my early childhood days, I have always appreciated the goodness of the people who live and work in the Orcutt area. It has been a wonderful place to live and raise my own family. The community set a good example for me to follow and for all […]
