North Bay Report 3

Sonoma State University recently announced that 15 students have been awarded up to $10,000 each in scholarships. The new Wine Industry Scholars Program joins the school’s Educational Opportunity Program and its Wine Business Institute to support first generation students.Karen Thompson is Interim Dean of the School of Business and Economics at Sonoma State. She brought to our studio a student recently awarded support –Rosie Zuniga, a 4th year psychology student. They talked with KRCB News Director Steve Mencher.Applications are now being accepted for the next academic year. More at krcb.org/news. Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.

With most lots cleared of fire debris, parades of trucks still clog local roads. If you’re wondering which toxic materials are still a threat, we’ll hear from the EPA on the North Bay Report at 6:18 and 8:18 am and 5:30 pm.

With the removal of fire debris moving quickly toward a conclusion, we checked in with the EPA official who’s been helping oversee the cleanup of toxic material. Reporter Sujata Shrivastav has more.

For more of our coverage of the North Bay Fires, the cleanup and recovery visit KRCB.org/news. Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.

No matter how many times we’re reminded, we tend to picture men in battle, even though a multitude of women have served on the front lines in many roles.

Last month, KRCB presented Ken Burns’ revealing history of the War in Vietnam. We also interviewed a number of veterans about their experiences. Today, we add one more veteran to that list. Kate O’Hare-Palmer is a nurse who served in Vietnam 50 years ago. She’s chair of the Women Veterans Committee of the Vietnam Veterans of America and has become a leader in fighting for the rights of women who served in the military. She talked with KRCB news director Steve Mencher.

We’ll hear from Kate O-Hare-Palmer in subsequent reports. Find more at krcb.org/Vietnam. Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.

You may not give your trash much thought. You put it out, it disappears, you fill up the bins again. But there’s more at stake.

In December, the waste management company Recology took over garbage collection from the Ratto Group in parts of the North Bay, affecting 55,000 residential and commercial customers. Reporter Rhian Miller looks at how the switch will also change how we deal with trash.

Find more trash talk at KRCB.org/news Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.

Coffey Strong Organizes to Help Displaced Residents, and Santa Rosa Tackles Rebuilding and New BuildingChris Coursey, Santa Rosa’s mayor is fond of saying that city officials need to walk and chew gum at the same time. That is, they must tackle rebuilding along with necessary housing growth. In the wake of the October fires in Santa Rosa, residents of the Coffey Park neighborhood have organized. The group Coffey Strong now numbers nearly 1000 residents who act collectively to pool information and save money. Jeff Okrepkie represented the group on a recent edition of KQED’s Forum with Michael Krasny.We also hear from David Guhin, director of Planning and Economic Development for Santa Rosa who spoke about rebuilding the city.More on rebuilding our city and county at KRCB.org/news. Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.

This winter, despite the shortage of rain, green shoots are peeking through many natural landscapes where fire rampaged last fall.

Today, we’ve got two reports about the aftermath of October’s fires. They come to us through our partnership with KQED’s California Report.

First, an independent state watchdog called “the Little Hoover Commission” says California needs to re-examine how it manages the state’s forests to minimize the risk of catastrophic wildfires.

One key recommendation? It may be smart to use fire as a tool – with controlled burns helping to avoid firestorms like the ones we experienced last year. Molly Peterson has the story.

Special thanks to our friends at KQED’s California Report for making these stories available to our listeners. For links to the original stories, and to our coverage of the North Bay fires and recovery, visit KRCB.org/news. Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.

Last week we visited the State of the County event and heard from some key voices representing our diverse community. Visit our website to hear from Ana Lugo, President of the North Bay Organizing Project, Reno Franklin, Chair of the Kashia Band of Pomo Indians, and Beth Brown, President and CEO of the Community Foundation of Sonoma County.

Today we’re back at the State of the County breakfast with News Director Steve Mencher. He says the expert that many had come to see was Jerry Nickelsburg, director of UCLA’s Anderson Forecast. His talk focused on the local, state and national economy; as well as how the county’s recovery would be aided – or hindered – by economic trends.

For a link to our Friday special broadcast on the State of the County, visit KRCB.org/news. Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.

Coffey Park was the topic on a recent edition of KQED’s Forum program with Michael Krasny. Among the guests – Jeff Okrepkie, chair of the neighborhood group Coffey Strong, Robert Digitale, a reporter for the Press Democrat and David Guhin, Director of Housing and Community Services for the City of Santa Rosa. KRCB News Director Steve Mencher has some excerpts from the discussion. Find links to information about rebuilding, and more of our coverage of the fires and recovery at KRCB.org/news. We’ll hear more about Coffey Park rebuilding next week on the North Bay Report. Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.

Volunteers fanned out across cities and towns in America at the end of last month on a very important mission: counting the homeless. Knowing the statistics allows communities do a better job helping people without regular shelter.

On a single night in January, volunteers all over the country participate in a federal program counting homeless people in their communities. This so-called “point in time” count occurs when the weather is at its worst in many parts of the U.S. In Mendocino County, the count began at 5 a.m. on January 25 at a soup kitchen in the county seat. Reporter Sarah Reith was there.

To learn more about the “point in time” homeless count, visit us on the web at KRCB.org/news. Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.

Many tourists, hearing about “The Wine County Fires,” postponed or cancelled trips to nearby wineries. Tasting rooms and tours should have been busy in harvest season. Instead, the wine business took a major hit.

A new study describes the effects of the North Bay fires on local vineyards and wineries. In addition to surveying stakeholders, the authors also crunched the first available statistics. The report comes from Sonoma State’s Wine Business Institute, part of the School of Business and Economics. Honor Comfort, the Institute’s Executive in Residence, talked with KRCB News Director Steve Mencher about the study.

Find out more at KRCB.org/news. Hear this story on demand with our free KRCB mobile app. You can also find this and past stories on our new North Bay Report Facebook page. Comment, share and give us a like there. Follow the North Bay Report on Twitter @KRCBNews.