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How sewage surveillance could aid public health beyond COVID

in Health

MODESTO, Calif. — One of Patrick Green’s first orders of business each day is to open a tap and fill a bottle with sludge.

A utilities plant operator in Modesto, a city of nearly a quarter-million people in California’s San Joaquin Valley, Green helps keep the city’s sewers flowing and its wastewater treated to acceptable levels of safety. But in recent months, he and his colleagues have added COVID-19 sleuthing to their job description.

At the treatment plant where Modesto’s sewer pipes converge, larger items, ranging from not-supposed-to-be-flushed baby wipes to car parts, are filtered out. What remains is ushered into a giant vat, where the solids settle to the bottom. It’s from that 3-feet-deep dark sludge that researchers siphon samples in their search for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID.

Continue Reading on PBS

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Best counties to retire to in California

in Around California

Buyers and sellers of real estate alike—when asked what are the three most essential considerations about a property—will nearly always reply “location, location, location.” While this answer is sometimes tongue-in-cheek, it is often quite accurate, and this reply perhaps applies to retirees more than any other demographic. Settling down after a lifetime of working and perhaps raising a family calls for the perfect location: a spot where you can enjoy life with as few concerns as possible.

When seniors aged 65 years or older decide on where they want to live out their golden years, they consider very specific factors, such as the cost of living, government services, health care facilities, weather and overall climate, crime rate, outdoor recreational activities, eating establishments, cultural and entertainment opportunities, and more.

Continue Reading on KTLA

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SNAP Schedule: April Benefits Disbursal for California

in Community/Food

CalFresh, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP nationwide, distributes monthly food benefits via the Golden State Advantage Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card to eligible low-income individuals and families in California.

Benefit cards are refilled monthly and funds can be used to purchase fresh food items at retail stores and farmers markets that accept EBT cards as payment. EBT cards can be used just like credit or debit cards. Simply swipe the EBT card in the card reader and enter your PIN. If you’re purchasing non-eligible items, you’ll be required to use an alternate form of payment for those items. 

Continue Reading on GOBankingRates

How California’s last remaining nuclear power plant transformed marine life off the coast

in Environment

Take a dip into the Pacific Ocean along most of California’s Central Coast, and the cold water will send you running for a wetsuit.

But there’s one spot where the water isn’t so teeth-chattering and insteadfeels much like a lukewarm bath: Diablo Cove, the oblong 40-acre inlet that sits at the base of PG&E’s Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant near Avila Beach.

There, the ocean waters are heated by the power plant’s cooling system, which sucks in and spits out billions of gallons of seawater every day.

Water in the cove directly adjacent to the discharge structure hovers at an abnormal 70 to 80 degrees — notably warmer than the 50 to 60 degrees typical here.

That has created a unique phenomenon in Diablo Cove, significantly altering the makeup of its marine ecosystem and turning the area into a case study of how cold-water ocean species are impacted by warmer waters.

Continue Reading on The Sacramento Bee

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Stimulus checks for gas? Here’s what could be coming your way.

in Community

Americans already faced searing inflation when gas prices surged to an all-time high earlier this month. Now, some lawmakers want the federal government to offer stimulus payments or rebate checks to help reduce the pain at the pump.

Families with two children could get as much $300 per month as long as the nation's average gas price exceeds $4 a gallon, according to one new bill proposed by Reps. Mike Thompson of California, John Larson of Connecticut and Lauren Underwood of Illinois. All three lawmakers are Democrats.

And on Wednesday, California Governor Gavin Newsom said he's proposing to send direct payments of $400 per vehicle to state residents, with a cap of two vehicles. Pending approval from California lawmakers, the checks could arrive as soon as July, the statement said. Drivers in California face some of the highest gas prices in the nation, with the state average at $5.87 per gallon on Wednesday, according to AAA.

Continue Reading on CBS News

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Behind on rent payments? Here’s how to apply for CA relief before March 31 deadline

in Community

Californians behind on their rent payments have until March 31 to apply for the state’s COVID rent relief program, officials announced last week.

The state will help tenants with unpaid rent and utilities owed from April 1, 2020, through March 31, 2022. Landlords can also get reimbursed for an eligible renter’s unpaid rent.

Eligible households may get up to 18 months of assistance to cover rent debt accrued during the pandemic.

Continue Reading on FOX40

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It started with a pop-up table. Now Modesto farmers market favorite has its own cafe

in Food/Food & Drinks

Jamie Griswold started with a pop-up table and a love for coffee.

In fact, her plucky pop-up the Culture Coffee Bar was one of the first new ventures I wrote about when I returned to writing the Business Beat in 2017. Then, that humble table turned into a 16-foot trailer, which has been a staple at the Modesto Certified Farmers Market since 2020.

Now, some five years after she first stood outside her former gym with two large coffee carafes, the Downey High graduate has completed her journey and opened her first brick-and-mortar cafe.

Continue Reading on The Modesto Bee

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10 years of Cars and Coffee

Like many fathers and daughters Garry and Jazlyn Tucker spend time on a shared hobby. On Saturday, they both got

Congressional art contest open to high schoolers until April 28

in Arts

Congressman Jared Huffman’s (D-San Rafael) office announced this week that the annual Congressional Art Competition has opened — the competition is open for digital submissions from high school students in the state’s Second Congressional District, which covers the Golden Gate Bridge to the Oregon border.

Winning artwork is exhibited in the U.S. Capitol building for a year, where it sits with winning artwork from other Congressional districts throughout the country. The winning artist will receive two round-trip tickets to Washington, D.C. to view their artwork and upon admission acceptance, the winning artist will be eligible for a scholarship to attend the Savannah College of Art and Design, upon acceptance to the school.

Continue Reading on SoCo News

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Local volunteers to host special prom night for Turlock youth

in Events/Fun

A group of volunteers is looking to provide local students who have special needs with an opportunity to experience their very own prom night, specifically tailored to their needs.

Prom with a Purpose: A Special Needs Prom will be held from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. April 2 at the Calvary Church gymnasium in Turlock. Attendees and their registered guests will be treated to a meal, a live DJ, a photo booth, and can have professional photos taken.

The event is free for local special needs teens and young adults and their guests. Guests may include parents, legal guardians, or other caretakers for the student that may be necessary. To further accommodate participating students, a multi-sensory safe room will be available at the venue for those who may become overwhelmed by noise, lights, crowds or other occurrences. There will also be medical and security personnel on-site.

Continue Reading on Turlock Journal

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Seniors helping seniors

A group of Covenant Living of Turlock residents volunteered their time on Tuesday afternoon to make care packages for area

Two whales give tour thrilling encounter off California coast

in Around California/Fun

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. (KSWB) – Two giant gray whales thrilled a tour group with their up-close antics off the coast of Southern California last week, bobbing, rolling, and even flashing their tails within a few feet of the small raft.

Experts call the behavior “mugging,” and it displays the kind of gentle curiosity that has earned the species the nickname “friendly whales.” The length and proximity of the encounter, which happened Thursday evening off the coast of Newport Beach, excited even veterans at the whale watching company that organized the tour.

Continue Reading on ABC27

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