California

California oysters are in short supply. Here’s why the rain is to blame

Published

2 years ago

January 21, 2023

California oysters are in short supply. Here’s why the rain is to blame

“You possibly can say that we’re the one farmers who don’t like rain,” stated Neal Maloney, proprietor of Morro Bay Oyster Co., a Central California harvester that produces round 1 million Pacific Gold oysters per yr.

For the reason that tail finish of final yr, when the primary in a parade of storms slammed into California, Maloney and most of the state’s different oyster farmers have been unable to reap the mollusks, quickly closing some operations and taking California oysters off some menus.

Though the storms introduced much-needed rain to the state, serving to to refill reservoirs and soaking drought-stricken areas, the water runoff into locations similar to Morro and Tomales bays prompted oyster harvesters to pause operations for bacterial testing.

“Right here in Tomales Bay, many of the yr the water high quality is among the finest within the decrease 48,” stated John Finger, co-founder and CEO of Hog Island Oyster Co. Hog Island is among the state’s largest oyster harvesters, producing round 6 million mollusks a yr, 3 million of that are produced at its Tomales Bay facility.

As a result of runoff from agricultural fields and houses, “the fecal coliform micro organism depend goes up,” Finger stated. The micro organism ranges won’t make individuals sick, he stated, however are “an indicator there is likely to be some points within the water.”

Relying on how excessive water ranges rise or how a lot rain falls, farmers are required by the state well being division to attend a sure variety of days and retest the micro organism ranges earlier than they’ll take up harvesting once more. The ready interval permits the oysters to purge out pollution as properly.

When rain causes Chorro Creek, which empties into Morro Bay, to rise by a foot, Maloney is unable to reap for a number of days.

Throughout the newest set of storms, the creek rose by 20 ft.

“For the reason that storm began, I haven’t been capable of harvest for about two weeks,” Maloney informed The Instances on Thursday. “On Friday, I’ve to check the water to see if it’s clear sufficient, and whether it is, I’ll get that outcome on Monday.

“So the soonest I might harvest is Monday,” he stated, “until it rains extra.”

If rain once more raises the creek by a foot, the clock would reset and Maloney can be unable to reap for one more a number of days.

“We’re presently in a scarcity,” he stated.

For Maloney, the harvest stoppage has set his provide chain again by a couple of month.

Along with the stoppage, the Morro Bay Oyster Co. continues to be recovering from the results of the pandemic, which closed eating places that bought the oysters.

“We went to zero money circulation for nearly a yr,” Maloney stated. The enterprise was buoyed by Paycheck Safety Program loans from the Small Enterprise Administration and a few cash from the U.S. Division of Agriculture.

“It’s like a three-year restoration,” he stated. “We have been already type of in a restricted capability, so to take any type of hit proper now shouldn’t be an excellent time.”

The scarcity has had an influence on eating places and distributors, significantly for specialty operations just like the Ventura Fish Market, which operates solely on Saturdays and supplies merchandise with the promise that they’re “24 to 48 hours out of the water or nonetheless alive.”

“The previous couple of weeks, we haven’t had any choices” for patrons, stated proprietor Kat Jones. “No native fish. No paychecks for anybody within the trade.”

For many who have their freezers full, she added, it’s no downside.

Eating places like L & E Oyster Bar in Silver Lake are capable of get by with out their California-grown-and-harvested oyster choices by relying on different suppliers.

For now, L & E’s oysters are sourced from British Columbia, Canada and Baja California, with some from the East Coast, stated co-owner Tyler Bell.

California oyster provides will be “hit or miss” since harvesting is shut down by even small quantities of rain, Bell stated.

In some oyster areas, harvesting will be halted by as little as 0.4 inches of rain, per the California Division of Public Well being.

Hog Island, which additionally operates its personal eating places, is presently “shopping for every little thing” from different distributors whereas providing none of its personal oysters due to the rains. The final time it was capable of provide its personal oysters on the menu was in early January.

“There’s much more money flowing out at a time when it’s already slower,” Finger stated.

The Grassy Bar Oyster Co., on Morro Bay, additionally operates its personal storefront. However not like Hog Island, it has been unable to open because it serves solely its personal harvested oysters.

“We now have a [financial] cushion that we’re going to shortly burn by means of,” stated Grassy Bar President George Trevelyan, including that he has needed to minimize employees hours.

However past the monetary hits which have oyster harvesters anxious is the probability that greater, stronger deluges would be the norm in California on account of local weather change.

“This is among the issues we have been fairly certain was going to occur: extra intense storms,” Finger stated. “And you realize what you are concerned about shouldn’t be even simply the quantity of freshwater [in the bay] however siltation.

“The long-term well being of the bay will get affected in case you’ve bought streams blown out and extra mud coming down,” he stated. “That’s what we’re going to should get used to.”

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California

10 of 15 Southern California industries slow their hiring pace

Published

5 hours ago

November 28, 2024

Press Room

10 of 15 Southern California industries slow their hiring pace

Southern California’s bosses added 80,700 workers in the past year to a record 8.06 million jobs – but that hiring pace is roughly half of the pre-pandemic job market’s gains.

My trusty spreadsheet – filled with state job figures for Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties – compared employment changes for the region and 15 industries in the year ended in October with the average yearly hiring pace before coronavirus upended the economy.

Yes, there have never been more Southern Californians employed. However, the recent hirings that created the all-time high staffing are far below the average job creation of 159,600 a year in 2015-19.

This is one of many signals of cooler business trends. It’s a chill significantly tied to the Federal Reserve’s attempts to slow what was once an overheated economy.

But Southern California bosses have another challenge – a shortage of workers. The region’s workforce, a measure of labor supply, is basically flat comparing 2024 to 2015-19. Fewer choices of workers have added difficulty for local businesses trying to meet their staffing needs.

Think of that when you learn that among the 15 Southern California business sectors tracked – hiring in 10 industries is below pre-pandemic years compared with five industries with improvements.

The downs

First, contemplate the 10 industries where the hiring pace has weakened, ranked by the size of the decline …

Professional-business services: 1.14 million workers in October – down 4,600 in a year vs. 24,100 annual gains in 2015-19. This net downturn of 28,700 jobs is unnerving because this white-collar work typically pays above-average salaries.

Construction: 378,700 workers – down 3,100 in a year vs. 16,200 annual gains in 2015-19. A building slowdown due to lofty mortgage rates created this 19,300 reversal.

Logistics-utilities: 820,800 workers – up 6,800 in a year vs. 25,800 annual gains in 2015-19. What’s at least a temporary oversupply of warehouses in the region may be behind this 19,000 slowdown.

Manufacturing: 558,400 workers – down 15,300 in a year vs. 4,100 annual cuts in 2015-19. This 11,200 drop is continued losses of local factory work tied to high cost of doing business in the region.

Fast-food restaurants: 359,400 workers – up 3,400 in a year vs. 12,400 annual gains in 2015-19. Weaker consumer spending and a hike in the industry’s minimum wage contribute to this 9,000 drop.

Hotels/entertainment/recreation: 268,300 workers – up 3,400 in a year vs. 9,600 annual gains in 2015-19. This 6,200 cooling reflects worker shortages.

Full-service eateries/food service: 339,100 workers – up 1,600 in a year vs. 6,600 annual gains in 2015-19. Inflation making shoppers pickier is part of this 5,000 cooling.

Information: 214,200 workers – down 100 in a year vs. 3,700 annual gains in 2015-19. Weakness in tech businesses and Hollywood productions created the 3,800 net downturn.

Personal services: 266,600 workers – up 500 in a year vs. 3,200 annual gains in 2015-19. Again, it is hard to find people to do this work. Thus, a 2,700 cooling.

Government: 1.03 million workers – up 11,600 in a year vs. 12,500 annual gains in 2015-19. This 900 dip is status quo.

The ups

Ponder the five industries where the hiring pace rose in the past year, ranked by the size of the gains …

Social assistance: 512,300 workers – up 28,200 in a year vs. 18,300 annual gains in 2015-19. The 9,900 addition comes as more folks need help at home for healthcare and child care.

Healthcare: 836,700 workers – up 30,100 in a year vs. 20,900 annual gains in 2015-19. The 9,200 growth parallels the region’s aging population and its need for medical services.

Retailing: 748,300 workers – up 8,300 in a year vs. 300 annual cuts in 2015-19. This somewhat surprising 8,600 improvement may be consumers tiring of online commerce and wanting to get out to shop.

Financial: 364,100 workers – up 4,400 in a year vs. 3,900 annual gains in 2015-19. The minor 500 improvement is a return to normalcy. Super-heated hiring came in the pandemic days thanks to a brief drop in mortgage rates to historic lows.

Private education: 215,700 workers – up 5,500 in a year vs. 5,100 annual gains in 2015-19. This 400 uptick reflects the growing interest in alternatives to public schooling.

Bottom line

While it’s rare for all industries to be growing at the same time – minus, say, just after an economic downturn – this 2024 edition of the winners vs. losers list raises an important issue.

It appears much of the past year’s job creation is coming from industries that historically pay meager wages. That’s an especially worrisome trend in high-cost Southern California.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

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California

California Lottery Powerball, Daily 3 Midday winning numbers for Nov. 27, 2024

Published

13 hours ago

November 28, 2024

Press Room

The California Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Nov. 27, 2024, results for each game:

Powerball

01-06-07-13-40, Powerball: 05, Power Play: 5

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Daily 3

Midday: 7-1-0

Evening: 4-9-6

Check Daily 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Daily Derby

1st:11 Money Bags-2nd:3 Hot Shot-3rd:8 Gorgeous George, Race Time: 1:47.44

Check Daily Derby payouts and previous drawings here.

Fantasy 5

03-10-12-29-33

Check Fantasy 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Daily 4

6-1-3-2

Check Daily 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

SuperLotto Plus

03-05-15-16-42, Mega Ball: 24

Check SuperLotto Plus payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Desert Sun producer. You can send feedback using this form.

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California

Democrat Derek Tran ousts Republican rival in key California House seat

Published

21 hours ago

November 27, 2024

Press Room

Democrat Derek Tran ousts Republican rival in key California House seat

Democrat Derek Tran ousted Republican Michelle Steel in a southern California House district Wednesday that was specifically drawn to give Asian Americans a stronger voice on Capitol Hill.

Steel said in a statement: “Like all journeys, this one is ending for a new one to begin.” When she captured the seat in 2020, Steel joined Washington state Democrat Marilyn Strickland and California Republican Young Kim as the first Korean American women elected to Congress.

Tran, a lawyer and worker rights advocate and the son of Vietnamese refugees, declared victory earlier this week. He said his win “is a testament to the spirit and resilience of our community. As the son of Vietnamese refugees, I understand firsthand the journey and sacrifices many families in our district have made for a better life.”

The contest is one of the last to be decided this year, with Republicans now holding 220 seats in the House, with Democrats at 214. The Associated Press has not declared a winner in California’s 13th district, where Democrat Adam Gray was leading Republican John Duarte by a couple of hundred votes.

Steel held an early edge after election day, but late-counted ballots pushed Tran over the top.

Steel filed a statement of candidacy on Monday with federal regulators, which would allow her to continue raising funds. It wasn’t immediately clear if she planned to seek a return to Congress.

In the campaign, Tran warned of Republican threats to abortion rights. Steel opposes abortion with exceptions for rape, incest or to save the life of the pregnant woman, while not going so far as to support a federal ban. Tran also warned that Donald Trump’s return to the White House would put democracy at risk.

On Capitol Hill, Steel has been outspoken in resisting tax increases and says she stands strongly with Israel in its war with Hamas. “As our greatest ally in the Middle East, the United States must always stand with Israel,” she said. She advocates for more police funding and has spotlighted her efforts on domestic violence and sexual abuse.

The largest demographic in the district, which is anchored in Orange county, south-east of Los Angeles, is Asian Americans, and it includes the nation’s biggest Vietnamese community. Democrats hold a four-point registration edge.

Incomplete returns showed that Steel was winning in Orange county, the bulk of the district. Tran’s winning margin came from a small slice of the district in Los Angeles county, where Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly two to one.

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