In This Issue:

From The Chair: Mary Nichols, Secretary for Resources and CBC Chair, explores the politics of the environment and its advocates in rural communities.

CBC Joint Meeting With RCRC: Find out about the upcoming meeting, September 20th in Rohnert Park. This will be the third year in which we have held our regional meeting in conjunction with the Regional Council of Rural Counties.

Science Coordinating Committee Update: With a very small staff, the Science Coordinating Committee (SCC) is covering a lot of ground. Find out more about the status of the SCC.

CBC Special Projects: This issue features updates on the California Continuing Resource Investment Strategy Project (CCRISP) and the Watershed Work Group (WWG).

Member Spotlight - US Bureau of Reclamation: The Regional Council of Rural Counties is a valued member of the Council. Valerie Justice, RCRC's Water Resources Director, shares her thoughts on the intersection of local, state, and federal interests.

CBC in the News: This new feature spotlights two articles written by the news media. First, staff writer Lukas Velush of the Desert-Sun followed the Council's trip to Palm Spring in April. Tim O'Leary, The Press-Enterprise, commented on the June Regional Meeting at Camp Pendleton.

Rohnert Park Preview A series of articles presenting Council members and other interested parties to the key issues that will be the focus of the Council's September Meeting with RCRC in Rohnert Park.

• RCRC Annual Conference: Although CBC sessions end the first day of the conference, RCRC has put together a fantastic conference of its own. Read on to find out about the highlighted topics scheduled for the remainder of the week.
• Improving Participation by Rural Communities in Local Land Use Planning: People are working harder than ever to ease collaboration between federal, state and local government agencies and private interests such as landowners and environmentalists. Using the Sierra Nevada Framework Project as a case study, this article sets the stage for discussion at Rohnert Park.
• Methyl Mercury Contamination: Historic gold mining activities are coming back to haunt us. Fish in the Sierra are accumulating Mercury and Methyl Mercury in their tissues.
• OMV in Y2K: The Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Division of California State Parks turned thirty years old next year. Find out how things have changed.

Palm Springs Follow-up: Take a look at the issues and places the Council visited during this April Regional Meeting.

Camp Pendleton Overview: SANDAG representative takes a look at the biodiversity issues faced by Camp Pendleton faces and the Council's reaction to them.

A Personal Perspective: The director of the Redwood Action Committee comments on his journey with the Council to Camp Pendleton in June.

Spotlighting California's Coastal and Ocean Resources: Coming up in November, the Council will travel to Santa Barbara to tackle both the on-shore and off-shore issues affecting our coastal environment.

Full-time Coordinator Now On-Board: The Council has hired a full-time Communications Coordinator.

Eyes & Ears: Recent publications, videos, and websites that focus on environmental and biodiversity issues.

Upcoming Events: This calendar provides a look at biodiversity-related events occurring in the next six months.