According to the Associated Press, Crystal Geyser bottled water was sentenced Wednesday to three years of probation and ordered to pay $5 million in fines for illegally storing and transporting hazardous waste, federal prosecutors said. Residents of the Eastern Sierra are familiar with the bottled water plant that sits just off to the side of […]
LETTER TO THE EDITOR Submitted by Andre Long Regarding Deb Murphy’s recent article on Olancha (http://sierrawave.net/olancha-cartago-the-gateway-to-the-sierra-nevadas/), here is the stone cold truth about the subject: Caltrans has completely disregarded the wishes of the Olancha community from the very beginning of this project. Why else would they construct a 50-acre open pit material mine and asphalt plant […]
By Deb Murphy A four-lane version of U.S. Hwy. 395 may by-pass Olancha and Cartago some time in the future, but CalTrans won’t leave the little communities in the lurch. The future of both was outlined at Tuesday’s Inyo Board of Supervisors’ meeting by James Powell of Alta Planning and Design. Olancha/Cartago will be re-branded […]
CHP news release “On 07/28/19 at approximately 11:05 AM, a horseback rider was riding a horse near US-395, just north of Cactus Flats Rd. in Olancha, CA. At the same time, Mark Langford of Bishop, CA, was driving his pickup pulling a travel trailer southbound on US-395 at approximately 55-60 MPH and was approaching the […]
By Deb Murphy More than 150 burros, seven mules and nine horses were removed from the Wild Burro Rescue and Preservation Project in Olancha. Project operator Diane Chontas has been arrested. Inyo County Sheriff’s Department conducted the seizure. The rescue took two days to move the animals to a safe location where they were given […]
By Deb Murphy Four years ago CG Roxane LLC began the process of dealing with arsenic contamination of groundwater at its Crystal Geyser bottling plant in Olancha. Late last week, the company was charged in federal court with illegal disposal of that arsenic-tainted wastewater. The charges filed in Los Angeles allege CG Roxane and two […]
From Inyo County Sheriff’s Office On January 12th at approximately 10:14 Inyo County Sheriff’s Dispatch received a 911 call from a man in Olancha who reported that he had shots fired at him. Inyo County Sheriff’s Deputies and California Highway Patrol responded to the location and determined that 54 yr old Olancha resident, Steven Paul […]
News releases OLANCHA— The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is currently providing traffic control for the cleanup of a sedan versus truck accident that occurred yesterday evening. The accident is just south of the junction of U.S. 395 and State Route 190, in the town of Olancha. The overturned truck was hauling 52,000 pounds of […]
News release The Bars Fire, detected near Olancha Pass on September 21, has grown to .75 acres. The fire is burning in sagebrush, pinyon/juniper, and white fir. Smoke maybe visible along Hwy 395, west of Olancha, especially in the afternoon. Please do not report this fire. Crews are using trail systems and natural barriers for […]
Sunday morning, fire broke out somewhere near the Lone Pine dump and spread north and south, whipped by extremely high winds. Lone Pine Fire Chief Leroy Kritz said that eight agencies responded. At 6pm Sunday, the fire had calmed way down and crews were being released. Fire Chief Kritz said he and others are not […]
Crystal Geyser promotes its bottled water as “the only major U.S. spring water bottled exclusively at the source.” The company shows eight sources, and the one in Olancha has plans for expansion. The public can now comment on a Draft Environmental Impact Report on Crystal Geyser’s expansion plan for a 198,500 square foot bottling plant […]
An Olancha area property owner has taken cyberspace action to oppose Caltrans’ plans to build a bypass around that area. Scott Palamar objected strongly to the Caltrans plan to blend two alternatives with no public discussion. Now, he has created a website for the purpose of fighting the Highway 395 bypass. Palamar has said that […]
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