PG&E Pays $14.75 Million to Settle Claims Arising from the 1999 Pendola Fire SACRAMENTO, Calif., July 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) has agreed to pay $14.75 million to settle the government's claims of damages resulting from the 1999 Pendola fire in the Plumas and Tahoe National Forests in Northern California.

Preliminary results from DNA analysis of wolverine scat samples collected on the Tahoe National Forest do not match those of historic California wolverine populations, according to U.S. Forest Service scientists.

During ongoing investigations by an Oregon State University graduate student, the Forest Service, and California Department of Fish and Game (DFG), two additional wolverine photographs were captured this past week. A variety of hair, track and scat samples were also sent for analysis to determine if these were from a wolverine. After the initial photograph of a wolverine was taken by a remote camera on Feb. 28, 2008, in the Tahoe National Forest, researchers, biologists and volunteers intensified the search for more detections in the same general area, north of Truckee, Calif.

By Carrie Peyton Dahlberg, The Sacramento Bee, Calif. Dec. 7--Brush clearing and preventive burning in national forests in the Sierra might be delayed up to a year under a new federal court ruling but won't be halted entirely, several forest managers said Thursday.

By Associated Press MEYERS, Calif. -- A forest fire near Lake Tahoe's south shore continued to rage Tuesday after destroying more than 275 homes and buildings, but firefighters said they made progress in slowing the blaze and were closer to identifying its cause.