Discussion over a Nestlé water-bottling plant appears to be growing in Sacramento, as the Swiss multinational prepares a facility for operation and new hires begin work. The Sacramento City Council, which was not involved in the decision to approve the plant, will discuss the issue publicly for the first time after a request two weeks ago by council members Kevin McCarty and Lauren Hammond. They asked the council to consider an emergency ordinance requiring a special permit before Nestlé Waters North America begins bottling city tap water and spring water at a plant in South Sacramento. Such a permit could "trigger" an environmental analysis of this and future facilities, McCarty said We

  In the heart of quiet, residential west Davis, the management members of the Sierra Club Yolano Group, a close-knit circle of eight elderly friends that represent the Yolo and Solano counties, met on Oct. 8 to discuss the progress to set aside a national conservation area surrounding Berryessa Snow Mountain. The proposed national conservation area would include 800,000 acres west of Sacramento and north of the San Francisco Bay, with elevations ranging between 2,000 and 7,000 feet.  Putah and Cache creeks both wind through the area, greenery to the whole valley.  The Sierra Club is one of many groups trying to get this land legal protection. The land is also home to many animals, incl