LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – In the next several weeks a team of scientists from the University of California, Berkeley (UCB) will be sampling the sediments under Clear Lake to help answer a wide range of questions about prehistoric Lake conditions, ancient plant and insect life and the possible effects of global warming on Clear Lake and its surrounding environment.

The UCB scientists will use a floating sediment core drill rig out in the center of the Upper Arm of the Lake to extract two 3-inch diameter cores about 400 foot long.

These cores should contain sediments as old as 130,000 years, about one-quarter the estimated age of Clear Lake.

This type of sediment sampling has been done in the past and has yielded evidence ranging from the types of prehistoric plant communities to recent human impacts on the Lake.

These new cores will be done in the same locations as previous work but will focus on the older profile of the Lake’s history.

The sediment coring equipment will be assembled in Lakeport on April 25 and coring operations will start April 27. The floating coring rig will be located from one to three miles west southwest of Lucerne and will operate around the clock for seven to 10 days.

Due to safety issues, boaters need to keep clear of the operations and not disturb the work crews.