Supes back booze ban

Drinking on or near the Sacramento River could cost you big bucks this Labor Day weekend.

The Butte County Board of Supervisors passed an ordinance banning the consumption of alcohol along the eastern bank of the river, from the Gianella Bridge on Highway 32 south to the outlet of Big Chico Creek. The effort is designed to tone down the problems associated with the annual, unsanctioned float.

The local ordinance follows the passage of a state law allowing for such a ban during summer holidays on the river itself. It’s enforceable only if Butte and Glenn counties pass their own bans covering from the river’s edge up 50 feet of the river bank.

The Glenn County Board of Supervisors will take up the issue at its next meeting, on Aug. 30. Butte’s ordinance goes into effect at 12:01 a.m. Saturday morning (Sept. 3) and includes all day Labor Day (Sept. 5). It calls for fines of $100 for first-time offenders, $200 for a second offense, and $500 for a third citation.