Sacramento County Local Sustainability News Articles and Digest

Agriculture, Food & Gardening Sustainability

California Awards $116.8 Million to Conserve Agricultural Lands

12/19/2023
The California Strategic Growth Council approved over $116 million in Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program grants to permanently protect 50,500 acres of croplands and rangelands, as well as lands utilized by Indigenous tribes for the cultivation of traditional resources.

From The Sacramento Observer...

Sustainability Crime & Justice

The Kids Suing the EPA Over Climate Change Are Black and Brown Too

12/19/2023
Genesis B. doesn’t have air conditioning. That used to be the norm in Long Beach, California, where the 17-year-old was born and raised.

From The New York Times...

Water History Sustainability

Who Gets the Water in California? Whoever Gets There First.

12/14/2023
Water fights have shaped California since its infancy as a state, when its abundance seemed limitless. Now, Californians are being forced to confront limitations, and the state that prides itself on creating the future is now reckoning with its past.

From Folsom Telegraph...

Sustainability City of Folsom Sacramento Tree Foundation

Folsom to Extend Contract With Sacramento Tree Foundation

12/13/2023
Image for display with article titled Folsom to Extend Contract with Sacramento Tree Foundation

The Folsom City Council agreed to extend a three-year contract for city tree preservation services. The replacement program is funded by in-lieu tree mitigation fees charged by the city when trees are removed for development.

From CapPublicRadio...

Sustainability State of California

A Year After Composting Mandate, Officials Still Focus on Education Over Enforcement

12/13/2023
It takes about 90 days for organic waste to become compost at the Yolo County Central Landfill, yielding a fine, dark brown heap of compost. But many residents aren’t recycling their organics at all.

From Capital & Main...

Environment Sustainability Government

Kern County Looks to Make Renewable Energy with Carbon Dioxide

12/12/2023
Officials in Kern County are proposing to build a carbon management facility that would be twice the size of Manhattan. By doing this, they would leverage federal tax credits to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

From SFGate...

Environment Parks & Recreation Sustainability

Yosemite Trying New Strategies to Reduce Food Packaging Waste

12/11/2023
An estimated 100,000 pizza boxes have been removed from Yosemite’s waste stream. This is because the famed park now serves pizza on trays and puts to-go portions in compostable bags, part of a move to reduce food-related waste.

From CapPublicRadio...

Families & Children Sustainability Crime & Justice

California Children Sue the EPA Over Climate Change

12/11/2023
Eighteen California children are suing the Environmental Protection Agency, claiming it violated their constitutional rights by failing to protect them from the effects of climate change—the latest in a series of similar cases filed on behalf of children.

From CapPublicRadio...

Education Sustainability

Sacramento High School Will Start Training Students as EV Technicians

12/10/2023
A pilot program in the Sacramento City Unified School District could help California’s emerging electric vehicle industry by preparing students for EV technician roles upon graduation.

From YubaNet...

Education Environment Sustainability

Research Explores Capacity of Biochar to Combat Climate Change, Improve Forest Soils

12/08/2023
A Cal Poly Humboldt professor is partnering with USDA researchers to study biochar, which results from heating dry plant-based materials at high temperatures without oxygen. The CO2 in the charcoal then stays in the soil for hundreds of years, rather than in the atmosphere.

From Los Angeles Times...

Environment Transportation Sustainability

High-Speed Rail Project Connecting SoCal to Las Vegas Wins Grant

12/05/2023
Private company Brightline secured a $3 billion grant through the U.S. Department of Transportation toward a 218-mile high-speed rail line from Rancho Cucamonga to Las Vegas. The line would allow people to make the trip to Sin City in a little over two hours.

From CapPublicRadio...

Water Sustainability Resilience State of California

As Atmospheric Rivers Become More Frequent, California Expands Research to Prepare

12/05/2023
A new law expanding California’s atmospheric river research program goes into effect next year. It connects flood and reservoir control operations with new technologies and strategies that can help operators accurately predict the arrival of these storms.

From SFGate...

Business, Economy & Jobs Environment Sustainability

Imperial County Might Have Enough Lithium for 375 Million Batteries

12/04/2023
A new study by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has found that approximately 3,400 kilotons of lithium are located below Imperial County in Southern California. This could produce more than $7 billion in lithium carbonate annually, helping power significant numbers of electric vehicles.

From KQED...

Business, Economy & Jobs Environment Transportation Sustainability Government

Oakland Might Have to Pay Developers Millions Over Coal Terminal

12/04/2023
An Alameda County judge ruled on Nov. 22 that the city of Oakland thwarted a proposed coal export terminal. The judge will rule if the developer who sued is entitled to $159 million in damages or moving forward with the project.

From YubaNet...

Environment Sustainability

Science Points to ‘Climate Collapse’ as UN Chief Calls for Action

11/30/2023
The world is heating up at an unprecedented pace, new climate data shows, and leaders gathered for the COP28 conference in Dubai must get us out of “deep trouble,” UN chief António Guterres said.

California Local Pin Marker From California Local...

Business, Economy & Jobs Environment Water Sustainability Government

California Looks to Ocean Waves for New Clean Energy Source

11/29/2023
Image for display with article titled Surf's Up! California May Look to Ocean Waves as Possible New Clean Energy Source

Costs to turn waves into energy are high, but so's the payoff for California's clean energy future.

From YubaNet...

Sustainability Resilience

2023 Shatters Records

11/29/2023
2023 has broken climate records, accompanied by extreme weather which has left a trail of devastation, according to the World Meteorological Organization.

From YubaNet...

Environment Sustainability

DOE Analysis Confirms Salton Sea Is a Rich Domestic Lithium Resource

11/28/2023
An analysis by the U.S. Department of Energy found that with expected technology advances, the Salton Sea region’s total lithium resources could produce more than 3,400 kilotons of lithium, enough to support over 375 million batteries for electric vehicles—more than the total number currently on U.S. roads.

From Sacramento Bee...

Animals Sustainability

White House Allocates Millions for Burps from California Cows

11/24/2023
Livestock are responsible for half of all methane emissions in California. The White House is giving $21.4 million to California Dairies and $22.8 million to Dairy Farmers of America to help change this.

From Sacramento News and Review...

Sustainability

Without Tree Cover, Urban Californians Are Hit Harder by Heat, Air Pollution

11/20/2023
Image for display with article titled Without Tree Cover, Urban Californians Are Hit Harder by Heat, Air Pollution

California cities have the least urban tree canopy in the U.S. A Los Angeles housing project shows how residents can transform their environment—if they can get support.

Sacramento County Local News: Sustainability