Sustainability Image

Sacramento County Sustainability Articles



Image caption: Ocean waves may be good for more than surfing. They may play a role in reducing California's greenhouse gas emissions.
California Looks to Ocean Waves For New Clean Energy Source

Only a few small demonstration projects off the West Coast have harnessed the power of waves and tides. Costs are high and hurdles are challenging.

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
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...

Image caption: Even as the state has set ambitious clean energy goals, California is once again slashing incentives for rooftop solar power.
California Slashes Rooftop Solar Incentives—Again

The utilities commission reduced payments to apartments, schools and businesses selling solar power to the grid despite a barrage of criticism. Commissioners say it reverses unfair subsidies.

Image caption: A definitive federal report says California’s economy suffers more than almost all states from the effects of climate change.
California Among Top 5 Worst Climate Change States, Report Says

California ranks among the top states suffering economic damage from climate-related disasters. The report describes food shortages, floods, droughts, wildfires, pollution, disease—all linked to climate change.

Image caption: California is considering an end to a program that gives tax credits for cow poop–based biofuels.
Climate Credits for Cow Manure: Program May End Soon

California grants climate credits for fuel made from cow manure, but there’s a paradox: The state’s program encourages collection of methane yet promotes natural gas.

Image caption: There is a wind-turbine arms race underway in China, which already manufactures windmills whose blades sweep an area the size of 10 football fields per spin.
Wind Turbine Developments off Central Coast on ‘Fast Track’

Ocean wind farms are essential to electrify California’s grid with 100% clean energy. But they’re a giant, costly experiment—no one knows how hundreds of towering turbines will transform the remote North Coast.

Image caption: Conservation director Bryan Largay helps the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County choose its priorities.
A Conversation with California Conservationist Bryan Largay

The conservation director of Land Trust of Santa Cruz talks about the highlights of his work, and some of the issues he sees in maintaining California’s parks.

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
Final environmental impact report on Delta Tunnel slated for release in ‘late 2023’

By Dan Bacher In a recent announcement, the California Department of Water Resources, or DWR, said that it is “still on track” to issue a...

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
Sacramento Manor completes largest-ever apartment electrification retrofit project

Affordable senior living community makes a conscious shift from gas to electric  By Steve Martarano The recent transformation of 260 senior living garden apartments at...

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
California utility wants customers to pay for carbon capture and hydrogen

Sempra is pitching lawmakers on industry-friendly climate solutions paid by ratepayers. By Aaron Cantú, Capital & Main This story is produced by the award-winning journalism...

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
Collaborative art raises climate consciousness in Davis

Trail of murals illustrates sustainable agricultural practices to raise awareness on climate change Laurie Lauletta-Boshart Driving north through rural Davis, Jullianne Ballou noticed a series...

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
SMUD, Sutter County officials grapple with the controversial possibilities of carbon-capture near Yuba City

By Russell Nichols Using less water and natural gas than older models, the Sutter Energy Center came online in 2001, claiming to be one of...

Image caption: How California reclamation districts turned millions of acres of wetlands into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush.
Reclamation Districts: Turning ‘Swamps’ Into Farmland

California has used reclamation districts to turn millions of acres of unusable swamps into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush. Here’s how it happened.

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
One person stopped California’s divestment from fossil fuels — again

Assemblymember Tina McKinnor refused to take up the bill in a committee, for the second year in a row, as divestment movement grows. By Aaron...

Image caption:
Working Together: TTCF and California Local

A conversation with Stacy Caldwell, CEO of Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
Bumps in the air: What’s climate change got to do with It?

Add shaky planes, weather delays and cancellations to our new reality under unfriendly warming skies. By Mark Schapiro, Capital & Main This story is produced...

Image caption: Zoning for single family homes is at the heart of numerous urban and social problems.
Should Zoning Laws Be Abolished?

Zoning laws that restrict new housing development cause environmental damage, racial and class segregation, and force people into cars creating traffic. Now, a new movement wants to abolish zoning in the United States.

Image caption: California ranks seventh in wind power, with 3.5 percent of all U.S. wind energy produced here.
California Inches Toward Renewable Energy Goal

Renewable energy sources provided 37 percent of California electricity in 2021, a new record for the state as it moves toward its 2045 goal of 100 percent clean energy. Battery storage will play a huge role in reaching that goal.

Featured

Water is a human right under California law, but it doesn’t always work out that way.
Agriculture and Water Shortages in the State’s Breadbasket, Explained
There are many causes contributing to this crisis. And as you may already know, this situation really is nuts.
RCDs look after the land, whether it’s used for grazing, growing, or getting out into nature.
California Dirt
RCDs were created to avoid a repeat of the Dust Bowl. Now they work with landowners to preserve the air, water and natural habitats that sustain us all.
Moss Landing in Monterey Bay is the world’s largest battery storage facility for solar and other renewable energy.
Solar Power and California’s Clean Energy Goals
How the sun is helping push the state toward 100 percent renewable energy.
Dairy products are California’s top agricultural commodity, but the industry is often criticized for its impact on the environment.
Sustainable Sustenance
Greener ways to feed the world’s growing population
How California reclamation districts turned millions of acres of wetlands into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush.
Reclamation Districts: Turning ‘Swamps’ Into Farmland
From its earliest days as a state, California has been trying to turn marshes into productive land.
Long-duration energy storage, such as this thermal energy storage facility, allows renewable energy sources to operate at full capacity without overloading the power grid.
How California Leads the Race For Long Duration Energy Storage
For renewable energy sources such as solar and wind to be viable, ways to store the power they create are essential.
California has a goal of 6 million heat pumps cooling and heating buildings by 2030.
6 Million New Heat Pumps: Essential to California's Climate Future
Installing 6 million heat pumps by 2030 is essential if California is to reach its goal of net zero carbon emissions.