San Benito County Local News: Sustainability

02/26/2024
Ecologists estimate that up to 14,000 sequoias have been killed in recent wildfires. The National Park Service for the first time has begun replanting some severely burned areas.

02/25/2024
New research warns of a possible collapse in Atlantic Ocean currents due to climate change. That could fundamentally alter global weather patterns.

02/24/2024
There was a time not so long ago when trained observers were overwhelmed by the number of whales migrating through Monterey Bay.

02/23/2024
The Wildlife Conservation Board voted to award $10.3 million to the Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County to preserve the 27,000-acre Camatta Ranch in Santa Margarita.

02/22/2024
The state’s environmental tool skews which communities are designated as disadvantaged, researchers say. Some immigrant neighborhoods could be left out, while other groups are overrepresented.

02/14/2024
California electric vehicle sales dropped significantly in the last half of 2023, raising questions about the state’s ability to phase out gas-powered cars.

02/08/2024
The funds would help California ports expand to handle giant wind turbines and other equipment. California’s first offshore wind farms are on a fast track off Humboldt County and Morro Bay.

02/08/2024
State Senators Ben Allen and Catherine Blakespear announced a new measure to ban plastic bags statewide—particularly the thicker ones billed as “reusable.”

02/02/2024
When wildfire smoke and extreme heat combine, they create “a synergistic effect” or an “additional burden” on people’s health, researchers say.

02/01/2024
Some automakers are reducing production of electric cars and Tesla sales have dropped. Can California sustain its record pace and meet the state mandate?

02/01/2024
San Benito County planners voted 4-1 against the John Smith Landfill expansion project’s EIR, conditional use permit and General Plan amendment.

01/31/2024
As Californians increasingly feel the health effects of climate change, state leaders are adopting sweeping policies they hope will fend off the worst impacts.

01/30/2024
Chinook and other salmon runs are collapsing. Conservation groups call it too little, too late. Plan includes dam removals and restoring river flows.

01/29/2024
As an underground fire burns deep within Chiquita Canyon Landfill, air regulators are raising alarms over the possible spread of toxic vapors.

01/28/2024
Take a period of limited rainfall. Add heat. And you have what scientists call a “hot drought”—dry conditions made more intense by the evaporative power of hotter temperatures.

01/25/2024
Experts worry that the steep decline could stall the state’s battle against climate change. Solar power is critical to meeting California’s ambitious requirement to switch to carbon-free electricity.

01/22/2024
After a presentation on the landfill project, the council unanimously agreed to oppose the recommended haul route along Hwy 25 and receive further direction about the city’s hazardous waste disposal site at a future meeting.

01/10/2024
California farmers face challenges posed by multiple types of fruit flies. Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed spending just over $22 million to combat the spread of these flies.

01/08/2024
New rules took effect Jan. 1 permanently protecting the most fragile deep sea corals off Southern California. Simultaneously, more than 4,500 square miles of ocean waters are now reopened to fishing after more than 20 years of closures.