Santa Clara County Local Sustainability News Articles and Digest

Transportation Sustainability State of California

California EV Sales Are Falling. Is It Just Temporary, or a Threat to State Climate Goals?

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.

From CalMatters...

Business, Economy & Jobs Elections & Politics Sustainability State of California

Legislators Unveil Measure to Ask Voters for $1 billion Offshore Wind Bond

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.

From CalMatters...

Sustainability State of California

Why CA Legislators Want to Ban More Plastic Bags

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.”

From Los Angeles Times...

Health Sustainability

As Climate Hazards Converge, More Californians Are Living in Harm’s Way

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.

From CalMatters...

Transportation Sustainability

Californians Bought Record Numbers of Electric Cars as Industry Eyes Slowdown

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?

From California Healthline...

Health Sustainability State of California

Back From COP28, California Climate Leaders Talk Health Impacts of Warming

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.

From CalMatters...

Water Animals Sustainability State of California

Saving Salmon: Newsom Unveils Blueprint for Ending Decades-Long Decline

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.

From Los Angeles Times...

Environment Sustainability

A Fire Burning Inside an L.A. County Landfill is Raising Alarms Over Toxic Air

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.

From CapPublicRadio...

Environment Water Sustainability

‘Hot Droughts’ Are Becoming More Common in the Arid West, New Study Finds

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.

From CalMatters...

Sustainability

Since California Cut Home Solar Payments, Demand Has Plunged 80%

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.

From Morgan Hill Times...

Sustainability City of Morgan Hill

San Martin Toilet Storage Project Delayed

01/22/2024
Image for display with article titled San Martin Toilet Storage Project Delayed

The Santa Clara County Planning Commission delayed its consideration of a portable toilet storage facility in San Martin, so members could get more information before making a decision.

From Palo Alto Weekly...

Environment Sustainability City of Palo Alto

As Palo Alto Relaxes Rules for Tree Removal, Some Urge Broader Overhaul

01/17/2024
When Palo Alto passed an ambitious tree-protection law in 2022, it aimed to shield the city's treasured canopy from destruction. But as the council pared back the law, some called for more radical measures.

From Los Altos Town Crier...

Environment Land Use & Development Sustainability City of Los Altos

Court Gives Los Altos a Bad Case of Gas

01/16/2024
A federal appeals court has declined to reconsider its controversial April 2023 decision that mutes Los Altos’ and other cities’ attempts to require natural gas bans in new construction.

From Sacramento Bee...

Agriculture, Food & Gardening Sustainability Government

Newsom Pitches Spending $22M to Fight Fruit Flies

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.

From Mountain View Voice...

Education Sustainability City of Mountain View

New All-Electric Bookmobile is Coming to Mountain View

01/09/2024
Mountain View's bookmobile program is getting an upgrade, transitioning to an all-electric vehicle and putting the city a step closer to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions.

From YubaNet...

Water Animals Sustainability

New Year Brings Protections for Deep-Sea Corals and Ocean Fishing Opportunities

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.

From Monterey Herald...

Land Use & Development Water Sustainability

Homeowners Who Sued to Build a Seawall Could Reshape California’s Coast

01/07/2024
Raging storms brought major damage to California’s coastline last winter. But in Half Moon Bay, a different kind of coastal upheaval is gaining momentum—one that could decide the fate of billions of dollars of property and affect hundreds of public beaches.

From San Jose Inside...

Business, Economy & Jobs Water Sustainability State of California

California’s Proposed Water Conservation Rules Too Stringent and Costly, Analysts Say

01/05/2024
Image for display with article titled California’s Proposed Water Conservation Rules Too Stringent and Costly, Analysts Say

Though California faces serious water shortages, the Legislature's analysts recommend weaker outdoor conservation requirements and longer deadlines.

From San Jose Inside...

Land Use & Development Transportation Sustainability State of California

CA Pot Hole Alert: Rise in Electric Vehicles Will Reduce Money for Road Repairs, Trains and Buses

01/04/2024
Image for display with article titled California Pot Hole Alert: Rise in Electric Vehicles Will Reduce Money for Road Repairs, Trains, Buses

Image for display with article titled California Pot Hole Alert: Rise in Electric Vehicles Will Reduce Money for Road Repairs, Trains, Buses

As the state battles climate change and Californians drive fewer gas-powered cars, tax revenue will drop substantially, according to a state analysis.

From Palo Alto Online...

Public Safety Sustainability

New Firefighting Device Helps Mountain View Extinguish Electric Vehicle Fires Faster, Using Less Water

01/04/2024
Electric vehicle battery fires are known to burn hot, long and occasionally reignite. But they may have met their match with a new tool specifically designed to put out electric vehicle fires faster.

Santa Clara County Local News: Sustainability