Santa Cruz County Environment Overview

Farmworkers handle tarps at a farm near Moss Landing in October 2024. (Nik Altenberg — Santa Cruz Local file)
WATSONVILLE >> After five years of activism from Pajaro Valley residents and others across the state, California residents can now get …

Justin Cummings, Third District Santa Cruz County Supervisor, talks about efforts to retain his seat as chair of the powerful California Coastal Commission. He also explains other ordinances under discussion at the county level.

California stands as America’s agricultural powerhouse, growing half of its fruits and vegetables. Here’s how California farming has shaped the state, from the early missions to today’s “factories in the field.”

Meredith McPherson, a Santa Cruz-based U.S. Geological Survey geographer at right, was researching reefs and coral decline when she was fired in February as part of recent federal layoffs. She stands with her family at a March 7 Stand Up …

Dan Haifley, a long-time ocean conservationist and former director of O'Neill's Sea Odyssey and Save Our Shores, gives us an update on the multiple threats to ocean ecosystems and marine sanctuaries posed by the cuts to federal staff and budgets …

About 80 people gathered Monday in the historic Aromas Community Grange after the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) selected the Pajaro River Watershed as one of five watersheds to pilot the Watershed Resilience Program.

With the overwhelming approval of Measure Q, formally known as the “Santa Cruz County Safe Drinking Water, Clean Beaches, Wildfire Risk Reduction and Wildlife Protection Act,” County staff and partners are establishing the structure necessary to fulfill voters’ vision, including …

“We think that we are entering a phase where there will be more damaging earthquakes in the future.” —Stanford geophysicist Kurt Hickman

Dozens of volunteers joined forces with a crew from Watsonville Wetlands Watch and the City of Watsonville on Feb. 1 for a day of tending local wetlands as part of the annual World Wetlands Day.

Lithium-ion batteries power everything from our smartphones to electric vehicles, but they also come with risks. In this episode of Talk of the Bay, Meilin Obinata sits down with Patrick Durham, a mechanical engineer and firefighter, to dive deep into …