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Salud Para La Gente has provided health care to a medically underserved and vulnerable community since 1978.

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Learning Through Burning: Moss Landing Fire Exposes Need for Changes in Battery Facilities

02/15/2025

AS HOST TO the largest battery storage facility in the world, on a site that just had its fourth fire in four years, the people of Monterey County have grown to realize that Moss Landing is a learning laboratory for California’s green energy transition.

Bird Flu Infected Flock Confirmed in San Mateo

02/06/2025

A local backyard poultry flock has been confirmed by San Mateo County health officials to have been infected with H5N1 bird flu. Read on for more information.

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The Pajaronian logo LOCAL NEWS
Lawsuit Targets Vistra Facility

Close to 100 people gathered Saturday in Moss Landing to voice their concern and demand better information about the fire that tore through a battery storage facility at the Moss Landing Power Plant on Jan. 16

The Pajaronian logo LOCAL NEWS
Healing Together: The Progress and Promise of Watsonville Community Hospital

Trust is not built on words alone—it is forged through action, teamwork, and empathy. This holds true in times of prosperity, but is even more critical during hardship and crisis. Few experiences unite people like the shared journey from loss …

KSQD logo LOCAL NEWS
Code Blue: Nurses on the Frontline – Talk of the Bay

On this episode of Talk of the Bay host PK Hattis is joined by nurses from Dominican Hospital who staged a picket last week in protest of chronic staffing shortages and a lack of investment from hospital ownership Dignity Health …

Press Banner logo LOCAL NEWS
Scotts Valley High School Wellness Center Opens With Focus on Mental Health

It was a sunny day without a cloud in the sky. Mountain bikers passed along a Glenwood Open Space Preserve trail above Scotts Valley High School to the sound of birds chirping.

Santa Cruz Local logo LOCAL NEWS
Bird Flu Risks Described by Santa Cruz County Health Officials

Santa Cruz County health officers said bird flu has not shown up in the county, but residents should take precaution. (Stephen Baxter — Santa Cruz Local file)
SANTA CRUZ >>  At least 67 people have become infected with the H5N1 …

The Pajaronian logo LOCAL NEWS
Study Shows ‘Heavy Concentrations’ of Heavy Metals in Soil After Moss Landing Fire

One day after a group of Santa Cruz County residents collected soil samples from the areas impacted by the Jan. 16 battery storage facility fire at the Moss Landing Power Plant to test for heavy metals, a San Jose State …

The Pajaronian logo LOCAL NEWS
Critics Decry Pesticide Rule as Too Lenient: ‘Why Use It?’

The Department of Pesticide Regulation’s (DPR) held a public hearing Jan. 16 at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas to address a new draft regulation for Telone, a pesticide also known by the chemical name 1,3-dichloropropene.

Local News Matters Stockton logo LOCAL NEWS
Where Are All the Eggs? Bird Flu’s Spread Not the Only Culprit in Crisis of Global Proportions

IF YOU HAVE tried to bake a cake recently, you might have had a hard time finding eggs. The empty shelves are a sign of the devastating impact of avian influenza, H5N1 or HPAI, on commercial poultry flocks in California.The …

Santa Cruz Local logo LOCAL NEWS
Watsonville Residents Push for Stricter Pesticide Rules

Jacob Sandoval speaks about a state pesticide proposal at a news conference in Watsonville in November. (Ruby Lee Schembari — Santa Cruz Local file)
Hearings on proposed pesticide rules
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation will present details of a …

KSQD logo LOCAL NEWS
Santa Cruz County’s Mobile Response Unit Saves Lives

As local governments try to stretch their budgets to accommodate a new wave of mental health cases, a new program is trying to shift the emergency response from uniformed officers to trained mental health counselors. Since the killing by police …

Featured

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Here's the story behind that new service, and the original 911 number.
Mosquitos kill about 725,000 people every year, worldwide.
Taking a Bite Out of the Mosquito Population
How local government tries to control the world’s deadliest wild animal—the mosquito.
Access to abortion in California is limited in many areas, though state laws protect a woman’s right to choose.
Abortion Rights in California, Explained
But even in California, access to abortion services in many areas remains limited.
The California mental health crisis is tied to both homelessness and rising crime.
UPDATE: California’s Mental Health Crisis: How We Got Here
The making of Gov. Newsom's plan to help get mentally ill Californians into treatment.
Though life expectancy has declined in recent years, Californians still live longer than most Americans.
Want to Live a Long, Healthy Life? Move to California
Californians live longer than people in all but three states, but not all counties are equal.
From nitrates to arsenic to “forever chemicals,” California’s water supply faces a serious pollution threat.
Dirty Water: California Faces a Water Contamination Crisis
In a state that declares water a “human right,” more than 2 percent of its residents have no drinkable water.
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