From YubaNet...
Scientists Find Two Ways That Hurricanes Intensify
10/26/2023Forecasters have struggled to understand why tropical storms sometimes blow up into major hurricanes. Scientists have shed some light on this forecasting challenge.
From CalMatters...
Western States’ Water Cuts Should Hold Off Colorado River Crisis—For Now
10/25/2023Wet weather and planned cuts by California, Arizona and Nevada averted declines that could have threatened water deliveries and power production—but long-term threats to the Colorado River remain.
From CalMatters...
Despite Newsom Veto, State Takes Steps to Ban Artificial Turf Due to ‘Forever Chemicals’
10/17/2023California cities can ban synthetic turf under a law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed. He rejected a bill to ban PFAS in fake lawns.
From CalMatters...
10/15/2023Massive ocean wind farms off Morro Bay and Santa Barbara County—which could transform these quiet coastal towns and affect marine life—face a turbulent path.
From CalMatters...
10/15/2023Gov. Newsom vetoed bills to outlaw caste discrimination and to consider gender affirmation in child custody cases. Advocates wonder if he’s thinking about his national political profile.
From CalMatters...
San Joaquin Valley Groundwater Pumpers Need to Slow Down or Face Fines, State Says
10/12/2023Hundreds of wells in Tulare Lake aquifer are at risk of going dry. Today's recommendation is the first time that state officials have moved to crack down on local plans that fail to stop excessive groundwater pumping.
From CalMatters...
Climate Change Took Them to ‘Dark Places.’ Now These Californians are Doing Something About it
10/09/2023The facts of climate change can lead to feelings of hopelessness and despair. Some California activists are creating communities for people to talk about those feelings.
From CalMatters...
Public Utilities Commission to Vote on Plan That Could Make it Harder to Power Homes With Solar
10/05/2023The CPUC is considering a rule that would gut the payments that solar panels on apartment buildings receive, and many housing groups are blazing mad about it.
From CalMatters...
The Bay-Delta Ecosystem is Collapsing. Now California Has Dueling Plans to Save It
09/28/2023A long-awaited, controversial report weighs updates to standards that state officials say have failed to protect fish and wildlife. But environmentalists, Native tribes and others already are furious about how long this has taken—and the state is years away from taking action.
From CapPublicRadio...
Why California Rivers Saw Fewer Harmful Algal Blooms This Year
09/20/2023Outbreaks have wreaked havoc on the state’s river ecosystems for years. But this year was different. Faster, colder river waters led to fewer outbreaks of the harmful algae.
From YubaNet...
Study: Near-Surface Permafrost Will be Nearly Gone by 2100
09/15/2023An international team found that the amount of near-surface permafrost could drop by 93% compared to the preindustrial period of 1850 to 1900. Permafrost may exist only in the eastern Siberian uplands, Canadian High Arctic Archipelago and northernmost Greenland—as it did in the mid-Pliocene Warm Period.
From CalMatters...
Your Lawn May be Gone. New Bill Bans Irrigation of ‘Ornamental’ Lawns
09/13/2023The irrigation bill, which aims to force businesses and institutions to remove their lawns, now goes to the governor.
From CalMatters...
Lawmakers Strike $106 Million Deal for Hydrogen Vehicle Fueling Stations
09/13/2023Hydrogen fueling stations will get 15 percent of funds in a state program — even though Californians own only about 12,000 hydrogen cars. The funds come from fees paid by drivers.
From CapPublicRadio...
Meet California’s (Possible) Future State Bat
09/12/2023There’s an official state bird, mineral, tree, fish, insect, lichen, fabric, sport, dance, soil and even dinosaur.
From CalMatters...
Climate Bill Forcing Companies to Reveal Carbon Emissions Passes, Newsom Yet to Say if He’ll Sign it
09/12/2023About 5,300 companies would file annual emissions reports. The aim is to hold corporations accountable for the role they play in climate change.
From CalMatters...
California’s Wildfire Smoke and Climate Change: 4 Things You Need to Know
09/04/2023California wildfires every year emit as much carbon as almost 2 million cars, posing a threat to efforts to battle climate change.
From Daily Democrat...
Wildfire, Soil Emissions Increasing Air Pollution in Remote Forests
08/30/2023Satellite data from across California’s landscapes reveal an increase in nitrogen dioxide levels in remote forest areas, and wildfire and soil emissions are likely the reasons why, according to a paper from UC Davis published in the journal Environmental Research Letters.
From CapPublicRadio...
Vast Marine Sanctuary Proposed in Partnership with California Tribe
08/27/2023The Biden administration is one step away from designating the first national marine sanctuary nominated by a tribe. Tribal members of the Chumash, who have lobbied for the creation of this Central Coast preserve for more than a decade, would be involved in managing it.
Ancient Fires Drove Large Mammals Extinct, Study Suggests
08/17/2023In a new study published Aug. 17 in the journal Science, fossil records at La Brea Tar Pits indicate that the disappearance of California’s sabertooth cats, dire wolves and other large mammals nearly 13,000 years ago was linked to rising temperatures and fire activity spurred by people.
From CalMatters...
08/17/2023With only 12,000 hydrogen cars on the road, and just two models for sale, California lawmakers are debating how much state money should support them.
From Tahoe Daily Tribune...
Aquatic Robot 'PixieDrone' Cleans Lake Tahoe’s Waters
08/02/2023To Keep Tahoe Blue, the League to Save Lake Tahoe teamed up with ECO-CLEAN Solutions and the Tahoe Keys Marina to introduce an aquatic robot that glides across the surface, removing water-borne debris and aquatic weeds.
From CalMatters...
Medical Cannabis Paved the Way for Legalization in California. Now Patients Feel Left Behind
07/31/2023Frustration runs deep among medical cannabis patients and advocates who say the commercial market created by Proposition 64 in 2016 isn’t meeting their needs.
From Tahoe Daily Tribune...
Clean Up the Lake Launches Environmental Dive Center
07/28/2023Clean Up the Lake, known for its 72-mile cleanup project around the shores of Lake Tahoe, has opened its Environmental Dive Center at Lake Tahoe.
From YubaNet...
Litigation Now a Key Tool in Seeking Climate Justice
07/27/2023The total number of climate change court cases has more than doubled since 2017 and is growing worldwide. These findings, published by the UN Environment Programme and the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University, show that climate litigation is becoming an integral part of securing climate action and justice.
From Sierra Sun...
18th Annual Tahoe Bike Month Draws Record Participants
07/19/2023With a record number of participants this year, the 18th annual Tahoe Bike Challenge got more people than ever out of their cars to help improve Lake Tahoe's environment and communities.
From Sierra Sun...
World’s Tallest White Fir Found in Caldor Burn Scar
07/18/2023The tree, dubbed “Firetop,” is 265.87 feet tall, more than 16 feet around and just over 5 feet in diameter.
From The Sacramento Bee...
California Republicans Fighting Again to Raise the Shasta Dam
07/17/2023Raising Shasta Dam to increase its capacity would provide 634,000 more acre-feet of water per year, legislators say. But that assumes there will always be enough precipitation, and the move risks flooding sacred Native American lands and harming local habitats.
From Sierra Sun...
Local Assistance Centers Open to Connect Residents, Businesses With Storm Recovery Resources
07/14/2023Nevada County was added to the Presidential FEMA Individual Assistance Declaration for the February 2023 Winter Storms, which makes new resources available to residents and businesses that experienced damages or hardships due to this year’s winter storms.
From CalMatters...
Ending Mono Lake Diversions to Los Angeles: Good for the Environment, Bad for the Climate
07/12/2023The environmental costs of ending water diversions from Mono Lake to Los Angeles would be mixed: It might help a shore bird habitat but would require changes that increase carbon emissions.
From Tahoe Daily Tribune...
Tahoe Fund Launches Campaign for Major Trail Restoration in Desolation Wilderness
07/12/2023The nonprofit Tahoe Fund is partnering with the Tahoe Rim Trail Association to launch a $50,000 matching campaign to address the 19 miles of trail that travel through Desolation Wilderness from Echo Lakes to Lake Aloha.
From Tahoe Daily Tribune...
Lake Tahoe Has High Concentration of Microplastics, Research Shows
07/12/2023Small fragments of fibers from clothing, packaging and other plastic residue have invaded freshwater lakes and watersheds globally and in alarming quantities, according to new research.
From CalMatters...
Drones, Satellites and AI: How California Fights its Unpredictable Wildfires With Big Data
07/11/2023As nights warm and droughts intensify, past models predicting fire behavior have become unreliable. So California is working with analysts and tapping into new technology to figure out how to attack wildfires. Gleaned from military satellites, drones and infrared mapping, the information is spat out in real time and triaged by a fire behavior analyst.