When a historic drought gripped California and the Bay Area, water managers came together to keep drinkable water in the homes of vulnerable areas in Marin and Contra Costa Counties. Two veterans of those efforts describe the dramatic process, and consider lessons it offers for today’s imminent drought.Continue readingHow Ingenuity and Desperate Measures Kept Urban Water Flowing During the ‘77 Drought
Eight federal, state, regional and local water agencies worked quickly to forge creative partnerships during the 1977 drought crisis. These helped redirect water supplies and keep taps running in the Bay Area. Related article: How Ingenuity and Desperate Measures Kept Urban Water Flowing During the ‘77 DroughtContinue readingIn a Water Emergency, Replumbing the Bay Area
The company’s billion-dollar offshore investment has been sitting idle since a 2015 oil spill. A new plan calls for oil trucks to take crude oil to inland refineries until a pipeline is built; environmental groups and local businesses oppose the plan.Continue readingExxonMobil Moves to Resume Offshore Oil Drilling in Santa Barbara County
The Navajo Nation has the most capacity, but its troubled energy history and culture of livestock grazing make solar development fraught.Continue readingWhat it May Take to Harness Solar Energy on Native Lands
The state of California conducts regular aerial photographic surveys of the kelp canopy off of rocky coastlines. According to state surveys and closer study by researchers at UC Davis and the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, kelp cover has declined drastically along the state’s northern coast. The map below shows the statewide picture over…Continue readingDiminishing Kelp Cover is a Warning Sign
Repeated heatwaves continue to destroy California’s kelp forests, crippling coastal economies, tribal resources, and a treasured ecosystem. Can they still be saved?Continue readingHitting Rock Bottom: The Disappearance of California’s Underwater Forests
Three months after the first market trades of California water futures, a conversation about economic forces and an essential material for life.Continue readingCalifornia Water on the Market: Q&A with Barton “Buzz” Thompson
To keep the virus under control and health-care resources within capacity, counties and towns rely on trust and try to cajole residents to comply with mandates, rather than punish them for flouting rules.Continue readingTo Fight a Plague, Local Governments Lean on Trust. Could They Lose It?
What has been done and what still needs to be done to untangle physical, financial and political barriers blocking fair access to clean drinking water in California?Continue readingCentral Valley Communities Struggle for Drinking Water: Q&A with Felicia Marcus, California Water Expert
Most local authorities, private experts and activists agree that since 1994, when the EPA started to address the issue, cleanup efforts for hundreds of uranium mining sites have been slow. Continue readingCan a New EPA Office Expedite Uranium Cleanup on Navajo Land? Not if Past Is Prologue.