There’s a stall in a movement to change California water policy. The California Water Alliance is pulling back its signature gathering campaign in order to change the wording on its proposed ballot measure. Sabrina Hill has more. Karen Musson, co-owner of Gar Tootelian, and a supporter of the California Water Alliance’s measure says it’s an […]
El Niño exerted powerful effects around the globe in the last year, eroding California beaches; driving drought in northern South America, Africa and Asia; and bringing record rain to the U.S. Pacific Northwest and southern South America. In the Pacific Ocean off the West Coast, however, the California Current Ecosystem was already unsettled by an […]
A federal agency projects a record almond crop in California this year, based on sampling results announced Wednesday. The orchards will yield an estimated 2.05 billion pounds, up from an even 2 billion in a May projection, the National Agricultural Statistics Service reported. It would eclipse the record of 2.03 billion pounds in 2011 if […]
The American house is growing. These days, the average new home encompasses 2,500 square feet, about 50 percent more area than the average house in the late 1970s, according to Census data. Compared to the typical house of 40 years ago, today’s likely has another bathroom and an extra bedroom, making it about the same […]
From state highways, foothill campgrounds and aerial surveys, it’s easy to see the catastrophic tree die-off in California forests. What isn’t as easily grasped is the scale of rapidly expanding tree mortality in the state’s 40 million acres of forestland—and what to do about it. The U.S. Forest Service said in June that its survey […]
A recent survey of the Sierra conducted by the U.S. Forest Service paints a disturbing picture of the fuel conditions across Central and Southern California. Continuous drought the past five years has weakened trees, allowing them to be susceptible to the bark beetle. The recent number of dead trees in the Central Sierra is 66 […]
California Water Alliance Changes Initiative Plans
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /AgNet West (Fresno)There’s a stall in a movement to change California water policy. The California Water Alliance is pulling back its signature gathering campaign in order to change the wording on its proposed ballot measure. Sabrina Hill has more. Karen Musson, co-owner of Gar Tootelian, and a supporter of the California Water Alliance’s measure says it’s an […]
‘The Blob’ overshadows El Nino
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Phys.org (United Kingdom)El Niño exerted powerful effects around the globe in the last year, eroding California beaches; driving drought in northern South America, Africa and Asia; and bringing record rain to the U.S. Pacific Northwest and southern South America. In the Pacific Ocean off the West Coast, however, the California Current Ecosystem was already unsettled by an […]
California almond harvest likely to set record, feds say
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby John HollandA federal agency projects a record almond crop in California this year, based on sampling results announced Wednesday. The orchards will yield an estimated 2.05 billion pounds, up from an even 2 billion in a May projection, the National Agricultural Statistics Service reported. It would eclipse the record of 2.03 billion pounds in 2011 if […]
The Shrinking of the American Lawn
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Atlanticby Andrew McGillThe American house is growing. These days, the average new home encompasses 2,500 square feet, about 50 percent more area than the average house in the late 1970s, according to Census data. Compared to the typical house of 40 years ago, today’s likely has another bathroom and an extra bedroom, making it about the same […]
As forests decline, observers cite mismanagement
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Ag Alertby Kate CampbellFrom state highways, foothill campgrounds and aerial surveys, it’s easy to see the catastrophic tree die-off in California forests. What isn’t as easily grasped is the scale of rapidly expanding tree mortality in the state’s 40 million acres of forestland—and what to do about it. The U.S. Forest Service said in June that its survey […]
Fire season could be most dangerous in years
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Sierra Starby Brian WilkinsonA recent survey of the Sierra conducted by the U.S. Forest Service paints a disturbing picture of the fuel conditions across Central and Southern California. Continuous drought the past five years has weakened trees, allowing them to be susceptible to the bark beetle. The recent number of dead trees in the Central Sierra is 66 […]