Tag Archive for: Los Angeles Times

As U.N. Warns Of Widespread Extinction, California Is Already Losing Species

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Anna M. Phillips

Many are imperiled by loss of habitat, rising ocean temperatures and rural and urban areas’ demand for ever-increasing amounts of fresh water. Worldwide, the U.N. assessment found that of an estimated 8 million plant and animal species, about 1 million are on the brink of extinction because of the damage humans are inflicting on the Earth through global warming, logging, farming, mining and other activities. It was compiled by 145 expert authors from 50 countries. The full report won’t be made public until later this year, but a summary released Monday offered a damning assessment of human impacts over the last five decades.

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In Trump VS. California, The State Is Winning Nearly All Its Environmental Cases

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Ann M. Phillips

California’s lawsuits have targeted the administration’s policies on immigration, healthcare and education. But nowhere has the legal battle had a greater impact than on Trump’s agenda of dismantling Obama-era environmental and public health regulations. In its rush to delay, repeal and rewrite rules it considers unduly burdensome to industry, the administration has experienced significant setbacks in court. Federal judges have sided with California and environmental groups in cases concerning air pollution, pesticides and the royalties that the government receives from companies that extract oil, gas and coal from public land.

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Gov. Gavin Newsom Faces A Big Political Test As He Shapes His First California Budget

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby John Myers

Even in the best of California’s economic glory days, no governor has entered office with the kind of fiscal tail wind that Gov. Gavin Newsom now enjoys. The government’s coffers are full of taxpayer cash, its reserve accounts are stocked to weather an economic slowdown and there’s general consensus on new help for the state’s youngest and most vulnerable residents. A major political victory would seem all but assured as he prepares to unveil a revised state budget this week. And yet, Newsom’s very real challenge is a quandary of quantity: more tax revenue, yes, but also more Democrats in the Legislature after last year’s election landslide and more demands to raise spending.

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Newsom Says He Has A Fresh Approach To California’s Longtime Water Woes

/in , /by /The Los Angeles Timesby George Skelton

At first blush, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s latest action on water seems fanciful and naive. But it has logic and conceivably could work. Newsom wants to reexamine practically everything the state has been working on   meaning what former Gov. Jerry Brown was doing and piece together a grand plan for California’s future that can draw the support of longtime water warriors.

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Few Details In Newsom’s Water Policy Directive

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Bettina Boxall

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday ordered key state agencies to develop a blueprint for meeting California’s 21st-century water needs in the face of climate change. The executive order includes few details and doesn’t appear to set a dramatic new water course for the state. Rather, it reaffirms Newsom’s intentions to downsize the controversial twin tunnels project in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, use voluntary agreements to meet new river flow requirements and provide clean drinking water to impoverished communities. The directive calls for the Natural Resources Agency, Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Food and Agriculture to assess water demands and the impacts of climate change on California’s far-flung water system.

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Hydropower Bill Would Sabotage California’s Clean Energy Mandate, Critics Say

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Sammy Roth

The Don Pedro hydropower project, just west of Yosemite National Park, has been churning out carbon-free electricity for nearly a century. As the Tuolumne River flows from the Sierra Nevada to the Central Valley, it passes through Don Pedro Dam, spinning four turbine generators. None of the electricity is counted toward California’s push for more renewable energy on its power grid. A new bill advanced by state lawmakers last week would change that — and it’s being opposed by environmental groups, who say it would undermine the state’s landmark clean energy law by limiting the need to build solar farms and wind turbines.

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Few Details In Newsom’s Water Policy Directive

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Bettina Boxall

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday ordered key state agencies to develop a blueprint for meeting California’s 21st-century water needs in the face of climate change. The executive order includes few details and doesn’t appear to set a dramatic new water course for the state. Rather, it reaffirms Newsom’s intentions to downsize the controversial twin tunnels project in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, use voluntary agreements to meet new river flow requirements and provide clean drinking water to impoverished communities.

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L.A. Mayor Garcetti’s ‘Green New Deal’ Would Phase Out Gas-Fueled Cars

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Sammy Roth

Mayor Eric Garcetti unveiled a sweeping plan for a more sustainable Los Angeles on Monday, calling for dramatic changes to the car culture, buildings and air quality of America’s second-largest city.
The mayor’s sustainability plan imagines a city where, by the mid-2030s, 80% of the cars run on electricity or zero-emission fuel, 80% of the electricity comes from renewable sources and Angelenos drive 2,000 fewer miles each year than they do now. It’s a far cry from today’s L.A., where gridlock, tailpipe pollution and smoggy air have come to define a way of life.

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The End Of California’s Drought Could Mean Fewer Cases Of West Nile Virus

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Harriet Blair Rowan

Researchers say the end of California’s drought could offer a surprising benefit: reduced transmission of the mosquito-borne West Nile virus. Drought is the most important weather-related factor that affects the rate of West Nile infection, scientists say. Mosquito eggs need water to hatch, but dry conditions tend to spur greater transmission of the virus.

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David Bernhardt Confirmed As Interior Secretary Despite Ethics Concerns

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Anna M. Phillips and Bettina Boxall

David Bernhardt, President Trump’s pick to the lead the Interior Department, was confirmed by the Senate on Thursday amid persistent ethical concerns and doubts about his independence from the energy and water industry groups he long represented as a lobbyist. Senators voted 56-41 in favor of Bernhardt’s confirmation. Several Democrats crossed party lines to support the nominee, including Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico. Sen. Angus King of Maine, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, also voted for confirmation.

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