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California Storms Bring Optimism For State Water Reserves

Weeks of heavy rain and snowfall in California have given experts “cautious optimism” about the state’s water year and a snowpack to help boost water reserves recovering from years of drought.

Research Seeks Resilience for Aquifers

One day in early October, a group of University of California, Merced, students went to the campus Smart Farm, augurs in hand, to explore the soil for the best spots to locate moisture sensors. They were not looking in the root zone to monitor how much water is available but instead for areas lower in the soil to study how irrigation and stormwater can travel far enough beneath the plants to recharge the groundwater below.

Coronavirus Pandemic has Affected State’s Food, Agriculture and Environment

COVID-19 continues to affect parts of California agriculture in different ways. A new report from agricultural economists at the University of California examines the current and long-term impacts on California’s leading agricultural industries.

Profiles in the report illustrate the different ways the pandemic has impacted dairy, beef and produce — industries that have scrambled to repurpose products from foodservice to retail — and tree nuts, an industry that saw a temporary spike in sales as consumers hoarded storable goods. The report includes expert assessments of what the future holds for California’s cattle, dairy, produce, strawberry, tomato, tree nut and wine industries.

UC Becomes Nation’s Largest University to Divest Fully from Fossil Fuels

The University of California announced Tuesday that it has fully divested from all fossil fuels, the nation’s largest educational institution to do so as campaigns to fight climate change through investment strategies proliferate at campuses across the country.

The UC milestone capped a five-year effort to move the public research university system’s $126-billion portfolio into more environmentally sustainable investments, such as wind and solar energy. UC officials say their strategy is grounded in concerns about the planet’s future and in what makes financial sense.

UCLA To Lead $10 Million California Conservation Project

UCLA scientists are leading a $10 million project to help California officials make ecologically wise decisions as the state continues to confront the effects of climate change.

The California Conservation Genomics Project, which is funded by the state, will involve conservation biologists, geneticists, ecologists and climate scientists from all 10 University of California campuses, the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory, the UC Natural Reserve System and California State University campuses, as well as officials from state and federal regulatory agencies and nongovernment agencies, such as The Nature Conservancy. It is intended to run through 2022 or 2023.