By Victoria Colliver, Chronicle Staff WriterSunday, January 23, 2011 A record number of sea otter bodies were found on California coastlines last year, a trend that leaves scientists and conservationists concerned for the future of the furry ocean animals. About 304 carcasses were found in 2010, according to preliminary numbers released by the U.S. Geological […]
For years researchers have watched plants and animals migrate to cooler quarters in response to global warming. But a new study suggests some plants are moving downhill, drawn by increased precipitation. By Pete Spotts, Staff writerJanuary 21, 2011 For years, scientists have recorded the gradual march of plants and animals up mountain slopes and toward […]
Contact Information: John Bwarie U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological SurveyOffice of Communication119 National CenterReston, VA 20192 Released: 1/14/2011 3:00:00 PM Listen to a podcast interview with Lucy Jones about the ARkStorm Scenario. SACRAMENTO, Calif. — For emergency planning purposes, scientists unveiled a hypothetical California scenario that describes a storm that could produce up […]
By Mike Taugher, Contra Costa TimesPosted: 01/19/2011 04:05:56 PM PST Bob Bea has investigated such high-profile disasters as the Exxon Valdez spill, the Deepwater Horizon blast, Hurricane Katrina and the space shuttle Columbia, which exploded in 2003. But the UC engineer and associate director of the Center for Catastrophic Risk Management (CCRM) says the problems […]
Higher ocean levels force Ventura officials to move facilities inland, an action that is expected to recur along the coast as the ocean rises over the next century. By Tony Barboza, Los Angeles TimesJanuary 16, 2011 At Surfers Point in Ventura, California is beginning its retreat from the ocean. Construction crews are removing a crumbling […]
By Shane Goldmacher, Los Angeles TimesJanuary 9, 2011 There will be little to like and something for just about everyone to hate. But it is in giving Californians a dose of painful budgetary truth that Brown hopes to succeed. To tame the state’s chronic budget shortfalls, the Democratic governor will request cuts in a broad […]
By HENRY BREAN, LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNALJanuary 6, 2011 | 12:00 a.m. A flood that destroyed homes near Mesquite last month also delivered a welcome boost to Lake Mead. High flows on the Virgin River and its tributaries raised the level of the reservoir by about a foot and a half, according to rough projections from […]
By Rebecca Kimitch, Staff Writer, rebecca.kimitch@sgvn.com Posted: 12/24/2010 10:21:50 PM PST The storms that brought flooding and destruction to the region last week had something of a silver lining, at least to water managers. The rains went a long way to refueling water supplies that were precariously low after three years of drought. More than […]
Controversy in Kern County indicates problems for the oil industry’s future worldwide By Jeremy Miller, From the December 06, 2010 issue of High Country News KERN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA From the “Petroleum Highway” — a rutted, dusty stretch of California State Route 33 — you can see the jostling armies of two giant industries. To the […]
By Mark Grossi, The Fresno BeeNov. 24, 2010 After investing millions of dollars, Westlands Water District is pulling out of an extensive planning effort to heal the troubled Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, saying high-ranking federal officials are derailing it. The draft of the Bay Delta Conservation Plan offers hope of restoring slumping water deliveries to […]
