Trojan Horse attack on native lupine

  (Washington University in St. Louis) At Point Reyes National Seashore in Marin County, Calif., a fierce battle is taking place under the oblivious, peeling noses of beachgoers. It’s a battle between an invasive plant and a native plant, but with a new twist. The two plants, European beachgrass and Tidestrom’s lupine, are not in […]

Judge sides with farmers in California delta water lawsuit

Staff and wire reports | Posted: May 18, 2010 8:10 pm SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge ruled Tuesday in favor of Central Valley farmers and urban water agencies seeking to loosen restrictions on pumping from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, a major source of irrigation and drinking water for much of California. U.S. District Judge […]

Nitrate contamination spreading in California communities

By Julia Scott | May 13, 2010 The water supply of more than two million Californians has been exposed to harmful levels of nitrates over the past 15 years – a time marked by lax regulatory efforts to contain the colorless and odorless contaminant, a California Watch investigation has found. Nitrates are now the most […]

Schwarzenegger preps ‘terrible cuts’ to close California deficit

By Michael B. Marois and William Selway May 11 (Bloomberg) — California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger will seek “terrible cuts” to eliminate an $18.6 billion budget deficit facing the most-populous U.S. state through June 2011, his spokesman said. Schwarzenegger, 62, who will introduce his revised budget plans on May 14, has said he won’t seek tax […]

Humboldt squid thriving, thanks to ocean dead zones

Human-size jumbo squid are growing thick along the U.S. west coast. Is climate change aiding their expansion? By Katherine Harmon    April 8, 2010 Although many of the Pacific Ocean’s big species are floundering, one large creature of the deep seems to be flourishing. The Humboldt squid (Dosidicus gigas, also known as jumbo squid, owing to […]

Los Angeles will be broke on May 5th, deep in the red by June 30th

CITYWATCHBy Ken Draper “The question I have been asked most often during the budget crisis,” says LA Controller Wendy Greuel, “is when the City will run out of money?” “Unfortunately,” she tells the Council and the Mayor,  “we finally have that answer … the City’s General Fund will be out of money … in fact […]

Graph of the Day: Abundance of Steller Sea Lions at Año Nuevo Island, 1990-2004

The decline of the central California breeding population cannot be attributed solely to any single threat listed below, but instead is the result of a combination of multiple threats. In some cases, exposure to one threat may make the animals more susceptible to the others (e.g., high level of contaminants may make an animal more […]

Salmon fishermen losing water war with desperate California farmers

By COLIN SULLIVAN of GreenwirePublished: April 2, 2010 SAN FRANCISCO — California congressmen George Miller and Mike Thompson stumped for salmon fishermen yesterday during a political rally here meant to counter the political muscle of San Joaquin Valley farmers who tend to get more media attention in the long-running war over the state’s strained water […]

Southern California beach erosion is worst in a decade

Powerful winter storms sweep away a spectacular amount of sand, leaving a rugged landscape of rock and cliff-side staircases that drop off into the air. By Tony Barboza April 2, 2010 Jeremy and Fernando Gutierrez descended a staircase to a cove in Laguna Beach for a nighttime lobster dive and almost fell into the ocean. […]

Ken Salazar: Water a ‘ticking time bomb’ for California

The U.S. Interior secretary discusses water infrastructure and climate change legislation with Times editors and reporters. March 22, 2010 Below are excerpts from a conversation Monday morning between U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Times reporters and editorial board members. Dan Turner, L.A. Times: I know that you’ve been involved in the climate bill talks. […]

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