Geology
300: Physical Geology
Geology
301: Physical Geology Lab
Geology
305: Earth Science
Geology
306: Earth Science Lab
Instructor: Arthur Reed
June 2019 Earth Sciences topics/events making news…
...with emphasis on California news
Remember
the principles of the scientific method when evaluating news stories!
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(link to 2018
news articles) |
(link to 2013
news articles) |
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(link to 2017 news articles) |
(link to 2012
news articles |
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(link to 2016
news articles) |
(link to 2011
news articles) |
|
(link to 2015
news articles) |
(link to 2010
news articles) |
|
(link to 2014
news articles) |
(link to 2009
& older news articles) |
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DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
State
Lands Commission says decommissioning Platform Holly off Goleta could take 6
years
It could
take six years for the California State Lands Commission to fully dispose of
Platform Holly and the Ellwood Onshore Facility in Goleta, which processes the
platform’s oil and gas, commission representatives told a crowd Thursday
at a town hall forum.
Santa Barbara Noozhawk, 6-28-19
State
continues careful abandonment of Platform Holly
A
standing-room-only crowd came to hear the latest on the removal of Platform
Holly’s oil wells in a Town Hall meeting by the State Lands Commission.
About a hundred people attended the Thursday evening meeting, held at Goleta
City Hall, with a couple dozen expressing support for the decommissioning and
thanking State Lands for its updates, in particular after oil was spotted at
Pier 421 in May.
Santa Barbara Independent, 6-28-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Earthquake
warning system expanding across SoCal
When an
earthquake strikes seconds of warning can save lives. That's why, for decades,
the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has been working with partners to
create a warning system to do just that. There are 45 sensors throughout San
Diego County, and dozens more are planned for the rest of Southern California.
KGTV (San Diego television), 6-27-19
DIVISION
OF LAND RESOURCE PROTECTION
‘End
of an era’: San Fernando Valley’s last commercial orange grove is
up for sale
June is
peak harvest season for a grove of 1,500 plus orange trees just south of
Ventura Boulevard. Yes, you read that correctly — there is a 14-acre
orange grove in the Valley hills straddling the border of Tarzana and Woodland
Hills. But these Valencia and Navel orange trees aren’t likely to see
many more seasons. They’re on what’s known as Bothwell Ranch, a
property rich with history that was recently put
up for sale with
an eye on its development into 26 separate single-family homes in the upscale
south Valley neighborhood.
Los Angeles
Newspaper Group, 6-28-19
MINES
Sacramento
county ordered to post bond while it appeals $107 million jury verdict
A federal
judge has ordered Sacramento County to post a bond of more than $50 million
while it appeals a jury verdict that awarded $107 million to two gravel mining
families who contend the county unfairly forced them out of business years ago.
Sacramento Bee, 6-28-19
WATER
How
did California’s rainfall season measure up? Good, but not great
Sunday is
the end of the 2018-19 rainfall season in California, and you may have heard
that the season’s precipitation totals were extraordinary. The figures
show that the season was good — above normal — but not in the top
20% of wettest seasons.
Los Angeles Times, 6-30-19
GENERAL
U.S.
wants to dredge San Francisco Bay to aid oil shipping
The Trump
administration’s commitment to fossil fuels is no secret. That dedication
to nonrenewable energy is now reaching into the San Francisco Bay itself. The
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers wants to dredge 13 miles of the bay in order to
deepen a channel for ships carrying imported crude oil to four Bay Area
refineries.
KQED (San Francisco TV/radio), 6-27-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Trump
pressures other G20 leaders to weaken climate goals
U.S.
President Donald Trump is pressuring some of his fellow leaders to help weaken
a G20 commitment on fighting climate change in a move that could kill chances of
agreeing on a final leaders' declaration.
Politico, 6-28-19
Over the
next two decades, California will face costs of approximately $22 billion to
protect its coastal infrastructure from rising sea levels, according to a new
study released by the Center for Climate Integrity. While these numbers are
staggering, this is far from a doomsday scenario, according to Sverre Leroy, lead analyst and climate scientist for the
Center for Climate Integrity, a project of the Washington, D.C.-based
non-profit the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development.
Voices of Monterey Bay, 6-27-19
Cattle are
the No. 1 agricultural source of greenhouse gases worldwide. Each year, a
single cow will belch about 220 pounds of methane, which is shorter lived than
carbon dioxide but 28 times more potent in warming the atmosphere. Besides
emitting greenhouse gases, another common criticism of beef production is that
cows take up nearly half the land in the United States and overgrazing those
lands can degrade soil health and biodiversity. Kebreab,
Mitloehner and other UC Davis scientists are looking
for ways to make cows more sustainable and less gassy. And researchers argue
that, managed correctly, cows help restore healthy soils, conserve sensitive
species, enhance overall ecological function, and even help mitigate climate
change.
UC Davis, 6-27-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Aliso
Canyon gas blowout near Porter Ranch led to dangerous pollutants near site,
UCLA study finds
Air quality
samples collected near the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility during the
2015 blowout that led to the largest-known human-caused release of methane in
U.S. history showed elevated levels of pollutants known or suspected to be
associated with serious health problems, according
to a UCLA Fielding School of Public Health-led study.
Los Angeles
City News, 6-27-19
State
regulators weigh penalties against Southern California Gas for Aliso Canyon
leak
California
regulators opened an investigation Thursday to consider penalties against
Southern California Gas Co. for a massive 2015 natural gas leak blamed for sickening thousands of
nearby residents and forcing them from their homes.
Los Angeles
Times, 6-27-19
CPUC
to consider penalty on Sempra's SoCalGas unit for 2015 leak
The
California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) said on Thursday it has opened an
investigation to consider penalties against SoCalGas, a unit of Sempra Energy,
for a massive, four-month-long gas leak near Los Angeles in 2015. The CPUC said
it has also opened an investigation against Sempra Energy to determine if it prioritizes
safety in its organizational culture and governance.
Reuters,
6-27-19
SoCal
Gas Seeks to Block Report From Safety Investigation
The
Southern California Gas Company Tuesday asked a state utilities commission to
exclude a damning report detailing the root causes of the 2015 Aliso Canyon
methane blowout from the investigation of its safety culture, because a state
employee who oversaw operations to close the leak contracted a rare form of
cancer and is now suing the utility.
Courthouse
News Service, 6-27-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
3.0
quake registered in Ontario, Calif.
A magnitude
3.0 earthquake was reported Thursday afternoon at 1:50 p.m. Pacific time in
Ontario, Calif., according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The earthquake
occurred less than a mile from Eastvale, one mile from Jurupa Valley, two miles
from Fontana and three miles from Rancho Cucamonga.
Los Angeles
Times, 6-27-19
Can
the size of a large earthquake be foretold just 10 seconds after it
starts?
When the
massive magnitude-9.1 earthquake rocked the seafloor off the coast of Tohoku, Japan,
in March 2011, the Japanese Earthquake Early Warning System sent alerts to
locations that were predicted to shake at or above a level 5 on Japan’s
shaking intensity scale, which should have provided tens of seconds of
warning.
Temblor,
6-26-19
No,
Earthquake Weather Is Not a Real Thing
During
the heat wave in early June, a lot of people were calling it “earthquake weather” and felt a
little more cautious moving around the Bay Area. Hiro Sato of San Mateo has
heard people in the Bay Area talk about earthquake weather. He asked Bay Curious, "Is there actually any correlation between weather and
earthquakes?"
KQED (San
Francisco TV/radio), 6-27-19
'ShakeAlert' test message for Earthquake Early Warning
System buzzes San Diego County phones
San Diego
County residents received a loud earthquake alert on their phones Thursday
morning that served as a test of California’s Earthquake Early Warning
System.
KGTV (San
Diego), 6-27-19
San
Diego’s ShakeAlert Mobile Phone Test Has
Mixed Reviews
Most San
Diego residents should have received an earthquake alert on their cell phones
Thursday morning. It came from ShakeAlert, California’s new
earthquake warning system. And so far, reviews are mixed.
KPBS (San
Diego), 6-27-19
BUDGET
California
Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed his first budget. Here’s where the $215
billion will go
California
will increase its spending on public education, expand healthcare services and
stash away more money than ever for an economic downturn under the state budget
signed Thursday by Gov. Gavin Newsom — a plan that was stalled for two
weeks over how it would address the state’s growing housing crisis.
Los Angeles
Times, 6-27-19
No
sales tax on diapers, new phone charges: How California’s new budget will
affect you
California’s new $215 billion budget will cut costs for some
Californians and raise taxes on others though a sweeping set of new policies ranging from
ending sales taxes on diapers and tampons to fining people who don’t buy
insurance. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the budget Thursday evening. The deal
boosts spending on child care, health insurance subsidies and homelessness. It
also relies on a big surplus to fill the state’s reserve accounts with more than $19
billion.
Sacramento
Bee, 6-28-19
GENERAL
California
cities and counties that don’t plan for enough housing to be built within
their borders could face big consequences — up to $600,000 a month
— under a new agreement Gov. Gavin Newsom and state legislators unveiled
Thursday.
Bay Area
News Group, 6-27-19
Speedy
California housing construction is goal of carrot-and-stick deal
State
officials could fine California cities that do not meet their obligations to
plan for new housing while rewarding those that make it easier to build, under
a proposal announced Thursday by Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders.
San
Francisco Chronicle, 6-27-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
1,060
Earthquakes Have Hit Southern California in a Month and Hardly Anyone Noticed.
Here's Why
More than
1,000 tiny earthquakes have rumbled through an area of Southern California for
nearly a month––but few people actually noticed. “Swarmageddon,”
as it’s been dubbed, started May 25 and lasted through at least June 19,
according to the Southern California Seismic Network, a partnership between the U.S.
Geological Survey and the California Institute of Technology. It affected an
area of San Bernardino and Riverside counties 40 miles east of downtown Los
Angeles.
Time,
6-26-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Pollutants
from 2015 Aliso Canyon blowout pose potentially serious health risks
The 2015
blowout at the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility led to the
largest-known human-caused release of methane in U.S. history. Now,
a study of air quality samples collected near the facility shows elevated
levels of pollutants known or suspected to be associated with serious health
problems.
UCLA
Newsroom, 6-26-19
New
Study Calls For Monitoring Old Oil & Gas Wells For Air Emissions
A new study
on the hazardous gas emissions from the calamitous 2015 blowout of the Aliso
Canyon natural gas storage facility, near Porter Ranch, CA, has found that
apart from methane, a group of other hazardous pollutants escaped into the air,
affecting many residents in the area. The
study calls
for air monitoring at underground gas storage facilities nationwide, potentially
affecting thousands of sites around the country.
Clean Technica, 6-27-19
DIVISION
OF LAND RESOURCE PROTECTION
RCD
to start dredging Butano Creek
Bill Cook
found his dream home in Pescadero in 1996. There was
one problem. His house flooded. There were days his children would canoe to the
bus stop and boogie board on the driveway. Last Friday, the San Mateo
Resource Conservation District officially marked the start of the dredging
process along lower Butano Creek to alleviate
flooding on Pescadero Creek Road and mass fish
kills.
Half Moon
Bay Review, 6-26-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Money
Growing on Trees? Vermont Forest First In State For California Carbon Market
A chunk of
northern Vermont forest will soon help reduce greenhouse gas pollution in
California. The idea is that companies will pay to reduce their carbon
footprint by buying the carbon sequestered in a forest on the other side of the
country. But determining how much carbon is being stored, and then enrolling in
that expanding carbon market, is far from simple. It involves a lot of time,
money and long hours walking the woods.
Vermont
Public Radio, 6-26-19
California
was warned about climate change 30 years ago. Now it's feeling the effects
Back in
1989, Californians received a sobering warning: The accumulation of
heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere would likely bring more droughts, floods,
fires, and heat waves to the state. In the thirty years since, those
projections of what would happen in a warming world have proven to be
remarkably prescient.
Los Angeles
Times, 6-27-19
WATER
State
water regulators see role for Kern's oil industry in groundwater sustainability
planning
Contrary to
what you may have heard, oil and water apparently mix just fine, especially
with regard to California's landmark efforts to bring Central Valley
groundwater pumping under control. Kern oil companies are, by all accounts,
working closely with local and state authorities, sharing data and hydrological
expertise, to help make sure the county's groundwater users comply
with the controversial Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, better
known as SGMA.
Bakersfield
Californian, 6-27-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
The
biggest California earthquake of 2019 hit the state this weekend
Northern
California was a bit rattled this weekend when a magnitude 5.6 earthquake
struck off the Humboldt County coast. It was the biggest quake so far this year
in California, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Los Angeles Times, 6-24-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Checkmate?
House blocks money for new offshore oil drilling off California coast
When
President Trump boldly announced that he was going to expand oil drilling off
coastlines across the United States, including California’s, he drew
cheers from the oil industry and dread from environmentalists and coastal
tourism leaders. On Thursday, in an obscure, but key, vote, the House voted to
adopt several amendments to the Department of Interior budget for next year
that ban the agency from spending any money to pursue new offshore oil and gas
drilling in federal waters off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.
Bay Area News Group 6-24-19
Safety,
competition concerns raised over proposed sale of major California oil pipeline
A leading
safety expert says California regulators should give careful scrutiny to the
proposed purchase of a pipeline that carries crude petroleum to four Bay Area
oil refineries because of the prospective buyer's record of oil spills. The
deal has also drawn widespread concern from California energy companies, which
have told regulators that the sale of the Shell Oil pipeline system to Long
Beach-based Crimson Pipeline could harm them.
KQED (San Francisco TV/radio), 6-24-19
DIVISION
OF LAND RESOURCE PROTECTION
Long before
it became fashionable in the San Joaquin Valley to talk about groundwater
overdraft and land subsidence, Don Cameron was noticing it.
Western
Farm Press, 6-21-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Sierra
Seedlings Illustrate Effects of Climate Change on Next Generation of Forests
Climate
change is bad news for forests, and a new study by UC Merced Professor Emily
Moran demonstrates
one aspect of that news. Higher summer temperatures hurt tree seedlings’
growth and survival. But whether that is entirely bad depends on the degree of
change in the number of young trees.
UC Merced,
6-24-19
Agriculture
Department buries studies showing dangers of climate change
The Trump
administration has refused to publicize dozens of government-funded studies
that carry warnings about the effects of climate change, defying a longstanding
practice of touting such findings by the Agriculture Department’s
acclaimed in-house scientists.
Politico, 6-23-19
A
time of reckoning in the Central Valley
Climate
change is revealing the vulnerabilities of an industrial agriculture system
that relies on predictability. And it’s shining a light on alternative
growing practices that are potentially more resilient to these environmental
shifts. The lessons learned here, or not learned, have implications for agricultural
regions elsewhere, from the American Midwest to North Africa, southern Europe
and southwest China.
Bay Nature, 6-23-19
BUDGET
Getting
ready for recession, California’s $215 billion budget fills reserves. But
is it enough?
Stung by
severe cuts to services in the Great Recession, California lawmakers are riding
the state’s booming economy to put more money than ever into savings accounts
meant to soften the hurt of the next downturn. They just don’t know if
it’s enough.
Sacramento Bee, 6-24-19
GENERAL
PG&E
owns land across California. What will happen to it?
In the
aftermath of PG&E’s 2001 bankruptcy, the company agreed, in exchange
for financial relief, to protect or donate more than 140,000 acres of its land
holdings, many of which encompass California’s key forests and
watersheds. While the company would retain about two-thirds of the land, the
rest was to be donated to public agencies and tribes. But PG&E’s
second bankruptcy, which it entered into this year, casts a pall of uncertainty
over what’s already been a difficult waiting game for prospective land
stewards.
San Francisco Chronicle, 6-24-19
CALIFORNIA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Third
earthquake hits Humboldt County in tow-day span; no tsunami danger reported
A magnitude
4.1 earthquake hit Humboldt County about 34 miles west-southwest of Ferndale,
the latest in a string of quakes over the weekend.
Eureka Times Standard, 6-23-19
Earthquake:
5.6 quake rattles Northern California
A magnitude
5.6 earthquake was reported Saturday evening at 8:53 p.m. on California’s
North Coast.
Los Angeles Times, 6-23-19
Earthquake:
3.0 quake strikes near Brawley, Calif.
A magnitude
3.0 earthquake was reported Saturday morning at 5:05 a.m. Pacific time 12 miles
from Brawley, Calif., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Los Angeles Times, 6-22-19
Earthquake:
3.1 quake registered near Salinas, Calif.
A magnitude
3.1 earthquake was reported Saturday morning at 6:29 a.m. Pacific time one mile
from Prunedale, Calif., according to the U.S.
Geological Survey.
Los Angeles Times, 6-22-19
Magnitude
5.4 earthquake reported off Oregon Coast
A series of
eight earthquakes hit Saturday morning off the Oregon coast, with the strongest
registering as a 5.4 magnitude quake. The series of earthquakes was reported at
magnitudes between 3.2 and 5.4, according to data from the U.S. Geological
Survey.
Portland Oregonian, 6-22-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Growing
body of science links fracking to health hazards
There’s
a steadily growing body of science on the connection between fracking and human
health, according to a new analysis published by a group of scientists and
doctors on Thursday.
Grist, 6-21-19
House
votes to block US offshore drilling for one year
The House
on Thursday adopted a series of amendments that would block offshore
drilling along most U.S. shores, taking development of all of the Atlantic and
Pacific coasts off the table. The bipartisan amendments to a Department of the
Interior spending bill would bar new offshore development for fiscal year
2020, which begins Oct. 1.
The Hill,
6-21-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
‘Centers
of Insurrection’: Central Valley farmers reckon with climate change
The climate
in the Central Valley is, like that in other food-growing regions of the earth,
bouncing on an unpredictable. Such volatility presents a particular challenge
to the crops that have swept through the Valley over the last decade —
namely, almonds and other tree crops. But here at the Burroughs Family Farm is
an outpost of what Nina Ichikawa, director of the Berkeley Food Institute at UC
Berkeley, describes as “centers of insurrection” spreading slowly
but steadily across the Valley — test cases in how to cope with the
instability of climate change.
KQED (San Francisco TV/radio), 6-23-19
The
disrupters meet the disruption: How tech aims to save big Ag from climate
change
The
disrupters of Silicon Valley and its tributaries have trained their GPS on the
most fundamental of all human needs — food. In San Francisco earlier this spring, 1,300 venture capitalists,
gene scientists, bio-tech visionaries and startup aspirants gathered to probe
what they consider to be the nearly digitally virgin terrain of agriculture.
It’s a terrain that’s being profoundly transformed by the biggest
disrupter of all: climate change.
KQED, 6-23-19
California
legislators gave regulators at the state’s Air Resources Board approval
to endorse a plan that could lead to the widespread use of forest preservation
offsets, but not without committing to “vigorous and proactive
monitoring,” a note of caution inspired, in part, by a recent ProPublica
investigation that showed how these carbon credits have not provided the
emissions cuts they promised.
ProPublica, 6-21-19
DIVISION
OF LAND RESOURCE PROTECTION
Trade
war could shake almond sales this year
The good
news for almond farmers is that for the second year in a row, it doesn’t
appear that they have to worry about whether they’ll have enough water to
produce a bumper crop. But they do have international trade policy –
and a new round of retaliatory tariffs – to contend with.
Manteca
Bulletin, 6-21-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Paying
the toll on sea level rise
Defending
San Diego County against rising seas would cost about $1 billion, according to
a new study that estimated that the cost of coastal armoring would be at least
$22 billion for California, and more than $400 billion for the United States as
a whole.
San Diego
Union Tribune, 6-20-19
GENERAL
It’s
been a mess for decades. Can Gov. Newsom fix the state’s technology?
California
government’s technology drastically pales in comparison to Silicon
Valley, but Gov. Gavin Newsom is betting $40.8 million and a new office will
change that. Even though California is home to innovative tech giants like
Google and Apple, its government historically has used technology that
can’t handle simple tasks – like accepting a credit card at the
DMV, or in some cases, offer fully functioning websites. To combat this stark digital
divide, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed the Office of Digital Innovation. Funding is
tucked into the budget starting July 1.
CalMatters, 6-20-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Aera Energy Seeks Aquifer Exemption at Cat
Canyon
Aera Energy,
one of California’s largest oil and gas produces and owned by Shell and
Exxon Mobil, has submitted an aquifer exemption for the Cat Canyon oil field
located about four miles east of Orcutt and six miles southwest of Santa Maria.
If approved, the exemption would allow underground fluid injection into the
aquifer and re-establish oil production in the area. The oil field was
discovered in 1908 and was drilled for nearly 100 years before being
decommissioned in the 1990s.
Santa
Barbara Independent, 6-19-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Trump
moves to gut Obama climate policy and bolster the coal industry
The Trump
administration on Wednesday unveiled its final plan to rewrite a major
Obama-era climate change policy, scrapping proposed regulations that would have
cracked down on coal-burning power plants.
Los Angeles
Times, 6-19-19
Amid
urgent climate warnings, EPA gives coal a reprieve
Amid
scientists’ increasingly urgent warnings, the Trump administration ordered
a sweeping about-face Wednesday on Obama-era efforts to fight climate change,
easing restrictions on coal-fired power plants in a move it predicted would
revitalize America’s sagging coal industry. As miners in hard hats and
coal-country lawmakers applauded, Environmental Protection Agency chief Andrew
Wheeler signed a measure that scraps one of President Barack Obama’s key
initiatives to rein in fossil fuel emissions. The replacement rule gives states
more leeway in deciding whether to require plants to make limited efficiency
upgrades.
Associated
Press, 6-20-19
A new study
looking at the costs of sea-level rise in coastal communities has found that
Long Beach would have to spend an estimated $246.3 million in the next two
decades for seawall protection. The report released Wednesday by Center
for Climate Integrity is billed as the first such study to give a dollar amount
to the cost of building seawalls to protect communities against rising sea
levels due to climate change.
Long Beach
Post, 6-20-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Big
earthquakes might make sea level rise worse. Here's how.
A geologic
one-two punch rocked the South Pacific in September 2009, as a magnitude 8.1
earthquake struck off the coast of the island nation of Samoa, followed mere
moments later by a similarly intense temblor.
National
Geographic, 6-17-19
China
earthquake kills 13, injures 199
The toll
from a strong 6.0-magnitude earthquake in southwest China rose to 13 dead and
199 injured on Tuesday as rescuers pulled bodies and survivors from wrecked
buildings. More than 8,000 people were relocated as a large number of
structures were damaged or collapsed after the quake struck late Monday near Yibin, in Sichuan province, according to the city
government.
Agency
France Presse, 6-18-19
Strong
earthquake jolts northwest Japan; no major damage reported
A powerful
earthquake jolted northwestern Japan late Tuesday, and officials warned of a
possible tsunami up to 3.3 feet high along parts of the coast. Some areas lost
electrical power and some bullet train services were suspended, but there were
no immediate reports of serious injuries or damage from the magnitude 6.8
quake. Only a minor swelling of the sea was observed in several cities about
half an hour after it struck.
Associated
Press, 6-18-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Democrats
want companies to disclose their climate risks — and fossil fuel industry
is worried
Democratic
presidential candidates have a sweeping array of proposals to fight climate
change, but virtually all the leading hopefuls agree on one relatively simple
proposal: forcing companies to disclose the risks they face from a warming
atmosphere.
Politico,
6-17-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Magnitude
7.2 earthquake strikes near L’Esperance Rock,
New Zealand
The United
States Geological Survey reports a preliminary magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck
near L'Esperance Rock, New Zealand on Saturday.
San Francisco Chronicle, 6-15-19
Earthquake:
3.0 quake strikes near Fontana, Calif.
A shallow
magnitude 3.0 earthquake was reported Sunday afternoon two miles from Glen
Avon, Calif., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Los Angeles Times, 6-16-19
Satellite
observations improve earthquake monitoring, response
Researchers
at the University of Iowa and the U.S. Geological Survey have found that data
gathered from orbiting satellites can provide more accurate information on the
impact of large earthquakes, which, in turn, can help provide more effective
emergency response.
Space Daily, 6-17-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Achieving
a sustainable energy future must be based on science, not political agendas
It is
unfortunate the author of the June 3 guest editorial in the Ventura County
Star, “Put a permanent end to drilling,” chose to mislead and create
unfounded fear instead of taking the opportunity to discuss the realities we
all face as we consider the best way to ensure the sustainable energy future we
all want.
Ventura
County Star commentary, 6-15-19,
DIVISION
OF LAND RESOURCE PROTECTION
EKCRCD
has vacancy for board member
The Eastern
Kern County Resource Conservation District (EKCRCD) has a vacancy on its board
and is seeking a new director. If you are interested in conserving natural
resources, improving the environment, and are ready to give back to your
community, this might be your chance to get involved.
Ridgecrest Daily Independent, 6-14-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
California
idea to study phasing out gas-powered cars wins new life
California
is on the verge of spending $1.5 million to study what it would take to
“significantly reduce” emissions from vehicles — including
phasing out new gasoline-powered cars — after a San Francisco legislator
used a budget maneuver to bring the idea back from the
dead.
San Francisco Chronicle, 6-15-19
What
impact will California’s aggressive climate change goals have on drivers
California
Influencers this week answered the question: What will be the impact of the
state’s aggressive climate change goals on California drivers?
Sacramento
Bee commentary, 6-16-19
How
Ice A Half A World Away Affects Southern California Sea Levels
San Diego
researchers are among many scientists around the world trying to understand how
a warming climate is affecting the world’s major ice sheets. Two Scripps
Institution of Oceanography researchers are studying the changes in different
parts of the world about the change that could affect local oceans.
KPBS (San
Diego TV), 6-17-19
Future
summers will 'smash' temperature records every year
If you
think it's hot now, you haven't seen anything yet. A new study predicts that
parts of the world will "smash" temperature records every year in the
coming century due to climate change, "pushing ecosystems and communities
beyond their ability to cope."
CNN,
6-17-19
DIVISION
OF LAND RESOURCE PROTECTION
Supervisors
pony up $5 million to kickstart Santa Clara County farmland preservation effort
A new
initiative to preserve farmland in Santa Clara County will get a modest start,
after county supervisors approved spending nearly $5 million to prevent some of
it from being sold for development.
Bay Area
News Group, 6-13-19
BUDGET
Where
Gov. Gavin Newsom wins and loses in newly passed
California budget
The budget
proposal that Gov. Gavin Newsom introduced in January gave California’s
new leader his first major opportunity to stake out how he would accomplish the
ambitious agenda he touted on the campaign trail. Many of those plans
overlapped with the priorities of the Legislature, and they are reflected in
the final $215 billion budget deal reached over the weekend. But several key
Newsom initiatives were rejected or still await action in budget follow-up
bills that the Legislature will consider in coming weeks.
San Francisco Chronicle, 6-13-19
Budget
includes $9.25M for study of atmospheric rivers, which caused 2019 flooding
The $214.8
billion state budget California lawmakers approved on Thursday sets aside more
than $9 million for the study of atmospheric rivers, a type of strong weather
system that was largely responsible for dramatic flooding in Northern
California earlier this year.
Sacramento
Bee, 6-13-19
GENERAL
California
lawmakers are turning cap-and-trade into the slush fund critics long feared
For years,
critics of California’s cap-and-trade program have lambasted it as a
government slush fund. They say that politicians are able to dip into it to
fund their pet projects or raid it to fill the shortfall of the moment —
as long as they can assert a mildly credible connection between the spending
and the state’s ambitious goals to fight climate change. Well, California
lawmakers are about to prove those critics right.
Los Angeles
Times editorial, 6-4-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Public
opinion split on Cat Canyon aquifer exemption
Hundreds of
people filled the Santa Maria Veterans Memorial Building on June 5 to voice
their opinion on a proposed aquifer exemption that would expand the area in Cat
Canyon where oil companies can build injection wells. Some environmental
activists and students pushed back on the proposal during the hearing, while
some local ranchers and labor unions encouraged the California Department of
Conservation’s Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) to
move the exemption forward. DOGGR and other state agencies are considering
recommending that the Environmental Protection Agency approve the
expansion.
Santa Maria
Sun, 6-12-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
3.6
quake shakes Ventura County
A magnitude
3.6 earthquake shook up Ventura County, sending light or weak shaking into
Oxnard, Camarillo and Thousand Oaks, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The earthquake began just off the coast of Point Mugu State Park, less than
half a mile from Thornhill Broome State Beach. The worst shaking was level 3 or
level 4 on the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale — enough to make the shaking
felt quite noticeably but too weak to cause any significant damage.
Los Angeles
Times, 6-12-19
3.6-magnitude
earthquake reported 10 miles south of Camarillo
A
3.6-magnitude earthquake rattled Ventura County residents Wednesday afternoon,
but no damage was reported, according to authorities. The earthquake, felt in
Camarillo as a long vibration with a few jolts of higher intensity, was reported
at 5:07 p.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It was centered slightly
offshore from Point Mugu and had a depth of 11.6 miles.
Ventura
County Star, 6-12-19
DIVISION
OF LAND RESOURCE PROTECTION
May was
the pits for California cherry growers
Though
California’s worst-ever recorded drought was declared over more than two
years ago, the five years of dry weather left their mark on Californians.
That’s likely why the state’s unusually stormy May was welcomed by
so many people. But among some California farmers, the heavy rain was anything
but welcome, as the wet weather damaged blueberries and stone fruit and delayed
harvesting of some naval orange varieties.
Fresno
Business Journal, 6-13-19
Grass
Valley determines no EIR needed for Gilded Springs project
Grass
Valley city staff have released an initial study and mitigated negative
declaration for the Gilded Springs residential project bounded by East Main and
Alta streets. Nevada City architect Tobin Dougherty is proposing 27 higher-end
residences on nearly 7 acres off Linden Avenue that was once an orchard and
more recently was farmed by Greg’s Organics. He got plenty of pushback
from the outset, as a number of neighbors protested the development at a Grass
Valley Development Review Committee meeting more than a year ago.
Grass
Valley Union, 6-12-19
FORESTS
& WATERSHEDS
Forest
Service seeks to exempt some logging and mining from environmental review rules
The U.S.
Forest Service on Wednesday announced plans to narrow the scope of a major
environmental law, allowing the agency to fast-track activity throughout the
national forest system without undergoing environmental review. The proposed changes could potentially make it easier for
logging, road building and other construction projects to gain approval than
under current rules — and much more quickly.
Los Angeles
Times, 6-12-19
Trump’s
wildfire plan eases environmental law to speed forest thinning
The Trump
administration is proposing new regulations it argues could help prevent
wildfires — but could also open up more federal land to logging and
mineral exploration. The U.S. Forest Service released proposed regulatory changes Wednesday that would exempt
several new types of forest management projects from the typical review process
under the National Environmental Policy Act or NEPA.
Sacramento
Bee, 6-12-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Jerry
Brown’s new gig: Launching a California-China climate change institute at
UC Berkeley
Even in
retirement, Jerry Brown is still trying to save the world. In his second stint
as California governor, Brown warned repeatedly that climate change threatened
human existence and stressed the importance of reducing greenhouse gas
emissions.
Sacramento
Bee, 6-12-19
The new
plan to remove a trillion tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere: Bury it
Last month,
carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere surpassed 415 parts per million, the highest in human history.
Environmental experts say the world is increasingly on a path toward a climate
crisis. The most prominent efforts to prevent that crisis involve reducing
carbon emissions. But another idea is also starting to gain traction — sucking
all that carbon out of the atmosphere and storing it underground.
Washington
Post, 6-12-19
Humboldt
Takes a 'Regional Approach' to Climate Action Plan
Some people
throw up their hands in despair when they talk of climate change. Others deny
there is even a problem. But somewhere in the middle, quietly and without much
fanfare, local governments are considering realistic steps to cut back on the
carbon dioxide emissions that are heating up the atmosphere.
North Coast
Journal (Eureka), 6-13-19
How
Scientists Use The Color Of The Ocean To Determine The Impacts Of Climate
Change
The
Caribbean Sea bordering Grand Cayman's Seven Mile Beach is a startling
aquamarine color. Over 1,500 miles away, the Atlantic Ocean next to Coney
Island is a dark bluish-green. And Bondi blue, the color of the original iMac computer, was named after the teal hue of
the Tasman Sea off the coast of the eponymous Sydney beach.
Pacific
Standard, 6-12-19
BUDGET
California
lawmakers approve a state budget blueprint, but negotiations continue
Democrats in
the California Legislature sent Gov. Gavin Newsom legislation Thursday that
lays out the blueprint of a $214.8-billion state budget, a plan that assumes
significant new spending on K-12 schools and healthcare while setting aside an
unprecedented amount of tax revenue for future economic slowdowns.
Los Angeles
Times, 6-13-19
WATER
Creeping
Toward Permanent Drought
I left
California in the middle of a drought. The hills framing the 280 from the city
to Palo Alto turned brown in the summer, as they always did, and then stayed
brown through the winter. The pleasant seventy-degree air began to feel
oppressive, the glorious blue sky a source of inchoate guilt.
Scientific
American commentary, 6-12-19
Ecological
Detectives Hunt for San Francisco’s Vanished Waterways
We have so
radically transformed our cities and towns that few visual clues remain to
their natural landscapes and waterways. Creeks have been holstered into pipes.
Wetlands have been filled with dirt and paved. Yet signs of vanished waters
stubbornly pop up in unexpected places, such as seasonal “ghost
creeks” running through basements.
Scientific
American, 6-13-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Two
earthquakes within 15 minutes on fringes of Bay Area
Two
earthquakes struck on the fringes of the Bay Area in the first hour of Tuesday.
Bay Area News Group, 6-11-19
Magnitude
4.1 earthquake shakes The Geysers
A magnitude
4.1 earthquake struck in The Geysers early Tuesday, according to the U.S.
Geological Survey.
Santa Rosa Press Democrat, 6-11-19
Earthquake:
3.1 quake strikes near Mountain House, Calif.
A shallow
magnitude 3.1 earthquake was reported Tuesday afternoon two miles from Mountain
House, Calif., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Los Angeles Times, 6-11-19
4.1
magnitude earthquake shakes Sonoma County
A 4.1
magnitude earthquake struck rural unincorporated Sonoma County early Tuesday
morning, according to the United States Geological Survey.
KGO (San Francisco television), 6-11-19
San
Francisco hands out fake earthquakes to prepare for the real thing
They were
giving away free earthquakes in San Francisco on Tuesday, but you had to hold
on to the safety bar. Jeff Rice was inviting all-comers to take a seat inside
his earthquake simulator, the must-see exhibit at the San Francisco Earthquake
Safety Fair in the Civic Center. It might have been a simulated quake, but the
ashen faces of the people as they stepped from the simulator were the real
deal.
San Francisco Chronicle, 6-11-19
MINING
Preliminary
Quarry Plan Has Local Watchdogs Fearing The Worst
Limestone
quarry and cement processing operations in the foothills just south of Los
Altos may intensify under a recently submitted draft plan that calls for Lehigh
Southwest Cement Co. digging a new 60-acre pit along Monte Bello Ridge. Lehigh
is also hoping to import fill for its main pit, rather than using mining waste
already on-site, as proposed in its 2012 reclamation plan. Importing fill,
observers said, could result in hundreds of additional truck trips daily.
Los Altos
Town Crier, 6-12-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Ventura
Says No to New Cyclic-Steam Oil Drilling
The Ventura
County Board of Supervisors has decided to extend a moratorium that prohibits
new drilling or deepening of existing cyclical-steam oil wells in the Fox
Canyon aquifer system. The decision is a result of the U.S. Geological
Survey’s discovery of contaminants in water wells within and around the
Oxnard oil field.
Santa
Barbara Independent, 6-11-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
This
is a $15 trillion opportunity for farmers to fight climate change
Indigo
Agriculture, the Boston-based start-up that uses natural microbiology to
revolutionize the way farmers grow crops, has unveiled a first-of-a-kind
program to tackle climate change worldwide. The company launched the Terraton Initiative on Wednesday to accelerate carbon
sequestration from agricultural soil on a massive scale. The goal: to capture 1
trillion metric tons of carbon dioxide worldwide from 3.6 billion acres of
farmland through a marketplace that gives farmers incentives to implement
regenerative farming practices.
CNBC, 6-12-19
Despite
Trump’s ‘burn, burn, burn’ policies, renewable energy
capacity now exceeds coal’s
You
probably didn’t notice, but April marked a threshold for the nation. For
the first time, our capacity for creating electricity from renewable sources
crept past that for coal. And that comes despite President Trump’s
insistence that the nation drill more, burn more and export more fossil fuels.
Los Angeles Times, 6-11-19
Global
warming may reduce fish and other sea life by 17% by the year 2100
The world's
oceans will probably lose about one-sixth of their fish and other marine life
by the end of the century if climate change continues on its current path, a
new study says.
Los Angeles Times, 6-11-19
Simultaneous
heat waves scorched land areas all over the Northern Hemisphere last summer,
killing hundreds and hospitalizing thousands while intensifying destructive and
deadly wildfires. A study published this week in the journal Earth’s
Future concludes that this heat wave epidemic “would not have occurred
without human-induced climate change.”
Washington
Post, 6-11-19
MINING
China
hints it will choke off U.S. ‘rare earths’ access. But it’s
not that easy.
Just the
suggestion that Beijing could starve American factories of essential materials
has sent rare-earth prices soaring over the past month. But the alarm overlooks
the rise over the past decade of alternative sources of rare earths and ignores
the difficulties China would face in implementing a ban.
Washington Post, 6-10-19
Why
contrarians say China’s rare earth trump card may backfire
China is
regarded by many experts as holding a trump card in trade talks given its
dominant position as a global supplier of rare earth materials used in U.S.
industries including technology, aerospace and defense. But a move to restrict
exports to the U.S. in 2019 could backfire.
Investopedia, 6-10-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Oilfield
wastewater disposal site receives state ultimatum
State
regulators have told the Bakersfield-based operator of an unlined, oilfield
wastewater disposal pond in McKittrick it must bring the facility into
compliance or shut it down. The Central Valley Water Regional Quality Control
Board's order against Valley Water Management Co. calls for a full analysis of
the nature and extent of the impacts the 163-acre facility has on groundwater.
Bakersfield
Californian, 6-11-19
Environmental
justice group submits 90,000 comments opposing local fracking, drilling plan
The Central
California Environmental Justice Network and allies hand-delivered 90,000
public comments to the Bakersfield Bureau of Land Management office Monday
morning, hours before the public comment deadline came to a close.
Bakersfield Now, 6-10-2019
California
Attorney General Xavier Becerra on Monday filed a comment letter opposing a
U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) plan to open up more than one million
acres of public lands in Central California to oil and gas drilling, including
hydraulic fracturing (fracking).
Sierra Sun Times, 6-11-19
US
report finds sky is the limit for geothermal energy beneath us
With all
attention focused on the plummeting prices and soaring popularity of solar and
wind, geothermal energy is probably under-appreciated. Sure, you might think,
it’s great where you can get it—in, say, Iceland or the Geysers
area of California—but those are exceptions, right? Not entirely.
Ars Technica, 6-11-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
You
asked, we answered: What kind of earthquake risk does Sacramento have?
Sacramento
residents may breathe a sigh of relief to hear there are no major active faults
under the capital region. But while the likelihood of a significant earthquake
in Sacramento is considerably lower than in the Bay Area, that doesn’t
mean it can’t occur.
Sacramento Bee, 6-11-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
With
no answers, drilling moratorium extended six months
A
moratorium on drilling of certain oil wells near a major supply of groundwater
in Ventura County has been extended for six months. Supervisors want to know why petroleum gases were detected in samples
drawn in 2017 from agricultural water wells on the Oxnard Plain. With no
answers available yet, they voted unanimously to extend the moratorium to
protect groundwater supplies.
Ventura County Star, 6-6-19
(Commentary)
Community Voices: Skepticism about the fracking business
As a Kern
County resident, I’ve been trying to weigh the economic benefits of the
recent fracking proposal. I want to see good jobs fuel a strong economy. And as
someone who depends on Kern County’s natural beauty to make a living, I
want to make ensure any expanding sector is, at the very least, environmentally
neutral because I can see with my own eyes what a beautiful environment can do
for our local economy. Until we get concrete promises and proposals that
clearly show how fracking will benefit us, we should keep our local oil in the
ground, so we can keep bringing visitors to our forests, deserts, and waters.
Bakersfield
Californian, 6-10-19
Tar,
Natural Gas Rises Up Onto Streets Near La Brea Tar Pits
A large
puddle of tar encroached on the sidewalk and natural gas appeared to rise from
the street of the Miracle Mile in Los Angeles Friday. CBSLA’s Brittany
Hopper was standing near the puddle located across the street from The La Brea
Tar Pits and Museum, a national natural landmark where tar has been seeping up
from the ground for tens of thousands of years.
KCBS (Los
Angeles television), 6-8-19
Getting
the oil out of befouled water
Oil and
water are famously reluctant to mix fully together. But separating them
completely—for example, when cleaning up an oil spill or purifying water
contaminated through fracking—is a devilishly hard and inefficient
process that frequently relies on membranes that tend to get clogged up, or
"fouled."
Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, 6-10-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Breaking
News: Earthquake felt outside of Oildale
United
States Geological Survey confirms an earthquake with a 3.5 magnitude occurred
at 7:41 p.m. 10 miles outside of Oildale.
Bakersfield Now, 6-9-19
Southern
California earthquake swarm takes an unexpected turn, and that’s reason
to worry
If you live
in Fontana, you wouldn’t be blamed if you felt a case of the jitters.
Caltech seismologist Egill Hauksson
said the chance that the series of tremors will turn into a large and
destructive quake isn’t particularly high. But that doesn’t mean residents shouldn’t be on their
toes. The likelihood of a larger seismic event, given how many quakes that have
occurred over such an extended period, is higher than normal, the scientist
said.
Los Angeles Times, 6-8-19
Earthquake:
3.1 quake strikes near Anza, Calif.
A shallow
magnitude-3.1 earthquake was reported Monday morning four miles from Anza, Calif.,
according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Los Angeles Times, 6-10-19
Scientists
discover how tides can trigger earthquakes
Seismologists
examining the ebb and flow of tremors at one of the deepest points of the
Pacific Ocean said in a study published Friday that both tidal currents and
fracking operations are triggering earthquakes along underwater mountain
ranges.
Courthouse News Service, 6-7-19
Scientists
figure out how tides cause earthquakes
For 20
years, scientists have known about the link between earthquakes and tides. But
because most mid-ocean ridges feature vertical faults, or faults featuring
steeply inclined planes, researchers assumed earthquake-generating slips would
be more likely to occur at high tide. The seismic data showed the opposite was happening.
United Press International, 6-7-19
BUDGET
Gov.
Gavin Newsom’s first California budget deal is near. Here’s what to
watch for
The first
California budget deal under Gov. Gavin Newsom is just days away. Democrats had
hoped to close out the joint Senate-Assembly budget conference committee by
Friday. But it now appears that talks between Newsom, Assembly Speaker Anthony
Rendon (D-Lakewood) and Senate President pro Tem Toni
Atkins (D-San Diego) aren’t gelling as fast as hoped. As we await a final
deal, here's a scouting report on what to watch for.
Capital Public Radio, 6-7-19
California
governor, lawmakers wrangle over budget details
California
lawmakers and Gov. Gavin Newsom broadly agree on a proposed $213 billion state
budget that would spend more on immigrants and the poor by expanding tax
credits, health care and child care. But they’re still debating how far
those program expansions should go and how best to pay for them.
Associated Press, 6-8-19
HIGH-SPEED RAIL
High-speed
rail route took land from farmers. The money they’re owed hasn’t
arrived
John Diepersloot lost 70 acres of prime land and paid $250,000
out of his own pocket for relocating wells, removing trees, building a road and
other expenses for the California bullet train. Up and down the San Joaquin
Valley, farmers have similar stories. They often
face out-of-pocket costs for lost production, repositioning of irrigation
systems and other expenses, which the state agrees to pay. But those payments
have stretched out to three years, and the slow payments are adding to the
farmers’ frustration.
Los Angeles Times, 6-10-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
U.S.
Renewable Power Capacity Surpasses Coal For The First Time
The
revolution in renewable power hit a new milestone in April. Last
week the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) released its
latest Energy Infrastructure Update (EIU), with data through
April 2019.
Forbes,
6-10-19
White House
officials barred a State Department intelligence agency from submitting written testimony this week to the House
Intelligence Committee warning that human-caused climate change is
“possibly catastrophic.” The move came after State officials
refused to excise the document’s references to federal scientific
findings on climate change.
Washington
Post, 6-8-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
Cat
Canyon oil field proposal denounced by opponents in rally before public hearing
Opponents
of a proposal that would help redevelopment of the Cat Canyon oil field
southeast of Santa Maria rallied before a public hearing on the subject
Wednesday.
KSBY (San Luis Obispo television), 6-5-19
Public
opinion at hearing split on extending Cat Canyon aquifer exemption
Public opinion
was split over a proposed expansion of an aquifer exemption in the Cat Canyon
oil field at a hearing conducted late Wednesday afternoon in Santa Maria by two
state agencies, but most of those who spoke were opposed.
Santa Maria Times, 6-5-19
Crowd
speaks in favor, against Cat Canyon aquifer exemption expansion
A proposal
to expand the existing aquifer exemption below Cat Canyon in Northern Santa
Barbara County attracted dozens of speakers Wednesday expressing fears of
groundwater pollution, while others supported the expansion related to oil and
gas operations in the area.
Santa Barbara Noozhawk, 6-5-19
State
Department of Conservation holds hearing on Cat Canyon oil field project
proposal
Community
members came to a hearing on the Cat Canyon oil field project proposed for
south of the city on Wednesday. During the hearing, the State Department of
Conservation took public comments on the proposed water aquifer exemption.
KEYT (Santa Barbara television), 6-5-19
Local
groups capitalize on unofficial groundwater, oil field study results to protest
new project
Preliminary
findings in a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) study show indications of oil
field-related substances mixing with groundwater at various sites in the Orcutt
oil field. Local environmental groups are using these unofficial findings to
protest further oil and gas projects in Santa Barbara County.
Santa Maria Sun, 6-5-19
Last
chance to weigh in: Pubic input period closes June 10 on Central Coast
drilling/fracking
Tens of
thousands of public comments have already been submitted in response to the
Trump Administration’s court-ordered study on the impacts of fossil fuel
drilling and fracking across more than one million acres of federal land and
mineral estate. The 45-day public comment period ends on June 10.
Carpinteria Coastal View, 6-5-19
Natural
Gas Key for National Oil Companies Adapting to Climate Change Risk,
Moody’s Finds
Making
natural gas a focal point of their carbon reduction efforts, state-sponsored
oil companies across the globe are reshaping their business models in response
to climate change initiatives, a new report from Moody’s Investors
Service finds
NGI Shale
Gas Daily, 6-4-19
PUC
manager sues SoCalGas; says Aliso Canyon gas leak caused his cancer
A longtime
program manager overseeing the California Public Utilities Commission’s
Safety Enforcement Division is suing Sempra Energy and its subsidiary, Southern
California Gas Co., alleging he came into contact with hazardous substances at
the site of the Aliso Canyon methane gas leak that left him with a
rare cancer.
Los Angeles
City News Service, 6-4-19
Environmental
regulators: Put people before industry
Recently,
the Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency offered
another boon to the fossil fuel industry and announced its intent to ignore the
scientifically-proven impacts of air pollution on human health. By minimizing
and outright denying the health risks of air pollution, the EPA is recklessly
devaluing the lives of children and families who are assaulted daily by
pollution and climate impacts that threaten their health, safety, and life expectancy.
Capitol Weekly, 6-4-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Trio
of earthquakes rattles Southern California
Three
earthquakes struck the Southern California coast Wednesday morning, centered just
off Santa Catalina Island, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Los Angeles Times, 6-5-19
Second
4.3-magnitude earthquake strikes off SoCal coast Wednesday, near San Clemente
Island
Two
4.3-magnitude earthquakes were reported off the coast of Southern California on
Wednesday morning.
KTTV (Los Angeles television), 6-5-19
Earthquake
‘cluster’: 2 offshore temblors measuring 4.3 magnitude strike near
San Clemente Island
Four
earthquakes struck hours apart off the coast of Southern California on
Wednesday morning, nearly 9 miles south-southwest of San Clemente Island, the
U.S. Geological Survey said.
KABC (Los Angeles television), 6-5-19
Southern
California offshore earthquake cluster continues
A cluster
of small undersea earthquakes has continued off Southern California near San
Clemente Island. The latest, according to the U.S. Geological, was magnitude
3.5 quake at 4:25 a.m. Thursday.
San Francisco Chronicle, 6-6-19
Earthquake:
Magnitude 3.1 quake strikes near Fontana, Calif.
A shallow
magnitude 3.1 earthquake was reported Wednesday afternoon two miles from Glen
Avon, Calif., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
San Diego Union-Tribune, 6-5-19
Quake
swarm unleashes 400 tiny temblors on Southern California. What does it mean?
More than
430 tiny temblors have rattled Southern California in the past 10 days or so,
some just strong enough to be felt by residents, LAist
reports. But the swarm of earthquakes hitting the Inland Empire, stretching
from eastern Los Angeles to the Mojave Desert, probably doesn’t indicate
a major quake’s on the way.
Sacramento Bee, 6-4-19
Researchers
map Del Mar Bluffs after wet winter brings collapse after collapse
Researchers
are taking a closer look at the Del Mar bluffs after a wet winter, in part,
brought a string of collapses in the well-traversed area.
KNSD (San Diego television), 6-5-19
DIVISION
OF LAND RESOURCE PROTECTION
137
acres in Auburn slated for conservation
Over 137
acres of agricultural land and blue oak woodland are planned for conservation
in North Auburn, with the Placer County Board of Supervisors approving the use
of $205,000 of Placer Legacy open space funds. The funding will contribute to
an agricultural conservation easement that will be held by the private
nonprofit Placer Land Trust.
Roseville Today, 6-3-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
End
of civilization: climate change apocalypse could start by 2050 if we
don’t act, report warns
A chilling
Australian policy paper outlining a doomsday scenario for humans if we
don’t start dealing with climate change suggests that by 2050, we could
see irreversible damage to global climate systems resulting in a world of chaos
where political panic is the norm and we are on a path facing the end of
civilization.
USA Today, 6-5-19
California
has too much solar power. That might be good for ratepayers
California
set two renewable energy records last week: the most solar power ever flowing
on the state’s main electric grid, and the most solar power ever taken
offline because it wasn’t needed. But for
ratepayers, an oversupply of solar power might actually be a good thing.
Los Angeles Times, 6-5-19
Companies
expect climate change to cost them $1trillion in 5 years
The costs
of a disturbed climate are becoming increasingly burdensome and apparent. A
growing number of companies are recognizing that fact and are now publicly reporting
the effects of climate change on their businesses. A new report published
Tuesday by CDP shows that 215 of the world’s biggest companies, including
giants like Apple, JPMorgan Chase, Nestlé, and 3M, see climate change as
a threat likely to affect their business within the next five years, with a
cumulative cost of a trillion dollars.
Wired, 6-4-19
GENERAL
1
billion acres at risk for catastrophic wildfires, U.S. Forest Service warns
The chief
of the U.S. Forest Service is warning that a billion acres of land across
America are at risk of catastrophic wildfires like last fall's deadly Camp Fire
that destroyed most of Paradise, Calif.
NPR, 6-5-19
CALIFORNIA
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Buildings
can be designed to withstand earthquakes. Why doesn’t the U.S. build more
of them?
Earthquakes
are of course natural phenomena. But the amount of damage they cause is a
function of decisions made by politicians, engineers and business executives.
Japan and the United States, two of the world’s most technologically
advanced countries, have the same problem — how to protect people and society
from earthquakes — and yet they have responded in very different ways.
New
York Times, 6-4-19
Earthquake:
3.4 quake strikes near Perris
A shallow
magnitude 3.4 earthquake was reported Sunday afternoon eight miles from Perris,
according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Los Angeles Times, 6-2-19
A swarm of
mostly low-magnitude earthquakes — about 250 and counting since May 25
— have been centered in the Glen Avon neighborhood of Jurupa Valley in
Riverside County, according to automated seismology reports. While the number
gets attention, it’s not unusual and does not signal that a large quake
is on the way.
Riverside Press-Enterprise, 6-3-19
More
than 400 small earthquakes rattle Southern California town: ‘It’s
been like a roller coaster’
More than
400 small earthquakes have hit a section of Southern California over the last
few days. Residents in the area have felt rattled. But experts don’t
expect major seismic activity from the recent activity concentrated in the
Riverside County community of Glen Avon that they are calling the Glen Avon
Earthquake Swarm.
Los Angeles Times, 6-4-19
DIVISION
OF OIL, GAS, AND GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
These
California environmental bills made it to the next round
For
California bills and their sponsors, Friday was pass-or-die time in the
Legislature. It's an annual rite of spring: If on a certain date proposed bills
don't pass out of their house of origin, be it the Assembly or the Senate, they
die for the year. This year, the Legislature considered a slate of new
environmental policies.
KQED (San Francisco radio/TV), 6-3-19
Goleta
oil spill incident concluded
Four days
after 80-125 gallons of crude were released during the plugging of oil wells at
Pier 421 in Goleta, the Unified Command has declared its cleanup operation of
oiled kelp and debris concluded.
Santa Barbara Independent, 6-3-19
Bill
passed to assess cost of oil and gas cleanup
As
California moves towards a greener economy and grapples with the taxpayer costs
of cleaning up facilities such as Platform Holly and the Greka
offshore facility, the California State Senate approved Senator Hannah-Beth
Jackson (D-Santa Barbara)’s legislation to assess the eventual costs of
shutting down California’s entire oil and gas infrastructure, including
cleaning up and remediating wells, facilities, and equipment associated with
production.
Santa Barbara Edhat, 6-3-19
New
drilling and fracking in California will hurt Latino communities
As the BLM
plans move forward, community members and environmental groups are speaking up.
EcoWatch, 6-4-19
$3
Million settlement revealed in high-profile fracking case
In an
unusual event, a legal settlement in a high-profile fracking case has been made
public because of a computer error. The document, dated Aug. 31, 2018, shows
that the gas drilling company Range Resources and other defendants agreed to
pay $3 million to three Washington County, Pa., families who alleged that
nearby fracking contaminated their properties and made them sick.
NPR, 6-4-19
Best
way to protect families is to make oil and gas drilling moratorium permanent
Last month,
Ventura County supervisors took an encouraging step by unanimously declaring a
moratorium on certain new oil and gas drilling following the discovery of
flammable oil-related gases in three irrigation wells near drill sites. Now,
it’s time for them to extend this moratorium indefinitely, and eventually
ban all fossil fuel expansion in our county.
Ventura
County Star commentary, 6-3-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Is
it our constitutional right to live in a world safe from climate change?
Juliana vs.
United States, alleges that the U.S. government has violated the rights of 21
young Americans by permitting — and in many cases, subsidizing —
the continued use of fossil fuels that cause climate change. Experts say it’s an ambitious and
unprecedented tactic, and many were surprised that the case has made it this
far. Now its fate lies with three judges
in Portland, Ore., who will decide if the case has enough legal merit to
proceed to trial.
Los Angeles Times, 2-3-19
WATER
California
sees biggest June snowpack in nearly a decade thanks to spring storms
During a
weekend that’s widely known as the unofficial start of summer in
California, visitors who trekked to Lake Tahoe for Memorial Day were met with a
flurry of snowflakes that turned the landscape into a winter wonderland in May.
Los Angeles Times, 6-3-19
Skiing
in July, dangerous rivers, full reservoirs: What Sierra’s huge snowpack
means for summer
More rain
is coming to the Sierra Nevada, adding to a bountiful spring that’s left
the snowpack at twice its historical average for this time of year. The
mountains are holding more snow than they were two years ago, when Northern
California was coming off a historically wet winter that officially ended the
drought. But the heavy spring runoff is frustrating some hikers, campers and
rafters. And it’s left farmers in part of the Central Valley frustrated
that they aren’t getting full allocations of irrigation water despite one
of the wettest winters in years.
Sacramento
Bee, 6-3-19
California’s
water crisis has put farmers in a race to the bottom
While
California was gripped by drought in 2014, Mark Arax
began to notice something he couldn’t explain. Instead of shrinking for
lack of water, some big farms were growing even bigger, expanding to hillsides,
saltbush desert, and other lands where farmers usually feared to tread. They
were planting thirsty almond trees as fast as they could.
Grist,
6-3-19
GENERAL
Effort
to allow electricity from large dams to count as renewable energy in California
fails to pass
A
controversial effort to broaden California’s definition of renewable
energy has fizzled out. The proposal would have allowed electricity from a
large dam in the Central Valley to count the same as solar and wind. Under a
law signed last year by former Gov. Jerry Brown aimed at reducing smog and
greenhouse gas emissions, utilities in California are required to produce 60
percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2030.
Bay Area
News Group, 6-3-19
MINING
Napa judge
hears more arguments on Syar quarry expansion
Attorneys
both challenging and defending Napa County’s controversial approval of
the Syar quarry expansion made their cases to
Superior Court Judge Victoria Wood, who will decide what happens next.
Napa Valley
Register, 6-2-19
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Saturday,
June 1, was the city’s first Climate Festival event aimed at educating the
public about climate change. The festival provided the venue to reveal the
draft of the city’s Climate Action and Adaption Plan, which aims to
address sea-level rise and other climate-change-related issues that loom ahead.
Press-Telegram, 6-1-2019
New
Projections for 2100 Sea Levels are Higher than Previous Numbers
The
increase in the water levels of the ocean across the world has been one of the
most notable projections that scientists made regarding the effects of global
warming. According to their models, the increase in water levels by the year
2100 would only be a maximum of a meter. However, new studies show that the increase
by that time might be double the previous projection.
Science
Times, 6-2-19
Chalk-drawn
waves of blue, varying in shades and lengths, stretched across part of Long
Beach’s Marine Stadium on a grey, gloomy morning. While the artistic
waves set an upbeat tone for 500-plus attendees on Saturday, June 1, who came
to the city’s first Climate Festival event — which aims to educate
the public about climate change — they also held a more ominous meaning.
The chalk-drawn waves gave a real-life representation of how areas around the
city, like Marine Stadium, could flood amid rising sea levels.
Long Beach
Press-Telegram, 6-1-19
WATER
California
Snowpack Measures at 202% of Average for This Time of Year
The amount
of snow blanketing the Sierra Nevada is even larger than the 2017 snowpack that
pulled the state out of a five-year drought, California water officials said.
As of
Thursday, the snowpack measured 202% of average after a barrage of storms
throughout winter and spring, according to the Department of Water Resources.
Associated
Press, 6-2-19
(news updated as time permits…)
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