Logging and thinning trees isn’t stopping wildfires, ecologists say. Focusing on homes can help avert more tragedies like Paradise and Greenville.
Wildfires
Posted inEnvironment
California builds a ‘Noah’s Ark’ to protect wildlife from extinction by fire and heat
As the Earth warms and the drought deepens, a network of biologists and conservationists are racing to rescue California’s most threatened species. “I can’t think of a single terrestrial ecosystem that’s not being stressed to the limits of its physiological tolerance right now,” one biologist says.
Posted inEnvironment
‘How much more of this can we take?’ Wildfires prompt air quality advisories in Northern California
Officials from Lake Tahoe to San Francisco have issued air quality alerts warning of hazardous conditions that could last into the weekend. The Santa Cruz area has seen its share of haze in recent days, but some clearing is expected Friday and into the weekend.
Posted inBusiness & Technology
A Big Basin rebirth: California’s oldest state park won’t be the same, but nature is assuring it will be back
A year after the CZU Lightning Complex Fire tore through 97% of the park, Big Basin is showing signs of new growth and enters into a new renovation phase. ”We’re going to be looking at how to make the park more resilient in the future,” says the local State Parks superintendent.
Posted inLatest News
Dixie fire races toward Susanville, forcing some residents to evacuate
The Dixie fire, the largest wildfire in California history, grew to 635,728 acres Wednesday and was threatening the town of Susanville. It has burned for more than a month, and containment remained at just 33%.
Posted inLatest News
PG&E starts planned power shutoffs to 51,000 customers as Dixie fire rampages
Roughly 48,000 customers in Northern California could lose power Tuesday night, the utility said, as forecasts called for fierce winds of up to 50 mph that could topple trees into energized power lines were forecast.
Posted inLatest News
Democrats demand Pentagon renew wildfire monitoring program
Democrats from California demand the Pentagon renew access to military satellite information to assist in monitoring wildfires.
Posted inEnvironment
PG&E threatens power shutoffs as Dixie fire rages in Northern California
Strong winds are expected to plague the Dixie fire burn area, which has exploded to nearly 570,000 acres in Northern California. PG&E has said its equipment might have sparked the Dixie blaze, which is the second-largest fire in state history.
Posted inLatest News
‘CZU, One Year Later’: The only recovery consistency lies in a community’s selfless nature
Monday marks one year since the day thousands of lives changed forever in Santa Cruz County — the day the magnificent lightning storm that lit up the heavens became the catalyst for 37 straight days of hell. While the financial and volunteer help has been steady, consistent, and even competitive, the need for real recovery remains constant for many.
Posted inLatest News
‘Hero of the neighborhood’: How a Bonny Doon neighbor’s resolve helped save a Santa Cruz musical treasure
The name Boomeria comes not from the dramatic churchy sounds that emanate from the pipe-organ, but from the man, Preston Boomer, who built not only the organ but the bizarro playland that surrounds it. It was the 90-year-old’s neighbor Alexis “Lexi” Seath who took it upon herself to save “the Chapel” she grew up next to.