Weekly Green: September 16, 2014

Good evening, California. This past week in news and opinion:

• Governor Brown signs historic groundwater laws;
• How long will California survive life without water?
• Half of California's bird species threatened by climate change;
• New solar plant nears approval, and much more.

» Welcome to another edition of the Weekly Green, your no-frills news roundup provided free of charge by the California League of Conservation Voters. If you're not a regular subscriber, sign up today! Get your free subscription here: http://ecovote.org/wg

Above the Fold

Governor Brown Signs Historic Groundwater Laws
For decades, Californians have used more groundwater than we have replenished, and water levels have dropped at an alarming rate… That's what makes these new laws and this moment such a game-changer. It wouldn’t have been possible without the hard work of bill authors Senator Fran Pavley and Assemblymember Roger Dickinson, and thousands of CLCV supporters and other environmental advocates who stood up and demanded that the state legislature pass new laws to protect this important source of water for Californians.
http://www.ecovote.org/blog/governor-brown-signs-historic-groundwater-laws

VIDEO: Jerry Brown signs groundwater legislation
Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation Tuesday enacting sweeping new regulations on groundwater pumping in California, making the state the last in the West to regulate the practice. The groundwater package, which gained momentum at the Capitol amid the state’s ongoing drought, was negotiated by Brown and lawmakers in late August, and the governor’s signature was all but assured. “This is a big deal,” Brown said at a signing ceremony at the Capitol.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/09/16/6711717/video-jerry-brown-signs-groundwater.html

Drought Becomes Powerful Political Tool for Brown, Lawmakers
Meantime, the governor also was able to use the drought to his advantage in reshaping the large water bond slated for this fall’s statewide ballot. What was once an $11 billion borrowing plan for water projects and reliability was drawn down to $7 billion — in part after Brown made it publicly and privately clear he didn’t want a large borrowing proposal in front of voters in this, his own re-election year.
http://blogs.kqed.org/newsfix/2014/09/16/drought-becomes-powerful-political-tool-for-jerry-brown-and-lawmakers

Not One Drop: How Long Will California Survive Life Without Water?
As the California drought approaches its fourth year, Seville’s well is one of hundreds of private water holes coughing up sand and spitting air in the Central Valley, according to Tulare County officials. As many as 100,000 more wells are at risk around the state if the rains don’t come by October.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/not-one-drop-how-long-will-california-survive-life-without-n195976

Half of California's bird species threatened by climate change
A seven-year study published Tuesday by the National Audubon Society warns that the migratory routes and habitats of more than half of the birds in North America are now or soon will be threatened by climate change, NPR reports:
http://www.scpr.org/news/2014/09/09/46584/more-than-half-of-us-bird-species-threatened-by-cl/

California Environmental News

Opinion: San Gabriel Mountains: spirituality and heritage in the wilderness
And while the San Gabriel Mountains are a daily sight for many Angelenos, it’s amazing to think that just half a century ago, these dramatic peaks were one of the Southland’s few prominent landmarks. Today, I would consider the range a monument in itself.
http://www.dailybulletin.com/opinion/20140915/san-gabriel-mountains-spirituality-and-heritage-in-the-wilderness-guest-commentary

Survey finds almond growers deeply impacted by drought
A recent survey of California almond growers shows that the state's devastating drought has forced many farmers to drill new wells, rely on salty groundwater and bulldoze trees.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2014/09/12/4120382_survey-finds-almond-growers-deeply.html?rh=1

Orange County's Great Drought of 1864
Meteorologists keep telling us we're suffering the worst dry spell on record, and they're right in a sense--data with the Western Regional Climate Center, California's official tracker of weather figures, goes back only to 1895. But in the annals of Southern California exist detailed accounts of an even-harsher drought that fundamentally changed the region: a two-year debacle that hit its driest days 150 years ago, in what a rancher of the era described as "perfect devastation."
http://blogs.ocweekly.com/navelgazing/2014/09/orange_county_california_drought_water_history.php

New solar plant nears approval in California desert
Despite serious environmental concerns, the California Energy Commission has given a preliminary green light to a second big solar project in the California desert by BrightSource Energy of Oakland.
http://blog.sfgate.com/nov05election/2014/09/15/new-solar-plant-nears-approval-in-california-desert/

Why More Trees in the Sierra Mean Less Water for California
With California’s reservoir levels dropping, just about everyone is wishing the state had gotten more water this year. That doesn’t just depend on the weather, according to a team of scientists. Sierra Nevada forests play a big role in the state’s water supply.
http://blogs.kqed.org/science/audio/why-more-trees-in-the-sierra-mean-less-water-for-california/

California Plans Nation’s Most Detailed Sea Level Database
When you’ve got tens of millions of people living close to more than 1,000 miles of coastline, it could help to closely track the slews of steps being taken to protect homes, ports, roads and other infrastructure from rising seas.
http://blogs.kqed.org/science/2014/09/11/california-plans-nations-most-detailed-sea-level-database/

Crude-by-rail: One federal inspector oversees all California's railroad bridges, no state oversight
As concerns grow over aging rail infrastructure, earthquake readiness and a dramatic increase in crude oil shipments by train, state railroad regulators are scrambling to hire their first-ever railroad bridge inspectors -- two of them.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_26525724/crude-by-rail-one-federal-inspector-oversees-all?source=rss

Conflicts with Yosemite bears fall dramatically as people, bears learn new lessons
But today, in one of Yosemite's most remarkable wildlife success stories, the bears are behaving better. Reports of bears damaging property or injuring people in the park have fallen 92 percent -- from 1,584 in 1998 to 120 last year.
http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_26529196/conflicts-yosemite-bears-fall-dramatically-people-bears-learn?source=rss

Jerry Brown calls Nevada’s Tesla tax breaks “California’s benefit”
Less than 24 hours after Nevada lawmakers approved a package of tax incentives to persuade Tesla Motors Inc. to build a battery factory in that state, California Gov. Jerry Brown, who has been criticized for failing to get the factory, said Friday that “Nevada’s tax breaks are California’s benefit” if they put electric cars on California roads.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/09/12/6702291/jerry-brown-calls-nevadas-tesla.html

UC to invest $1 billion to tackle climate change
The University of California will invest $1 billion over five years in companies and researchers coming up with solutions to climate change, part of an overall UC push in sustainability.
http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/blog/2014/09/university-of-california-climate-change-investment.html?page=all

Bipartisanship helps make California a world leader in fighting climate change
“The world looks to California as the leader in climate change,” said climate scientist R.K. Pachauri, who flew from India to participate in the University of Southern California/Schwarzenegger Institute symposium on climate change recently held in Sacramento.
http://www.centralvalleybusinesstimes.com/stories/001/?ID=26714

National Environmental News

Study Links Increased Drilling With Earthquakes: Scientists Say Tremors in Colorado, New Mexico Likely Connected to Nearby Wastewater Injection Wells
A magnitude-5.3 earthquake that hit Colorado in 2011 was likely caused by the injection of wastewater into the ground, a process used in natural-gas drilling, according to new research to be released Tuesday. The new study, published in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, adds more detail to a growing body of work seeking to establish and explain the connection between human activity and seismic events.
http://online.wsj.com/articles/study-links-increased-drilling-with-earthquakes-1410814821

Big firms agree to cut use of coolants that add to global warming
The chemicals, called hydrofluorocarbons or HFCs, became the popular alternative to the refrigerant, Freon, banned in the 1990s as a danger to the planet’s ozone layer. The HFCs do not harm the Earth’s ozone layer, but the gases are considered a major force in climate change – up to 10,000 times more potent than carbon dioxide, according to the White House.
http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-obama-global-warming-coolants-20140916-story.html

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