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Articles on California

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Active oil wells can often be found next door to homes, office buildings and even schools. David McNew/Getty Images

LA’s long, troubled history with urban oil drilling is nearing an end after years of health concerns

The Los Angeles area has over 20,000 active, idle or abandoned oil wells. The city and county have voted to ban new ones after studies showed health problems in residents living nearby.
Electrifying trucks and cars and shifting to renewable energy are crucial for California’s zero-emissions future. Sergio Pitamitz / VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

How California’s ambitious new climate plan could help speed energy transformation around the world

California is one of the world’s largest economies, and it’s aiming for net-zero emissions by 2045. A transportation expert involved in the plan explains why it just might succeed.
Driving into floodwater, as this vehicle did in Sonoma County, Calif., on Jan. 5, 2023, can be extremely dangerous. Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images

Flood forecasts in real-time with block-by-block data could save lives – a new machine learning method makes it possible

The majority of flood-related deaths involve vehicles in water. What if flood models could warn of the risks street by street using real-time storm forecasts? Machine learning can make it possible.
Exposed lakebed at the Salton Sea on Dec. 29, 2022. RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images

Human actions created the Salton Sea, California’s largest lake – here’s how to save it from collapse, protecting wild birds and human health

Fifty years ago, the Salton Sea was a draw for boaters and fishermen; today it’s an ecological time bomb. Two water experts who served on a state review panel describe its proposed rescue plan.
Heavy rain from a series of atmospheric rivers flooded large parts of California from late December 2022 into early January 2023. Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

How California could save up its rain to ease future droughts — instead of watching epic atmospheric river rainfall drain into the Pacific

Urban infrastructure was designed to take stormwater out to the ocean quickly. Now, California needs that precious water.
Following historic drought in 2021, reservoir levels dropped down in the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, which gets its waters from the melting snowpack from the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and Wyoming. (pxhere.com)

Scientists dig deep and find a way to accurately predict snowmelt after droughts

Unprecedented droughts leave the subsurface drier than usual, affecting water supply in subsequent years.
Smokestacks in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Wilmington. Citizen of the Planet/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Environmental justice has the White House’s attention, building on 40 years of struggle – but California suggests new funding won’t immediately solve deeply entrenched problems

Poor communities of color have spent decades battling US industrial and agricultural pollution. A new EPA office is designed to support their struggle, but history suggests reason for caution.
Trucks line up to load and unload at the Port of Los Angeles in Long Beach, California. Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Beyond passenger cars and pickups: 5 questions answered about electrifying trucks

As California goes on regulating air pollution, other states often follow – including the Golden State’s ambitious goals for cleaning up emissions from trucking.
From Alaska to Alabama, corporations spend money to shape their local business environments, resources and regulations. Douglas Rissing/ iStock / Getty Images Plus

Corporate spending in state politics and elections can affect everything from your wallet to your health

Businesses can spend huge amounts of money to influence Congress. But sizable lobbyist and campaign donations also go to state campaigns and lawmakers to influence policymaking.

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