IT'S OFFICIAL: California Has Banned One-Use Plastic Bags!

Just a short update to let you know that today, 9/30/2014, Governer Jerry Brown signed the first ever plastic shopping-bag ban into law.

This is a huge victory for landfills, streams, and sea creatures everywhere!

Keep shopping, but please don't forget your reusable bags!

Sustainable Seafood Update

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) recently released a new online tool to keep you and your family healthy and safe at meal-times. You can use the EWG’s Seafood Calculator to get a personalized recommendation of how much and what kinds of seafood to eat to avoid mercury while getting those heart healthy Omega-3’s! This web-tool also allows users to select the most sustainable options, such as wild Alaskan Salmon, Pacific-caught sardines, and farmed rainbow trout. Don’t forget to check out the EWG’s Good Seafood Guide for more information. 

Eat for your health and the health of our global fish stock! Credit

US is Most Vulnerable to Sea Level Rise in World

Global Climate Chage (GCC), whether anthropogenic or not, is proving to be a major force that is producing tangible changes in the world all around us. The severe drought occurring across Southern California and Super Storm Sandy are but a few of the possible natural disturbances that will continue to plague the earth.  Another major concern about GCC is Sea Level Rise (SLR), and how it may be speeding natural coastal erosion.

SLR is a special topic to me and my beach-front, bluff-top community of Isla Vista. I would hate to see IV fall into the sea well before it's time, but increasing SLR and more forceful storms may do just that. A state study shows that, in 2002, 72% of California's beachfront was actively eroding. The California Coastal Commission has stated that typical retreat rates can reach 42cm/year, although some areas can be much worse; Point Ano Nuevo erodes at 9ft/year. Some sources indicate that local Goleta Beach has been eroding at an incredible 20ft/year, and there has been a community dispute about whether to save the beach or the Goleta Beach Park (because you definitely can't have both!).

A precariously placed home overhanging the eroded cliff in Isla Vista, Credit

For all of these reasons, I was pleased to see that a new scientific report was published by the open access Journal of Environmental Protection (Volume 5, Number 12) on the topic of Sea Level Rise.

This article, entitled Empirical Assessment of Coastal Environmental Vulnerability to Sea Level Rise and authored by Martin Lee Collin and Abraham J. Melloul, postulates that SLR will destroy unique coastal ecosystems around the globe. Their study aims to assess the vulnerabilities of the world's coasts to SLR. They also focus their study on natural and anthropogenic causes for SLR that might further risk coastline. These variables include vegetative cover, waves, and tides, as well as population growth rate, GDP, and urbanization.

Through a careful consideration and selection of natural and human parameters (Section 2.1) and precise calculations of combinations of variables in regards to each of the six selected global coastlines (Section 2.2), Collin and Melloul were able to rank those six in order of vulnerability to SLR. The countries included in this study are: Israel, Iceland, Australia, India, China, and the USA. Except for Israel, the South-eastern coastline was always examined.

Taken from Empirical Assesment by M.L. Collin and A.J. Melloul, Page 1209

Collin and Melloul discovered that the South-eastern coast of the USA is the most vulnerable to SLR of all of the six global coasts studied. The USA is distantly followed by China, India, and Australia.

These results prompt the authors to suggest a prioritization of those coastlines most highly impacted, including cities like New York, Boston, and Miami. Reducing SLR in these areas is a daunting task, but Collin and Melloul suggest nine coastal management measures that may help to recognize and manage SLR. These suggestions include:

• "Special attention ought to be paid to preclude and reverse the annihilation of coastal wetlands, forests, and other protective vegetation parameters that significantly influence the enhancement of SLR’s effect upon the coastal environment.
• As numerical assessments involved would be relative and qualitative rather than quantitative; resultant models should be subsequently calibrated by in situ data, as was the case with the vulnerability mapping of Israel and such subsequent data-acquisition programs as POLLSITE [82].
• High-resolution shoreline mapping and surveillance of coastal areas having steep slopes with erodible rocks and unstable cliffs should be carried out, in light of expected SLR and increased wave action."

While this study was informative, what we really need is an easily-adoptable action plan that decides which of the numerous parameters discussed in this paper are most responsible for SLR and that states how to stop them. Perhaps that will be the next paper written by Collin and Melloul--keep your eyes peeled for it!

SC Beach Boardwalk is Surprisingly Eco-Conscious

Such fond memories, Credit

That classic jingle will forever be deeply imbedded into my mind:

"At the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, in the warm California sun--BOARDWALK!"

I spent many long summer days at the boardwalk, riding the up-jumped carnival rides and playing in the cold, cold water. No matter how cheesy, grungy, or dumpy the Boardwalk appears, it will forever hold a special place in my heart.

Who doesn't love the rickety-old Sea Swings? Credit

While reminiscing about my summers past, I never would imagine that this iconic California "theme park" would also host a eco-consciousness and commitment to environmental preservation.

That's why I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the boardwalk, in fact, does have a green mindset. Their Eco Profile notes that they are in close proximity to the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and that they are dedicated to preserving it.

The Boardwalk also boarders the Monterey Bay Aquarium, home to the ever-adorable California Sea Otters, Credit

The Boardwalk also boasts an award-winning recycling program, which is recognized by both the city and the State.

With nearly 2 million visitors per year, this is an impressive feat, Credit

Their webpage also boasts a plethora of green efforts, including:

• "Recycling or reusing approximately 180 tons of material annually
• Reclaiming approximately 1 million gallons of water annually for landscaping and other non-potable water applications
• Installing waterless urinals and low-flush toilets in 2008 and beyond
• Prohibiting the use of polystyrene (Styrofoam) at all Boardwalk food locations
• Installing the first solar powered trash compactors in Northern California
• Recycling oil generated from vehicles and rides, green waste generated from landscaping, and electronic waste
• Cleaning the beach in front of the Boardwalk daily during the Spring and Summer
• Participating in valued community programs such as Coastal Clean-Up Day and Bike-to-Work Day
• Providing discounted bus passes, as well as bicycle and skateboard locker to encourage employee use of alternative transportation
• Providing electric vehicles for maintenance crew"

Who knew that this park full of cheap summer thrills and disposable waste would be doing such a good job towards reducing their environmental impact? Good for you, Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk!

Credit

Death of Corals Linked to New Source

Coral reefs are a notoriously fragile indicator species. Yes, those brightly colored underwater structures you may have seen in tropical seas are not rocks or plants, but actually billions of tiny invertebrates called polyps who secrete a hard calcium carbonate test (or shell). As the organisms reproduce, their offspring build their home on the wall of their parents test, thus adding on to the structure over time. These little inverts are aptly called  ecosystem builders as the structures they create provide food and shelter for an array of colorful fish, turtles, crustacea, enchinodermata, and annelidea to name a few.

Biodiversity of a Caribbean coral reef. Credit

Yet, as beautiful and important as they are, corals have been experiencing die off (bleaching) in the last 40 years, to the point where some reefs have declined by over half their original size. Scientists argued over the cause of this bleaching phenomenon; many blame the warming waters due to Global Climate Change. Others point to acidification of the oceans, pollutants, disease, or physical destruction as the cause.

The polyps emerge from their CaCO3 shells in order to filterfeed. Credit

However, new research points to a different culprit altogether, and luckily, this cause is much easier to address than Global Warming or non-point pollution sources. A new report compiled by Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and the United Nations Environment Programme entitled the Status and Trends of Caribbean Coral Reefs: 1970-2012 has put forth that the real destroyer of coral reefs is overfishing. Specifically, the overfishing of urchins and parrot fish.

 

Bi-color Parrot Fish. Credit

Long Spined Sea Urchin. Credit

These creatures are herbivores that feed mainly on green algae, like the kind that grows on reefs in tropical seas. This algae is a real problem for the corals because it blocks the sun. Coral polyps themselves are not photosynthetic, but their tissues host a symbiont zooxanthellae that is. These tiny, unicellular algae produce sugars which they then share with their host in exchange for protection. Around 90% of the polyps nutrition comes from their symbionts, so it is easy to see how a thick covering of algae over the reef would hinder the photosynthetic process of the zooxanthellae and consequentally, starve and kill the polyp.

What a tragedy to lose this stunning ecosystem. Credit

 Because parrot fish and urchins are relentless grazers, they clear away the algae layer so that they entire system continues to run smoothly. However, removing these herbivores from the system (by fishing industry or for sport) is beginning an unfortunate trophic cascade in which algal layers smother coral reefs and polyps starve.

This sad story is a reality in the Caribbean Sea where overfishing threatens to destroy the $3 billion tourist industry. Local Caribbeaners have begun reef restorations in hopes of bringing in corals to fill in the gaps, and the US government has banned the fishing of parrot fish in the US Virgin Islands in an attempt to increase their numbers and stop the algal accumulation. However, stricter measures like enforcing marine protected areas may help in limiting the take of urchins and parrot fish, which would keep the corals clean and alive.

Solar Starts in Santa Barbara County

The town of Cuyama in north-eastern part of Santa Barbara County will soon be shining brighter and generating more renewable energy than any other part.

A similar photovoltaic array in Nevada. Credit

On Septermber 9th, the County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to approve the construction of a 40 megawatt (MW) photovoltaic solar array plant. This plant will occupy 327 acres in Cuyama and will by the County's first taste of industrialize renewable energy.

This new solar plant, first proposed four years ago by First Solar, will be able to power over 15,000 homes, create around 200 construction jobs, and lead to more maintenance careers in the future.

A further vote by the Board of Supervisors is needed to decide whether to install one large, 40 MW plant or to instead construct several smaller projects.

California Goes Up in Flames

As all Californians know, we are in a drought crisis unmatched by any other in recorded history. Without our usual measly rainfall, the hillsides and valleys of California have become especially crisp. With California's history of large wildfires, the drought, high wind, and even higher temperatures, it comes as a shock to absolutely no one that the state is combusting around us.

This article by the Washington Post details most of the damage excellently with the use of tweets, fire database modeling, and aerospace imagery. In this post, I merely mean to sum up the damage:

Since the drought really took hold of California in 2012, there have been innumerous fires, with over 100 fires occurring in 2012 alone. Fires currently ravaging our state include the Boles Fire, Courtney Fire, Dog Bar Fire, King Fire, June Fire, Meadow Fire, Silverado Fire, the Irene Fire, and three more.

Fires currently burning in CA. Credit

Of these eleven, the 70, 994 acre King Fire which currently rages east of Tahoe is the worst by far. Only 3,500 acres of this fire have been contained, and this spells disaster for rural residents.

The King Fire, courtesy of Google Maps.

The King Fire, whose origins are unknown, is massive a growing and moving fast. Yesterday, Abby Ohlheiser reported that it is threatening over 1,600 homes in Northern California. These factors have “prompted specially trained federal firefighters to take command of the fire early Tuesday morning,” USA Today reported. These firefighters are attempting to slow the movement of the blaze and ensure that it will not jump the gap provided by Highway 50. Some 6,500 firefighters are currently battling the fire and attempting to ward off spread into the highly forested residential area across the highway.

The King Fire at Highway 50, with embers floating across to the Southern side. Courtesy of Nick Janes (@nick_janes).

The King Fire at a closed section of Highway 50, courtesy of Trevor Hughes (@TrevorHughes).

Perhaps the runner-up to the King Fire may be the Boyles Fire that alone has destroyed 150 buildings in the City of Weed, California, including two Churches, the library, an elementary school, and the building of the town's major employer.

While these fires are truly devastating to everyone involved, there is little that can realistically be done. Let's all hope the El Nino and it's down pours of rain are coming, and soon. 

Camarillo City Chooses Ag Land Over Suburban Sprawl

On the 11th of this month, the Camarillo City Council of Ventura County decided to deny a General Plan amendment that proposed rezoning 620 acres of prime agricultural (ag) land to residential. Such a rezone would have allowed the Conejo Creek Project to pave over that land and construct 1.5 million square feet of industrial space and 2,500 tract homes. 

The Conejo Creek Development Plan Map that now will never be. Credit

The City Council's decision to unanimously vote against this development was fulled by a very concerned public presence, whose comments encouraged the decision to save the open ag space. The Environmental Defense Center and Camarillo Sustainable Growth also helped to fuel the decision with their support of keeping the ag land in agriculture. 

 

Wildlife Win as EPA Bans Rodenticide Chemicals

On May 30, 2014, the EPA and Reckitt Benckiser (maker of d-CON rodent poison) made a stride to protect wild meso-predators and birds of prey across the US by stopping the production of second-generation rodenticides. These rodenticides are poisons that contain such toxic chemicals as difethialone, bromadiolon, difenacoum, and brodifacoum. Twelve d-CON products were banded that did not meet safety standards put forth by the EPA.

These rodent poisons are highly efficient at killing their intended targets, put when left in open areas, the native carnivores like skunks, raccoons, ravens, hawks, owls, coyotes, or bobcats are also poisoned, sometimes fatally so. House pets are also at risk from accidentally consuming these anticoagulant compounds or the animals who have consumed rodenticide, and insufficiently tamper-proof packaging also puts children at risk.

A coyote enjoying a snack. Credit

Bay Area Wildcare reports that in the last year, 76.8% of wildlife seen at their clinic tested positive for levels of rodenticide toxins. Removing these products from store shelves will drastically reduce this percentage over time, although bio-accumulation will ensure the toxins remain in the food chain for a while. Licensed pest control companies will still be allowed to administer the poisons, however.

Reckitt Benckiser may resort to using diphacinone as the active ingredient in their d-CON. Although diphacinone is still poisonous to non-target species, it is less dangerous, is removed from the body more easily, and must be consumed multiple times to be fatal.

Surprisingly, rodenticides may be placed not only around homes and businesses, but also in state and national parks. These poisons in our park system means that all wildlife, including threatened and endangered species, will continue to be at risk. CA Assemblyman Richard Bloom has proposed Bill 2657 to prohibit the use of any pesticide in wildlife habitats, which will ensure that our park systems become refuges for our fauna.

Harnessing the Elements: Powering California with Renewables Alone

Who needs fossil fuels anyway? A recent article by John Upton of the Pacific Standard claims that California could power itself using nothing but reusable energy options, and he links the scientific articles to prove it.

Mark Jacobson, a Stanford Engineering Professor and main author on many of these articles, believes that solely using wind, water, and solar renewables is completely feasible. The only hindrances he anticipates are social and political.

Jacobson has laid out his renewable energy plan in first Scientific American, then in several academic papers in Energy and Energy Policy. In these, Jacobson details how large cities like New York may ditch fossil fuels while also creating so many green jobs that unemployment rates would decrease.

Jacobson states that the same pricipals of his New York Plan could be used in California due to our abundance of shore line and sunshine. According to this plan, the state would wean itself off fossil fuels completely by 2050. It doesn't even require controversial nuclear!

Jacobson's Energy Sources over time, from Energy

This plan creates jobs, decreases pollution, and would save lives.

What are the downsides? The expense of $1.1 trillion which Jacobson claims will be more than offset by fuel savings and lessening climate change destruction.

While Jacobson may be envisioning a green utopia that we would all love to live in, I think his plan will be a bit hard for state government to swallow and nearly impossible for private fossil fuel companies to comply with.

University of California goes Solar

Rob Holland of CALPIRG Students announced today that the University of California system will be investing in renewable solar energy.

This move towards solar across the ten campuses will reduce emissions of greenhouse gasses (GHG) by around 72,000 metric tons. This huge reduction will be a tiny step in the right direction of reducing GHG and retarding Global Climate Change, which has already had visible, tangible impacts on our home state. 

Some of these impacts include the fact that we are in the third year of the worst drought in recorded history, and subsequently that California is now so dry that this is a massive forest fire ragin in Yosemite. 

While the cost of cutting edge renewable energy technology may be daunting up front, one must wonder why we haven't made it more of a priority. After all, California is a relentlessly sunny place that, in theory, could sustain itself on renewables alone. Yet, 80% of our energy still comes from fossil fuels.

CALPIRG and the UC system are definitely making strides towards reducing our dependency on non-renewables, and hopefully other businesses and organizations will follow suit. 

CA Water Resources and URS Reevaluate Levees

URS Corporation has teamed up with the California Department of Water Resources in the Urban Levee Evaluation Project (ULE) and Non-Urban Levee Evaluation Project (NULE) provide geotechnical evaluations of 1,454 miles of levees in both urban and rural areas. 

The ULE will assess 450 miles of levees in the San Joaquin and Sacramento basins of the Central Valley that protect densely urban areas from flooding. The purpose of this evaluation is to determine whether the levees comply with geotechnical criteria put forward by the US Army Corps of Engineers. If the levees do not meet this criteria, remediation measures will be identified.

The goal for all California levees is to protect development from a 200-year flood level. URS will speed this project by using new technology and solutions.

NULE will also see URS evaluating the geotechnical strength of 1,604 miles of state and federal rural levees in the Sacramento River basin.These non-urban levees will also provide 200-year storm protection, but for less than 10,000 people.

This major project coincides with one of the worst drought on record. Perhaps since creek and lake waters will have drastically decreased, now is the ideal time to be reevaluating and restoring levees that will keep California residents safe once the rains do return.

CA Trailblazing to Ban the Bag!

On August 30, 2014, the California state Senate made a ground-breaking move by voting 22-15 to pass a bill that will ban single-use plastic grocery bags state-wide.

Of course, this bill still needs to be signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown by the end of September to become a law. While Brown has not shown support or opposition for the bill, his signing it would be a momentous move in the history of US environmental advicosy.

Plastic bags litter a creek in LA County. Credit

If adopted, California will be the first state to go complete-ly baggless, and other states are sure to follow.

According to California Against Waste, more than ten billion plastic bags are used once and thrown away each year in California alone. Those bags despoil landscapes, clog waterways, poison sea-creatures, and create mountains of waste that cannot be easily recycled.

This bill will loan $2million to plastic bag manufactures in order for them to begin producing sturdier reusable bags. Grocery stores will be able to charge for these bags and also 10 cents for each paper bags that consumers require.

Charging customers for bags is a great way to encourage reusable bag usage. However, I cannot stop to wonder with this monetary incentive to the bag manufacturers, wouldn't it be in their best interest to ensure that their reusable bags have a planned obsolescence to ensure bag sales?

Luckily, no matter how poorly and short-lived these bags may be, they will indeed create less waste than their single-use counterparts.  And for this fact, I and my fellow reusable-bag advocates are celebrating!