The influence of fire suppression is exaggerated. The idea that there was a “hundred years” of fire suppression ignores the fact that in the early 1920s and 1930s as much as 50 million acres burned annually. Furthermore, climate controls fires, as indicated by the cool, moist decades between the 1940s-1980s. Courtesy of […]
Continue Reading →The recent wildfires in California make me feel even more worried about the fate of anyone whose homes are built in the woods. California has experienced the 9 of the largest fires in its history in the past two decades, but large fires have occurred in many other western states during the same period.
What […]
Continue Reading →The arrival of the still lone-wolf has led to formation of the Pacific Wolf Coalition-
The Pacific Wolf Coalition has issued its first news release. This new wolf advocacy group was formed when the long migration of wolf OR-7 from NE Oregon to Northern California raised interest in restoring wolves to the Cascade Range and […]
Continue Reading →Endangered Desert Tortoise Further Imperiled by Remote Solar Plant
For several months we’ve been covering the progress of the, now approved, solar power plant at Ivanpah near Las Vegas on the California side of the Nevada/California border. Initial construction has begun and biologists have rounded up as many desert tortoises as they can to […]
Continue Reading →The very rich funding political causes is not new, but the billionaire Koch Brothers are finally getting much deserved publicity-
That money is the “mothers milk of politics” is well known, but the identify of the mothers often isn’t. In recent years the role of really rich people funding their causes has mushroomed. Rightwingers will […]
Continue Reading →How did a (probable) Idaho wolverine end up in the Sierra of California?
Lone, lovelorn wolverine baffles scientists. By Peter Fimrite, San Francisco Chronicle Staff Writer
Continue Reading →Mojave Trails National Monument would protect 941,000 acres of public land. 314,000 acres of existing ORV areas would also be protected-
The article says environmentalists, hunters, and off-roaders support the legislation. Part of these areas had been targeted for big solar power developments.
The total list is: Mojave Trails NM, 941,000 acres; Sand to Snow […]
Continue Reading →It caused earthquakes!
Geothermal Project in California Is Shut Down. By James Glanz. New York Times.
The person who emailed this story to me wrote, “Boy – If you’ve ever read a geothermal EA to destroy the nearest hot springs – BLM never says anything about the earthquakes …”
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These self-starting manure fires are apparently all too common Southern California when it gets hot-
Well . . . another negative side effect of ranching! Oh, and the location of the ranch where the fire began was kept a secret.
Story in the LA Times.
Continue Reading →BrightSource Energy drops project in marvelous desert valley with bighorn sheep-
Disputed Solar Energy Project in California Desert Is Dropped. By Elisabeth Rosenthal. New York Times.
This had been a great Mohave Desert controversy, prompting Senator Feinstein to propose the area as a national monument instead. BrightSource says they are now looking for new […]
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