Tag: development
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Feasting sea otters help reduce erosion, study says
Photo: A sea otter in the estuarine water of Elkhorn Slough, Monterey Bay, California. (Emma Levy via Courthouse News) The return of top predators like otters can help ecosystems, scientists say. After nearing extinction, sea otters are returning to California’s Monterey Bay — and they’ve brought their appetites. That’s great news not just for the…
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Water supplies: states grapple with how to grow in drying West
POLITICO illustration/Photos by iStock Communities are being forced to confront the challenge of not enough water to support building into the desert. Across the parched West, there are signs the region’s decades-long population and housing boom is confronting the realities of dwindling water supplies. These have come in recent months from court rulings and executive…
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Rebate program helps HOAs become grand-scale water savers
Photo: Landscape renovations of the common area of the 49-home Mall III Lake San Marcos Homeowners Assocation included the removal of 5,000 square feet of turf. Rebates covered the entire $96,000 cost of the project. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune) Company of experts, partnering with San Diego County Water Authority, acts as ‘concierge’ helping…
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“Destination Stewardship” — the plan to save Tahoe from itself has arrived
Photo: Tahoe community leaders are determined to dampen the negative impacts of the estimated 15 million people who visit the lake each year. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle The long-awaited plan to save Lake Tahoe has arrived. On Tuesday, community leaders unveiled a 126-page document, two years in the making, that seeks to course-correct Tahoe from an economy increasingly dependent on tourism and…
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No time to waste for government to protect drought-stricken West
For decades, Western cities like Las Vegas and Tucson, Ariz., have embraced water conservation and recycling as a means of preparing for a multidecade drought like the one we’re experiencing. Despite our best efforts, our neighbors in Southern California, Northern Arizona and Utah have not always followed our lead. Cities like Phoenix, Los Angeles and…
