Category: Science
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LAist: New study raises questions about heavy metals in fire retardants
Over the past decade, about 67 million gallons of fire retardant have been dropped on wildfires across California, according to the U.S. Forest Service. If you’ve ever wondered what’s in the bright red goop that’s used to protect homes and hillsides, a new study out of USC offers clues beyond what the manufacturers show on their official…
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Boiling Point: Heat, fires, floods — extreme weather has affected 99% of Americans
A firefighter walks through haze as the Park fire burns near Mineral, Calif., in early August. (Noah Berger / Associated Press) Extreme weather alerts for dangerous heat, wildfires, storms, flooding and other hazards have affected nearly everyone in the United States over the past few months. Tracking data from the National Weather Service, the nonprofit…
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Protecting communities and watersheds through research in a redwood forest
Tour group hikes through Jackson Demonstration State Forest in Northern California. Credit: Photo by Hilary Clark, U.S. Forest Service Water trickles in a stream and redwoods tower overhead in Jackson Demonstration State Forest near Fort Bragg in Northern California. Joe Wagenbrenner, a research hydrologist with the U. S. Forest Service’s Pacific Southwest Research Station, shares…
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Drought-driven water pollution hits California Latino communities hard
Drought-driven drinking water contamination is disproportionately affecting members of California’s Latino communities, a new study has found. Among the pollutants plaguing these water systems are arsenic and nitrate, which are linked to an increased risk of a variety of diseases, according to the study, published Wednesday in the American Journal of Public Health. Some such illnesses…
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STANFORD NEWS: A new approach to the problem of water affordability
Soaring water utility bills force many households to ration water use for essential needs while still falling behind on payments. Stanford scientists offer a new approach to measuring water affordability that could help utilities and government agencies identify and aid those most at risk. Rising water prices are forcing many households in the United States…
