- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Scientists studying long-ago California climate have realized that the 20th century was abnormally wet and rainy, according to researcher Lynn Ingram, professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Science at UC Berkeley.
“The past 150 years have been wetter than the past 2,000 years,” Ingram said. “And this is when our water development, population growth and agricultural industry were established.”
Ingram made the statement in a video presentation that is part of the UC California Institute for Water Resources new online video series. The series consists of presentations...
- Author: Alison L Kent
On April 30, Barbara Allen-Diaz, vice president of the UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, will wear bees – live honeybees. The event is a fundraiser for undergraduate education, and Allen-Diaz, who has endured bee stings in the past, is willing to take the risk for this important cause. She'll have the help of a noted bee wrangler, UC Davis emeritus professor of entomology Norm Gary. Gary has performed such unlikely stunts as playing the clarinet while covered with honeybees. He will apply a synthetic pheromone to Allen-Diaz's hands to attract the bees,...
- Author: Brook Gamble
One of the common challenges across all environmental work is determining the impact we are making. Are we making a difference? Is it at the scale that we hoped for? Are people changing their attitudes or actions as a result of our programs and outreach materials? Has the environment benefited as a result of our effort? Are there areas that we could better spend our limited time and resources?
Unlike farmers, for example, we can't report back changes in yield per acre planted or larger fruits as a result of our efforts. We can't always prove whether an end result is correlated or caused by our efforts. But we still have to find a way to link our efforts to outcomes and accurately quantify some of the qualitative information...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
An aspen grove is an oasis of color and movement in Sierra Nevada forests. Smooth white architecture in the winter gives way to pale green leaves shimmering with the slightest breeze. In the fall, the leaves turn fire gold and flutter to the ground like giant snowflakes.
Besides their beauty, aspen groves are valued for providing myriad ecological services. The groves add species and landscape diversity to the Sierra Nevada. They offer higher water retention than the adjoining conifer forest, plus wildlife habitat and forage for livestock and wildlife.
Aspens are native to the Sierra Nevada and other areas with cool summer temperatures. Groves are typically clonal colonies that grew from a single seedling and spread when...
- Author: Brad Hooker
Water sloshes from a fill hole atop the steel tank and strikes the dirt road in puffs of dust. With weathered hands, short nails and a once black felt cowboy hat, Adam Cline motors the water truck through the anxious herd. Piled on the floor beside him are several 40 pound bags of soybean meal, a more affordable protein supplement that protects the herd from malnourishment. Cline is fortunate: his cautious management strategies over the last two years will likely carry this operation through yet another drought year, without having to sell off any cows.
“Every rancher is equipped for an average drought,” he tells me. “But a drought like this is really hard to manage for… Emotionally it's like a battle...