- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Why we need to treat wildfire as a public health issue in California
(The Conversation) Faith Kearns and Max Moritz, Oct 15
… As researchers who have worked extensively on fire in California, we believe it is time to treat fires that affect communities as the public health challenge they have become. This means taking a more robust approach to a host of issues, including focusing on where and how we build, taking the needs of vulnerable populations seriously, and ensuring that solutions are equitable.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
While many California communities have been left without power, UC Cooperative Extension fire scientist Lenya Quinn-Davidson worries that last year's Camp Fire has put too much focus on utility companies as the cause of fires, reported Tara Law in TIME.
Major fires are sometimes caused by utilities, but there are many other potential causes, including lightning, arson and sparks from dragging chains. All of these factors, are compounded by "lack of fuel management, poor land-use planning, and homes that aren't ready for fire and aren't resilient to fire," Quinn-Davidson said.
Power outages can...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Zheng Wang, vegetable crops advisor with UC Cooperative Extension in Stanislaus County, visited an ag class at Stanislaus State to discuss a state-of-the-art vegetable production practice that involves grafting, reported Alivah Stoeckl in Stan State News.
Grafting plants onto specially bred rootstocks is a practice that is common in tree crops. Grafting confers resistance to soil-borne diseases and pests, requiring less inputs and leading to sustainable crop productivity. It is now...
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
The Camp Fire started on federal land. This rule would make PG&E clean up its power lines
(Sac Bee) Emily Cadei, Sept. 30
…“In California, it is fairly clear that PG&E did not keep an up-to-date inventory and accomplishment schedule on vegetation clearance on all of their power lines,” William Stewart, director of the Berkeley Forests program at UC Berkeley, said in an email. “ I think the Forest Service wants to make sure that they are sending the same signals to their staff and partners that judges are now sending to PG&E — do proper power line clearance or some entity (or entities) is going to be on the hook for billions of dollars of damages.”
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Nine local nonprofits selected for training program
(Imperial Valley Press) Sept. 12
The Imperial County Local Health Authority Commission Wednesday identified nine local nonprofit organizations that have been selected to participate in capacity building training over the next several months.
…Organizations chosen for the training were Children's Foundation of the Imperial Valley, Imperial Valley LGBT Resource Center, Spread the Love Charity, University of California Desert Research and Extension Center, Imperial Valley Food Bank, Court Appointed Special Advocates of Imperial County, Calexico Wellness Center, Imperial Valley Cancer Support Center and Sure Helpline Center.