Residents In Pajaro Still Waiting For Relief Funds
How AI Is Changing The Nature Of Police Reports
How Central Valley Farmworker Communities Are Tackling Climate Change
6 Months After Devastating Floods, Pajaro Struggles to Rebuild Before Winter
We Don’t Know Whether Most of the Bay’s Levees Are Safe
'We're Survivors': Scenes From Pajaro After the Water Finally Receded
'We Have Nothing': Pajaro Farmworkers Face the Prospect of No Income at Start of Harvesting Season
Newsom's $42 Million in Aid for Flooded Farmworkers Is Actually Old COVID Funding
Thousands of Californians Aren't Eligible for Federal Aid After Storms. Here's Why
In Monterey County, the Town of Pajaro Has Flooded
Breached Levee Floods Pajaro River Valley, Engulfing Towns as Communities Are Evacuated
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Friday, November 22, 2024…\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">It’s been more than a year and a half since a levee breach flooded the community of Pajaro. The state of California gave Monterey County $20 million for recovery, with $10 million earmarked for direct aid to residents and businesses. But Pajaro residents \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2024-11-20/pajaro-residents-are-still-waiting-for-millions-in-flood-relief-funds\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">are still waiting on most of that money.\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">A \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12015275/another-strong-storm-to-slam-california-raising-flood-risk-in-north-bay\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">powerful atmospheric river\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> continues to slam Northern California. Weather conditions have toppled trees, flooded roads, left thousands without power, and forced the closure of some schools as a precautionary measure. The National Weather Service warns Eureka and Humboldt County could see extensive flooding. \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Phillips 66 is facing a \u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/climate-environment/phillips-66-faces-federal-charges-after-carson-refinery-allegedly-dumped-wastewater-into-la-sewer-system\">six count federal indictmen\u003c/a>t over allegations the company’s LA County refinery violated the Clean Water Act.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2 class=\"ArtP-headline\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2024-11-20/pajaro-residents-are-still-waiting-for-millions-in-flood-relief-funds\">\u003cstrong>Pajaro Residents Are Still Waiting For Millions In Flood Relief Funds\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The State of California gave Monterey County $20 million for recovery following the levee breach in Pajaro in 2023, with $10 million earmarked for \u003ca class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2024-03-27/pajaro-residents-businesses-can-now-apply-for-aid-to-cover-last-years-flood-damages\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-cms-ai=\"0\">\u003cu>direct aid to residents and businesses\u003c/u>\u003c/a>. But the relief dollars have only trickled in from the county.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More than 50 Pajaro residents, business owners, and philanthropists gathered in the community room at Sun Ridge Farms on Nov. 15 for an event called Proudly Pajaro. They were there to discuss the current state of post-flood recovery efforts and to learn about the work that members of the community are doing to build greater economic stability in Pajaro.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sister Rosa Dolores is a longtime Pajaro resident and executive director of \u003ca class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.casadelaculturacenter.org/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-cms-ai=\"0\">\u003cu>Casa de la Cultura\u003c/u>\u003c/a>—a local nonprofit that supports migrant farm workers. “We’re meeting every Friday, and we talk about, what can we do?” said Sister Dolores. “What can each family do to prepare for if we have another disaster, not only a flood, but earthquake and all those other things.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most recent status report from Monterey County came out in late September. At that time, just under $1.4 million out of $10 million had been distributed to residents and businesses. A county spokesman said on Nov. 19 that he didn’t have a more recent figure, but applications are constantly being processed. The next formal update on the spending is scheduled for the January board of supervisors meeting. Many residents think it’s taking too long.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12015275/another-strong-storm-to-slam-california-raising-flood-risk-in-north-bay\">\u003cstrong>Storm Drenches Much Of Northern California, Bay Area\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12015108/bomb-cyclone-fuels-heavy-storm-slamming-northern-california-echoing-2021-deluge\">An atmospheric river storm\u003c/a> has dumped heavy rainfall on Northern California for two straight days, and is expected to continue into Friday, before another storm will move into the region.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between Wednesday and Thursday, parts of the North Bay could receive 20 inches of rain, elevating the risk from the next round of rain, UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain said Thursday. The deluge is prompting major flood concerns in counties north of the Golden Gate Bridge to the Oregon border.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The National Weather Service warns Eureka and Humboldt County could see extensive flooding. The biggest area of concern is the Eel River. “As it reaches major flood stage, it’s going to cut off a lot of roads, said James White with the National Weather Service in Eureka. “A lot of those farmers need to move their livestock as the river rises, and so that can always be a dangerous situation if people get trapped out there.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"ArticlePage-headline\">\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/climate-environment/phillips-66-faces-federal-charges-after-carson-refinery-allegedly-dumped-wastewater-into-la-sewer-system\">Phillips 66 Faces Federal Charges After Carson Refinery Allegedly Dumped Wastewater Into LA Sewer System\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Oil and gas company Phillips 66 \u003ca href=\"https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/texas-based-oil-and-gas-company-phillips-66-indicted-alleged-violations-clean-water\">has been charged\u003c/a> with allegedly dumping hundreds of thousands of gallons of wastewater into L.A.’s sewer system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A grand jury handed down a six-count indictment Wednesday, alleging the company’s Carson refinery twice released non-compliant wastewater into the sewers and then failed to alert L.A. County officials, violating the Clean Water Act.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the indictment, the incidents occurred in 2020 and again in 2021. The first time, the wastewater allegedly contained more than 300 times the allowed concentration of oil and grease.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Thursday, October 3, 2024…\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Draft One is software that uses basically the same AI as Chat GPT. In seconds it generates the narrative for a police officer’s report by analyzing the transcript of their body cam audio. \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12007520/how-artificial-intelligence-is-changing-the-reports-police-write\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">East Palo Alto is among a handful of cities across the state\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> including Fresno, San Mateo, Campbell and Bishop that have started testing or using the program. But some experts are questioning its accuracy.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Flood officials \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994596/pajaro-river-levee-project-breaks-ground-as-winter-flood-concerns-loom\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">are strengthening a levee system\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> in Monterey County that burst during a storm last year, flooding nearly 300 homes in Pajaro.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/klamath-dam-removal-completed-tribes-435b955f5bfdeaca82de66bfc6551ba1\">largest dam removal project in U.S. history \u003c/a>was completed Wednesday on the Klamath River near the California-Oregon border.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12007520/how-artificial-intelligence-is-changing-the-reports-police-write\">\u003cb>How Artificial Intelligence Is Changing The Reports Police Write\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">East Palo Alto, a small working-class city that can feel a world away from its Silicon Valley neighbors, is among a handful of California departments, including Campbell, San Mateo, Bishop and Fresno, that have started to use or test the AI-powered software developed by Axon, an industry leader in body cameras and tasers. Axon said the program can help officers produce more objective reports in less time. But as more agencies adopt these kinds of tools, some experts wonder if they give artificial intelligence too big a part in the criminal justice system.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">“We forget that that document plays a really central role in decisions that change people’s lives,” said Andrew Ferguson, a criminal law professor at American University Washington College of Law who wrote the first law review \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4897632\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">article\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> on AI-assisted police reports, which he expects to publish next year.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">From documenting the details of complex homicides to recording the basics of a stolen bicycle, police reports have been at the heart of police work. “They actually are kind of the building block of the criminal justice system because they are the official sort of memorialization of what happened, when, and sometimes why,” Ferguson said. Prosecutors make charging decisions, judges make bail decisions and people make decisions about their own defense based — at least in part — on what is on this initial piece of paper.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"routes-Site-routes-Post-Title-__Title__title\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994596/pajaro-river-levee-project-breaks-ground-as-winter-flood-concerns-loom\">\u003cstrong>Pajaro River Levee Project Breaks Ground As Winter Flood Concerns Loom\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Over a year and a half after the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/pajaro-river\">Pajaro River\u003c/a> levee burst, inundating \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1984643/reluctant-retreat-one-familys-fight-against-climate-induced-flooding\">nearly 300 homes\u003c/a> in Monterey County with chocolate milk-colored water, flood agencies broke ground on Wednesday on a massive levee project to protect the river valley from future storms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re turning the page from decades of fighting for a project [to] now just a handful of years of constructing a project for a new safe and secure Pajaro Valley,” Santa Cruz County Supervisor Zach Friend said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The nearly 14-mile levee project, managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in partnership with the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency, is expected to be finished early next decade.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"Page-headline\">\u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/klamath-dam-removal-completed-tribes-435b955f5bfdeaca82de66bfc6551ba1\">\u003cstrong>Tribes Celebrate End Of The Largest Dam Removal Project In US History\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The \u003cspan class=\"LinkEnhancement\">\u003ca class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" href=\"https://apnews.com/article/klamath-dams-removal-california-oregon-river-salmon-44fefba145d74383aa70a68d50597299\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\">largest dam removal project\u003c/a>\u003c/span> in U.S. history was completed Wednesday, marking a major victory for tribes in the region who fought for decades to free hundreds of miles of the Klamath River near the California-Oregon border.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through protests, testimony and lawsuits, local tribes showcased the environmental devastation due to the four towering hydroelectric dams, especially to salmon, which are are culturally and spiritually significant to tribes in the region. The dams cut salmon off from their historic habitat and caused them to die in alarming numbers because of bad water-quality conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Without the tribes’ work “to point out the damage that these dams were doing, not only to the environment, but to the social and cultural fabric of these tribal nations, there would be no dam removal,” said Mark Bransom, chief executive of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation, the nonprofit entity created to oversee the project.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"description": "Here are the morning's top stories on Thursday, October 3, 2024… Draft One is software that uses basically the same AI as Chat GPT. In seconds it generates the narrative for a police officer's report by analyzing the transcript of their body cam audio. East Palo Alto is among a handful of cities across the state including Fresno, San Mateo, Campbell and Bishop that have started testing or using the program. But some experts are questioning its accuracy. Flood officials are strengthening a levee system in Monterey County that burst during a storm last year, flooding nearly 300 homes in",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Thursday, October 3, 2024…\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Draft One is software that uses basically the same AI as Chat GPT. In seconds it generates the narrative for a police officer’s report by analyzing the transcript of their body cam audio. \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12007520/how-artificial-intelligence-is-changing-the-reports-police-write\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">East Palo Alto is among a handful of cities across the state\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> including Fresno, San Mateo, Campbell and Bishop that have started testing or using the program. But some experts are questioning its accuracy.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Flood officials \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994596/pajaro-river-levee-project-breaks-ground-as-winter-flood-concerns-loom\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">are strengthening a levee system\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> in Monterey County that burst during a storm last year, flooding nearly 300 homes in Pajaro.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>The \u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/klamath-dam-removal-completed-tribes-435b955f5bfdeaca82de66bfc6551ba1\">largest dam removal project in U.S. history \u003c/a>was completed Wednesday on the Klamath River near the California-Oregon border.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12007520/how-artificial-intelligence-is-changing-the-reports-police-write\">\u003cb>How Artificial Intelligence Is Changing The Reports Police Write\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">East Palo Alto, a small working-class city that can feel a world away from its Silicon Valley neighbors, is among a handful of California departments, including Campbell, San Mateo, Bishop and Fresno, that have started to use or test the AI-powered software developed by Axon, an industry leader in body cameras and tasers. Axon said the program can help officers produce more objective reports in less time. But as more agencies adopt these kinds of tools, some experts wonder if they give artificial intelligence too big a part in the criminal justice system.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">“We forget that that document plays a really central role in decisions that change people’s lives,” said Andrew Ferguson, a criminal law professor at American University Washington College of Law who wrote the first law review \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4897632\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">article\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> on AI-assisted police reports, which he expects to publish next year.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">From documenting the details of complex homicides to recording the basics of a stolen bicycle, police reports have been at the heart of police work. “They actually are kind of the building block of the criminal justice system because they are the official sort of memorialization of what happened, when, and sometimes why,” Ferguson said. Prosecutors make charging decisions, judges make bail decisions and people make decisions about their own defense based — at least in part — on what is on this initial piece of paper.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"routes-Site-routes-Post-Title-__Title__title\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1994596/pajaro-river-levee-project-breaks-ground-as-winter-flood-concerns-loom\">\u003cstrong>Pajaro River Levee Project Breaks Ground As Winter Flood Concerns Loom\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Over a year and a half after the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/pajaro-river\">Pajaro River\u003c/a> levee burst, inundating \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1984643/reluctant-retreat-one-familys-fight-against-climate-induced-flooding\">nearly 300 homes\u003c/a> in Monterey County with chocolate milk-colored water, flood agencies broke ground on Wednesday on a massive levee project to protect the river valley from future storms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re turning the page from decades of fighting for a project [to] now just a handful of years of constructing a project for a new safe and secure Pajaro Valley,” Santa Cruz County Supervisor Zach Friend said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The nearly 14-mile levee project, managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in partnership with the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency, is expected to be finished early next decade.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 class=\"Page-headline\">\u003ca href=\"https://apnews.com/article/klamath-dam-removal-completed-tribes-435b955f5bfdeaca82de66bfc6551ba1\">\u003cstrong>Tribes Celebrate End Of The Largest Dam Removal Project In US History\u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The \u003cspan class=\"LinkEnhancement\">\u003ca class=\"Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement\" href=\"https://apnews.com/article/klamath-dams-removal-california-oregon-river-salmon-44fefba145d74383aa70a68d50597299\" data-gtm-enhancement-style=\"LinkEnhancementA\">largest dam removal project\u003c/a>\u003c/span> in U.S. history was completed Wednesday, marking a major victory for tribes in the region who fought for decades to free hundreds of miles of the Klamath River near the California-Oregon border.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through protests, testimony and lawsuits, local tribes showcased the environmental devastation due to the four towering hydroelectric dams, especially to salmon, which are are culturally and spiritually significant to tribes in the region. The dams cut salmon off from their historic habitat and caused them to die in alarming numbers because of bad water-quality conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Without the tribes’ work “to point out the damage that these dams were doing, not only to the environment, but to the social and cultural fabric of these tribal nations, there would be no dam removal,” said Mark Bransom, chief executive of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation, the nonprofit entity created to oversee the project.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "how-central-valley-farmworker-communities-are-tackling-climate-change",
"title": "How Central Valley Farmworker Communities Are Tackling Climate Change",
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"headTitle": "How Central Valley Farmworker Communities Are Tackling Climate Change | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>A rural community on the banks of the San Joaquin River was spared from flooding during last winter’s powerful storms after hundreds of acres of former farmland were \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11965257/california-looks-to-restore-floodplains-to-protect-communities-from-impacts-of-climate-change\">restored to their natural state as floodplains\u003c/a>, giving the rising water a place to go.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An immigrant family in the Central Valley city of Tulare got relief from 100-degree heat and sky-high energy bills with insulation and energy retrofits installed under a state program to weatherize the homes of low-income farmworkers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A small town mayor in a region with some of the most polluted air in the nation launched a free rideshare program with a fleet of electric vehicles — the first step in his goal of creating hundreds of green jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These are a few of the climate resilience strategies emerging in hard-hit agricultural communities in California’s Central Valley, supported by state and federal funds that could enable local initiatives to scale up. But the very places that need help the most may have the hardest time accessing the funding available, \u003ca href=\"https://protect-us.mimecast.com/s/aYv2COYZQzi2BvYEskPu2V?domain=next10.org\">research shows\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Residents of San Joaquin Valley face a barrage of challenges as the planet warms and weather patterns shift, often with catastrophic results. Land development has been engineered over decades to maximize agricultural productivity, with little attention to environmental resilience. And low-income immigrant workers, who are the backbone of this economy, are on the front lines, living in communities that lack resources and critical infrastructure to cope.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Summer temperatures throughout the valley routinely spike into triple digits, making outdoor work dangerous and shoddily built homes stifling. Wildfires repeatedly blanket the region with smoke, exacerbating the air pollution that leads to the state’s worst rates of asthma.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966814\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966814\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A dry field with an irrigation channel alongside it.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An irrigation channel carries water to new plantings in the recently restored floodplain on the banks of the San Joaquin River near Grayson, Calif., on Aug. 31. The restoration work was conducted by the nonprofit River Partners to allow the fast-moving river to spread out over a wider expanse, diminishing its destructive force and preventing catastrophic flooding. \u003ccite>(Tyche Hendricks/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Violent floods wash away homes and livelihoods in communities with neglected levees and insufficient storm drains. And recurring drought contributes to the fact that most of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2021-118/index.html\">nearly 1 million Californians who lack access to safe drinking water\u003c/a> live in the Central Valley. [pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Pablo Ortiz-Partida, senior water and climate scientist, Union of Concerned Scientists\"]‘The biggest problem is the combination of things: farmworker communities not having a rest from one climate impact to another.’[/pullquote]“The biggest problem is the combination of things: farmworker communities not having a rest from one climate impact to another,” said Pablo Ortiz-Partida, senior water and climate scientist with the Union of Concerned Scientists. “All these things start interconnecting.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ortiz-Partida said policymakers must listen to those who live with these impacts daily.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There needs to be some top-down solutions, but also some bottom-up solutions,” he said. “How can we start that process of equitable transition to cleaner energies? … How can we start bringing a new, more sustainable vision of agriculture in the San Joaquin Valley?”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Left behind in the clean energy transition\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>California has established itself as a national leader in climate policy. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.nrdc.org/bio/merrian-borgeson/ca-climate-energy-policy-update-summer-2023\">Natural Resources Defense Council estimates\u003c/a> the state has committed to spend more than $52 billion over the next several years to \u003ca href=\"https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/our-work/programs/ab-32-climate-change-scoping-plan/2022-scoping-plan-documents\">transition off fossil fuels\u003c/a> and tackle the effects of climate change. That’s in addition to the hundreds of millions of dollars from President Joe Biden’s Infrastructure Act and \u003ca href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/California.pdf\">Inflation Reduction Act\u003c/a> that will soon flow to the state to fight climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet low-income immigrant communities in rural areas that are among the most impacted have not always seen the benefit — and could be at risk of losing out again. [aside postID=news_11943590 hero='https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/CalMatters_01-1020x680.jpg'] A \u003ca href=\"https://www.next10.org/publications/local-climate\">new report\u003c/a> from UC Berkeley’s Center for Law, Energy, & the Environment, and two nonprofits — the Institute for Local Government and Next 10 — found that many California municipalities, especially smaller ones, need to staff up and develop detailed climate action plans if they want a shot at competitive grants for the unprecedented funding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As the state faces worsening impacts from climate change, local governments are the front-line defense for our communities,” said F. Noel Perry, founder of Next 10. “We need to identify the barriers cities and counties face so we can take full advantage of the historic federal and state funding available to better protect ourselves now and in the future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State Sen. Anna Caballero represents some of the San Joaquin Valley’s poorest places and said climate policies don’t work if they only benefit wealthier residents of coastal cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She’s seen plenty of well-intentioned climate programs miss the mark for her Central Valley constituents. One example is rebates for purchasing electric cars and solar panels, which require paying the full price upfront and getting the discount later.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The urgency of getting this right and including rural communities in our discussion about climate change is that we’re going to end up with two separate worlds,” she said. “If you can afford it, you have an electric vehicle and a solar rooftop. And if you can’t, there’s nothing for you. There’s no job. There’s no way to pay your bills. And your community has no way of sustaining itself.” [pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"State Sen. Anna Caballero\"]‘If you can afford it, you have an electric vehicle and a solar rooftop. And if you can’t, there’s nothing for you.’[/pullquote]The region’s economy is dominated by agriculture and fossil fuel extraction industries, whose leaders trend Republican and have often resisted Democratic moves to slash carbon emissions and protect water and ecosystems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, 55% of the San Joaquin Valley’s 4.3 million residents live in disadvantaged communities, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.energy.ca.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/CA4_CCA_SJ_Region_Eng_ada.pdf\">California’s Fourth Climate Change Assessment\u003c/a> for the region. \u003ca href=\"https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ETA/naws/pdfs/NAWS%20Research%20Report%2015.pdf\">Among California farmworkers, 9 in 10 are immigrants\u003c/a>, and 8 in 10 are not citizens. Though their labor is essential, and many have lived here for decades, they can’t vote, so their voices and experiences aren’t always represented.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet Caballero, a Democrat, and many other lawmakers and advocates have been pushing for equitable solutions, and some are beginning to bear fruit.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘The river is their backyard’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The unincorporated community of Grayson, on the west bank of the San Joaquin River, is just five-by-six blocks. The only business, The One-Stop, is a gas station, convenience store, lunch counter and laundromat rolled into one. Residents rely on wells for drinking water that are often contaminated with agricultural chemicals from surrounding fields. Flooding has long been a risk.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lilia Lomelí-Gil, who runs the Grayson United Community Center, pointed out some older homes on Charles Street, where the water rose ominously as rain pounded the region last winter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966813\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966813\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with long hair stands in front of a dry field.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lilia Lomelí-Gil walks along the recently restored floodplain on the banks of the San Joaquin River near her home in Grayson, Calif., on Aug. 31. Lomelí-Gil, who runs the Grayson United Community Center, said the natural floodplain protected Grayson from flooding last winter and creates a place where community residents can get closer to nature. \u003ccite>(Tyche Hendricks/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“The river is their backyard,” she said. “The lady that lives right there in that little house was at risk of getting flooded. It did go up to their yard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lomelí-Gil, 71, knows that risk firsthand. Back in 1997, she was living in nearby Modesto when \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXEza6kPyFk\">a massive flood hit on New Year’s Day\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I lost my home,” she said. “Because the waters came in 4-feet high. And since we were downriver from the sewage plant, of course, it was all contaminated waters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She salvaged what she could and moved back to Grayson, where she’d grown up the daughter of farmworkers from Mexico. [pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Lilia Lomelí-Gil, co-founder, Grayson United Community Center\"]‘Going back to nature … It works with mental health and your physical health and your spiritual health. I think that triangle is the key to facing life’s challenges.’[/pullquote]During last winter’s storms, levees failed and catastrophic floods devastated other farmworker communities, like Pajaro and Planada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Grayson, the San Joaquin River surged, but the outcome was very different: the town did not flood. One reason? A \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/05/28/1178441292/flood-protection-california\">recent floodplain restoration project\u003c/a> allowed the fast-moving river to spread over a wider expanse, diminishing its destructive force.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The work was done by \u003ca href=\"https://riverpartners.org\">River Partners\u003c/a>, a nonprofit organization that restores riverside habitats around California. The group purchased unused farmland abutting the river, then removed the earthen berms holding the water in its channel. Dozens of people from the local community, including Lomelí-Gil, got involved in planting native tree saplings and grasses to restore wildlife habitat in the new floodplain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On a recent weekday, Lomelí-Gil tramped down an abandoned road at the end of Minnie Street to show off the plantings. Once the work is complete, she said, she’s looking forward to taking kids and seniors from the community center out to walk along trails by the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Going back to nature … It works with mental health and your physical health and your spiritual health,” she said, stopping to listen to the sound of the birds and the babbling water. “I think that triangle is the key to facing life’s challenges.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Removing levees to allow floods to flow across fallow farmland is a low-tech solution with significant payoffs, River Partners executive director Julie Rentner said. It not only reduces flood risk and expands wildlife habitat and space for recreation, but it refills underground aquifers that have been depleted by decades of over-pumping — and that should lead to cleaner drinking water for Lomelí-Gil and her neighbors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Similar projects will soon break ground. In the wake of last winter’s storms, state lawmakers budgeted nearly half a billion dollars to shore up levees and rebuild damaged communities. Tucked in there was $40 million for River Partners to restore natural floodplains on 2,500 more acres elsewhere along the San Joaquin River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That money is only a downpayment on what’s ultimately needed, Rentner said, but it’s an important step that could be a game-changer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s thinking more holistically about how we manage our water and our soil and our communities,” she said. ”So that we can find solutions to climate resilience that benefit us all.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Weatherization on steroids’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Extreme heat is another consequence of climate change hitting the San Joaquin Valley hard. Scientists calculate that annual average maximum \u003ca href=\"https://www.energy.ca.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/CA4_CCA_SJ_Region_Eng_ada.pdf\">temperatures increased by 1F from 1950 to 2020\u003c/a>. In 2021, Fresno experienced \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/media/hnx/SEPTEMBER%202021%20WEATHER%20SUMMARY.pdf\">a record 69 straight days with temperatures over 100F\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Outside the little city of Tulare, nearly three hours south of Grayson, Arturo Yañez, 55, unloads crates of kiwis and pomegranates. He said in the three decades he’s lived in the valley, he’s felt it get a little hotter each year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966816\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966816\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person in a baseball cap looks at photos on a shelf inside a home.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Arturo Yañez looks at family photos at his home in Tulare on Aug. 31. He received home weatherization and solar panels through a state program for green energy retrofits for farmworkers’ households. \u003ccite>(Tyche Hendricks/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“This year, too, it was extremely hot,” he said in Spanish. “To work in these temperatures is tough.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To help mitigate the heat, California uses funds from the state’s \u003ca href=\"https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/our-work/programs/california-climate-investments\">cap-and-trade program\u003c/a> to weatherize homes of low-income families, with some of that money \u003ca href=\"https://www.csd.ca.gov/Pages/Farmworker-Housing-Component.aspx\">carved out for the small percentage of farmworkers who are homeowners\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yañez is one of them. On a late summer afternoon, he showed where a crew had laid insulation in his attic and installed ceiling fans. An efficient, electric air-conditioning system was on the way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With the thermometer outdoors still reading 103 F at 5 p.m., those measures would make the house more comfortable, he said, and keep his energy costs more manageable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Sometimes, it’s tough to cover all the bills,” he said, adding that when it’s too hot to safely work outside, farmworkers are sent home early, costing them hours on their paychecks. [pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Arturo Yañez, San Joaquin Valley resident\"]‘We’ll be saving energy. And we can help reduce global warming too.’[/pullquote]Yañez had also applied for solar panels through the weatherization program, and that afternoon he learned that he’d qualified. His face lit up in relief.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s wonderful!” he said. “We’ll be saving energy. And we can help reduce global warming too.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Caballero said efforts like these are exactly what the valley needs but they must expand rapidly, to include hundreds of thousands of farmworker families who rent, often in shoddy homes with poor insulation and no air conditioning.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s kind of ‘weatherization on steroids,’” she said. “The benefits could be very, very powerful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office published an \u003ca href=\"https://resources.ca.gov/-/media/CNRA-Website/Files/Initiatives/Climate-Resilience/2022-Final-Extreme-Heat-Action-Plan.pdf\">extreme heat action plan\u003c/a>, and the legislature budgeted $1.1 billion for “decarbonization” retrofits in the homes of low- and moderate-income Californians, such as electric appliances and heat pumps for heating and cooling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, Caballero wrote a bill, signed by Gov. Newsom, to monitor where those funds are spent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We wanted to make sure that, with limited funds, we started with the communities that had the worst extreme heat,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Building a greener economy\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In the town of Huron, becoming more climate resilient is also about creating new jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Surrounded by tomato fields and almond orchards, the Fresno County town of about 6,000 is not the kind of place you’d expect to see Teslas and Chevy Volts. The poverty rate is 40%, and just 3 in 10 adults have finished high school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11960228\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11960228\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1.jpg\" alt=\"A person with a moustache and wearing a baseball cap stands in front of a white car.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Huron Mayor Rey León stands near an electric vehicle outside the Latino Equity Advocacy & Policy Institute offices, known as LEAP, in Huron, Calif., on Sept. 1, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Yet, from a former diesel garage on an alley behind the struggling main street, a busy rideshare service dispatches drivers in shiny electric cars to ferry Huron residents to the doctor and other appointments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The free program is called \u003ca href=\"https://greenraiteros.org\">Green Raiteros\u003c/a>, a play on the Spanish slang for someone who gives rides. The five-year-old project is the brainchild of Rey León, founding director of the nonprofit \u003ca href=\"https://theleapinstitute.org\">Latino Equity Advocacy & Policy Institute\u003c/a>, or LEAP. Green Raiteros is funded with state grants. And drivers are employees, not gig workers, with pay starting at $18 per hour, according to LEAP staff.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>León, who’s also Huron’s mayor, said the program is part of his vision of meeting basic needs like transportation while leaning into the green economy. The hope is to both reduce emissions and create jobs, preparing the workforce as climate change-induced drought disrupts the agricultural economy of the Central Valley. [pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Huron Mayor Rey León\"]‘Huron is in an area that’s been not just drought-stricken, but poverty-stricken for a very long time.’[/pullquote]“Huron is in an area that’s been not just drought-stricken, but poverty-stricken for a very long time,” said León, sitting in his office upstairs from the dispatchers. “We hope we can make the investments necessary to employ, empower and really animate folks from the community to advance their economy — with innovative technologies so that we can simultaneously fight the climate crisis.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>León sees the physical health of his community as intertwined with its economic health — and both as inextricably linked with the health of the environment where they live: \u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/california-has-some-of-the-worst-air-quality-in-the-country-the-problem-is-rooted-in-the-san-joaquin-valley\">one of the most contaminated air basins in the nation\u003c/a>. Huron residents breathe air that carries dust from the fields, pesticides and smog from nearby Interstate 5.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Among other efforts, León has installed 30 EV charging stations around town, planted 300 street trees and enacted measures to promote water conservation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, León is aware that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/environment/2022-11-03/amid-californias-three-year-drought-a-san-joaquin-valley-farmworker-considers-seeking-work-outside-the-region\">tens of thousands of agricultural jobs could dry up\u003c/a> in coming years, as climate-change-fueled drought persists and environmental laws to restore depleted aquifers take effect. The LEAP headquarters on the alley is an incubator for projects he hopes will eventually lead to hundreds of well-paying jobs in manufacturing and environmental stewardship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11960224\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11960224\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1.jpg\" alt=\"A person wearing a baseball cap looks out the window from the backseat of a car.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Enrique Contreras gets a ride in an all-electric vehicle from the Green Raiteros rideshare program in Huron, Calif., to a doctor’s appointment on Sept. 1, 2023. The program is run by Latino Equity Advocacy & Policy Institute offices, known as Leap. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In one bay of the garage, several men were building prototypes of portable trailers with solar panels on top, that the \u003ca href=\"https://www.grants.ca.gov/grants/gfo-20-310-mobile-renewable-backup-generation-morbugs/\">California Energy Commission hopes can serve as emergency shelters\u003c/a> and power stations, to deploy during wildfires or other disasters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And in a greenhouse behind the garage, two workers are running an experiment, funded by the USDA, to test a liquid organic fertilizer on tomatoes — with hopes of scaling up production and using local agricultural waste.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As Huron’s mayor, León is also \u003ca href=\"https://www.grants.ca.gov/grants/gfo-20-310-mobile-renewable-backup-generation-morbugs/\">scoping the possibility of developing a park\u003c/a> and nature conservancy on 3,000 acres of overgrown federal land just outside of town. He envisions replenishing the underground aquifer there using the town’s treated wastewater, and employing residents to build trails and plant native trees grown in LEAP greenhouses.\u003cbr>\n[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Solange Gould, co-director, Human Impact Partners\"]‘There’s a lot of funding, but the state needs to provide more technical assistance to Central Valley groups to be able to access that money.’[/pullquote]León’s dreams are big, but they’ll take more money, political muscle and capacity building to realize. He knows they won’t happen overnight and, for now, he’s experimenting at a small scale. The Green Raiteros fleet in Huron has 11 cars, but state grants are funding an expansion, with five additional vehicles in Fresno and three more in the Salinas Valley town of Pajaro. In a poor community like his, León said, such government funding has been essential.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If not for the resources provided by state agencies, it really wouldn’t be possible,” he said. “We’re farmworkers and, traditionally, farmworkers have never been afforded the privilege of being able to build up wealth. … We hope that with the projects we’re doing, they could see them as pilots for what could be done in similar communities throughout the state.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Small farming towns like Huron have had some success winning competitive grants. But even with all the new money flowing from state and federal governments, it often goes to big cities and large nonprofits with sophisticated fundraising operations, leaving small, rural places at a disadvantage — even if their need is intense, some advocates say.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There are dire inequities on every measure of human wellbeing in the Central Valley because of past and current policies and disinvestment,” said Solange Gould, co-director of Human Impact Partners, a nonprofit that advocates for health equity. “There’s a lot of funding, but the state needs to provide more technical assistance to Central Valley groups to be able to access that money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A rural community on the banks of the San Joaquin River was spared from flooding during last winter’s powerful storms after hundreds of acres of former farmland were \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11965257/california-looks-to-restore-floodplains-to-protect-communities-from-impacts-of-climate-change\">restored to their natural state as floodplains\u003c/a>, giving the rising water a place to go.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An immigrant family in the Central Valley city of Tulare got relief from 100-degree heat and sky-high energy bills with insulation and energy retrofits installed under a state program to weatherize the homes of low-income farmworkers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A small town mayor in a region with some of the most polluted air in the nation launched a free rideshare program with a fleet of electric vehicles — the first step in his goal of creating hundreds of green jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These are a few of the climate resilience strategies emerging in hard-hit agricultural communities in California’s Central Valley, supported by state and federal funds that could enable local initiatives to scale up. But the very places that need help the most may have the hardest time accessing the funding available, \u003ca href=\"https://protect-us.mimecast.com/s/aYv2COYZQzi2BvYEskPu2V?domain=next10.org\">research shows\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Residents of San Joaquin Valley face a barrage of challenges as the planet warms and weather patterns shift, often with catastrophic results. Land development has been engineered over decades to maximize agricultural productivity, with little attention to environmental resilience. And low-income immigrant workers, who are the backbone of this economy, are on the front lines, living in communities that lack resources and critical infrastructure to cope.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Summer temperatures throughout the valley routinely spike into triple digits, making outdoor work dangerous and shoddily built homes stifling. Wildfires repeatedly blanket the region with smoke, exacerbating the air pollution that leads to the state’s worst rates of asthma.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966814\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966814\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A dry field with an irrigation channel alongside it.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-02-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An irrigation channel carries water to new plantings in the recently restored floodplain on the banks of the San Joaquin River near Grayson, Calif., on Aug. 31. The restoration work was conducted by the nonprofit River Partners to allow the fast-moving river to spread out over a wider expanse, diminishing its destructive force and preventing catastrophic flooding. \u003ccite>(Tyche Hendricks/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Violent floods wash away homes and livelihoods in communities with neglected levees and insufficient storm drains. And recurring drought contributes to the fact that most of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2021-118/index.html\">nearly 1 million Californians who lack access to safe drinking water\u003c/a> live in the Central Valley. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘The biggest problem is the combination of things: farmworker communities not having a rest from one climate impact to another.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“The biggest problem is the combination of things: farmworker communities not having a rest from one climate impact to another,” said Pablo Ortiz-Partida, senior water and climate scientist with the Union of Concerned Scientists. “All these things start interconnecting.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ortiz-Partida said policymakers must listen to those who live with these impacts daily.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There needs to be some top-down solutions, but also some bottom-up solutions,” he said. “How can we start that process of equitable transition to cleaner energies? … How can we start bringing a new, more sustainable vision of agriculture in the San Joaquin Valley?”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Left behind in the clean energy transition\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>California has established itself as a national leader in climate policy. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.nrdc.org/bio/merrian-borgeson/ca-climate-energy-policy-update-summer-2023\">Natural Resources Defense Council estimates\u003c/a> the state has committed to spend more than $52 billion over the next several years to \u003ca href=\"https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/our-work/programs/ab-32-climate-change-scoping-plan/2022-scoping-plan-documents\">transition off fossil fuels\u003c/a> and tackle the effects of climate change. That’s in addition to the hundreds of millions of dollars from President Joe Biden’s Infrastructure Act and \u003ca href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/California.pdf\">Inflation Reduction Act\u003c/a> that will soon flow to the state to fight climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet low-income immigrant communities in rural areas that are among the most impacted have not always seen the benefit — and could be at risk of losing out again. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp> A \u003ca href=\"https://www.next10.org/publications/local-climate\">new report\u003c/a> from UC Berkeley’s Center for Law, Energy, & the Environment, and two nonprofits — the Institute for Local Government and Next 10 — found that many California municipalities, especially smaller ones, need to staff up and develop detailed climate action plans if they want a shot at competitive grants for the unprecedented funding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“As the state faces worsening impacts from climate change, local governments are the front-line defense for our communities,” said F. Noel Perry, founder of Next 10. “We need to identify the barriers cities and counties face so we can take full advantage of the historic federal and state funding available to better protect ourselves now and in the future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State Sen. Anna Caballero represents some of the San Joaquin Valley’s poorest places and said climate policies don’t work if they only benefit wealthier residents of coastal cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She’s seen plenty of well-intentioned climate programs miss the mark for her Central Valley constituents. One example is rebates for purchasing electric cars and solar panels, which require paying the full price upfront and getting the discount later.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The urgency of getting this right and including rural communities in our discussion about climate change is that we’re going to end up with two separate worlds,” she said. “If you can afford it, you have an electric vehicle and a solar rooftop. And if you can’t, there’s nothing for you. There’s no job. There’s no way to pay your bills. And your community has no way of sustaining itself.” \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘If you can afford it, you have an electric vehicle and a solar rooftop. And if you can’t, there’s nothing for you.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The region’s economy is dominated by agriculture and fossil fuel extraction industries, whose leaders trend Republican and have often resisted Democratic moves to slash carbon emissions and protect water and ecosystems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, 55% of the San Joaquin Valley’s 4.3 million residents live in disadvantaged communities, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.energy.ca.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/CA4_CCA_SJ_Region_Eng_ada.pdf\">California’s Fourth Climate Change Assessment\u003c/a> for the region. \u003ca href=\"https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ETA/naws/pdfs/NAWS%20Research%20Report%2015.pdf\">Among California farmworkers, 9 in 10 are immigrants\u003c/a>, and 8 in 10 are not citizens. Though their labor is essential, and many have lived here for decades, they can’t vote, so their voices and experiences aren’t always represented.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet Caballero, a Democrat, and many other lawmakers and advocates have been pushing for equitable solutions, and some are beginning to bear fruit.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘The river is their backyard’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The unincorporated community of Grayson, on the west bank of the San Joaquin River, is just five-by-six blocks. The only business, The One-Stop, is a gas station, convenience store, lunch counter and laundromat rolled into one. Residents rely on wells for drinking water that are often contaminated with agricultural chemicals from surrounding fields. Flooding has long been a risk.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lilia Lomelí-Gil, who runs the Grayson United Community Center, pointed out some older homes on Charles Street, where the water rose ominously as rain pounded the region last winter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966813\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966813\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person with long hair stands in front of a dry field.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-01-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lilia Lomelí-Gil walks along the recently restored floodplain on the banks of the San Joaquin River near her home in Grayson, Calif., on Aug. 31. Lomelí-Gil, who runs the Grayson United Community Center, said the natural floodplain protected Grayson from flooding last winter and creates a place where community residents can get closer to nature. \u003ccite>(Tyche Hendricks/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“The river is their backyard,” she said. “The lady that lives right there in that little house was at risk of getting flooded. It did go up to their yard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lomelí-Gil, 71, knows that risk firsthand. Back in 1997, she was living in nearby Modesto when \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXEza6kPyFk\">a massive flood hit on New Year’s Day\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I lost my home,” she said. “Because the waters came in 4-feet high. And since we were downriver from the sewage plant, of course, it was all contaminated waters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She salvaged what she could and moved back to Grayson, where she’d grown up the daughter of farmworkers from Mexico. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>During last winter’s storms, levees failed and catastrophic floods devastated other farmworker communities, like Pajaro and Planada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Grayson, the San Joaquin River surged, but the outcome was very different: the town did not flood. One reason? A \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/05/28/1178441292/flood-protection-california\">recent floodplain restoration project\u003c/a> allowed the fast-moving river to spread over a wider expanse, diminishing its destructive force.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The work was done by \u003ca href=\"https://riverpartners.org\">River Partners\u003c/a>, a nonprofit organization that restores riverside habitats around California. The group purchased unused farmland abutting the river, then removed the earthen berms holding the water in its channel. Dozens of people from the local community, including Lomelí-Gil, got involved in planting native tree saplings and grasses to restore wildlife habitat in the new floodplain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On a recent weekday, Lomelí-Gil tramped down an abandoned road at the end of Minnie Street to show off the plantings. Once the work is complete, she said, she’s looking forward to taking kids and seniors from the community center out to walk along trails by the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Going back to nature … It works with mental health and your physical health and your spiritual health,” she said, stopping to listen to the sound of the birds and the babbling water. “I think that triangle is the key to facing life’s challenges.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Removing levees to allow floods to flow across fallow farmland is a low-tech solution with significant payoffs, River Partners executive director Julie Rentner said. It not only reduces flood risk and expands wildlife habitat and space for recreation, but it refills underground aquifers that have been depleted by decades of over-pumping — and that should lead to cleaner drinking water for Lomelí-Gil and her neighbors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Similar projects will soon break ground. In the wake of last winter’s storms, state lawmakers budgeted nearly half a billion dollars to shore up levees and rebuild damaged communities. Tucked in there was $40 million for River Partners to restore natural floodplains on 2,500 more acres elsewhere along the San Joaquin River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That money is only a downpayment on what’s ultimately needed, Rentner said, but it’s an important step that could be a game-changer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s thinking more holistically about how we manage our water and our soil and our communities,” she said. ”So that we can find solutions to climate resilience that benefit us all.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Weatherization on steroids’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Extreme heat is another consequence of climate change hitting the San Joaquin Valley hard. Scientists calculate that annual average maximum \u003ca href=\"https://www.energy.ca.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/CA4_CCA_SJ_Region_Eng_ada.pdf\">temperatures increased by 1F from 1950 to 2020\u003c/a>. In 2021, Fresno experienced \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/media/hnx/SEPTEMBER%202021%20WEATHER%20SUMMARY.pdf\">a record 69 straight days with temperatures over 100F\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Outside the little city of Tulare, nearly three hours south of Grayson, Arturo Yañez, 55, unloads crates of kiwis and pomegranates. He said in the three decades he’s lived in the valley, he’s felt it get a little hotter each year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11966816\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11966816\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A person in a baseball cap looks at photos on a shelf inside a home.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/231108-CLIMATE-FLOODPLAIN-TH-04-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Arturo Yañez looks at family photos at his home in Tulare on Aug. 31. He received home weatherization and solar panels through a state program for green energy retrofits for farmworkers’ households. \u003ccite>(Tyche Hendricks/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“This year, too, it was extremely hot,” he said in Spanish. “To work in these temperatures is tough.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To help mitigate the heat, California uses funds from the state’s \u003ca href=\"https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/our-work/programs/california-climate-investments\">cap-and-trade program\u003c/a> to weatherize homes of low-income families, with some of that money \u003ca href=\"https://www.csd.ca.gov/Pages/Farmworker-Housing-Component.aspx\">carved out for the small percentage of farmworkers who are homeowners\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yañez is one of them. On a late summer afternoon, he showed where a crew had laid insulation in his attic and installed ceiling fans. An efficient, electric air-conditioning system was on the way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With the thermometer outdoors still reading 103 F at 5 p.m., those measures would make the house more comfortable, he said, and keep his energy costs more manageable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Sometimes, it’s tough to cover all the bills,” he said, adding that when it’s too hot to safely work outside, farmworkers are sent home early, costing them hours on their paychecks. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Yañez had also applied for solar panels through the weatherization program, and that afternoon he learned that he’d qualified. His face lit up in relief.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s wonderful!” he said. “We’ll be saving energy. And we can help reduce global warming too.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Caballero said efforts like these are exactly what the valley needs but they must expand rapidly, to include hundreds of thousands of farmworker families who rent, often in shoddy homes with poor insulation and no air conditioning.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s kind of ‘weatherization on steroids,’” she said. “The benefits could be very, very powerful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office published an \u003ca href=\"https://resources.ca.gov/-/media/CNRA-Website/Files/Initiatives/Climate-Resilience/2022-Final-Extreme-Heat-Action-Plan.pdf\">extreme heat action plan\u003c/a>, and the legislature budgeted $1.1 billion for “decarbonization” retrofits in the homes of low- and moderate-income Californians, such as electric appliances and heat pumps for heating and cooling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, Caballero wrote a bill, signed by Gov. Newsom, to monitor where those funds are spent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We wanted to make sure that, with limited funds, we started with the communities that had the worst extreme heat,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Building a greener economy\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In the town of Huron, becoming more climate resilient is also about creating new jobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Surrounded by tomato fields and almond orchards, the Fresno County town of about 6,000 is not the kind of place you’d expect to see Teslas and Chevy Volts. The poverty rate is 40%, and just 3 in 10 adults have finished high school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11960228\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11960228\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1.jpg\" alt=\"A person with a moustache and wearing a baseball cap stands in front of a white car.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68672_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-50-BL-KQED-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Huron Mayor Rey León stands near an electric vehicle outside the Latino Equity Advocacy & Policy Institute offices, known as LEAP, in Huron, Calif., on Sept. 1, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Yet, from a former diesel garage on an alley behind the struggling main street, a busy rideshare service dispatches drivers in shiny electric cars to ferry Huron residents to the doctor and other appointments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The free program is called \u003ca href=\"https://greenraiteros.org\">Green Raiteros\u003c/a>, a play on the Spanish slang for someone who gives rides. The five-year-old project is the brainchild of Rey León, founding director of the nonprofit \u003ca href=\"https://theleapinstitute.org\">Latino Equity Advocacy & Policy Institute\u003c/a>, or LEAP. Green Raiteros is funded with state grants. And drivers are employees, not gig workers, with pay starting at $18 per hour, according to LEAP staff.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>León, who’s also Huron’s mayor, said the program is part of his vision of meeting basic needs like transportation while leaning into the green economy. The hope is to both reduce emissions and create jobs, preparing the workforce as climate change-induced drought disrupts the agricultural economy of the Central Valley. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Huron is in an area that’s been not just drought-stricken, but poverty-stricken for a very long time,” said León, sitting in his office upstairs from the dispatchers. “We hope we can make the investments necessary to employ, empower and really animate folks from the community to advance their economy — with innovative technologies so that we can simultaneously fight the climate crisis.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>León sees the physical health of his community as intertwined with its economic health — and both as inextricably linked with the health of the environment where they live: \u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/california-has-some-of-the-worst-air-quality-in-the-country-the-problem-is-rooted-in-the-san-joaquin-valley\">one of the most contaminated air basins in the nation\u003c/a>. Huron residents breathe air that carries dust from the fields, pesticides and smog from nearby Interstate 5.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Among other efforts, León has installed 30 EV charging stations around town, planted 300 street trees and enacted measures to promote water conservation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, León is aware that \u003ca href=\"https://www.kvpr.org/environment/2022-11-03/amid-californias-three-year-drought-a-san-joaquin-valley-farmworker-considers-seeking-work-outside-the-region\">tens of thousands of agricultural jobs could dry up\u003c/a> in coming years, as climate-change-fueled drought persists and environmental laws to restore depleted aquifers take effect. The LEAP headquarters on the alley is an incubator for projects he hopes will eventually lead to hundreds of well-paying jobs in manufacturing and environmental stewardship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11960224\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11960224\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1.jpg\" alt=\"A person wearing a baseball cap looks out the window from the backseat of a car.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/RS68646_230901-CentralValleyClimateSolutions-13-BL-KQED-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Enrique Contreras gets a ride in an all-electric vehicle from the Green Raiteros rideshare program in Huron, Calif., to a doctor’s appointment on Sept. 1, 2023. The program is run by Latino Equity Advocacy & Policy Institute offices, known as Leap. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In one bay of the garage, several men were building prototypes of portable trailers with solar panels on top, that the \u003ca href=\"https://www.grants.ca.gov/grants/gfo-20-310-mobile-renewable-backup-generation-morbugs/\">California Energy Commission hopes can serve as emergency shelters\u003c/a> and power stations, to deploy during wildfires or other disasters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And in a greenhouse behind the garage, two workers are running an experiment, funded by the USDA, to test a liquid organic fertilizer on tomatoes — with hopes of scaling up production and using local agricultural waste.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As Huron’s mayor, León is also \u003ca href=\"https://www.grants.ca.gov/grants/gfo-20-310-mobile-renewable-backup-generation-morbugs/\">scoping the possibility of developing a park\u003c/a> and nature conservancy on 3,000 acres of overgrown federal land just outside of town. He envisions replenishing the underground aquifer there using the town’s treated wastewater, and employing residents to build trails and plant native trees grown in LEAP greenhouses.\u003cbr>\n\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>León’s dreams are big, but they’ll take more money, political muscle and capacity building to realize. He knows they won’t happen overnight and, for now, he’s experimenting at a small scale. The Green Raiteros fleet in Huron has 11 cars, but state grants are funding an expansion, with five additional vehicles in Fresno and three more in the Salinas Valley town of Pajaro. In a poor community like his, León said, such government funding has been essential.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If not for the resources provided by state agencies, it really wouldn’t be possible,” he said. “We’re farmworkers and, traditionally, farmworkers have never been afforded the privilege of being able to build up wealth. … We hope that with the projects we’re doing, they could see them as pilots for what could be done in similar communities throughout the state.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Small farming towns like Huron have had some success winning competitive grants. But even with all the new money flowing from state and federal governments, it often goes to big cities and large nonprofits with sophisticated fundraising operations, leaving small, rural places at a disadvantage — even if their need is intense, some advocates say.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There are dire inequities on every measure of human wellbeing in the Central Valley because of past and current policies and disinvestment,” said Solange Gould, co-director of Human Impact Partners, a nonprofit that advocates for health equity. “There’s a lot of funding, but the state needs to provide more technical assistance to Central Valley groups to be able to access that money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "6 Months After Devastating Floods, Pajaro Struggles to Rebuild Before Winter",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was adapted from \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/tags/pajaro-river-levee\">two separate articles\u003c/a> originally published by KAZU. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This week marks six months since powerful storms overwhelmed the aging levee system and flooded the small farming community of Pajaro, just outside Watsonville, in Monterey County — \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11943316/pajaro-river-levee-breached-where-to-find-evacuation-shelters\">forcing thousands to evacuate their homes\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many of them still haven’t been able to return to their flood-damaged houses — and repairs both to the town and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-08-24/despite-repairs-a-new-and-safer-pajaro-levee-is-still-years-away\">to the levees\u003c/a> may not come in time for this winter’s rainy season.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The house is not the same,” said Tomas Garcia. His family has owned their home in Pajaro since 1985. Now, it sits mostly empty of furniture. Its bare walls are in need of paint, and parts of the roof have been replaced with corrugated plastic. He and his family are staying with relatives just outside of town while they continue work on the repairs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We wish we could have finished this two or three months ago,” he said. “But everything has to do with funds.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://youtu.be/Wk7zuhDisc8\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They recently replaced their floors, but now the work is stalled as Garcia waits on appeals to FEMA and his insurance company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t feel safe yet until we finish all this,” he said. “We still need to do a lot of things.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Like Garcia, much of Pajaro is struggling to return to normal. Main Street is busy again with traffic, businesses are open. But the middle school remains closed, as does the library. Cars covered in grime sit on the side of the road — abandoned since the flooding on March 10. Residents say the empty cars now serve as lingering reminders of the lives that are still upended.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11961786\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/2023/09/20/six-months-after-devastating-floods-pajaro-struggles-to-rebuild-before-winter/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-11961786\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11961786\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut.jpg\" alt=\"a pile of broken muddy furniture outside a house\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Piles of mud-coated furniture and other belongings sit outside a home in Pajaro, Monterey County, on March 24 — days after residents were first allowed to return to their homes. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Lost jobs and lost homes\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For Michele Keith, the disaster has felt relentless.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Nobody understands what we’re going through,” she said. Keith was living in her parents’ home when they were evacuated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My mom and dad lost everything on the lower half of the house,” she said. “They were there 25 years.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For months, she stayed alongside dozens of other displaced Pajaro residents at a motel in Watsonville, paid for by Monterey County. But the program ended on Aug. 23.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How am I supposed to work and be stressed out about a place to stay?” she said. “It’s just been so upsetting.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesperson for the county said the hotel program helped more than 200 people transition into permanent housing. But 60 residents, including Keith, were still living there when the program ended. They were offered another hotel option in Marina, about 25 minutes drive away, but nearly half opted not to make the move because of the distance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=news_11944295,news_11944008 label='Pajaro Rebuilds']Monica Chavez-Gonzalez, a case manager at local nonprofit \u003ca href=\"https://communitybridges.org/\">Community Bridges\u003c/a>, said many people can’t afford a new rental.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It takes about $10,000 just to get into a place,” she said, when considering first and last month’s rent plus security deposit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Community Bridges has helped residents navigate FEMA appeals, file insurance claims, and locate housing options. But, in addition to the high cost of living in the area, many residents also lost their jobs after the floods. The agricultural fields around Pajaro were damaged, crops ruined, and many out of commission for months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A survey by the Monterey County Agricultural Commission found that 5% of the county’s agricultural lands were destroyed by the storms — most of them in the Pajaro Valley. In total, floods and rain caused $600 million in damages this year. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-05-12/monterey-bay-farmers-are-struggling-to-rebound-from-winter-storms-the-ripple-effect-is-huge\">Strawberries, a major Pajaro Valley crop, were hit hardest of all\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Long-term levee reconstruction still years away\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://omny.fm/shows/kqed-segmented-audio/permanent-fix-for-pajaro-levee-still-years-away/embed?style=Cover\" width=\"100%\" height=\"180\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write\" frameborder=\"0\" title=\"Permanent Fix For Pajaro Levee Still Years Away\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Federal and state support has bolstered recent recovery efforts. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-04-07/fema-relief-has-arrived-but-not-everyone-in-pajaro-will-qualify\">After President Biden declared a federal disaster in April\u003c/a>, FEMA provided over $5.5 million in aid. And the state \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-06-09/a-calmatters-reporter-discusses-californias-95-million-plan-to-help-undocumented-flooding-victims\">made $95 million available to help support undocumented residents\u003c/a>, who cannot access other forms of support, like unemployment insurance or federal assistance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom also signed a budget plan in June that carved out $20 million specifically to support Pajaro’s recovery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Mark Strudley, Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency\"]‘I’m not going to sugarcoat it. We still have an old, aging levee system that needs to be rebuilt.’[/pullquote]Vicente Lara, who works for Monterey County, says a task force is working with the community now to decide how to best spend that money. He expects the task force to make recommendations to county supervisors within six to 12 months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Recognizing that we’re not all at the same place,” he said. “We really have to support, especially, those residents who are still struggling in any way we can.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-08-24/despite-repairs-a-new-and-safer-pajaro-levee-is-still-years-away\">crews from the Army Corps of Engineers are racing to complete work\u003c/a> to repair the levee here and at two other breaks downstream in time for the rainy season. Mark Strudley, head of Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency, says they’ll get it done.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Corps has made that commitment to us and to the community,” he said. But those repairs will only \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-08-24/despite-repairs-a-new-and-safer-pajaro-levee-is-still-years-away\">bring the levee back to its condition before the devastating floods in March\u003c/a>. Major upgrades are still years away.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>March wasn’t the first time Pajaro has flooded. The levee has failed four other times since it was built in the 1940s and the system was designated by Congress as inadequate in 1966, but funding to replace the levee has repeatedly taken a backseat — often to \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-03-20/a-long-history-of-racism-set-the-stage-for-pajaro-flooding\">flood protection projects in more affluent areas\u003c/a>. Last year, the project finally won $149 million in funding under \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/npr-news/2021-11-15/biden-signs-the-1-trillion-bipartisan-infrastructure-bill-into-law\">the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law\u003c/a>, along with a $140 million commitment from the state — enough to move forward on the $400 million reconstruction. But officials said it still would take another 10 years to complete.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m not going to sugarcoat it. We still have an old, aging levee system that needs to be rebuilt,” said Strudley. “I can’t, with a clear conscience, tell the community not to be worried.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Strudley says the project has to go through acquiring easements or property in order to expand and rebuild the levees. Utilities have to be moved and permits acquired. Federal budget rules also prevent the Army Corps from using repair funds to replace the levee. “There’s no way to advance that at a quicker pace than we’re doing now,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11961790\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/2023/09/20/six-months-after-devastating-floods-pajaro-struggles-to-rebuild-before-winter/pajaro/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-11961790\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-11961790\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-1020x680.jpg\" alt=\"a man wearing a baseball hat stands in a house with the outside covered in a tarp\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro.jpg 1760w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tomas Garcia replaced his damaged roof with corrugated plastic. He is working with insurance and FEMA to get funds to continue repairs ahead of winter. \u003ccite>(Jerimiah Oetting/KAZU News)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-09-15/a-bill-to-speed-up-pajaro-river-levee-reconstruction-heads-to-gov-newsoms-desk\">A bill passed last week\u003c/a> by the state Legislature would expedite permitting and potentially speed up the project by five years. It was written by California Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, whose district includes Pajaro. And U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, who also represents Pajaro, is seeking $200 million in federal funding to streamline the Army Corps contracting. But that’s bottled up in the congressional budget battle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For now, that leaves many residents feeling left behind and worried about the approaching winter. It’s a concern Strudley says he understands.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If I were a community member, I would be frustrated just like they are. They’ve been living with these old levees for decades,” he said. “The sad truth is that any project of this scale is going to take many years to build.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re really concerned about that,” Tomas Garcia said, as he’s racing to complete his own repairs. “That’s why we try to finish this, to make the house a little bit more secure.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The family has been through all this before, when the Pajaro levee breached in 1995. Back then, Garcia’s father repaired the home himself, without help from the government.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly 30 years later, Garcia’s father sits in his empty living room, breathing with the help of an oxygen tank. Garcia believes the stress of the floods has worsened his health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was adapted from \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/tags/pajaro-river-levee\">two separate articles\u003c/a> originally published by KAZU. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This week marks six months since powerful storms overwhelmed the aging levee system and flooded the small farming community of Pajaro, just outside Watsonville, in Monterey County — \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11943316/pajaro-river-levee-breached-where-to-find-evacuation-shelters\">forcing thousands to evacuate their homes\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many of them still haven’t been able to return to their flood-damaged houses — and repairs both to the town and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-08-24/despite-repairs-a-new-and-safer-pajaro-levee-is-still-years-away\">to the levees\u003c/a> may not come in time for this winter’s rainy season.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The house is not the same,” said Tomas Garcia. His family has owned their home in Pajaro since 1985. Now, it sits mostly empty of furniture. Its bare walls are in need of paint, and parts of the roof have been replaced with corrugated plastic. He and his family are staying with relatives just outside of town while they continue work on the repairs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We wish we could have finished this two or three months ago,” he said. “But everything has to do with funds.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/Wk7zuhDisc8'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/Wk7zuhDisc8'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They recently replaced their floors, but now the work is stalled as Garcia waits on appeals to FEMA and his insurance company.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t feel safe yet until we finish all this,” he said. “We still need to do a lot of things.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Like Garcia, much of Pajaro is struggling to return to normal. Main Street is busy again with traffic, businesses are open. But the middle school remains closed, as does the library. Cars covered in grime sit on the side of the road — abandoned since the flooding on March 10. Residents say the empty cars now serve as lingering reminders of the lives that are still upended.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11961786\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/2023/09/20/six-months-after-devastating-floods-pajaro-struggles-to-rebuild-before-winter/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-11961786\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11961786\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut.jpg\" alt=\"a pile of broken muddy furniture outside a house\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/03242023_kqed_pajaroreturning-1924-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Piles of mud-coated furniture and other belongings sit outside a home in Pajaro, Monterey County, on March 24 — days after residents were first allowed to return to their homes. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Lost jobs and lost homes\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For Michele Keith, the disaster has felt relentless.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Nobody understands what we’re going through,” she said. Keith was living in her parents’ home when they were evacuated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My mom and dad lost everything on the lower half of the house,” she said. “They were there 25 years.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For months, she stayed alongside dozens of other displaced Pajaro residents at a motel in Watsonville, paid for by Monterey County. But the program ended on Aug. 23.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How am I supposed to work and be stressed out about a place to stay?” she said. “It’s just been so upsetting.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesperson for the county said the hotel program helped more than 200 people transition into permanent housing. But 60 residents, including Keith, were still living there when the program ended. They were offered another hotel option in Marina, about 25 minutes drive away, but nearly half opted not to make the move because of the distance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Monica Chavez-Gonzalez, a case manager at local nonprofit \u003ca href=\"https://communitybridges.org/\">Community Bridges\u003c/a>, said many people can’t afford a new rental.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It takes about $10,000 just to get into a place,” she said, when considering first and last month’s rent plus security deposit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Community Bridges has helped residents navigate FEMA appeals, file insurance claims, and locate housing options. But, in addition to the high cost of living in the area, many residents also lost their jobs after the floods. The agricultural fields around Pajaro were damaged, crops ruined, and many out of commission for months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A survey by the Monterey County Agricultural Commission found that 5% of the county’s agricultural lands were destroyed by the storms — most of them in the Pajaro Valley. In total, floods and rain caused $600 million in damages this year. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-05-12/monterey-bay-farmers-are-struggling-to-rebound-from-winter-storms-the-ripple-effect-is-huge\">Strawberries, a major Pajaro Valley crop, were hit hardest of all\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Long-term levee reconstruction still years away\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://omny.fm/shows/kqed-segmented-audio/permanent-fix-for-pajaro-levee-still-years-away/embed?style=Cover\" width=\"100%\" height=\"180\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write\" frameborder=\"0\" title=\"Permanent Fix For Pajaro Levee Still Years Away\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Federal and state support has bolstered recent recovery efforts. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-04-07/fema-relief-has-arrived-but-not-everyone-in-pajaro-will-qualify\">After President Biden declared a federal disaster in April\u003c/a>, FEMA provided over $5.5 million in aid. And the state \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-06-09/a-calmatters-reporter-discusses-californias-95-million-plan-to-help-undocumented-flooding-victims\">made $95 million available to help support undocumented residents\u003c/a>, who cannot access other forms of support, like unemployment insurance or federal assistance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom also signed a budget plan in June that carved out $20 million specifically to support Pajaro’s recovery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘I’m not going to sugarcoat it. We still have an old, aging levee system that needs to be rebuilt.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Vicente Lara, who works for Monterey County, says a task force is working with the community now to decide how to best spend that money. He expects the task force to make recommendations to county supervisors within six to 12 months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Recognizing that we’re not all at the same place,” he said. “We really have to support, especially, those residents who are still struggling in any way we can.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-08-24/despite-repairs-a-new-and-safer-pajaro-levee-is-still-years-away\">crews from the Army Corps of Engineers are racing to complete work\u003c/a> to repair the levee here and at two other breaks downstream in time for the rainy season. Mark Strudley, head of Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency, says they’ll get it done.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Corps has made that commitment to us and to the community,” he said. But those repairs will only \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-08-24/despite-repairs-a-new-and-safer-pajaro-levee-is-still-years-away\">bring the levee back to its condition before the devastating floods in March\u003c/a>. Major upgrades are still years away.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>March wasn’t the first time Pajaro has flooded. The levee has failed four other times since it was built in the 1940s and the system was designated by Congress as inadequate in 1966, but funding to replace the levee has repeatedly taken a backseat — often to \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-03-20/a-long-history-of-racism-set-the-stage-for-pajaro-flooding\">flood protection projects in more affluent areas\u003c/a>. Last year, the project finally won $149 million in funding under \u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/npr-news/2021-11-15/biden-signs-the-1-trillion-bipartisan-infrastructure-bill-into-law\">the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law\u003c/a>, along with a $140 million commitment from the state — enough to move forward on the $400 million reconstruction. But officials said it still would take another 10 years to complete.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m not going to sugarcoat it. We still have an old, aging levee system that needs to be rebuilt,” said Strudley. “I can’t, with a clear conscience, tell the community not to be worried.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Strudley says the project has to go through acquiring easements or property in order to expand and rebuild the levees. Utilities have to be moved and permits acquired. Federal budget rules also prevent the Army Corps from using repair funds to replace the levee. “There’s no way to advance that at a quicker pace than we’re doing now,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11961790\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/2023/09/20/six-months-after-devastating-floods-pajaro-struggles-to-rebuild-before-winter/pajaro/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-11961790\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-11961790\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-1020x680.jpg\" alt=\"a man wearing a baseball hat stands in a house with the outside covered in a tarp\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/pajaro.jpg 1760w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tomas Garcia replaced his damaged roof with corrugated plastic. He is working with insurance and FEMA to get funds to continue repairs ahead of winter. \u003ccite>(Jerimiah Oetting/KAZU News)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kazu.org/kazu-news/2023-09-15/a-bill-to-speed-up-pajaro-river-levee-reconstruction-heads-to-gov-newsoms-desk\">A bill passed last week\u003c/a> by the state Legislature would expedite permitting and potentially speed up the project by five years. It was written by California Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, whose district includes Pajaro. And U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, who also represents Pajaro, is seeking $200 million in federal funding to streamline the Army Corps contracting. But that’s bottled up in the congressional budget battle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For now, that leaves many residents feeling left behind and worried about the approaching winter. It’s a concern Strudley says he understands.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If I were a community member, I would be frustrated just like they are. They’ve been living with these old levees for decades,” he said. “The sad truth is that any project of this scale is going to take many years to build.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re really concerned about that,” Tomas Garcia said, as he’s racing to complete his own repairs. “That’s why we try to finish this, to make the house a little bit more secure.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The family has been through all this before, when the Pajaro levee breached in 1995. Back then, Garcia’s father repaired the home himself, without help from the government.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly 30 years later, Garcia’s father sits in his empty living room, breathing with the help of an oxygen tank. Garcia believes the stress of the floods has worsened his health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Residents of Pajaro in Monterey County were finally allowed to return home Thursday after destructive flooding from last week’s storms. When the levee broke, causing the town to flood, it wasn’t a huge surprise; problems with that levee have been well-known for decades, but it wasn’t enough to address the problem fast enough.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Bay Area has hundreds of its own levees. And it turns out, we don’t really know how safe or vulnerable most of them are.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp id=\"embed-code\" class=\"inconsolata\">\n\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https://playlist.megaphone.fm/?e=KQINC6283383876&light=true\" width=\"100%\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\n\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Guest: \u003c/b>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003ca href=\"http://@ezraromero\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ezra David Romero\u003c/a>, climate reporter for KQED\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Links\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/about/17653/help-make-the-bay-even-better\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Bay Survey\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\n\u003cdiv class=\"components-Label-___Label__postLabel\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1981900/fewer-than-10-of-levees-in-the-greater-bay-area-have-a-federal-risk-rating\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fewer Than 10% of Levees in the Greater Bay Area Have a Federal Flood Risk Rating\u003c/a>\u003c/div>\n\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Residents of Pajaro in Monterey County were finally allowed to return home Thursday after destructive flooding from last week’s storms. When the levee broke, causing the town to flood, it wasn’t a huge surprise; problems with that levee have been well-known for decades, but it wasn’t enough to address the problem fast enough.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Bay Area has hundreds of its own levees. And it turns out, we don’t really know how safe or vulnerable most of them are.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp id=\"embed-code\" class=\"inconsolata\">\n\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https://playlist.megaphone.fm/?e=KQINC6283383876&light=true\" width=\"100%\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\n\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Guest: \u003c/b>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003ca href=\"http://@ezraromero\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ezra David Romero\u003c/a>, climate reporter for KQED\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Links\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/about/17653/help-make-the-bay-even-better\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Bay Survey\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\n\u003cdiv class=\"components-Label-___Label__postLabel\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1981900/fewer-than-10-of-levees-in-the-greater-bay-area-have-a-federal-risk-rating\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fewer Than 10% of Levees in the Greater Bay Area Have a Federal Flood Risk Rating\u003c/a>\u003c/div>\n\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>Updated 11:30 a.m. Thursday\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More than a week after \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11943316/pajaro-river-levee-breached-where-to-find-evacuation-shelters\">the Pajaro River burst through an aging levee\u003c/a>, submerging much of the small unincorporated community along its banks, the floodwaters had mostly receded.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But last weekend, the 2,000 Pajaro residents — many of them Latino farmworkers — who heeded the evacuation order in the early hours of March 11, fleeing across the river to seek shelter in Watsonville, were still waiting for permission to return home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Sunday, a group of displaced residents gathered across the river from their homes, on the Watsonville side of the Pajaro River Bridge, where sheriff’s deputies had established a checkpoint and were continuing to prevent most people from crossing back over.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944309\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944309\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1282\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut-1536x1026.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Monterey County Sheriff’s Deputy Antonio Jardines stops a driver trying to cross the Pajaro River Bridge. Police have blocked residents from returning after the unincorporated area flooded on March 11. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s like the border,” Leonardo Torres, 53, a former farmworker who has lived in Pajaro for 13 years, said of the scene on the bridge, comparing it the checkpoint between the United States and Mexico. “This community has always been discriminated against for years.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Facing growing pressure from the community, the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services on Thursday morning \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/government/departments-a-h/administrative-office/office-of-emergency-services/incidents/2023-pineapple-express\">lifted the evacuation order\u003c/a> — a day earlier than anticipated — allowing residents to return to their homes and assess the damage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We understand that many residents are eager to return to their homes and begin the process of recovery and clean-up, but we urge caution and emphasize that there are still health risks associated with re-entry,” the agency said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Potable water remains unavailable, and toilets can’t be flushed, as crews continue to scramble to repair the town’s damaged wastewater sewer system, it said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is not recommended that residents live in their homes until sewer and water is restored. Those who choose to enter the area do so at their own risk,” the agency warned. It noted that cleaning stations, portable toilets, showers, laundry services and information booths has been set up at Pajaro Park and Pajaro Middle School, and that free bus service is available to shuttle residents from evacuation shelters back into town.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944486\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11944486 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A group of people, including parents with children, pick up food outside a gas station.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Blanca Garcia (right) hands out supplies to displaced Pajaro residents under the awning of a gas station just across the river, in Watsonville. Authorities are blocking most people who leave Pajaro from returning after the unincorporated area flooded on March 11. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki /KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Situated some 3 miles upstream from Pajaro, the levee was built in 1949 and has failed multiple times. It “no longer provides the designed level of protection,” \u003ca href=\"https://www.spn.usace.army.mil/Missions/Projects-and-Programs/Current-Projects/Pajaro-River-I/\">according to an Army Corps of Engineers webpage summary\u003c/a> from 2021.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.ksbw.com/article/pajaro-valley-flood-of-1995-described-by-ksbw-8-s-jim-vanderzwaan/42479036\">devastating flood in 1995\u003c/a>, in which two people drowned, resulted in as much as $95 million in economic damage. And just a few months ago, during the year’s first series of atmospheric rivers in January, \u003ca href=\"https://www.ksbw.com/article/santa-cruz-county-storm-update-january-16-evacuation-orders-remain-in-place-outside-of-watsonville/42525255\">residents were evacuated for a week\u003c/a> amid severe flooding danger.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944488\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944488\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A group of people stand in front of a store, with a sign that says 'Snack Shop Now Open.' Some hold slices of pizza.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pajaro resident David Rodriguez smiles as other residents receive slices of pizza from volunteers in Watsonville, just across the river. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Local and federal officials had long known the levee could fail, but continuously postponed repair projects, \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-03-20/a-long-history-of-racism-set-the-stage-for-pajaro-flooding\">\u003cem>The Los Angeles Times\u003c/em> recently reported\u003c/a>. The delays were, in part, because “it’s a low-income area. It’s largely farmworkers that live” there, an unnamed official told a \u003cem>Times\u003c/em> reporter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Torres, 53, was among the minority of residents who stayed put as the floodwaters approached, defying the evacuation order. “We’re survivors,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944311\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944311\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1282\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut-1536x1026.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pajaro residents gather near a bridge in Watsonville, just across the Pajaro River from their homes, awaiting permission from officials to return. Authorities continue to block residents from crossing back over the river. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But by last Sunday, Torres and other residents who stayed behind were running low on food and had begun collecting rainwater in buckets. They crossed the bridge to pick up pizza, bread and bottled water from volunteers stationed on the Watsonville side, and were then allowed to return to their waterlogged homes as part of an informal arrangement with sheriff’s deputies at the checkpoint.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944308\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944308\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A flooded field.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Some fields remained flooded in Pajaro, more than a week after the Pajaro River levee failed. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That morning, a group of local businesses from the nearby community of Freedom had set up tents near the bridge and were offering food and other supplies to displaced residents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They want answers, and they don’t have answers,” said Barbara Padilla with Community Bridges, a social service nonprofit in Watsonville that regularly works with Pajaro’s farmworker and undocumented communities. “They feel lost.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944305\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944305\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A man stands in back of a waterlogged house surrounded by mud.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">José Hernandez stands in the muddy backyard of his home in Pajaro that had, until recently, been underwater. He is among the residents who opted to stay, despite evacuation order after the area flooded on March 11. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Padilla has been \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11944008/we-have-nothing-pajaro-farmworkers-face-the-prospect-of-no-income-at-start-of-harvesting-season\">helping residents fill out applications for financial assistance\u003c/a> and loaning cleaning equipment like vacuum cleaners and pressure washers for them to use when they are permitted to return home. She said her organization also set up showers at the nearby county fairground evacuation site, where many residents have been staying since the flood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When the evacuation order came on March 11, José Hernandez, a 46-year-old roofer, sent his family across the river to his father-in-law’s house. But he stayed behind to take care of their pets – two huskies, three cats, a bird and a guinea pig — which he said he eventually had to evacuate by boat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944487\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944487\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a jacket with a baseball cap stands outside his house, motioning with his arm.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">José Hernandez outside his home in Pajaro, where he chosen to stay, despite evacuation order. ‘These people need help now,’ he said. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On Sunday, Hernandez was still in Pajaro but said he was planning to cross the bridge that evening to see his family.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everybody wants to come back to their houses like normal life. But I don’t know if it’s going to be possible. I don’t know when,” he said. “We really, really need help. That’s the thing. They have to do something now.”\u003cbr>\n[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Nearly two weeks after the Pajaro River burst through an aging levee and submerged the small town along its banks, authorities allowed the roughly 2,000 residents who evacuated to return home and assess the damage.",
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"title": "'We're Survivors': Scenes From Pajaro After the Water Finally Receded | KQED",
"description": "Nearly two weeks after the Pajaro River burst through an aging levee and submerged the small town along its banks, authorities allowed the roughly 2,000 residents who evacuated to return home and assess the damage.",
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"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/koritsuzuki?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor\">Kori Suzuki\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/matthewgreen\">Matthew Green\u003c/a>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>Updated 11:30 a.m. Thursday\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More than a week after \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11943316/pajaro-river-levee-breached-where-to-find-evacuation-shelters\">the Pajaro River burst through an aging levee\u003c/a>, submerging much of the small unincorporated community along its banks, the floodwaters had mostly receded.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But last weekend, the 2,000 Pajaro residents — many of them Latino farmworkers — who heeded the evacuation order in the early hours of March 11, fleeing across the river to seek shelter in Watsonville, were still waiting for permission to return home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Sunday, a group of displaced residents gathered across the river from their homes, on the Watsonville side of the Pajaro River Bridge, where sheriff’s deputies had established a checkpoint and were continuing to prevent most people from crossing back over.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944309\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944309\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1282\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63736_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-840-qut-1536x1026.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Monterey County Sheriff’s Deputy Antonio Jardines stops a driver trying to cross the Pajaro River Bridge. Police have blocked residents from returning after the unincorporated area flooded on March 11. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s like the border,” Leonardo Torres, 53, a former farmworker who has lived in Pajaro for 13 years, said of the scene on the bridge, comparing it the checkpoint between the United States and Mexico. “This community has always been discriminated against for years.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Facing growing pressure from the community, the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services on Thursday morning \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/government/departments-a-h/administrative-office/office-of-emergency-services/incidents/2023-pineapple-express\">lifted the evacuation order\u003c/a> — a day earlier than anticipated — allowing residents to return to their homes and assess the damage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We understand that many residents are eager to return to their homes and begin the process of recovery and clean-up, but we urge caution and emphasize that there are still health risks associated with re-entry,” the agency said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Potable water remains unavailable, and toilets can’t be flushed, as crews continue to scramble to repair the town’s damaged wastewater sewer system, it said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is not recommended that residents live in their homes until sewer and water is restored. Those who choose to enter the area do so at their own risk,” the agency warned. It noted that cleaning stations, portable toilets, showers, laundry services and information booths has been set up at Pajaro Park and Pajaro Middle School, and that free bus service is available to shuttle residents from evacuation shelters back into town.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944486\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11944486 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A group of people, including parents with children, pick up food outside a gas station.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63713_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-324-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Blanca Garcia (right) hands out supplies to displaced Pajaro residents under the awning of a gas station just across the river, in Watsonville. Authorities are blocking most people who leave Pajaro from returning after the unincorporated area flooded on March 11. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki /KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Situated some 3 miles upstream from Pajaro, the levee was built in 1949 and has failed multiple times. It “no longer provides the designed level of protection,” \u003ca href=\"https://www.spn.usace.army.mil/Missions/Projects-and-Programs/Current-Projects/Pajaro-River-I/\">according to an Army Corps of Engineers webpage summary\u003c/a> from 2021.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.ksbw.com/article/pajaro-valley-flood-of-1995-described-by-ksbw-8-s-jim-vanderzwaan/42479036\">devastating flood in 1995\u003c/a>, in which two people drowned, resulted in as much as $95 million in economic damage. And just a few months ago, during the year’s first series of atmospheric rivers in January, \u003ca href=\"https://www.ksbw.com/article/santa-cruz-county-storm-update-january-16-evacuation-orders-remain-in-place-outside-of-watsonville/42525255\">residents were evacuated for a week\u003c/a> amid severe flooding danger.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944488\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944488\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A group of people stand in front of a store, with a sign that says 'Snack Shop Now Open.' Some hold slices of pizza.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63726_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-577-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pajaro resident David Rodriguez smiles as other residents receive slices of pizza from volunteers in Watsonville, just across the river. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Local and federal officials had long known the levee could fail, but continuously postponed repair projects, \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-03-20/a-long-history-of-racism-set-the-stage-for-pajaro-flooding\">\u003cem>The Los Angeles Times\u003c/em> recently reported\u003c/a>. The delays were, in part, because “it’s a low-income area. It’s largely farmworkers that live” there, an unnamed official told a \u003cem>Times\u003c/em> reporter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Torres, 53, was among the minority of residents who stayed put as the floodwaters approached, defying the evacuation order. “We’re survivors,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944311\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944311\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1282\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63738_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-827-qut-1536x1026.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pajaro residents gather near a bridge in Watsonville, just across the Pajaro River from their homes, awaiting permission from officials to return. Authorities continue to block residents from crossing back over the river. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But by last Sunday, Torres and other residents who stayed behind were running low on food and had begun collecting rainwater in buckets. They crossed the bridge to pick up pizza, bread and bottled water from volunteers stationed on the Watsonville side, and were then allowed to return to their waterlogged homes as part of an informal arrangement with sheriff’s deputies at the checkpoint.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944308\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944308\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A flooded field.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63731_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-667-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Some fields remained flooded in Pajaro, more than a week after the Pajaro River levee failed. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>That morning, a group of local businesses from the nearby community of Freedom had set up tents near the bridge and were offering food and other supplies to displaced residents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They want answers, and they don’t have answers,” said Barbara Padilla with Community Bridges, a social service nonprofit in Watsonville that regularly works with Pajaro’s farmworker and undocumented communities. “They feel lost.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944305\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944305\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A man stands in back of a waterlogged house surrounded by mud.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63719_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-467-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">José Hernandez stands in the muddy backyard of his home in Pajaro that had, until recently, been underwater. He is among the residents who opted to stay, despite evacuation order after the area flooded on March 11. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Padilla has been \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11944008/we-have-nothing-pajaro-farmworkers-face-the-prospect-of-no-income-at-start-of-harvesting-season\">helping residents fill out applications for financial assistance\u003c/a> and loaning cleaning equipment like vacuum cleaners and pressure washers for them to use when they are permitted to return home. She said her organization also set up showers at the nearby county fairground evacuation site, where many residents have been staying since the flood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When the evacuation order came on March 11, José Hernandez, a 46-year-old roofer, sent his family across the river to his father-in-law’s house. But he stayed behind to take care of their pets – two huskies, three cats, a bird and a guinea pig — which he said he eventually had to evacuate by boat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944487\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944487\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a jacket with a baseball cap stands outside his house, motioning with his arm.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63720_03192023_kqed_pajarobridge-480-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">José Hernandez outside his home in Pajaro, where he chosen to stay, despite evacuation order. ‘These people need help now,’ he said. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On Sunday, Hernandez was still in Pajaro but said he was planning to cross the bridge that evening to see his family.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everybody wants to come back to their houses like normal life. But I don’t know if it’s going to be possible. I don’t know when,” he said. “We really, really need help. That’s the thing. They have to do something now.”\u003cbr>\n\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "'We Have Nothing': Pajaro Farmworkers Face the Prospect of No Income at Start of Harvesting Season",
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"content": "\u003cp>As \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/weather/article/next-storm-atmospheric-river-california-impacts-17843272.php\">another atmospheric river storm approaches California\u003c/a>, thousands of farmworkers could be left with no income for months after \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11943316/pajaro-river-levee-breached-where-to-find-evacuation-shelters\">a disastrous flood\u003c/a> submerged an “alarming” acreage of agricultural land in California’s Central Coast, according to Monterey County officials.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The community of Pajaro, where many farmworkers live, became \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/government/departments-a-h/administrative-office/office-of-emergency-services/incidents/2023-pineapple-express\">the emergency\u003c/a>’s ground zero after a nearby river levee broke last week and residents were forced to evacuate their homes. Emergency crews have since patched up the Pajaro River levee breach, allowing floodwaters to recede from streets, homes and businesses. But all \u003ca href=\"https://censusreporter.org/profiles/16000US0655044-pajaro-ca/\">3,000 residents\u003c/a> continue to be displaced and are under evacuation orders.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have nothing. No money. No home,” said Juana Juarez, a longtime farmworker and single mother of three, in Spanish, as tears streamed down her face. “I feel like I’ve reached rock bottom.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Juarez, 41, worried about how to pay for rent and food for her kids. She planned to start working this month, the usual start to harvesting season for strawberries — the county’s top crop. But now an overwhelming economic and housing uncertainty keeps her up at night.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944019\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11944019\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"Two Latina women packing clothes in a park.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Farmworker Juana Juarez (left) packs donated clothes for her family in Watsonville, on March 15, 2023. Juarez, a single mother of three, said she worries about the prospect of no work due to flooding damage. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The devastation in the mostly lower-income Latino community was clear earlier this week. Trucks sat partly inundated in parking lots, while tires, metal pots and other debris littered the deserted roads. A blue beauty salon on Main Street was missing part of its front wall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sister Rosa Dolores Rodriguez returned to her nonprofit, \u003ca href=\"https://www.casadelaculturacenter.org/\">Casa de la Cultura Center\u003c/a>, to find that water had left a mark on the brick walls more than 2 feet up from the ground. She carefully opened the building’s front door to find a thick, shiny layer of mud covering the ground floor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m OK. I’m OK,” she slowly assured herself. And then, “That’s going to require a lot of help to clean out the mud,” she said, as she began considering the impacts. The piano and some electronics would be damaged, she said. Mold might be growing in the walls.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just outside the town, expansive farmlands looked like shimmering lakes. County officials have started the long process of assessing losses to the local agricultural industry, with a \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/home/showpublisheddocument/113214/637970560105830000\">production gross value of $4.1 billion\u003c/a> in 2021.[aside label=\"Related Stories\" postID=\"news_11943316,news_11943845,news_11943590\"]Monterey County Agricultural Commissioner Juan Hidalgo said the current flood damage will be more extensive than the havoc wreaked during a series of storms last January, when roughly \u003ca href=\"https://www.ksbw.com/article/monterey-county-agriculture-storm-losses/43068481\">15,000 acres of farmland were affected\u003c/a>, at an estimated cost of $336 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Some of the damages that we are seeing are quite alarming,” particularly for strawberry and raspberry fields that had already been planted, Hidalgo told reporters earlier this week. “From experience in previous flooding, we’re looking at anywhere from 30% to 50% yield losses” for those crops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because of food safety requirements, submerged farmlands will likely stay fallow for at least 60 days, he said. Regrowing harvests could take even longer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the region’s agricultural workforce, the economic impact could be devastating, particularly for Pajaro residents who are also facing additional losses due to flooded homes, said Luis Alejo, who chairs the Monterey County Board of Supervisors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They have so little but have lost so much,” said Alejo. “We need to get resources for those who don’t have any other means to pay the rent, put food on the table, provide for their families.”[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Luis Alejo, chair, Monterey County Board of Supervisors\"]‘They have so little but have lost so much. We need to get resources for those who don’t have any other means to pay the rent, put food on the table, provide for their families.’[/pullquote]About \u003ca href=\"https://migration.ucdavis.edu/rmn/blog/post/?id=2770\">half of the farmworkers in California are undocumented\u003c/a>, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. That means they are ineligible for unemployment insurance benefits, but \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdss.ca.gov/Portals/13/DisasterAssistanceGuideforImmigrantCaliforniansFinal.pdf\">households with U.S. citizens or legal residents may apply (PDF)\u003c/a> for Federal Emergency Management Agency aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After touring the disaster area earlier this week, Gov. Gavin Newsom told reporters that he recognized the vulnerability of Pajaro and other disaster-stricken communities in the region. During his tenure, \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2022/10/19/medi-cal-expansion-provided-286000-undocumented-californians-with-comprehensive-health-care/#:~:text=The%20next%20step%20in%20California's,%2C%20effective%20January%201%2C%202024.\">Newsom has expanded the public health insurance program Medi-Cal\u003c/a> to cover hundreds of thousands of undocumented Californians. But the governor also \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Gov-Newsom-vetoed-a-program-to-offer-17478927.php\">vetoed\u003c/a> a bill last year that would have set up temporary unemployment benefits for undocumented workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s not a state in America, not one state, that does more for farmworkers than the state of California. And we don’t do enough,” said Newsom, standing by flooded farmlands outside Pajaro.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor touted a $42 million grant by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to the nonprofit United Way to provide financial assistance for farmworkers hit with flood losses, regardless of immigration status. People could readily start applying for the aid, he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Shortly after, United Ways of California representatives \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11943845/gov-newsom-touts-42-million-in-aid-for-flooded-farmworkers-turns-out-its-months-old-covid-funding\">clarified\u003c/a> that only $300,000 of those funds — which were actually awarded months ago to the organization for \u003ca href=\"https://www.unitedwaysca.org/press-releases/610-usda-farmerworker-grant\">COVID relief\u003c/a> — will be distributed in Monterey County, including to storm victims. Applications for the $600 one-time cash cards are not open yet, said Katy Castagna, president of United Way Monterey County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944020\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11944020\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"An older Latina woman with white hair stands outside a building.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sister Rosa Dolores Rodriguez surveys the damage at her nonprofit, Casa de la Cultura, in Pajaro on March 15, 2023. The floodwaters left a mark on the walls more than 2 feet from the ground. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For farmworker Juana Juarez, that cash amount won’t be nearly enough to cover the cost of replacing belongings she lost in the flooding, which she believes include her car, furniture, electronics and clothes. She didn’t know the total amount of her losses, as most Pajaro residents have not been allowed into town yet to survey their homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just too little … the governor should try to help us with more money,” said Juarez, who has been staying with her children at a relatives’ crowded home in the adjacent town of Watsonville.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesperson for Newsom’s office said the administration is pursuing “additional support” for storm-affected residents who are ineligible for FEMA assistance due to immigration status.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An additional $300,000 in flood relief has been raised by local foundations and nonprofits for affected residents in the Pajaro Valley, said MaríaElena De La Garza, who directs the \u003ca href=\"https://cabinc.org/\">Community Action Board\u003c/a> of Santa Cruz County, one of the organizations tasked with distributing those funds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is a critical situation,” De La Garza said. “We are working in collaboration to get out economic relief to families not only at the shelters, but anybody who’s been displaced.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before residents can return to their homes, Monterey County Sheriff Tina Nieto said several agencies must first check the safety of buildings, running water and other infrastructure — a process that could take weeks. \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/government/departments-a-h/administrative-office/office-o%5B%E2%80%A6%5Dnts/2023-pineapple-express/2023-pineapple-express-recovery\">Cal Fire damage assessment teams have already started working\u003c/a> in Pajaro and other affected areas, according to a county spokesperson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944021\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11944021 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A white semi facing the camera drives along a partially flooded road with completely submerged fields to both sides, alongside electric lines. In the background is a ranch-style house and thick tree cover.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A truck drives on a flooded road between agricultural fields near Pajaro on March 15, 2023. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Farmworkers from Watsonville whose homes were not flooded also are responding to the crisis. A group of volunteers raised donations through social media and dropped off bags of clothes and food to displaced residents near one of the blocked street entrances to Pajaro this week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yessica Ortiz, a strawberry picker who fears she won’t have work either, said she paid out of her own pocket for chicken and rice, pizza boxes and cookies that she offered to families with young children on the street.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to try to help people in whatever way we can,” Ortiz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>To give money:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cfmco.org/impact/montereycountystormrelieffund/\">Community Foundation for Monterey County: Storm Relief Fund\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cfscc.org/funds/disaster-fund\">Community Foundation Santa Cruz County: Santa Cruz County Disaster Fund\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/allinmonterey\">ALL IN in Monterey County: Donation distribution center at Monterey Fairgrounds\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>To volunteer:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://allinmonterey.org/2023-pineapple-express-storm-relief\">Monterey County is seeking volunteers to sort donated items.\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.redcross.org/local/california/northern-california-coastal/volunteer.html\">The Red Cross is accepting volunteer applications.\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>Additional organizations:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.unitedwaysc.org/\">United Way of Santa Cruz County\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.unitedwaymcca.org/\">United Way of Monterey County\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://cabinc.org/\">Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Displaced residents of Pajaro face severe economic losses after their homes were flooded, along with nearby agricultural farmlands where they work. Many are undocumented farmworkers who don't qualify for unemployment and other benefits because of their immigration status.",
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"title": "'We Have Nothing': Pajaro Farmworkers Face the Prospect of No Income at Start of Harvesting Season | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>As \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/weather/article/next-storm-atmospheric-river-california-impacts-17843272.php\">another atmospheric river storm approaches California\u003c/a>, thousands of farmworkers could be left with no income for months after \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11943316/pajaro-river-levee-breached-where-to-find-evacuation-shelters\">a disastrous flood\u003c/a> submerged an “alarming” acreage of agricultural land in California’s Central Coast, according to Monterey County officials.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The community of Pajaro, where many farmworkers live, became \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/government/departments-a-h/administrative-office/office-of-emergency-services/incidents/2023-pineapple-express\">the emergency\u003c/a>’s ground zero after a nearby river levee broke last week and residents were forced to evacuate their homes. Emergency crews have since patched up the Pajaro River levee breach, allowing floodwaters to recede from streets, homes and businesses. But all \u003ca href=\"https://censusreporter.org/profiles/16000US0655044-pajaro-ca/\">3,000 residents\u003c/a> continue to be displaced and are under evacuation orders.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have nothing. No money. No home,” said Juana Juarez, a longtime farmworker and single mother of three, in Spanish, as tears streamed down her face. “I feel like I’ve reached rock bottom.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Juarez, 41, worried about how to pay for rent and food for her kids. She planned to start working this month, the usual start to harvesting season for strawberries — the county’s top crop. But now an overwhelming economic and housing uncertainty keeps her up at night.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944019\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11944019\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"Two Latina women packing clothes in a park.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63697_IMG_7224-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Farmworker Juana Juarez (left) packs donated clothes for her family in Watsonville, on March 15, 2023. Juarez, a single mother of three, said she worries about the prospect of no work due to flooding damage. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The devastation in the mostly lower-income Latino community was clear earlier this week. Trucks sat partly inundated in parking lots, while tires, metal pots and other debris littered the deserted roads. A blue beauty salon on Main Street was missing part of its front wall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sister Rosa Dolores Rodriguez returned to her nonprofit, \u003ca href=\"https://www.casadelaculturacenter.org/\">Casa de la Cultura Center\u003c/a>, to find that water had left a mark on the brick walls more than 2 feet up from the ground. She carefully opened the building’s front door to find a thick, shiny layer of mud covering the ground floor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m OK. I’m OK,” she slowly assured herself. And then, “That’s going to require a lot of help to clean out the mud,” she said, as she began considering the impacts. The piano and some electronics would be damaged, she said. Mold might be growing in the walls.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just outside the town, expansive farmlands looked like shimmering lakes. County officials have started the long process of assessing losses to the local agricultural industry, with a \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/home/showpublisheddocument/113214/637970560105830000\">production gross value of $4.1 billion\u003c/a> in 2021.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Monterey County Agricultural Commissioner Juan Hidalgo said the current flood damage will be more extensive than the havoc wreaked during a series of storms last January, when roughly \u003ca href=\"https://www.ksbw.com/article/monterey-county-agriculture-storm-losses/43068481\">15,000 acres of farmland were affected\u003c/a>, at an estimated cost of $336 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Some of the damages that we are seeing are quite alarming,” particularly for strawberry and raspberry fields that had already been planted, Hidalgo told reporters earlier this week. “From experience in previous flooding, we’re looking at anywhere from 30% to 50% yield losses” for those crops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because of food safety requirements, submerged farmlands will likely stay fallow for at least 60 days, he said. Regrowing harvests could take even longer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the region’s agricultural workforce, the economic impact could be devastating, particularly for Pajaro residents who are also facing additional losses due to flooded homes, said Luis Alejo, who chairs the Monterey County Board of Supervisors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They have so little but have lost so much,” said Alejo. “We need to get resources for those who don’t have any other means to pay the rent, put food on the table, provide for their families.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘They have so little but have lost so much. We need to get resources for those who don’t have any other means to pay the rent, put food on the table, provide for their families.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>About \u003ca href=\"https://migration.ucdavis.edu/rmn/blog/post/?id=2770\">half of the farmworkers in California are undocumented\u003c/a>, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. That means they are ineligible for unemployment insurance benefits, but \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdss.ca.gov/Portals/13/DisasterAssistanceGuideforImmigrantCaliforniansFinal.pdf\">households with U.S. citizens or legal residents may apply (PDF)\u003c/a> for Federal Emergency Management Agency aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After touring the disaster area earlier this week, Gov. Gavin Newsom told reporters that he recognized the vulnerability of Pajaro and other disaster-stricken communities in the region. During his tenure, \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2022/10/19/medi-cal-expansion-provided-286000-undocumented-californians-with-comprehensive-health-care/#:~:text=The%20next%20step%20in%20California's,%2C%20effective%20January%201%2C%202024.\">Newsom has expanded the public health insurance program Medi-Cal\u003c/a> to cover hundreds of thousands of undocumented Californians. But the governor also \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Gov-Newsom-vetoed-a-program-to-offer-17478927.php\">vetoed\u003c/a> a bill last year that would have set up temporary unemployment benefits for undocumented workers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s not a state in America, not one state, that does more for farmworkers than the state of California. And we don’t do enough,” said Newsom, standing by flooded farmlands outside Pajaro.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor touted a $42 million grant by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to the nonprofit United Way to provide financial assistance for farmworkers hit with flood losses, regardless of immigration status. People could readily start applying for the aid, he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Shortly after, United Ways of California representatives \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11943845/gov-newsom-touts-42-million-in-aid-for-flooded-farmworkers-turns-out-its-months-old-covid-funding\">clarified\u003c/a> that only $300,000 of those funds — which were actually awarded months ago to the organization for \u003ca href=\"https://www.unitedwaysca.org/press-releases/610-usda-farmerworker-grant\">COVID relief\u003c/a> — will be distributed in Monterey County, including to storm victims. Applications for the $600 one-time cash cards are not open yet, said Katy Castagna, president of United Way Monterey County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944020\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11944020\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"An older Latina woman with white hair stands outside a building.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63695_IMG_7203-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sister Rosa Dolores Rodriguez surveys the damage at her nonprofit, Casa de la Cultura, in Pajaro on March 15, 2023. The floodwaters left a mark on the walls more than 2 feet from the ground. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For farmworker Juana Juarez, that cash amount won’t be nearly enough to cover the cost of replacing belongings she lost in the flooding, which she believes include her car, furniture, electronics and clothes. She didn’t know the total amount of her losses, as most Pajaro residents have not been allowed into town yet to survey their homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just too little … the governor should try to help us with more money,” said Juarez, who has been staying with her children at a relatives’ crowded home in the adjacent town of Watsonville.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesperson for Newsom’s office said the administration is pursuing “additional support” for storm-affected residents who are ineligible for FEMA assistance due to immigration status.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An additional $300,000 in flood relief has been raised by local foundations and nonprofits for affected residents in the Pajaro Valley, said MaríaElena De La Garza, who directs the \u003ca href=\"https://cabinc.org/\">Community Action Board\u003c/a> of Santa Cruz County, one of the organizations tasked with distributing those funds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is a critical situation,” De La Garza said. “We are working in collaboration to get out economic relief to families not only at the shelters, but anybody who’s been displaced.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before residents can return to their homes, Monterey County Sheriff Tina Nieto said several agencies must first check the safety of buildings, running water and other infrastructure — a process that could take weeks. \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/government/departments-a-h/administrative-office/office-o%5B%E2%80%A6%5Dnts/2023-pineapple-express/2023-pineapple-express-recovery\">Cal Fire damage assessment teams have already started working\u003c/a> in Pajaro and other affected areas, according to a county spokesperson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944021\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11944021 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A white semi facing the camera drives along a partially flooded road with completely submerged fields to both sides, alongside electric lines. In the background is a ranch-style house and thick tree cover.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS63692_IMG_1243-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A truck drives on a flooded road between agricultural fields near Pajaro on March 15, 2023. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Farmworkers from Watsonville whose homes were not flooded also are responding to the crisis. A group of volunteers raised donations through social media and dropped off bags of clothes and food to displaced residents near one of the blocked street entrances to Pajaro this week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yessica Ortiz, a strawberry picker who fears she won’t have work either, said she paid out of her own pocket for chicken and rice, pizza boxes and cookies that she offered to families with young children on the street.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to try to help people in whatever way we can,” Ortiz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>To give money:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cfmco.org/impact/montereycountystormrelieffund/\">Community Foundation for Monterey County: Storm Relief Fund\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cfscc.org/funds/disaster-fund\">Community Foundation Santa Cruz County: Santa Cruz County Disaster Fund\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/allinmonterey\">ALL IN in Monterey County: Donation distribution center at Monterey Fairgrounds\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>To volunteer:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://allinmonterey.org/2023-pineapple-express-storm-relief\">Monterey County is seeking volunteers to sort donated items.\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.redcross.org/local/california/northern-california-coastal/volunteer.html\">The Red Cross is accepting volunteer applications.\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>Additional organizations:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.unitedwaysc.org/\">United Way of Santa Cruz County\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.unitedwaymcca.org/\">United Way of Monterey County\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://cabinc.org/\">Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>At a press conference in the flood-stricken Monterey County town of Pajaro on Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom talked up a plan, paid for by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and managed by United Way, to provide financial aid to farmworkers affected by floods and recent winter storms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s not a state in America, not one state, no other state that does more for farmworkers than the state of California,” Newsom said. “I want folks to know … it’s important to reinforce today, March 15th, the United Way was able to get $42 million from USDA, and they’re starting to send out $600 checks for farmworkers, regardless of their immigration status.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom was not referring to a new program for farmworkers who are in financial straits due to recent flooding and severe weather. Rather, as KAZU, KQED and The California Newsroom have learned, Newsom was referring to a $42 million farmworker grant managed by United Way that was announced in October of 2022, and has nothing to do with economic hardships due to recent storms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943858\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11943858\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"A white middle-aged man stands in front of press microphones with various uniformed officials standing behind him and a river in the background, with the far banks of the river visible in the distance.\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gov. Gavin Newsom holds a press conference near Pajaro flooding after he toured damaged areas in Pajaro of Monterey County, on March 15, 2023, as atmospheric river storms hit California. \u003ccite>(Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The existing $42 million grant was created to provide “a one-time direct relief payment of $600 … to qualifying frontline farm, grocery, and meatpacking workers for expenses incurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” according to the USDA’s website.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s office confirmed the $42 million he referred to in the press conference was in fact from the Farm and Food Workers Relief Grant Program, which is funded under the \u003ca href=\"https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/133/text\">Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked whether waivers would be granted to flood-stricken farmworkers who do not meet the pandemic hardship requirements, USDA spokesperson Marissa Perry reiterated that the FFWR program was specific to those suffering COVID-related economic hardship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the press conference yesterday, Newsom also said money from the $42 million in aid would be available immediately. “Those dollars start going out today,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Katy Castagna, president of United Way Monterey County, the application is not yet open in Monterey. And, of the $42 million, $300,000 has been allocated to Monterey County, which would amount to 500 cash cards worth $600 each.[aside label=\"Related Stories\" postID=\"news_11943590,news_11943316,news_11943713\"]In a Zoom meeting on Thursday, Castagna addressed questions about Newsom’s reference to FFWR funds being available to storm victims. The $42 million grant, she confirmed, “completely predated the current winter storm situation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, she acknowledged that there is likely significant overlap between flood-stricken farmworkers and those experiencing pandemic-related hardships. “The good news about this really is I think it’s a pretty broad qualification for COVID impact,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked for comment, a spokesperson for Newsom said, “The administration is also pursuing additional supports for individuals recovering from January storms who are ineligible for FEMA assistance due to immigration status.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Monterey County Supervisor Luis Alejo described the community of Pajaro as “mostly Latino, low-income farmworkers and immigrants.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly a week after the county issued evacuation notices due to the failing Pajaro levee, residents are still unable to return home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We still have a packed shelter full of Pajaro evacuees,” Alejo said.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Katy Castagna, president, United Way Monterey County\"]‘The good news about this really is I think it’s a pretty broad qualification for COVID impact.’[/pullquote]The displaced residents weren’t just forced out of their homes — they may be out of work, too: Tens of thousands of acres of farmland have been flooded in the Salinas and Pajaro valleys. Alejo says the fields will need to remain fallow for at least 60 days due to potential contamination from floodwaters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s going to take months to regrow harvests on these fields,” Alejo said. “So we also need to get resources for those who don’t have any other means to pay the rent, put food on the table and provide for their families.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The town of Pajaro has a population of under 3,000 and is mostly Hispanic, according to 2020 census figures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Alejo described area residents as “people who are salt of the earth, but the people who have the most to lose here. They have so little but have lost so much,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story includes additional reporting by KQED’s Farida Jhabvala Romero.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Newsom's announcement raised questions as to whether — and how — farmworkers affected by recent storms and flooding would be eligible for the USDA funds that have been explicitly set aside for 'expenses incurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic.'",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>At a press conference in the flood-stricken Monterey County town of Pajaro on Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom talked up a plan, paid for by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and managed by United Way, to provide financial aid to farmworkers affected by floods and recent winter storms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s not a state in America, not one state, no other state that does more for farmworkers than the state of California,” Newsom said. “I want folks to know … it’s important to reinforce today, March 15th, the United Way was able to get $42 million from USDA, and they’re starting to send out $600 checks for farmworkers, regardless of their immigration status.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom was not referring to a new program for farmworkers who are in financial straits due to recent flooding and severe weather. Rather, as KAZU, KQED and The California Newsroom have learned, Newsom was referring to a $42 million farmworker grant managed by United Way that was announced in October of 2022, and has nothing to do with economic hardships due to recent storms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943858\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11943858\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"A white middle-aged man stands in front of press microphones with various uniformed officials standing behind him and a river in the background, with the far banks of the river visible in the distance.\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248353374.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gov. Gavin Newsom holds a press conference near Pajaro flooding after he toured damaged areas in Pajaro of Monterey County, on March 15, 2023, as atmospheric river storms hit California. \u003ccite>(Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The existing $42 million grant was created to provide “a one-time direct relief payment of $600 … to qualifying frontline farm, grocery, and meatpacking workers for expenses incurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” according to the USDA’s website.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s office confirmed the $42 million he referred to in the press conference was in fact from the Farm and Food Workers Relief Grant Program, which is funded under the \u003ca href=\"https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/133/text\">Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked whether waivers would be granted to flood-stricken farmworkers who do not meet the pandemic hardship requirements, USDA spokesperson Marissa Perry reiterated that the FFWR program was specific to those suffering COVID-related economic hardship.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the press conference yesterday, Newsom also said money from the $42 million in aid would be available immediately. “Those dollars start going out today,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Katy Castagna, president of United Way Monterey County, the application is not yet open in Monterey. And, of the $42 million, $300,000 has been allocated to Monterey County, which would amount to 500 cash cards worth $600 each.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>In a Zoom meeting on Thursday, Castagna addressed questions about Newsom’s reference to FFWR funds being available to storm victims. The $42 million grant, she confirmed, “completely predated the current winter storm situation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, she acknowledged that there is likely significant overlap between flood-stricken farmworkers and those experiencing pandemic-related hardships. “The good news about this really is I think it’s a pretty broad qualification for COVID impact,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked for comment, a spokesperson for Newsom said, “The administration is also pursuing additional supports for individuals recovering from January storms who are ineligible for FEMA assistance due to immigration status.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Monterey County Supervisor Luis Alejo described the community of Pajaro as “mostly Latino, low-income farmworkers and immigrants.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly a week after the county issued evacuation notices due to the failing Pajaro levee, residents are still unable to return home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We still have a packed shelter full of Pajaro evacuees,” Alejo said.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The displaced residents weren’t just forced out of their homes — they may be out of work, too: Tens of thousands of acres of farmland have been flooded in the Salinas and Pajaro valleys. Alejo says the fields will need to remain fallow for at least 60 days due to potential contamination from floodwaters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s going to take months to regrow harvests on these fields,” Alejo said. “So we also need to get resources for those who don’t have any other means to pay the rent, put food on the table and provide for their families.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The town of Pajaro has a population of under 3,000 and is mostly Hispanic, according to 2020 census figures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Alejo described area residents as “people who are salt of the earth, but the people who have the most to lose here. They have so little but have lost so much,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story includes additional reporting by KQED’s Farida Jhabvala Romero.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>It was late Friday morning when muddy, brown water started rushing onto Michelle Hackett’s Salinas Valley farms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On one side of her family’s Riverview Farms cannabis business, a county-mandated retention pond overflowed. Next door, a farm abandoned by another grower — one of \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2023/02/emerald-triangle-cannabis-communities/\">dozens of cannabis businesses to shut down in Monterey County\u003c/a> in recent years — spawned another small river headed straight for Hackett and her skeleton crew.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The water completely stopped and backed up,” Hackett said. “I thought, ‘Holy s—, this is going to flood our greenhouses.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cannabis businesses like Hackett’s — along with thousands of undocumented farmworkers and the area’s unhoused residents — fear they’ll be left to fend for themselves as yet another winter storm batters California’s Central Coast, local officials and advocates say.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Undocumented workers and cannabis businesses are, by law, ineligible for federally funded programs such as unemployment or aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now — after days of wind and rain and a Pajaro River levee failure flooded the area, displacing hundreds of people in Monterey County alone — details are lacking about how state officials would respond to calls to direct state funds and other disaster relief to these communities in the region known as \u003ca href=\"https://asmith.ucdavis.edu/news/whither-salinas-valley#:~:text=Salinas%20Valley%20grows%20almost%20half,over%2080%25%20of%20its%20artichokes.\">America’s salad bowl\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California has stepped into the breach before, offering some \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2020/04/15/governor-newsom-announces-new-initiatives-to-support-california-workers-impacted-by-covid-19/\">support to undocumented workers\u003c/a> during the height of the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2022/04/california-undocumented-immigrants/\">COVID-19 pandemic\u003c/a>, and to some cannabis farmers whose crops were \u003ca href=\"https://cannabis.ca.gov/resources/disaster-relief-programs/\">damaged in wildfires\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s an issue complicated by competing political priorities and a projected \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2022/12/california-budget-deficit-safety-net/\">$24 billion state budget deficit\u003c/a> for the coming year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom is scheduled to survey flood and storm damage in Monterey County on March 15, including the inundated farmworker town of Pajaro. He will be getting an update from local officials, a spokesperson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As Newsom planned his visit, many officials and advocates said they hope to hear how the state will help. A few lawmakers said they’re exploring legislative options.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943670\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11943670\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"An aerial view shows many buildings, homes, streets and cars flooded with brown water.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1430\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-800x447.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-1020x570.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-160x89.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-1536x858.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-2048x1144.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-1920x1072.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An aerial view shows a flooded neighborhood in the unincorporated community of Pajaro in Watsonville, on March 11, 2023. Residents were forced to evacuate in the middle of the night after an atmospheric river storm surge broke the Pajaro levee and sent floodwaters flowing into the community. \u003ccite>(Josh Edelson/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I think we need to step up our efforts to help those who are undocumented and can’t earn a paycheck because of the current rains and floods,” said Assemblymember Miguel Santiago, a Democrat representing Los Angeles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He is co-sponsoring \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB227\">Senate Bill 227\u003c/a> to provide \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2023/02/california-safety-net/\">unemployment benefits\u003c/a> to undocumented Californians. About \u003ca href=\"https://clc.ucmerced.edu/sites/clc.ucmerced.edu/files/page/documents/fwhs_report_2.2.2383.pdf?_gl=1*pc2ynm*_ga*MTQ2ODM4OTYwMC4xNjc1Mzg4NTc3*_ga_TSE2LSBDQZ*MTY3ODg0OTMxNC4zLjEuMTY3ODg0OTMyMS41My4wLjA.\">6 in 10 farmworkers are not eligible for unemployment benefits (PDF)\u003c/a>, according to studies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Santiago said the current situation is frustrating because he has advocated for years for more safety-net programs that could have helped families hurt by the flooding. If such legislation were in place, he said, “we’d be able to have a place where we could go get people some financial relief.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Assemblymember Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles)\"]‘I think we need to step up our efforts to help those who are undocumented and can’t earn a paycheck because of the current rains and floods.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Assemblymember Robert Rivas of Salinas, chosen by his fellow Democrats to be the next Assembly Speaker, noted in a statement to CalMatters that undocumented workers typically don’t qualify for federal assistance funds for emergency housing, home repairs, personal property loss, funeral expenses and other aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My office, in collaboration with other legislative offices, is exploring immediate legislative and budget action to provide relief for these vulnerable communities,” Rivas said, noting that the workers also had been ineligible for many COVID-19 relief programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state began filling some of that gap during the pandemic. Undocumented workers were eligible for $1,700 in state funds: a $500 COVID-19 disaster relief prepaid card and $1,200 from the Golden State Stimulus Fund.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tuesday afternoon, groups of people remained in tents along the flooded Pajaro River. Despite large federal and state housing budgets, many of those people don’t have homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many farmworker families in the flooded region are undocumented, from Indigenous groups, and don’t speak either English or Spanish well, said Eloy Ortiz, board member for the Watsonville-based \u003ca href=\"https://farmworkerfamily.org/board-of-directors\">Center for Farmworker Families\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That complicates attempts to apply for assistance on behalf of the legal residents in their household. Some were rejected when they applied for aid in January, Ortiz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The folks who have been flooded out, if it were a normal year, they’d be starting to go back to the fields to work right now,” Ortiz said. “And now they will probably not be able to go back for months.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label='California Storm Coverage' tag='california-storm']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More than 20,000 acres of agricultural land in Monterey County will likely sit fallow because of stormwater contamination, noted Monterey County Supervisor Luis Alejo, a former Assembly member from Watsonville, in a tweet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are low-income Latino families, and the start of the harvest season for strawberries, raspberries and other crops is in March. Now farmworkers will be out of work,” he wrote Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I urge our state leaders to provide aid in the state budget for undocumented flood victims who do not qualify for FEMA assistance & additional relief for farmworkers who will be out of work due to flooded ag fields and not qualifying for unemployment insurance,” he wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The financial pain they will face will be severe & prolonged!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As many as 8,500 people were under flood evacuation warnings in Monterey County over the weekend. The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services \u003ca href=\"https://news.caloes.ca.gov/shelters-available-for-residents-impacted-by-march-storms-03-14-23/\">reported that more than 300 people had stayed in five shelters across Santa Cruz and Monterey counties\u003c/a> Monday night, the vast majority taking shelter at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://twitter.com/SupervisorAlejo/status/1635917913394937857\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Salinas, Hackett, 32, said her choice was simple as the storm bore down: save herself, or say goodbye to a crop that has already weathered a steep drop in prices and other industry pressures. At least 56 cannabis businesses have closed in Monterey County in recent years, according to a recent estimate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the water rose Friday morning, Hackett and her team who normally would be busy trimming plants or readying retail products instead shut down early to reinforce storm ditches and forge cement slabs into an impromptu flood wall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Tuesday, as another storm knocked out power at her two adjacent 10-acre farms, Hackett said she is unaware of any aid available for cannabis businesses affected by flooding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ideally if we were any other business, we would have immediately had help,” Hackett said. “Whether it be the county, whether it be the state — someone needs to be held accountable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Longer term, Hackett said she fears climate change and economic obstacles will point her industry toward the same downward trajectory that wiped out many of the flower growers who once thrived in the same Monterey County greenhouses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943673\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11943673\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Rows of bright green cannabis plants inside a greenhouse during the daytime.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1920\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The inside of a cannabis greenhouse. \u003ccite>(Sam Harnett/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She isn’t alone in her frustrations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Joey Espinoza, a Salinas-raised cannabis compliance consultant, said several of his clients were directly affected by floodwaters, including one grower who had to evacuate plants from a flooded greenhouse. Even while the ground was still muddy, he said, many cannabis farmers have turned their attention to other pressing challenges in the industry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As cannabis remains illegal at the national level, Espinoza said, local growers shut out of federal financial aid are now confronting storm damage after a collapse in cannabis prices and while facing a tight deadline to apply for new state licenses by the end of the year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Industry advocates say\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2023/02/emerald-triangle-cannabis-communities/\"> the economic turmoil\u003c/a> stems from a mix of overproduction of legal and illegal cannabis, as well as ever-changing taxes and regulations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s layers of issues with all of this,” Espinoza said. “And the thing to remember is, there’s not gonna be a lot of relief for cannabis in terms of FEMA and things like that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was unclear exactly what the state might do.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California Department of Cannabis Control told CalMatters that, under current state law, \u003ca href=\"https://cannabis.ca.gov/resources/disaster-relief-programs/\">cannabis businesses affected by disasters may apply for temporary waivers of license requirements\u003c/a> if they become unable to meet regulatory requirements. State \u003ca href=\"https://cannabis.ca.gov/applicants/application-resources/\">licensing rules\u003c/a> govern everything from sometimes-costly infrastructure requirements to the way products are transported and secured.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“All requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and aim to provide regulatory relief to licensees for impacts related to issues including flooding,” said David Hafner, department spokesperson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the past the \u003ca href=\"https://cannabis.ca.gov/2021/09/disaster-relief-for-cannabis-businesses-affected-by-fires/\">department has offered support for cannabis growers\u003c/a> affected by wildfires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Few lawmakers voiced ideas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, some residents took matters into their own hands.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gabino Orozco Avila was getting ready to serve dinner to neighbors gathered on a walkway above the rushing Pajaro River late Tuesday afternoon, a stone’s throw from his daughter’s home in Pajaro. While his daughter remained evacuated, Avila, owner of a longtime food business, Tacos Los Jacona — a nod to his Michoacán hometown — had prepared carne asada, rice and beans for the community that had long supported him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Now that people need me,” he said in Spanish, “I’ll be here.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Many cannabis farms and undocumented farmworkers lost their homes and livelihoods, yet they won't qualify for federal help. Will legislators and Gov. Gavin Newsom, who's expected to visit flooded areas on March 15, commit state funds to remedy that?",
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"title": "Thousands of Californians Aren't Eligible for Federal Aid After Storms. Here's Why | KQED",
"description": "Many cannabis farms and undocumented farmworkers lost their homes and livelihoods, yet they won't qualify for federal help. Will legislators and Gov. Gavin Newsom, who's expected to visit flooded areas on March 15, commit state funds to remedy that?",
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"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/author/laurenhepler/\">Lauren Hepler\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/author/nicole-foy/\">Nicole Foy \u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/author/wendy-fry/\">Wendy Fry\u003c/a>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>It was late Friday morning when muddy, brown water started rushing onto Michelle Hackett’s Salinas Valley farms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On one side of her family’s Riverview Farms cannabis business, a county-mandated retention pond overflowed. Next door, a farm abandoned by another grower — one of \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2023/02/emerald-triangle-cannabis-communities/\">dozens of cannabis businesses to shut down in Monterey County\u003c/a> in recent years — spawned another small river headed straight for Hackett and her skeleton crew.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The water completely stopped and backed up,” Hackett said. “I thought, ‘Holy s—, this is going to flood our greenhouses.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cannabis businesses like Hackett’s — along with thousands of undocumented farmworkers and the area’s unhoused residents — fear they’ll be left to fend for themselves as yet another winter storm batters California’s Central Coast, local officials and advocates say.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Undocumented workers and cannabis businesses are, by law, ineligible for federally funded programs such as unemployment or aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now — after days of wind and rain and a Pajaro River levee failure flooded the area, displacing hundreds of people in Monterey County alone — details are lacking about how state officials would respond to calls to direct state funds and other disaster relief to these communities in the region known as \u003ca href=\"https://asmith.ucdavis.edu/news/whither-salinas-valley#:~:text=Salinas%20Valley%20grows%20almost%20half,over%2080%25%20of%20its%20artichokes.\">America’s salad bowl\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California has stepped into the breach before, offering some \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2020/04/15/governor-newsom-announces-new-initiatives-to-support-california-workers-impacted-by-covid-19/\">support to undocumented workers\u003c/a> during the height of the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2022/04/california-undocumented-immigrants/\">COVID-19 pandemic\u003c/a>, and to some cannabis farmers whose crops were \u003ca href=\"https://cannabis.ca.gov/resources/disaster-relief-programs/\">damaged in wildfires\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s an issue complicated by competing political priorities and a projected \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2022/12/california-budget-deficit-safety-net/\">$24 billion state budget deficit\u003c/a> for the coming year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. Gavin Newsom is scheduled to survey flood and storm damage in Monterey County on March 15, including the inundated farmworker town of Pajaro. He will be getting an update from local officials, a spokesperson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As Newsom planned his visit, many officials and advocates said they hope to hear how the state will help. A few lawmakers said they’re exploring legislative options.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943670\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11943670\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"An aerial view shows many buildings, homes, streets and cars flooded with brown water.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1430\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-800x447.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-1020x570.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-160x89.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-1536x858.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-2048x1144.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/GettyImages-1248040438-1920x1072.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An aerial view shows a flooded neighborhood in the unincorporated community of Pajaro in Watsonville, on March 11, 2023. Residents were forced to evacuate in the middle of the night after an atmospheric river storm surge broke the Pajaro levee and sent floodwaters flowing into the community. \u003ccite>(Josh Edelson/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I think we need to step up our efforts to help those who are undocumented and can’t earn a paycheck because of the current rains and floods,” said Assemblymember Miguel Santiago, a Democrat representing Los Angeles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He is co-sponsoring \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB227\">Senate Bill 227\u003c/a> to provide \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/2023/02/california-safety-net/\">unemployment benefits\u003c/a> to undocumented Californians. About \u003ca href=\"https://clc.ucmerced.edu/sites/clc.ucmerced.edu/files/page/documents/fwhs_report_2.2.2383.pdf?_gl=1*pc2ynm*_ga*MTQ2ODM4OTYwMC4xNjc1Mzg4NTc3*_ga_TSE2LSBDQZ*MTY3ODg0OTMxNC4zLjEuMTY3ODg0OTMyMS41My4wLjA.\">6 in 10 farmworkers are not eligible for unemployment benefits (PDF)\u003c/a>, according to studies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Santiago said the current situation is frustrating because he has advocated for years for more safety-net programs that could have helped families hurt by the flooding. If such legislation were in place, he said, “we’d be able to have a place where we could go get people some financial relief.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Assemblymember Robert Rivas of Salinas, chosen by his fellow Democrats to be the next Assembly Speaker, noted in a statement to CalMatters that undocumented workers typically don’t qualify for federal assistance funds for emergency housing, home repairs, personal property loss, funeral expenses and other aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My office, in collaboration with other legislative offices, is exploring immediate legislative and budget action to provide relief for these vulnerable communities,” Rivas said, noting that the workers also had been ineligible for many COVID-19 relief programs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state began filling some of that gap during the pandemic. Undocumented workers were eligible for $1,700 in state funds: a $500 COVID-19 disaster relief prepaid card and $1,200 from the Golden State Stimulus Fund.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tuesday afternoon, groups of people remained in tents along the flooded Pajaro River. Despite large federal and state housing budgets, many of those people don’t have homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many farmworker families in the flooded region are undocumented, from Indigenous groups, and don’t speak either English or Spanish well, said Eloy Ortiz, board member for the Watsonville-based \u003ca href=\"https://farmworkerfamily.org/board-of-directors\">Center for Farmworker Families\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That complicates attempts to apply for assistance on behalf of the legal residents in their household. Some were rejected when they applied for aid in January, Ortiz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The folks who have been flooded out, if it were a normal year, they’d be starting to go back to the fields to work right now,” Ortiz said. “And now they will probably not be able to go back for months.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More than 20,000 acres of agricultural land in Monterey County will likely sit fallow because of stormwater contamination, noted Monterey County Supervisor Luis Alejo, a former Assembly member from Watsonville, in a tweet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are low-income Latino families, and the start of the harvest season for strawberries, raspberries and other crops is in March. Now farmworkers will be out of work,” he wrote Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I urge our state leaders to provide aid in the state budget for undocumented flood victims who do not qualify for FEMA assistance & additional relief for farmworkers who will be out of work due to flooded ag fields and not qualifying for unemployment insurance,” he wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The financial pain they will face will be severe & prolonged!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As many as 8,500 people were under flood evacuation warnings in Monterey County over the weekend. The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services \u003ca href=\"https://news.caloes.ca.gov/shelters-available-for-residents-impacted-by-march-storms-03-14-23/\">reported that more than 300 people had stayed in five shelters across Santa Cruz and Monterey counties\u003c/a> Monday night, the vast majority taking shelter at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>In Salinas, Hackett, 32, said her choice was simple as the storm bore down: save herself, or say goodbye to a crop that has already weathered a steep drop in prices and other industry pressures. At least 56 cannabis businesses have closed in Monterey County in recent years, according to a recent estimate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the water rose Friday morning, Hackett and her team who normally would be busy trimming plants or readying retail products instead shut down early to reinforce storm ditches and forge cement slabs into an impromptu flood wall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Tuesday, as another storm knocked out power at her two adjacent 10-acre farms, Hackett said she is unaware of any aid available for cannabis businesses affected by flooding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ideally if we were any other business, we would have immediately had help,” Hackett said. “Whether it be the county, whether it be the state — someone needs to be held accountable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Longer term, Hackett said she fears climate change and economic obstacles will point her industry toward the same downward trajectory that wiped out many of the flower growers who once thrived in the same Monterey County greenhouses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943673\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11943673\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Rows of bright green cannabis plants inside a greenhouse during the daytime.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1920\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS21243_Grow-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The inside of a cannabis greenhouse. \u003ccite>(Sam Harnett/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She isn’t alone in her frustrations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Joey Espinoza, a Salinas-raised cannabis compliance consultant, said several of his clients were directly affected by floodwaters, including one grower who had to evacuate plants from a flooded greenhouse. Even while the ground was still muddy, he said, many cannabis farmers have turned their attention to other pressing challenges in the industry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As cannabis remains illegal at the national level, Espinoza said, local growers shut out of federal financial aid are now confronting storm damage after a collapse in cannabis prices and while facing a tight deadline to apply for new state licenses by the end of the year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Industry advocates say\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2023/02/emerald-triangle-cannabis-communities/\"> the economic turmoil\u003c/a> stems from a mix of overproduction of legal and illegal cannabis, as well as ever-changing taxes and regulations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s layers of issues with all of this,” Espinoza said. “And the thing to remember is, there’s not gonna be a lot of relief for cannabis in terms of FEMA and things like that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was unclear exactly what the state might do.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California Department of Cannabis Control told CalMatters that, under current state law, \u003ca href=\"https://cannabis.ca.gov/resources/disaster-relief-programs/\">cannabis businesses affected by disasters may apply for temporary waivers of license requirements\u003c/a> if they become unable to meet regulatory requirements. State \u003ca href=\"https://cannabis.ca.gov/applicants/application-resources/\">licensing rules\u003c/a> govern everything from sometimes-costly infrastructure requirements to the way products are transported and secured.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“All requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and aim to provide regulatory relief to licensees for impacts related to issues including flooding,” said David Hafner, department spokesperson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the past the \u003ca href=\"https://cannabis.ca.gov/2021/09/disaster-relief-for-cannabis-businesses-affected-by-fires/\">department has offered support for cannabis growers\u003c/a> affected by wildfires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Few lawmakers voiced ideas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, some residents took matters into their own hands.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gabino Orozco Avila was getting ready to serve dinner to neighbors gathered on a walkway above the rushing Pajaro River late Tuesday afternoon, a stone’s throw from his daughter’s home in Pajaro. While his daughter remained evacuated, Avila, owner of a longtime food business, Tacos Los Jacona — a nod to his Michoacán hometown — had prepared carne asada, rice and beans for the community that had long supported him.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Now that people need me,” he said in Spanish, “I’ll be here.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "In Monterey County, the Town of Pajaro Has Flooded",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">As residents across California continue to cope with heavy wind and rain, perhaps no community has been hit harder than Pajaro, where thousands of residents evacuated after a levee broke late last Friday, flooding the town.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">An unincorporated community in Monterey County, Pajaro is home to mainly low-income Latino farmworkers who provide a large portion of California-grown produce. They’ve lost not only their homes and vehicles to flooding, but also their livelihoods as farms across the county are forced to shut down. \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dTHy5Ofr6OW7Iw57t1WPNFrypfyoDpvt/view?usp=share_link\">\u003cem>Episode transcript\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Guest\u003c/b>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">: Katherine Monahan, KQED Reporter\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"card card--enclosed grey\">\n\u003cp id=\"embed-code\" class=\"inconsolata\">\n\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https://playlist.megaphone.fm/?e=KQINC5606175399&light=true\" width=\"100%\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\n\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">For\u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> information and referrals to disaster relief organizations, residents of evacuated areas can call 211.\u003c/span>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Links:\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://kqed.org/news/11943316/pajaro-river-levee-breached-where-to-find-evacuation-shelters\">Breached Levee Floods Pajaro River Valley, Engulfing Towns as Communities Are Evacuated\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cfscc.org/funds/disaster-fund\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Santa Cruz County Disaster Fund\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">: \u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">su\u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">pporting residents impacted by floods, wildfires, earthquakes, mudslides, debris flows, and other disasters in Santa Cruz County and the Pajaro Valley\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">To Donate directly to farmworkers and learn more about the reality of farmworkers in CA check out the \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://farmworkerfamily.org/support-farmworkers\">Center for Farmworker Families\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">DONATING ITEMS: Donations can be taken to the \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.rcfam.com/\">\u003cb>Raíces y Cariño\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003cb> center at 1205 Freedom Blvd in Watsonville.\u003c/b>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> They are there each day this week until 5pm.\u003c/span>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Requested Items include: diapers, baby wipes, feminine pads, bath towels, warm blankets, new socks and underwear, bottled water, gently used clothing in good condition, and art and craft supplies for kids. If you bring food, it should be pre-packaged and non-perishable.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/about/17653/help-make-the-bay-even-better\">The Bay Survey\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">As residents across California continue to cope with heavy wind and rain, perhaps no community has been hit harder than Pajaro, where thousands of residents evacuated after a levee broke late last Friday, flooding the town.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">An unincorporated community in Monterey County, Pajaro is home to mainly low-income Latino farmworkers who provide a large portion of California-grown produce. They’ve lost not only their homes and vehicles to flooding, but also their livelihoods as farms across the county are forced to shut down. \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dTHy5Ofr6OW7Iw57t1WPNFrypfyoDpvt/view?usp=share_link\">\u003cem>Episode transcript\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Guest\u003c/b>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">: Katherine Monahan, KQED Reporter\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"card card--enclosed grey\">\n\u003cp id=\"embed-code\" class=\"inconsolata\">\n\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https://playlist.megaphone.fm/?e=KQINC5606175399&light=true\" width=\"100%\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\n\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">For\u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> information and referrals to disaster relief organizations, residents of evacuated areas can call 211.\u003c/span>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Links:\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://kqed.org/news/11943316/pajaro-river-levee-breached-where-to-find-evacuation-shelters\">Breached Levee Floods Pajaro River Valley, Engulfing Towns as Communities Are Evacuated\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cfscc.org/funds/disaster-fund\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Santa Cruz County Disaster Fund\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">: \u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">su\u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">pporting residents impacted by floods, wildfires, earthquakes, mudslides, debris flows, and other disasters in Santa Cruz County and the Pajaro Valley\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">To Donate directly to farmworkers and learn more about the reality of farmworkers in CA check out the \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://farmworkerfamily.org/support-farmworkers\">Center for Farmworker Families\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">DONATING ITEMS: Donations can be taken to the \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.rcfam.com/\">\u003cb>Raíces y Cariño\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003cb> center at 1205 Freedom Blvd in Watsonville.\u003c/b>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> They are there each day this week until 5pm.\u003c/span>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">Requested Items include: diapers, baby wipes, feminine pads, bath towels, warm blankets, new socks and underwear, bottled water, gently used clothing in good condition, and art and craft supplies for kids. If you bring food, it should be pre-packaged and non-perishable.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/about/17653/help-make-the-bay-even-better\">The Bay Survey\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "pajaro-river-levee-breached-where-to-find-evacuation-shelters",
"title": "Breached Levee Floods Pajaro River Valley, Engulfing Towns as Communities Are Evacuated",
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"headTitle": "Breached Levee Floods Pajaro River Valley, Engulfing Towns as Communities Are Evacuated | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003ci>Updated 4:30 p.m. Sunday\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Skip straight to: \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#evacuation\">Where can I find an evacuation shelter?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>The Pajaro River on the border of Monterey and Santa Cruz counties breached a levee late Friday night, flooding the Pajaro River Valley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Across the Central Coast’s Monterey County, more than 8,500 people were under evacuation orders and warnings, including roughly 1,700 residents — many of them Latino farmworkers — from the unincorporated community of Pajaro. According to Monterey County Sheriff Tina M. Nieto, over 200 people have been rescued from the Pajaro area. No casualties have been reported.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An evacuation order was issued on Sunday by the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office for residents near the Salinas River as storm conditions and flooding have caused road closures and evacuations. There is a full road closure of Highway 1 from Salinas Road to Highway 129 (Riverside Drive) in Watsonville due to flooding. Evacuation orders for Santa Cruz County were lifted at 10 a.m. on Sunday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://twitter.com/NPRMontereyBay/status/1634991809373028352\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On Saturday afternoon, Brian Ferguson, spokesperson with the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), said officials are focused on helping people who may be in the path of additional floodwaters if more rain comes. They’re also working to get information to people who need it. “We know that vulnerable Californians are disproportionately impacted by natural disasters,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He added that it is possible there may be additional downstream impacts from this flooding. “We’re not through this,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This community is a small, disadvantaged community, mostly Latino, mostly low-income farmworkers,” said Monterey County Board of Supervisors Chair Luis Alejo. He added that this same flooding happened in 1995. “It’s heartbreaking to see the community under floodwaters today. And we know that these residents are going to go through some challenging times over the next several months to try to get their homes repaired and make them habitable again.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://twitter.com/SupervisorAlejo/status/1634587081694674946\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Alejo said the evacuations are continuing and that residents who didn’t leave last night are being escorted out, with vehicles provided by the National Guard and the Salinas Police Department. “We were trying to prepare our residents to be ready for this worst-case scenario. And that moment, unfortunately, has arrived,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Alejo has already reached out to Gov. Gavin Newsom and the White House, as well as local and state legislators. “When you have flooding, people cannot just return to their homes, because water creates a lot of damage,” Alejo said. “Moisture creates a risk of health hazards such as mold. And so we know that we’re going to need to provide alternative housing in the long run for these residents.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943357\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11943357\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-800x600.jpeg\" alt='A flooded street with cars and houses and brown water, a sign that says \"No Outlet\"' width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-800x600.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-1020x765.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-160x120.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-1920x1440.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A flooded Bafp Drive in Watsonville, March 11, 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Martha Victoria Vega)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He also said emergency staff are predicting another major atmospheric river storm for Tuesday, meaning that the evacuation and the flooding of the Pajaro River are likely to continue for several days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jonathan Linden, reporter for KAZU in Monterey County, said he drove into town on Salinas Road at 2 a.m. When he attempted to drive back the same way less than an hour later, it was submerged in water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A county spokesperson told me the entire town is under some level of water, but we can’t say exactly how much,” said Linden in an interview with KQED on Saturday morning.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Linden said he also spoke with residents on the Watsonville side of the river, which hasn’t flooded. Many residents there had evacuated their homes in the middle of the night, and many had slept in their cars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943354\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11943354\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-800x600.jpeg\" alt=\"A flooded street with submerged cars and houses.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-800x600.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-1020x765.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-160x120.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-1920x1440.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Flooding at the intersection of College and Anderson roads in Watsonville, on March 11, 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Martha Victoria Vega)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>One family Linden spoke to spent the night in their car because they couldn’t afford a motel and didn’t want to stay in a shelter. Linden said most of the residents he spoke with are concerned about their homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People are coming together, but we need resources,” said Martha Victoria Vega, a resident and teacher in Watsonville, who evacuated her home earlier. “We’re grateful for the community members, the public safety teams, nonprofits, government officials and the media for their help.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under food and safety laws, flooded fields must sit fallow for 30 to 60 days to let any possible contamination subside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Food that would otherwise have been grown and harvested will not be available. And also the thousands of jobs that would be available to farmworkers will not be available,” said Alejo, of the Monterey County Board of Supervisors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>KQED’s Katherine Monahan spoke with Ramiro Ortiz Calderon while he stood by the river with his wife and daughter. His house flooded, and so did his car, which he would have needed to get to work. Now, he thinks he’ll have no work. And, he’s worried about theft.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“After we returned two months ago, I came back to the house, and there was a lot of vandalism, they stole the tires from my car,” Calderon said, in Spanish. “Let [the police] protect us at least now that we are outside so that there is not so much robbery because we have our things there. It’s not so much about the water, but rather our belongings, the little that we have, inside.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite evacuation orders, some families and residents chose not to leave their homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s really sad to see that people didn’t evacuate last night,” said Alfredo Torres, a local insurance agent and Pajaro resident. “They didn’t heed the warnings and people chose to stay. I understand in a community like ours, there’s not a whole lot of housing. So it is limited where people can go, as it is in a highly populated area.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Torres said the levee system had “never been built to capacity.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was built back in the ’40s, and I think the bigger problem is just that there’s been a lack of focus on maintenance to better it,” he said. “Some [projects] were supposed to be coming down the pipeline soon, but not soon enough.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Built in 1949, the Pajaro River’s levees have broken several times in the past decades, causing flooding and widespread damage to communities. In 1995, flooding from broken levees left two people dead and thousands of acres of farmland underwater, and caused close to $100 million in damage. In 2022, a state law was passed to advanced state funds for a levee project. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2024.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943355\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11943355\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-800x450.jpeg\" alt=\"An aerial view of a flooded river overflowing into two sides of the town with a bridge going over it.\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-800x450.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-1020x574.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-1920x1080.jpeg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The flooded Pajaro River on March 11, 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Alfredo Torres)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office, North Monterey County Fire and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) said in a statement on March 1 that they are currently assisting community members who did not evacuate earlier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California National Guard said they conducted 56 rescues of people who were stranded by the flooding throughout the night.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://twitter.com/CalGuard/status/1634582211239505920\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://montereyco.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=905a9458324b4868804d96b5593eb978\">Up-to-date road closures and evacuation maps can be found here.\u003c/a> The \u003ca href=\"https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/\">Caltrans QuickMap\u003c/a> app also provides up-to-date information on road closures and openings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Weather-related \u003ca class=\"c-link\" href=\"https://gis.data.ca.gov/datasets/CalEMA::cumulative-statewide-power-outages-public-view-2/explore?layer=2&location=37.024088%2C-119.404500%2C6.62\">power outages\u003c/a> affected more than 17,000 customers in Monterey County late Saturday, according to Cal OES.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The County of Monterey has been advising residents of Pajaro to not use tap water for drinking and cooking until further notice, saying that wells for the Pajaro/Sunny Mesa water district were flooded and that “flood water may be contaminated with chemicals that would not be made safe by boiling or disinfection.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Residents in the evacuation zone in need of help should call 911 immediately. Residents who have already evacuated may call 211 for information and referrals to disaster relief organizations.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003ca id=\"evacuation\">\u003c/a>Evacuation shelters\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>The closest evacuation shelter to the community of Pajaro is the Santa Cruz Fairground.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://goo.gl/maps/3JT7ieRWyUjp6YEJ6\">2061 E. Lake Boulevard, Watsonville, CA 95076\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Compass Church\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://goo.gl/maps/74LrgmwXmaynrUGx6\">10325 S. Main Street, Salinas, CA 93901\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Prunedale Branch Library (temporary evacuation center)\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://goo.gl/maps/FWYTeLH2888FZnQ28\">17822 Moro Road, Prunedale, CA 93907\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Cabrillo College gym\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://www.google.com/maps/place/6500+Soquel+Dr,+Aptos,+CA+95003/@36.99045,-121.931144,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x808e150d2be458a5:0xac6299449a5cfc9a!8m2!3d36.99045!4d-121.92895!16s%2Fg%2F11t7plw5qw\">6500 Soquel Drive, Aptos, CA 95003\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Veterans Memorial Building\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://www.google.com/maps/place/215+E+Beach+St,+Watsonville,+CA+95076/@36.9126524,-121.7565131,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x808e1b2348544a79:0x1ad25c338c2b3d7!8m2!3d36.9126524!4d-121.7543191!16s%2Fg%2F11b8vf8gkx\">215 E. Beach Street, Watsonville, CA 95076\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story includes reporting by The Associated Press.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The Pajaro River, which divides Monterey and Santa Cruz counties, breached a levee early this morning and has flooded the communities of Pajaro and Watsonville as thousands are under evacuation orders and warnings, with hundreds rescued.",
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"title": "Breached Levee Floods Pajaro River Valley, Engulfing Towns as Communities Are Evacuated | KQED",
"description": "The Pajaro River, which divides Monterey and Santa Cruz counties, breached a levee early this morning and has flooded the communities of Pajaro and Watsonville as thousands are under evacuation orders and warnings, with hundreds rescued.",
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"headline": "Breached Levee Floods Pajaro River Valley, Engulfing Towns as Communities Are Evacuated",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003ci>Updated 4:30 p.m. Sunday\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Skip straight to: \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#evacuation\">Where can I find an evacuation shelter?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>The Pajaro River on the border of Monterey and Santa Cruz counties breached a levee late Friday night, flooding the Pajaro River Valley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Across the Central Coast’s Monterey County, more than 8,500 people were under evacuation orders and warnings, including roughly 1,700 residents — many of them Latino farmworkers — from the unincorporated community of Pajaro. According to Monterey County Sheriff Tina M. Nieto, over 200 people have been rescued from the Pajaro area. No casualties have been reported.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An evacuation order was issued on Sunday by the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office for residents near the Salinas River as storm conditions and flooding have caused road closures and evacuations. There is a full road closure of Highway 1 from Salinas Road to Highway 129 (Riverside Drive) in Watsonville due to flooding. Evacuation orders for Santa Cruz County were lifted at 10 a.m. on Sunday.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>On Saturday afternoon, Brian Ferguson, spokesperson with the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), said officials are focused on helping people who may be in the path of additional floodwaters if more rain comes. They’re also working to get information to people who need it. “We know that vulnerable Californians are disproportionately impacted by natural disasters,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He added that it is possible there may be additional downstream impacts from this flooding. “We’re not through this,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This community is a small, disadvantaged community, mostly Latino, mostly low-income farmworkers,” said Monterey County Board of Supervisors Chair Luis Alejo. He added that this same flooding happened in 1995. “It’s heartbreaking to see the community under floodwaters today. And we know that these residents are going to go through some challenging times over the next several months to try to get their homes repaired and make them habitable again.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>Alejo said the evacuations are continuing and that residents who didn’t leave last night are being escorted out, with vehicles provided by the National Guard and the Salinas Police Department. “We were trying to prepare our residents to be ready for this worst-case scenario. And that moment, unfortunately, has arrived,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Alejo has already reached out to Gov. Gavin Newsom and the White House, as well as local and state legislators. “When you have flooding, people cannot just return to their homes, because water creates a lot of damage,” Alejo said. “Moisture creates a risk of health hazards such as mold. And so we know that we’re going to need to provide alternative housing in the long run for these residents.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943357\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11943357\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-800x600.jpeg\" alt='A flooded street with cars and houses and brown water, a sign that says \"No Outlet\"' width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-800x600.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-1020x765.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-160x120.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0103-1920x1440.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A flooded Bafp Drive in Watsonville, March 11, 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Martha Victoria Vega)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He also said emergency staff are predicting another major atmospheric river storm for Tuesday, meaning that the evacuation and the flooding of the Pajaro River are likely to continue for several days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jonathan Linden, reporter for KAZU in Monterey County, said he drove into town on Salinas Road at 2 a.m. When he attempted to drive back the same way less than an hour later, it was submerged in water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A county spokesperson told me the entire town is under some level of water, but we can’t say exactly how much,” said Linden in an interview with KQED on Saturday morning.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Linden said he also spoke with residents on the Watsonville side of the river, which hasn’t flooded. Many residents there had evacuated their homes in the middle of the night, and many had slept in their cars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943354\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11943354\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-800x600.jpeg\" alt=\"A flooded street with submerged cars and houses.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-800x600.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-1020x765.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-160x120.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/IMG_0109-1920x1440.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Flooding at the intersection of College and Anderson roads in Watsonville, on March 11, 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Martha Victoria Vega)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>One family Linden spoke to spent the night in their car because they couldn’t afford a motel and didn’t want to stay in a shelter. Linden said most of the residents he spoke with are concerned about their homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People are coming together, but we need resources,” said Martha Victoria Vega, a resident and teacher in Watsonville, who evacuated her home earlier. “We’re grateful for the community members, the public safety teams, nonprofits, government officials and the media for their help.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under food and safety laws, flooded fields must sit fallow for 30 to 60 days to let any possible contamination subside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Food that would otherwise have been grown and harvested will not be available. And also the thousands of jobs that would be available to farmworkers will not be available,” said Alejo, of the Monterey County Board of Supervisors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>KQED’s Katherine Monahan spoke with Ramiro Ortiz Calderon while he stood by the river with his wife and daughter. His house flooded, and so did his car, which he would have needed to get to work. Now, he thinks he’ll have no work. And, he’s worried about theft.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“After we returned two months ago, I came back to the house, and there was a lot of vandalism, they stole the tires from my car,” Calderon said, in Spanish. “Let [the police] protect us at least now that we are outside so that there is not so much robbery because we have our things there. It’s not so much about the water, but rather our belongings, the little that we have, inside.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite evacuation orders, some families and residents chose not to leave their homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s really sad to see that people didn’t evacuate last night,” said Alfredo Torres, a local insurance agent and Pajaro resident. “They didn’t heed the warnings and people chose to stay. I understand in a community like ours, there’s not a whole lot of housing. So it is limited where people can go, as it is in a highly populated area.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Torres said the levee system had “never been built to capacity.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was built back in the ’40s, and I think the bigger problem is just that there’s been a lack of focus on maintenance to better it,” he said. “Some [projects] were supposed to be coming down the pipeline soon, but not soon enough.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Built in 1949, the Pajaro River’s levees have broken several times in the past decades, causing flooding and widespread damage to communities. In 1995, flooding from broken levees left two people dead and thousands of acres of farmland underwater, and caused close to $100 million in damage. In 2022, a state law was passed to advanced state funds for a levee project. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2024.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11943355\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11943355\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-800x450.jpeg\" alt=\"An aerial view of a flooded river overflowing into two sides of the town with a bridge going over it.\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-800x450.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-1020x574.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2-1920x1080.jpeg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/Alfredo_Torres_2.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The flooded Pajaro River on March 11, 2023. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Alfredo Torres)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office, North Monterey County Fire and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) said in a statement on March 1 that they are currently assisting community members who did not evacuate earlier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California National Guard said they conducted 56 rescues of people who were stranded by the flooding throughout the night.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://montereyco.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=905a9458324b4868804d96b5593eb978\">Up-to-date road closures and evacuation maps can be found here.\u003c/a> The \u003ca href=\"https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/\">Caltrans QuickMap\u003c/a> app also provides up-to-date information on road closures and openings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Weather-related \u003ca class=\"c-link\" href=\"https://gis.data.ca.gov/datasets/CalEMA::cumulative-statewide-power-outages-public-view-2/explore?layer=2&location=37.024088%2C-119.404500%2C6.62\">power outages\u003c/a> affected more than 17,000 customers in Monterey County late Saturday, according to Cal OES.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The County of Monterey has been advising residents of Pajaro to not use tap water for drinking and cooking until further notice, saying that wells for the Pajaro/Sunny Mesa water district were flooded and that “flood water may be contaminated with chemicals that would not be made safe by boiling or disinfection.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Residents in the evacuation zone in need of help should call 911 immediately. Residents who have already evacuated may call 211 for information and referrals to disaster relief organizations.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>\u003ca id=\"evacuation\">\u003c/a>Evacuation shelters\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>The closest evacuation shelter to the community of Pajaro is the Santa Cruz Fairground.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://goo.gl/maps/3JT7ieRWyUjp6YEJ6\">2061 E. Lake Boulevard, Watsonville, CA 95076\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Compass Church\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://goo.gl/maps/74LrgmwXmaynrUGx6\">10325 S. Main Street, Salinas, CA 93901\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Prunedale Branch Library (temporary evacuation center)\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://goo.gl/maps/FWYTeLH2888FZnQ28\">17822 Moro Road, Prunedale, CA 93907\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Cabrillo College gym\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://www.google.com/maps/place/6500+Soquel+Dr,+Aptos,+CA+95003/@36.99045,-121.931144,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x808e150d2be458a5:0xac6299449a5cfc9a!8m2!3d36.99045!4d-121.92895!16s%2Fg%2F11t7plw5qw\">6500 Soquel Drive, Aptos, CA 95003\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Veterans Memorial Building\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"https://www.google.com/maps/place/215+E+Beach+St,+Watsonville,+CA+95076/@36.9126524,-121.7565131,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x808e1b2348544a79:0x1ad25c338c2b3d7!8m2!3d36.9126524!4d-121.7543191!16s%2Fg%2F11b8vf8gkx\">215 E. Beach Street, Watsonville, CA 95076\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story includes reporting by The Associated Press.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
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"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
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"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
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"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
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"tagline": "Politics from a personal perspective",
"info": "Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.",
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"possible": {
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"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
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"info": "Each weekday, host Marco Werman and his team of producers bring you the world's most interesting stories in an hour of radio that reminds us just how small our planet really is.",
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},
"radiolab": {
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"info": "A two-time Peabody Award-winner, Radiolab is an investigation told through sounds and stories, and centered around one big idea. In the Radiolab world, information sounds like music and science and culture collide. Hosted by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, the show is designed for listeners who demand skepticism, but appreciate wonder. WNYC Studios is the producer of other leading podcasts including Freakonomics Radio, Death, Sex & Money, On the Media and many more.",
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},
"reveal": {
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"info": "Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Reveal is public radios first one-hour weekly radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting. Credible, fact based and without a partisan agenda, Reveal combines the power and artistry of driveway moment storytelling with data-rich reporting on critically important issues. The result is stories that inform and inspire, arming our listeners with information to right injustices, hold the powerful accountable and improve lives.Reveal is hosted by Al Letson and showcases the award-winning work of CIR and newsrooms large and small across the nation. In a radio and podcast market crowded with choices, Reveal focuses on important and often surprising stories that illuminate the world for our listeners.",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.revealnews.org/episodes/",
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},
"rightnowish": {
"id": "rightnowish",
"title": "Rightnowish",
"tagline": "Art is where you find it",
"info": "Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.",
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},
"science-friday": {
"id": "science-friday",
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"info": "Science Friday is a weekly science talk show, broadcast live over public radio stations nationwide. Each week, the show focuses on science topics that are in the news and tries to bring an educated, balanced discussion to bear on the scientific issues at hand. Panels of expert guests join host Ira Flatow, a veteran science journalist, to discuss science and to take questions from listeners during the call-in portion of the program.",
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"region": {
"key": "Restaurant Region",
"filters": [
"Any Region"
]
},
"cuisine": {
"key": "Restaurant Cuisine",
"filters": [
"Any Cuisine"
]
}
},
"restaurantDataById": {},
"restaurantIdsSorted": [],
"error": null
},
"userAgentReducer": {
"userAgent": "Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko; compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0; +claudebot@anthropic.com)",
"isBot": true
},
"requestOutcomesReducer": {
"notFound": []
},
"navPromosReducer": {
"isFetching": false,
"fetchFailed": false,
"hasFetched": true,
"promos": {
"news": {
"name": "2026 Voter Guide",
"link": "/voterguide",
"imageURL": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Nav-News-Nov2026ElectionCoverage@2x-7bd4aad4.png",
"description": "Get informed in minutes with our Voter Guide for California’s November 3 election."
},
"podcasts-radio": {},
"video-tv": {},
"events": {},
"support": {}
}
}
}
