window.__IS_SSR__=true
window.__INITIAL_STATE__={
"attachmentsReducer": {
"audio_0": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_0",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background0.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_1": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_1",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background1.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_2": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_2",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background2.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_3": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_3",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background3.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_4": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_4",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background4.jpg"
}
}
},
"placeholder": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "placeholder",
"imgSizes": {
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-768x512.jpg",
"width": 768,
"height": 512,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"fd-lrg": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"fd-med": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"fd-sm": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"xxsmall": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"xsmall": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"small": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"xlarge": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-32": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 32,
"height": 32,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-50": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 50,
"height": 50,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-64": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 64,
"height": 64,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-96": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 96,
"height": 96,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-128": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 128,
"height": 128,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"detail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
}
}
},
"science_1984300": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1984300",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984300",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1984299,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-160x120.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 120
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1920
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-2048x1536.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1536
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-1020x765.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 765
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-1536x1152.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1152
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-1920x1440.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1440
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-800x600.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 600
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-1258514923-d0f342ea312f778d880004356d38fea701661e61-768x576.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
}
},
"publishDate": 1695240918,
"modified": 1695252129,
"caption": "Smoky haze from wildfires in Canada obscures New York City's Empire State Building this year. The air in the US has improved over the past 50 years, but smoke pollution from growing wildfires erodes much of that progress.",
"description": null,
"title": "Smoky haze from wildfire",
"credit": "David Dee Delgado/Getty Images",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "Orange skies and smoke is seen in a city amongst buildings.",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1984231": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1984231",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984231",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1984229,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 107
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1705
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-2048x1364.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1364
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-1020x679.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 679
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-1536x1023.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1023
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-1920x1279.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1279
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 533
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_31_custom-6abe04048b5975f182a9e05de2107f72d9559663-768x511.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 511
}
},
"publishDate": 1694105137,
"modified": 1694125214,
"caption": "Charred carcasses of Mojave yuccas, Joshua trees and chollas are seen at the edge of the York Fire in San Bernardino County, inside Mojave National Preserve.",
"description": null,
"title": "Charred carcasses of Mojave yuccas, Joshua trees and chollas are seen at the edge of the York Fire in San Bernardino County, California, inside Mojave National Preserve.",
"credit": "Krystal Ramirez/NPR",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "Dry landscape dotted with small burnt plants under a blue sky.",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1984217": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1984217",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984217",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1984216,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-160x110.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 110
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1756
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-2048x1405.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1405
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-1020x700.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 700
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-1536x1054.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1054
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-1920x1317.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1317
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-800x549.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 549
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/gettyimages-51998444_custom-e9b817e44683fb1f86e7c6926993066d3f8ca6b4-768x527.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 527
}
},
"publishDate": 1694017685,
"modified": 1694017894,
"caption": "As oceans get hotter, scientists are looking for ways to safeguard coral species so they can be used to restore reefs in the future.",
"description": null,
"title": "As oceans get hotter, scientists are looking for ways to safeguard coral species so they can be used to restore reefs in the future.",
"credit": "Donald Miralle/Getty Images",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "A school of manini fish pass over a coral reef at Hanauma Bay on January 15, 2005 in Honolulu, Hawaii",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1984164": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1984164",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984164",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1984149,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_03-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_03-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 107
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_03-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_03.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_03-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 680
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_03-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1024
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_03-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1280
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_03-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 533
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_03-768x512.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 512
}
},
"publishDate": 1693507819,
"modified": 1693528609,
"caption": "Ben Harrison (left) and Aaron Tuttle with the Karuk Tribal Fisheries Program, collect young salmon for tagging in Horse Creek along the Klamath River on July 18, 2023. The Karuk and Yurok tribes are anxiously awaiting a renewed river as the dams come down. ",
"description": null,
"title": null,
"credit": "Semantha Norris/CalMatters",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": null,
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1984201": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1984201",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984201",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1984200,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-160x120.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 120
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1919
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-2048x1536.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1536
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-1020x765.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 765
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-1536x1152.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1152
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-1920x1440.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1440
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-800x600.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 600
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1059345734-3aa28c30849d6d8cf28cf28a35e947cb7bb5fc62-768x576.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
}
},
"publishDate": 1693523965,
"modified": 1693524111,
"caption": "Towering smoke plumes overshadowed California's town of Paradise as the Camp Fire raced through in 2018. More than 18,000 acres burned in a matter of hours.",
"description": null,
"title": "Camp Fire",
"credit": "Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "A home is overshadowed by towering smoke plumes.",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1983984": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1983984",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983984",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1983983,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahiana-21_custom-dbc34c4bfa452d7771dcd89ba7e72ebd533f44b2-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahiana-21_custom-dbc34c4bfa452d7771dcd89ba7e72ebd533f44b2-160x106.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 106
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahiana-21_custom-dbc34c4bfa452d7771dcd89ba7e72ebd533f44b2-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahiana-21_custom-dbc34c4bfa452d7771dcd89ba7e72ebd533f44b2.jpg",
"width": 1800,
"height": 1198
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahiana-21_custom-dbc34c4bfa452d7771dcd89ba7e72ebd533f44b2-1020x679.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 679
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahiana-21_custom-dbc34c4bfa452d7771dcd89ba7e72ebd533f44b2-1536x1022.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1022
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahiana-21_custom-dbc34c4bfa452d7771dcd89ba7e72ebd533f44b2-800x532.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 532
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahiana-21_custom-dbc34c4bfa452d7771dcd89ba7e72ebd533f44b2-768x511.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 511
}
},
"publishDate": 1692383031,
"modified": 1692383275,
"caption": "Volunteers helping those who lost homes in Lahaina stop to pray on a hillside. The town is surrounded by dry, invasive grasses which are highly flammable.",
"description": null,
"title": "Maui Fires",
"credit": "Deanne Fitzmaurice for NPR",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "An image of three people embracing in a group hug. They are surrounded by dry grass with a backdrop of the blue ocean and skies.",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1983910": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1983910",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983910",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1983909,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-160x120.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 120
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1920
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-2048x1536.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1536
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-1020x765.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 765
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-1536x1152.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1152
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-1920x1440.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1440
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-800x600.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 600
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1592922802-ee9a7912aae0457baa62c0f57266fbf4b3597969-768x576.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
}
},
"publishDate": 1692117639,
"modified": 1692124187,
"caption": "A wildfire in Maui destroyed the historic town of Lahaina and killed at least 99 people, making it the worst natural disaster in state history and the deadliest US wildfire in over a century.",
"description": null,
"title": "Wildfire in Maui",
"credit": "Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "Two people look from a road above a town in the aftermath of a wildfire.",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1983791": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1983791",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983791",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1983775,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67419_230731-RedTideAlgae-15-BL-qut-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67419_230731-RedTideAlgae-15-BL-qut-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 107
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67419_230731-RedTideAlgae-15-BL-qut-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67419_230731-RedTideAlgae-15-BL-qut.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1280
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67419_230731-RedTideAlgae-15-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 680
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67419_230731-RedTideAlgae-15-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1024
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67419_230731-RedTideAlgae-15-BL-qut-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 533
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67419_230731-RedTideAlgae-15-BL-qut-768x512.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 512
}
},
"publishDate": 1691172902,
"modified": 1691172916,
"caption": "Reddish-brown water can be seen in the Berkeley Marina on July 31, 2023, in what could be a potential red-tide algae bloom developing in the Bay.",
"description": null,
"title": "RS67419_230731-RedTideAlgae-15-BL-qut",
"credit": "Beth LaBerge/KQED",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": null,
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1983700": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1983700",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983700",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1983699,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-08-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-08-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 107
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-08-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-08.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-08-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 680
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-08-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1024
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-08-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1280
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-08-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 533
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-08-768x512.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 512
}
},
"publishDate": 1690922883,
"modified": 1691021556,
"caption": "Reverse osmosis, step 2 in the process, eliminates more than 99% of all impurities at the Pure Water Southern California Demonstration Plant in Carson, Los Angeles County, on July 28, 2023. On the left is what the water is filtered through, and on the right are samples of the before and after reverse osmosis.",
"description": null,
"title": "Pure Water Treatment",
"credit": "Lauren Justice/CalMatters",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "Two glass beakers are filled partially with water and have orange lids on. One beaker is labelled \"Cleaned Wastewater\" and the other \"After Reverse Osmosis\".",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1983665": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1983665",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983665",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1983664,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-160x120.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 120
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1920
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-2048x1536.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1536
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-1020x765.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 765
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-1536x1152.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1152
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-1920x1440.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1440
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-800x600.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 600
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1246043371-5fd6e0891134d65e39cc07cc5fdc81a2762e6ef7-768x576.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
}
},
"publishDate": 1690910835,
"modified": 1690921125,
"caption": "A series of storms brought massive, damaging waves to much of the California coast earlier this year. The pier in Ventura, Ventura County, was damaged by the waves.",
"description": null,
"title": "California Waves",
"credit": "Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "Massive waves are seen crashing against piled up rocks blocking the waves from clashing with aperson in a wetsuit, holding a neon green surf board in the water.",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1983597": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1983597",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983597",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1983596,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1570241532-d786eb1dd5ab4091bf61d34eaccd834c58eaf1c7-869x576.jpg",
"width": 869,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1570241532-d786eb1dd5ab4091bf61d34eaccd834c58eaf1c7-160x120.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 120
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1570241532-d786eb1dd5ab4091bf61d34eaccd834c58eaf1c7-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1570241532-d786eb1dd5ab4091bf61d34eaccd834c58eaf1c7.jpg",
"width": 869,
"height": 651
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1570241532-d786eb1dd5ab4091bf61d34eaccd834c58eaf1c7-800x599.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 599
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1570241532-d786eb1dd5ab4091bf61d34eaccd834c58eaf1c7-768x575.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 575
}
},
"publishDate": 1690390002,
"modified": 1690390105,
"caption": "Heat waves shimmer, causing visual distortion, amid ongoing heat in Phoenix, Arizona this July.",
"description": null,
"title": "Heat waves shimmer, causing visual distortion, amid ongoing heat in Phoenix, Arizona this July.",
"credit": "Mario Tama/Getty Images",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "A person wearing jeans and a dark blue shirt walks across the street. A distorted view of a blue SUV, people, and road is seen in the background.",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
},
"science_1983476": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "science_1983476",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983476",
"found": true
},
"parent": 1983475,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 107
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1706
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-2048x1365.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1365
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 680
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1024
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1280
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 533
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap23188628907573_slide-1ed43e88329dfc8e6218593347568e00b668b93f-768x512.jpg",
"width": 768,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 512
}
},
"publishDate": 1689355267,
"modified": 1689358387,
"caption": "As the heat breaks records, remember that preventing heatstroke or heat exhaustion takes planning ahead to ensure you stay hydrated and can cool off frequently.",
"description": "FILE - Robert Harris drinks water while taking a break from digging fence post holes, Tuesday, June 27, 2023, in Houston. As the heat breaks records, weakening and sickening people, it’s worth remembering that dire heat waves have inspired effective efforts to prevent heat illness. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)",
"title": "As the heat breaks records, remember that preventing heatstroke or heat exhaustion takes planning ahead to ensure you stay hydrated and can cool off frequently.",
"credit": "David J. Phillip/AP",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "A man wearing sunglasses in drinking water from a plastic bottle.",
"isLoading": false,
"fetchFailed": false
}
},
"audioPlayerReducer": {
"postId": "stream_live",
"isPaused": true,
"isPlaying": false,
"pfsActive": false,
"pledgeModalIsOpen": true,
"playerDrawerIsOpen": false,
"liveAudioPlayStartedAt": 0,
"liveAudioPlayContext": ""
},
"authorsReducer": {
"byline_science_1984299": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1984299",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1984299",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/1193795778/alejandra-borunda\">Alejandra Borunda\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1984229": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1984229",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1984229",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/859339295/christopher-intagliata\">Christopher Intagliata\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1984216": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1984216",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1984216",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/803934365/lauren-sommer\">Lauren Sommer\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1984149": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1984149",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1984149",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/author/rachel-becker/\">Rachel Becker\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1984200": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1984200",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1984200",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/1193795778/alejandra-borunda\">Alejandra Borunda\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1983983": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1983983",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1983983",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/803934365/lauren-sommer\">Lauren Sommer\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1983909": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1983909",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1983909",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/776048102/rachel-treisman\">Rachel Treisman\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1983699": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1983699",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1983699",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/author/rachel-becker/\">Rachel Becker\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1983664": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1983664",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1983664",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/348779465/nathan-rott\">Nathan Rott\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1983596": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1983596",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1983596",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/348779465/nathan-rott\">Nathan Rott\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_science_1983475": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_science_1983475",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_science_1983475",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/2100208/allison-aubrey\">Allison Aubrey\u003c/a> , \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/707478309/carmel-wroth\">Carmel Wroth\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"eromero": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "11746",
"meta": {
"index": "authors_1716337520",
"id": "11746",
"found": true
},
"name": "Ezra David Romero",
"firstName": "Ezra David",
"lastName": "Romero",
"slug": "eromero",
"email": "eromero@kqed.org",
"display_author_email": true,
"staff_mastheads": [
"news",
"science"
],
"title": "Climate Reporter",
"bio": "Ezra David Romero is a climate reporter for KQED News. He covers the absence and excess of water in the Bay Area — think sea level rise, flooding and drought. For nearly a decade he’s covered how warming temperatures are altering the lives of Californians. He’s reported on farmers worried their pistachio trees aren’t getting enough sleep, families desperate for water, scientists studying dying giant sequoias, and alongside firefighters containing wildfires. His work has appeared on local stations across California and nationally on public radio shows like Morning Edition, Here and Now, All Things Considered and Science Friday. ",
"avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/c76404d287c10ed40224227551ac36e24352c7306f106632caf6fead76f8801f?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twitter": "ezraromero",
"bluesky": null,
"facebook": null,
"instagram": null,
"linkedin": null,
"sites": [
{
"site": "arts",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "news",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "science",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "liveblog",
"roles": [
"author"
]
}
],
"headData": {
"title": "Ezra David Romero | KQED",
"description": "Climate Reporter",
"ogImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/c76404d287c10ed40224227551ac36e24352c7306f106632caf6fead76f8801f?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/c76404d287c10ed40224227551ac36e24352c7306f106632caf6fead76f8801f?s=600&d=blank&r=g"
},
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/author/eromero"
}
},
"pagesReducer": {
"science_category_climate": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_31",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "31",
"score": 11.06203
},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Climate",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Climate Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33,
"slug": "climate",
"isLoading": false,
"title": "Climate",
"pageMeta": {
"site": "science",
"WpPageTemplate": "page-topic-editorial",
"currentPage": 25
},
"blocks": [
{
"blockName": "kqed/post-list",
"attrs": {
"layout": "cardArticle2",
"query": "posts/science?category=climate",
"seeMore": false,
"paginated": true,
"page": 25
}
},
{
"blockName": "kqed/ad"
}
]
}
},
"pfsSessionReducer": {},
"postsReducer": {
"stream_live": {
"type": "live",
"id": "stream_live",
"audioUrl": "https://streams.kqed.org/kqedradio",
"title": "Live Stream",
"excerpt": "Live Stream information currently unavailable.",
"link": "/radio",
"featImg": "",
"label": {
"name": "KQED Live",
"link": "/"
}
},
"stream_kqedNewscast": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "stream_kqedNewscast",
"audioUrl": "https://www.kqed.org/.stream/anon/radio/RDnews/newscast.mp3?_=1",
"title": "KQED Newscast",
"featImg": "",
"label": {
"name": "88.5 FM",
"link": "/"
}
},
"science_1984299": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1984299",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984299",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1695306643000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1695306643,
"format": "standard",
"title": "How Wildfire Smoke Is Erasing Years of Progress Toward Cleaning Up America's Air",
"headTitle": "How Wildfire Smoke Is Erasing Years of Progress Toward Cleaning Up America’s Air | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Over the last few decades, air in the U.S. has undergone a remarkable transformation: pollution levels of health-damaging tiny particles have dropped by roughly 40% since 2000, primarily thanks to the country’s decades-long effort to improve air quality through the Clean Air Act, a landmark environmental law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Smoke from wildfires fueled by human-driven climate change, however, has erased roughly 25% of those air quality gains, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06522-6\">a new study\u003c/a> published Wednesday in \u003cem>Nature\u003c/em>. “We’ve seen really remarkable improvements in air quality,” says Marissa Childs, one of the authors of the study and a researcher at Harvard’s Center for the Environment. “But wildfire smoke is undoing that progress in many states.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The effects are more pronounced in Western states, where smoke-laden days have become an annual fact of life. \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/10/25/1131279317/pacific-northwest-schools-cancel-outdoor-activities-when-air-quality-is-unhealth\">Schools\u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/transcripts/550656850\"> keep kids inside during recess\u003c/a>; \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/08/25/1195926923/canada-wildfire-smoke-asthma-cdc-new-york-hospital-visits\">emergency rooms\u003c/a> know to prepare when wildfires break out nearby. The study found that since 2016, in states like California, Washington, and Oregon, wildfire smoke has added enough pollution to the air to wipe out nearly half of the total air quality gains made from 2000 onward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Midwest, South, and eastern states are not immune. “This is impacting way more places than we used to think and at a larger scale,” says Childs. Even before this year’s\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/08/22/1195154996/some-of-canadas-wildfires-likely-made-worse-by-human-driven-climate-change\"> Canadian wildfires\u003c/a> blanketed the Eastern seaboard in thick smoke, smoke plumes regularly tanked air quality far from\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/06/26/1184393713/canadas-wildfires-are-part-of-a-worrying-trend-but-theyre-not-without-precedent\"> the actual wildfires\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The Clean Air Act worked until now\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The bipartisan Clean Air Act, signed into law in 1970, has had remarkable success cleaning up \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/06/19/1179670466/air-pollution-satellite-baltimore-climate-change\">the nation’s air\u003c/a>. In its first few decades, levels of the six major pollutants it addressed dropped by \u003ca href=\"https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview/40th-anniversary-clean-air-act\">more than 40%\u003c/a>. Since 2000, the drop has continued nearly everywhere in the country.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Marissa Childs, author and researcher, Harvard's Center for the Environment\"]‘We’ve seen really remarkable improvements in air quality. But wildfire smoke is undoing that progress in many states.’[/pullquote]One major target of the Clean Air Act is PM2.5 — tiny particles about 30 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. Many different sources contribute to PM2.5 including dust, and soot from burning coal or gas. The super-small particles are also produced when anything burns such as forests, grasslands, and houses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Closing or retiring coal and gas-fired power plants cut PM2.5 levels nearby. So did improving car and truck fuel efficiency and pollution-control technologies like catalytic converters — though pollution levels near major roadways still often exceed the EPA’s daily standard. Nationally, PM2.5 levels dropped \u003ca href=\"https://www.epa.gov/air-trends/particulate-matter-pm25-trends\">another 42% between 2000 and 2022\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Overall, there was a big improvement — but it was not shared equitably,” says Tarik Benmarhnia, an environmental epidemiologist at the University of California, San Diego. Communities of colo\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/06/19/1179670466/air-pollution-satellite-baltimore-climate-change\">r remained exposed to higher pollution\u003c/a>,\u003ca href=\"https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/full/10.1289/EHP8584\"> even as total levels dropped\u003c/a>. Black communities in particular breathe in much more heavy pollution from \u003ca href=\"https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/sciadv.abf4491\">cars, heavy industry, and construction\u003c/a> than any other groups. That’s a pattern that holds nationwide and over decades, including into today’s efforts to cut back fossil fuel pollution, which are at risk of \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-41131-x\">continuing the disparities\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>More smoke is not good for anyone’s health\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Overall, the country’s air was getting cleaner. But Childs, who was living in California at the time watching wildfire seasons break record after record, could tell that wasn’t the whole story.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scientists were pinpointing how climate change exacerbated the burns. The answer, they found over and over, \u003ca href=\"https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2213815120\">was a lot\u003c/a>. Hotter, drier conditions sucked more moisture out of vegetation, priming it to burn explosively and extensively when a spark happened to catch.[aside postID='science_1926793,science_1930023,news_11834305' label='Related coverage']Decades and even centuries of fire suppression — the long-held policy of the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies — also fed the wildfires. Many habitats across the Western U.S. evolved to experience frequent burns, which cleared away excess fuel, and Indigenous communities often used fire to keep those habitats open as well. Now forests are packed with \u003ca href=\"https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ecs2.3250\">many more trees\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The combination has led to wildfires that burn 10 times the acreage as 50 years ago. Massive, destructive burn years like 2020 are projected to become much more common as \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-021-00299-0\">climate change marches forward\u003c/a>, though \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/features/professionals-prepare-for-prescribed-burn#:~:text=Prescribed%20fire%20helps%20reduce%20wildfire,less%20available%20material%20to%20burn.\">aggressive forest management\u003c/a> could blunt some of the worst outcomes,\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1126912268\"> research shows\u003c/a>. And wildfires are not just tied to the West. This year, wildfires burned from Canada’s East to West coasts and deep into Louisiana.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Christopher Migliaccio, an immunologist at the University of Montana, studies the impact of wildfire smoke on human health. When he moved to Montana in 2000, wildfires weren’t top-of-mind for most people. But within the past decade, “the concern has gotten huge,” he says. “And it’s gone global.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s because the health impacts leak well outside the immediate realm of the fires. Smoke, and all its fine particles, can travel thousands of miles. “When you see a wildfire smoke plume, you see that pollution. Essentially, the smoke that you’re seeing is PM2.5,” says Colleen Reid, an environmental public health expert at the University of Colorado, Boulder.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not yet completely clear if \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/05/17/1099482986/eliminating-fossil-fuel-air-pollution-would-save-about-50-000-lives-study-finds\">wildfire smoke particles\u003c/a> induce different health outcomes than PM2.5 from other sources, like roadways, though \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/03/05/973848360/study-finds-wildfire-smoke-more-harmful-to-humans-than-pollution-from-cars\">some research points that direction\u003c/a>. But the tiny particles from fires and other pollution sources are so small they cross from lungs into the bloodstream, driving inflammation throughout the body. Even short-term exposure to wildfire smoke makes lung problems like asthma worse, as well as a panoply of other health issues, from heart attacks to neurological issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Migliaccio \u003ca href=\"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32764367/\">led a study\u003c/a> that followed Montanans exposed to extremely high doses of smoke for 49 straight days in 2017. It found their lung function was depressed for at least two years afterward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 41 states, air quality had been getting better between 2000 and the 2010s. But as wildfires exploded, those improvements stopped or even reversed. Smoke was responsible for just intermittent “exceedances,” when air pollution exceeds EPA’s limits, in the early part of the record. By 2020-2022, wildfire smoke was the primary cause of bad air in four western states and a major contributor in 17 others.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Solutions are not straightforward\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Wildfires are a natural and necessary ecological reality in many parts of the country. But research predicts the frequency and size of fires will\u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-021-00299-0\"> grow precipitously in coming decades\u003c/a>, increasing peoples’ exposure to smoke.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Clean Air Act effectively regulates point-source pollution, like soot from power plants. It is less effective at regulating risk from smoke, which drifts across state borders and affects people far from the wildfires themselves.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dialing back the climate pressures that exacerbate wildfires is critical, says Childs. But so is creating forest and fire management policies that reduce exposure to very high concentrations of smoke. That could be, somewhat counterintuitively, increasing the number of \u003cem>prescribed\u003c/em> fires, which can lessen the risk of catastrophic wildfires, though they also generate local smoke plumes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, people can take steps to protect themselves from inevitable smoke exposure, says Reid. Installing air filters in your home — and keeping them clean — can go a long way. Health experts recommend wearing N95 or KN95 masks if you have to go outdoors, and to avoid exercise in smoky air if possible.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=How+wildfire+smoke+is+erasing+years+of+progress+toward+cleaning+up+America%27s+air&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 1294,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 22
},
"modified": 1704845898,
"excerpt": "A new study finds that smoke from massive wildfires has eroded about a quarter of the air quality gains from the last few decades. ",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "A new study finds that smoke from massive wildfires has eroded about a quarter of the air quality gains from the last few decades. ",
"title": "How Wildfire Smoke Is Erasing Years of Progress Toward Cleaning Up America's Air | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "How Wildfire Smoke Is Erasing Years of Progress Toward Cleaning Up America's Air",
"datePublished": "2023-09-21T07:30:43-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:18:18-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "how-wildfire-smoke-is-erasing-years-of-progress-toward-cleaning-up-americas-air",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1200143622&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Wed, 20 Sep 2023 11:00:20 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Wed, 20 Sep 2023 11:40:59 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/2023/09/20/1200143622/how-wildfire-smoke-is-erasing-years-of-progress-toward-cleaning-up-americas-air?ft=nprml&f=1200143622",
"nprImageAgency": "David Dee Delgado/Getty Images",
"source": "NPR",
"nprStoryId": "1200143622",
"sourceUrl": "https://www.kqed.org/news/affiliate/npr",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/1193795778/alejandra-borunda\">Alejandra Borunda\u003c/a>",
"sticky": false,
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Wed, 20 Sep 2023 11:40:00 -0400",
"path": "/science/1984299/how-wildfire-smoke-is-erasing-years-of-progress-toward-cleaning-up-americas-air",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Over the last few decades, air in the U.S. has undergone a remarkable transformation: pollution levels of health-damaging tiny particles have dropped by roughly 40% since 2000, primarily thanks to the country’s decades-long effort to improve air quality through the Clean Air Act, a landmark environmental law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Smoke from wildfires fueled by human-driven climate change, however, has erased roughly 25% of those air quality gains, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06522-6\">a new study\u003c/a> published Wednesday in \u003cem>Nature\u003c/em>. “We’ve seen really remarkable improvements in air quality,” says Marissa Childs, one of the authors of the study and a researcher at Harvard’s Center for the Environment. “But wildfire smoke is undoing that progress in many states.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The effects are more pronounced in Western states, where smoke-laden days have become an annual fact of life. \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/10/25/1131279317/pacific-northwest-schools-cancel-outdoor-activities-when-air-quality-is-unhealth\">Schools\u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/transcripts/550656850\"> keep kids inside during recess\u003c/a>; \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/08/25/1195926923/canada-wildfire-smoke-asthma-cdc-new-york-hospital-visits\">emergency rooms\u003c/a> know to prepare when wildfires break out nearby. The study found that since 2016, in states like California, Washington, and Oregon, wildfire smoke has added enough pollution to the air to wipe out nearly half of the total air quality gains made from 2000 onward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Midwest, South, and eastern states are not immune. “This is impacting way more places than we used to think and at a larger scale,” says Childs. Even before this year’s\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/08/22/1195154996/some-of-canadas-wildfires-likely-made-worse-by-human-driven-climate-change\"> Canadian wildfires\u003c/a> blanketed the Eastern seaboard in thick smoke, smoke plumes regularly tanked air quality far from\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/06/26/1184393713/canadas-wildfires-are-part-of-a-worrying-trend-but-theyre-not-without-precedent\"> the actual wildfires\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The Clean Air Act worked until now\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The bipartisan Clean Air Act, signed into law in 1970, has had remarkable success cleaning up \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/06/19/1179670466/air-pollution-satellite-baltimore-climate-change\">the nation’s air\u003c/a>. In its first few decades, levels of the six major pollutants it addressed dropped by \u003ca href=\"https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview/40th-anniversary-clean-air-act\">more than 40%\u003c/a>. Since 2000, the drop has continued nearly everywhere in the country.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "‘We’ve seen really remarkable improvements in air quality. But wildfire smoke is undoing that progress in many states.’",
"name": "pullquote",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"align": "right",
"size": "medium",
"citation": "Marissa Childs, author and researcher, Harvard's Center for the Environment",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>One major target of the Clean Air Act is PM2.5 — tiny particles about 30 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. Many different sources contribute to PM2.5 including dust, and soot from burning coal or gas. The super-small particles are also produced when anything burns such as forests, grasslands, and houses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Closing or retiring coal and gas-fired power plants cut PM2.5 levels nearby. So did improving car and truck fuel efficiency and pollution-control technologies like catalytic converters — though pollution levels near major roadways still often exceed the EPA’s daily standard. Nationally, PM2.5 levels dropped \u003ca href=\"https://www.epa.gov/air-trends/particulate-matter-pm25-trends\">another 42% between 2000 and 2022\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Overall, there was a big improvement — but it was not shared equitably,” says Tarik Benmarhnia, an environmental epidemiologist at the University of California, San Diego. Communities of colo\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/06/19/1179670466/air-pollution-satellite-baltimore-climate-change\">r remained exposed to higher pollution\u003c/a>,\u003ca href=\"https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/full/10.1289/EHP8584\"> even as total levels dropped\u003c/a>. Black communities in particular breathe in much more heavy pollution from \u003ca href=\"https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/sciadv.abf4491\">cars, heavy industry, and construction\u003c/a> than any other groups. That’s a pattern that holds nationwide and over decades, including into today’s efforts to cut back fossil fuel pollution, which are at risk of \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-41131-x\">continuing the disparities\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>More smoke is not good for anyone’s health\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Overall, the country’s air was getting cleaner. But Childs, who was living in California at the time watching wildfire seasons break record after record, could tell that wasn’t the whole story.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scientists were pinpointing how climate change exacerbated the burns. The answer, they found over and over, \u003ca href=\"https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2213815120\">was a lot\u003c/a>. Hotter, drier conditions sucked more moisture out of vegetation, priming it to burn explosively and extensively when a spark happened to catch.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "science_1926793,science_1930023,news_11834305",
"label": "Related coverage "
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Decades and even centuries of fire suppression — the long-held policy of the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies — also fed the wildfires. Many habitats across the Western U.S. evolved to experience frequent burns, which cleared away excess fuel, and Indigenous communities often used fire to keep those habitats open as well. Now forests are packed with \u003ca href=\"https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ecs2.3250\">many more trees\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The combination has led to wildfires that burn 10 times the acreage as 50 years ago. Massive, destructive burn years like 2020 are projected to become much more common as \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-021-00299-0\">climate change marches forward\u003c/a>, though \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/features/professionals-prepare-for-prescribed-burn#:~:text=Prescribed%20fire%20helps%20reduce%20wildfire,less%20available%20material%20to%20burn.\">aggressive forest management\u003c/a> could blunt some of the worst outcomes,\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1126912268\"> research shows\u003c/a>. And wildfires are not just tied to the West. This year, wildfires burned from Canada’s East to West coasts and deep into Louisiana.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Christopher Migliaccio, an immunologist at the University of Montana, studies the impact of wildfire smoke on human health. When he moved to Montana in 2000, wildfires weren’t top-of-mind for most people. But within the past decade, “the concern has gotten huge,” he says. “And it’s gone global.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s because the health impacts leak well outside the immediate realm of the fires. Smoke, and all its fine particles, can travel thousands of miles. “When you see a wildfire smoke plume, you see that pollution. Essentially, the smoke that you’re seeing is PM2.5,” says Colleen Reid, an environmental public health expert at the University of Colorado, Boulder.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not yet completely clear if \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/05/17/1099482986/eliminating-fossil-fuel-air-pollution-would-save-about-50-000-lives-study-finds\">wildfire smoke particles\u003c/a> induce different health outcomes than PM2.5 from other sources, like roadways, though \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/03/05/973848360/study-finds-wildfire-smoke-more-harmful-to-humans-than-pollution-from-cars\">some research points that direction\u003c/a>. But the tiny particles from fires and other pollution sources are so small they cross from lungs into the bloodstream, driving inflammation throughout the body. Even short-term exposure to wildfire smoke makes lung problems like asthma worse, as well as a panoply of other health issues, from heart attacks to neurological issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Migliaccio \u003ca href=\"https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32764367/\">led a study\u003c/a> that followed Montanans exposed to extremely high doses of smoke for 49 straight days in 2017. It found their lung function was depressed for at least two years afterward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 41 states, air quality had been getting better between 2000 and the 2010s. But as wildfires exploded, those improvements stopped or even reversed. Smoke was responsible for just intermittent “exceedances,” when air pollution exceeds EPA’s limits, in the early part of the record. By 2020-2022, wildfire smoke was the primary cause of bad air in four western states and a major contributor in 17 others.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Solutions are not straightforward\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Wildfires are a natural and necessary ecological reality in many parts of the country. But research predicts the frequency and size of fires will\u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-021-00299-0\"> grow precipitously in coming decades\u003c/a>, increasing peoples’ exposure to smoke.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Clean Air Act effectively regulates point-source pollution, like soot from power plants. It is less effective at regulating risk from smoke, which drifts across state borders and affects people far from the wildfires themselves.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dialing back the climate pressures that exacerbate wildfires is critical, says Childs. But so is creating forest and fire management policies that reduce exposure to very high concentrations of smoke. That could be, somewhat counterintuitively, increasing the number of \u003cem>prescribed\u003c/em> fires, which can lessen the risk of catastrophic wildfires, though they also generate local smoke plumes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, people can take steps to protect themselves from inevitable smoke exposure, says Reid. Installing air filters in your home — and keeping them clean — can go a long way. Health experts recommend wearing N95 or KN95 masks if you have to go outdoors, and to avoid exercise in smoky air if possible.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=How+wildfire+smoke+is+erasing+years+of+progress+toward+cleaning+up+America%27s+air&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1984299/how-wildfire-smoke-is-erasing-years-of-progress-toward-cleaning-up-americas-air",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1984299"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_505",
"science_524",
"science_959",
"science_3463",
"science_113"
],
"featImg": "science_1984300",
"label": "source_science_1984299"
},
"science_1984229": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1984229",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984229",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1694183413000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1694183413,
"format": "standard",
"title": "In a Charred Moonscape, a Band of Hopeful Workers Try to Save the Joshua Tree",
"headTitle": "In a Charred Moonscape, a Band of Hopeful Workers Try to Save the Joshua Tree | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>“The Country since leaving the Colorado has been a dry rocky sandy Barren desert.”\u003c/em> — Jedediah Smith, 1826.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Early western explorers who ventured into the Mojave Desert, like Jedediah Smith, often mischaracterized it as a barren landscape, devoid of life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet a closer inspection of these sweeping landscapes reveals soil-hugging carpets of springtime flowers, native grasses and fragrant shrubs, alongside the more obvious cacti and succulents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Where the desert lives up to its stereotype is after a wildfire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the shadow of last month’s York Fire in California’s Mojave National Preserve, almost nothing is left amid the rocks and sand, except the charred carcasses of Mojave yuccas, Joshua trees, and chollas. The soil is a mottled brown and black, and some plants have been reduced to mere silhouettes of char on the ground.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984232\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984232\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Two photos side-by-side,burnt desert plants in an arid landscape with blue skies behind and hills on the horizon in the left photo.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1901\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-800x594.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-1020x757.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-160x119.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-768x570.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-1536x1141.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-2048x1521.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-1920x1426.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A scorched Joshua tree (left) and a burned barrel cactus are remnants of the York Fire. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The moonscape is the result of a fire that burned quickly and widely, engulfing roughly 130 square miles of the preserve — including picturesque Caruthers Canyon, a boulder-strewn spot popular with campers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Caruthers Canyon is the prettiest place we had. It was a beautiful little pinyon-juniper forest up there,” says Debra Hughson, who is the preserve’s deputy superintendent. “When the pinyon-juniper burns, it doesn’t come back. Not in my lifetime. Not in your lifetime. Maybe never.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>There may be no going back\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>This latest wildfire comes as a reminder of the unpredictable future facing some of the desert’s most iconic residents. Warmer, drier temperatures are already stressing the preserve’s spindly Joshua trees. Models predict those warming trends will leave Joshua trees with fewer suitable places to live. Scroll forward in time, Hughson says, and their range shrinks: “It melts like an ice cube on a hot sidewalk.” On top of that, in recent years wide-ranging wildfires are also pushing the succulents into greater peril.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re already living on the edge,” Hughson says. “What we’re doing here globally is we’re cranking up the temperature, and here we’re also cranking down the rainfall, the precipitation.” Joshua trees, she explains, are having a hard time keeping up with such swift climate changes. “Then you get a major stressor like this, that just erases the chalkboard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984233\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984233\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Debra Hughson is the deputy superintendent at Mojave National Preserve. She says Joshua trees are struggling to keep up with such swift climate changes. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>What she means is the park’s dense Joshua tree forests may never come back after a fire. A grassy savannah might rise up to replace them, with a few Joshua trees scattered throughout as a reminder of what once was.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nowhere is that potential future on greater display than along Morning Star Mine Road, which cuts across the northern reaches of the preserve. On one side of the road there is a Joshua tree forest so dense it looks like a green wall at a distance, with a rich understory of drab greenish-gray bushes. On the other side there’s a graveyard of blackened Joshua trees with sun-bleached buds. The ground is mostly bare, aside from patches of grass, and the color palette is black, white and shades of tan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984234\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984234\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Plant remains hang over Valley View Ranch, one of the sites that burned in the 2020 Dome Fire at Mojave National Preserve. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The road was a firebreak during the 2020 Dome Fire. Flames destroyed an estimated 1.3 million Joshua trees on Cima Dome, an area that was once the park’s grandest example of dense Joshua tree woodland. The area’s relatively high elevation was supposed to serve as a sort of sanctuary — a climate refuge where Joshua trees could continue to thrive amid hotter, drier conditions elsewhere in their range. Then, the fire came – an unexpected destabilizing force that casts that long-term trajectory into question.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hughson trained as a geologist. She talks about the future of the Joshua tree and what might happen at Cima Dome as if she still assesses these seismic ecological changes at the tempo of geologic time. “In the end,” she says, “the desert is going to tell us what it’s going to be and it’s going to show us what it’s going to be.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Replanting hope in the desert\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Scientists are not waiting to see what the desert becomes. They’re actively intervening with an ambitious years-long project to replant some 4,000 Joshua trees at Cima Dome.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Biological science technician Erin Knight walks through a graveyard of dead Joshua trees, near the remains of an old cattle operation called Valley View Ranch. Some of the plants have toppled to the ground. Others still stand, but they’re falling to pieces; the branches that once stretched up to the sky now dangle and sway eerily in the desert wind.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984235\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984235\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Erin Knight is a biological science technician at the Mojave National Preserve. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Kind of our own little chandelier here in the desert,” Knight jokes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Small chicken wire cages are scattered throughout the grove. This is where volunteers have planted baby Joshua trees, in hopes of resurrecting the century-old giants that perished here. Knight crouches down near one of the cages, and checks a numbered tag.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She says this seedling was planted on Nov. 6 last year, and a volunteer named it Bratislava — the capital of Slovakia. Unfortunately, this one’s dead, as are many others at this site. In fact, in the two years this project’s been underway, 80% of the roughly 1,900 Joshua trees planted in the burn scar of the Dome Fire have died.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984230\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984230\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Charred carcasses of Mojave yuccas, Joshua trees and chollas are seen at the edge of the York Fire in San Bernardino County, California, inside Mojave National Preserve. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Unfortunately, restoring Joshua trees is more of an art than a science, and sometimes it works out really well and sometimes it doesn’t,” Hughson says. Some of the baby Joshua trees have been eaten, especially those without a cage. Others die of thirst, though volunteers and scientists at the preserve make their best efforts to water the baby seedlings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s been hundreds and hundreds of volunteers that have participated. We even had a camel train packing water into these,” Hughson says. Restoration work in the desert, she explains, is not for the faint of heart.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984236\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984236\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Supervisory park ranger Sierra Willoughby waters a baby Joshua tree, named ‘Lychee,’ inside its protective cage. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s a tale of failed experiments,” Hughson says. “Go look at the literature on restoration in the desert, especially the Mojave Desert. And OK, ‘Well, this didn’t work.’ Another paper on, ‘Well, that didn’t work.’ ‘OK, well, we tried this, and we failed miserably.’ And the stories of success are very rare.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, hundreds of these Joshua tree seedlings have survived. Knight’s colleague Ryan McRae found one nearby. It’s only a few inches tall, and looks like the top of a baby pineapple. Knight looks up its name, and says it’s called “Lychee.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984237\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984237\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A surviving Joshua tree inside the Mojave National Preserve. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>It’s still tiny, and McRae points out one of the huge challenges of restoring a forest with two-inch-tall seedlings. “These Joshua trees only grow about 1.5 to 2 inches per year. So if you can imagine a 10-foot-tall tree or so, you can get an idea of how many years or decades it would take to get to that height.” At a conservative 1.5 inches per year — it would take at least 80 years to return this area back to the way it was before the fire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We probably won’t see it in any of our lives,” Knight says.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Preparing for the future\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Kelso is an old railroad town in another corner of the park near a giant field of sand dunes. Behind a 1920s schoolhouse, there’s a small beige building with two bright teal doors reading BOYS and GIRLS. There’s no sign from the outside, but the GIRLS room is now a makeshift field lab.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984238\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984238\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Seed technician Christina Sanchez stands outside the old restroom that’s been converted into a seed lab, behind the historic Kelso schoolhouse. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“This is our seed lab,” says Christina Sanchez, a seed technician. “This is where we’re sorting all of the Joshua tree seeds, and where we store them before they go to the nursery.” The nursery is a facility near Lake Mead, where rows of pots contain baby Joshua tree sprouts, ready to be transplanted into the wild.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sanchez pulls over a big bucket, full of cream-colored Joshua tree fruits she and her team have collected. She takes one out and shakes it: “Sounds like a little rattle,” she says. The seeds are about the size of roma tomatoes, but they’re brittle and hard. She breaks one open with a crack, and reveals the black hockey-puck-like seeds inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A curious contraption that looks like a cross between an ant farm and a pinball machine hooks up to a shop vac blower. It’s a seed cleaning machine, and when Sanchez switches on the blower, the seeds flutter through the chutes inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984239\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984239\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1812\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-800x566.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-1020x722.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-160x113.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-768x544.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-1536x1087.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-2048x1449.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-1920x1359.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Clockwise from top left: Sanchez opens Joshua tree seed pods. Right: She then separates the seeds with a seed cleaning machine. Bottom left: Sanchez shows a handful of seeds after they have been separated. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>From here, she’ll dump the viable seeds into big jars, labeled with the collection site, and put them in a big chest freezer. The freezer is already half full of jars brimming with some 300,000 Joshua tree seeds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is the future of the species,” Sanchez says. “This deep freezer here, this is holding our future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many of the Joshua tree seedlings planted so far have died, raising the question whether collecting and storing seeds is a gesture of hope.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re going to lose a species if we don’t try,” she says. “We just gotta keep trying.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984240\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984240\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sanchez stands next to a chest freezer holding a jar of Joshua tree seeds that were harvested prior to the York Fire. The freezer is already half full of jars brimming with roughly 300,000 Joshua tree seeds. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Debra Hughson acknowledges that the replanting effort is just a “drop in the ocean,” given the massive losses of Joshua trees here in recent years. “That’s a few hundred we’ve managed, in a landscape that had 1.3 million,” she says. “So you can do the math.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Numbers aside, Hughson expresses skepticism that people really have much of a role in “rebuilding” wilderness. “I don’t think that wilderness areas can be built. They can be designated, but nature created it,” she says. “We seem to be capable of destroying it … but we can’t create something that we don’t really even understand.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984241\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984241\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A Banana yucca sprouts in the burned landscape near Valley View Ranch. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Even so, the replanting project continues in October. The goal is to get 2,000 more Joshua trees in the ground over the next two years, and as before, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/moja/getinvolved/cima-dome-joshua-tree-forest-restoration.htm\">the preserve is relying on wilderness-savvy volunteers\u003c/a>. That human aspect, Hughson says, might be one of the most compelling reasons to do what seems very difficult, if not near impossible, on an ecological scale.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It makes us feel better. You know, psychologically, there were a lot of people that got a lot of good feelings and satisfaction from helping with the Joshua tree planting,” she says. “And to try to help makes you feel better about yourself and more hopeful about the future. And that in itself is a valuable thing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=In+a+charred+moonscape%2C+a+band+of+hopeful+workers+try+to+save+the+Joshua+tree&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 2126,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 38
},
"modified": 1704845905,
"excerpt": "After flames destroyed 1.3 million Joshua trees in Mojave National Preserve, biologists began replanting seedlings. But many have died, and now another fire has torched more of the iconic succulents. ",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "After flames destroyed 1.3 million Joshua trees in Mojave National Preserve, biologists began replanting seedlings. But many have died, and now another fire has torched more of the iconic succulents. ",
"title": "In a Charred Moonscape, a Band of Hopeful Workers Try to Save the Joshua Tree | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "In a Charred Moonscape, a Band of Hopeful Workers Try to Save the Joshua Tree",
"datePublished": "2023-09-08T07:30:13-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:18:25-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "in-a-charred-moonscape-a-band-of-hopeful-workers-try-to-save-the-joshua-tree",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1196581569&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Thu, 07 Sep 2023 05:00:33 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Thu, 07 Sep 2023 11:12:01 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/sections/pictureshow/2023/09/07/1196581569/climate-change-wildfire-joshua-tree-mojave-national-preserve?ft=nprml&f=1196581569",
"nprAudio": "https://play.podtrac.com/npr-191676894/edge1.pod.npr.org/anon.npr-mp3/npr/atc/2023/08/20230818_atc_mojave_burning.mp3?orgId=1&topicId=1025&d=320&story=1196581569&awCollectionId=1&awEpisodeId=1196581569&ft=nprml&f=1196581569",
"nprImageAgency": "Krystal Ramirez for NPR",
"source": "NPR",
"nprAudioM3u": "http://api.npr.org/m3u/11196582233-658e70.m3u?orgId=1&topicId=1025&d=320&story=1196581569&ft=nprml&f=1196581569",
"nprStoryId": "1196581569",
"sourceUrl": "https://www.npr.org/",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/859339295/christopher-intagliata\">Christopher Intagliata\u003c/a>",
"sticky": false,
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Thu, 07 Sep 2023 11:12:00 -0400",
"path": "/science/1984229/in-a-charred-moonscape-a-band-of-hopeful-workers-try-to-save-the-joshua-tree",
"audioUrl": "https://play.podtrac.com/npr-191676894/edge1.pod.npr.org/anon.npr-mp3/npr/atc/2023/08/20230818_atc_mojave_burning.mp3?orgId=1&topicId=1025&d=320&story=1196581569&awCollectionId=1&awEpisodeId=1196581569&ft=nprml&f=1196581569",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>“The Country since leaving the Colorado has been a dry rocky sandy Barren desert.”\u003c/em> — Jedediah Smith, 1826.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Early western explorers who ventured into the Mojave Desert, like Jedediah Smith, often mischaracterized it as a barren landscape, devoid of life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yet a closer inspection of these sweeping landscapes reveals soil-hugging carpets of springtime flowers, native grasses and fragrant shrubs, alongside the more obvious cacti and succulents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Where the desert lives up to its stereotype is after a wildfire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the shadow of last month’s York Fire in California’s Mojave National Preserve, almost nothing is left amid the rocks and sand, except the charred carcasses of Mojave yuccas, Joshua trees, and chollas. The soil is a mottled brown and black, and some plants have been reduced to mere silhouettes of char on the ground.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984232\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984232\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Two photos side-by-side,burnt desert plants in an arid landscape with blue skies behind and hills on the horizon in the left photo.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1901\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-800x594.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-1020x757.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-160x119.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-768x570.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-1536x1141.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-2048x1521.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-duo-update_custom-a3c213912e6160eaecee2d97b08fdc7b6034e2bc-1920x1426.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A scorched Joshua tree (left) and a burned barrel cactus are remnants of the York Fire. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The moonscape is the result of a fire that burned quickly and widely, engulfing roughly 130 square miles of the preserve — including picturesque Caruthers Canyon, a boulder-strewn spot popular with campers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Caruthers Canyon is the prettiest place we had. It was a beautiful little pinyon-juniper forest up there,” says Debra Hughson, who is the preserve’s deputy superintendent. “When the pinyon-juniper burns, it doesn’t come back. Not in my lifetime. Not in your lifetime. Maybe never.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>There may be no going back\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>This latest wildfire comes as a reminder of the unpredictable future facing some of the desert’s most iconic residents. Warmer, drier temperatures are already stressing the preserve’s spindly Joshua trees. Models predict those warming trends will leave Joshua trees with fewer suitable places to live. Scroll forward in time, Hughson says, and their range shrinks: “It melts like an ice cube on a hot sidewalk.” On top of that, in recent years wide-ranging wildfires are also pushing the succulents into greater peril.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re already living on the edge,” Hughson says. “What we’re doing here globally is we’re cranking up the temperature, and here we’re also cranking down the rainfall, the precipitation.” Joshua trees, she explains, are having a hard time keeping up with such swift climate changes. “Then you get a major stressor like this, that just erases the chalkboard.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984233\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984233\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_06_custom-1bfcaa4dc80a136adcb22d55f96c66e6c9aa9524-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Debra Hughson is the deputy superintendent at Mojave National Preserve. She says Joshua trees are struggling to keep up with such swift climate changes. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>What she means is the park’s dense Joshua tree forests may never come back after a fire. A grassy savannah might rise up to replace them, with a few Joshua trees scattered throughout as a reminder of what once was.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nowhere is that potential future on greater display than along Morning Star Mine Road, which cuts across the northern reaches of the preserve. On one side of the road there is a Joshua tree forest so dense it looks like a green wall at a distance, with a rich understory of drab greenish-gray bushes. On the other side there’s a graveyard of blackened Joshua trees with sun-bleached buds. The ground is mostly bare, aside from patches of grass, and the color palette is black, white and shades of tan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984234\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984234\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_09_custom-6507473b7144787a889fad9d2f2a6b59823c0e74-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Plant remains hang over Valley View Ranch, one of the sites that burned in the 2020 Dome Fire at Mojave National Preserve. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The road was a firebreak during the 2020 Dome Fire. Flames destroyed an estimated 1.3 million Joshua trees on Cima Dome, an area that was once the park’s grandest example of dense Joshua tree woodland. The area’s relatively high elevation was supposed to serve as a sort of sanctuary — a climate refuge where Joshua trees could continue to thrive amid hotter, drier conditions elsewhere in their range. Then, the fire came – an unexpected destabilizing force that casts that long-term trajectory into question.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hughson trained as a geologist. She talks about the future of the Joshua tree and what might happen at Cima Dome as if she still assesses these seismic ecological changes at the tempo of geologic time. “In the end,” she says, “the desert is going to tell us what it’s going to be and it’s going to show us what it’s going to be.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Replanting hope in the desert\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Scientists are not waiting to see what the desert becomes. They’re actively intervening with an ambitious years-long project to replant some 4,000 Joshua trees at Cima Dome.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Biological science technician Erin Knight walks through a graveyard of dead Joshua trees, near the remains of an old cattle operation called Valley View Ranch. Some of the plants have toppled to the ground. Others still stand, but they’re falling to pieces; the branches that once stretched up to the sky now dangle and sway eerily in the desert wind.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984235\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984235\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_05_custom-ddf67a8272af1d1f6982f41a639e917fbd5b81b8-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Erin Knight is a biological science technician at the Mojave National Preserve. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Kind of our own little chandelier here in the desert,” Knight jokes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Small chicken wire cages are scattered throughout the grove. This is where volunteers have planted baby Joshua trees, in hopes of resurrecting the century-old giants that perished here. Knight crouches down near one of the cages, and checks a numbered tag.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She says this seedling was planted on Nov. 6 last year, and a volunteer named it Bratislava — the capital of Slovakia. Unfortunately, this one’s dead, as are many others at this site. In fact, in the two years this project’s been underway, 80% of the roughly 1,900 Joshua trees planted in the burn scar of the Dome Fire have died.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984230\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984230\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_17-edit_custom-bbcb6de0b000d7a4b78bf4dfdc7a988596b6668a-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Charred carcasses of Mojave yuccas, Joshua trees and chollas are seen at the edge of the York Fire in San Bernardino County, California, inside Mojave National Preserve. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“Unfortunately, restoring Joshua trees is more of an art than a science, and sometimes it works out really well and sometimes it doesn’t,” Hughson says. Some of the baby Joshua trees have been eaten, especially those without a cage. Others die of thirst, though volunteers and scientists at the preserve make their best efforts to water the baby seedlings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s been hundreds and hundreds of volunteers that have participated. We even had a camel train packing water into these,” Hughson says. Restoration work in the desert, she explains, is not for the faint of heart.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984236\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984236\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_14_custom-3ed023c31490c2b4a8b0f4afe63ddd822f9ecd46-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Supervisory park ranger Sierra Willoughby waters a baby Joshua tree, named ‘Lychee,’ inside its protective cage. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s a tale of failed experiments,” Hughson says. “Go look at the literature on restoration in the desert, especially the Mojave Desert. And OK, ‘Well, this didn’t work.’ Another paper on, ‘Well, that didn’t work.’ ‘OK, well, we tried this, and we failed miserably.’ And the stories of success are very rare.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, hundreds of these Joshua tree seedlings have survived. Knight’s colleague Ryan McRae found one nearby. It’s only a few inches tall, and looks like the top of a baby pineapple. Knight looks up its name, and says it’s called “Lychee.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984237\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984237\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_59_custom-a8038b813b6ae0c89086f9158f89aaae227e6e4d-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A surviving Joshua tree inside the Mojave National Preserve. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>It’s still tiny, and McRae points out one of the huge challenges of restoring a forest with two-inch-tall seedlings. “These Joshua trees only grow about 1.5 to 2 inches per year. So if you can imagine a 10-foot-tall tree or so, you can get an idea of how many years or decades it would take to get to that height.” At a conservative 1.5 inches per year — it would take at least 80 years to return this area back to the way it was before the fire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We probably won’t see it in any of our lives,” Knight says.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Preparing for the future\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Kelso is an old railroad town in another corner of the park near a giant field of sand dunes. Behind a 1920s schoolhouse, there’s a small beige building with two bright teal doors reading BOYS and GIRLS. There’s no sign from the outside, but the GIRLS room is now a makeshift field lab.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984238\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984238\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_40_custom-002484d6c789abb2a9ed1eb900b6a035bd37bd13-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Seed technician Christina Sanchez stands outside the old restroom that’s been converted into a seed lab, behind the historic Kelso schoolhouse. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“This is our seed lab,” says Christina Sanchez, a seed technician. “This is where we’re sorting all of the Joshua tree seeds, and where we store them before they go to the nursery.” The nursery is a facility near Lake Mead, where rows of pots contain baby Joshua tree sprouts, ready to be transplanted into the wild.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sanchez pulls over a big bucket, full of cream-colored Joshua tree fruits she and her team have collected. She takes one out and shakes it: “Sounds like a little rattle,” she says. The seeds are about the size of roma tomatoes, but they’re brittle and hard. She breaks one open with a crack, and reveals the black hockey-puck-like seeds inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A curious contraption that looks like a cross between an ant farm and a pinball machine hooks up to a shop vac blower. It’s a seed cleaning machine, and when Sanchez switches on the blower, the seeds flutter through the chutes inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984239\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984239\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1812\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-800x566.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-1020x722.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-160x113.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-768x544.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-1536x1087.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-2048x1449.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/mojave-fire-trio_custom-0b8a68fcf7b1839732e5970ecf3b645e51c7554e-1920x1359.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Clockwise from top left: Sanchez opens Joshua tree seed pods. Right: She then separates the seeds with a seed cleaning machine. Bottom left: Sanchez shows a handful of seeds after they have been separated. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>From here, she’ll dump the viable seeds into big jars, labeled with the collection site, and put them in a big chest freezer. The freezer is already half full of jars brimming with some 300,000 Joshua tree seeds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is the future of the species,” Sanchez says. “This deep freezer here, this is holding our future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many of the Joshua tree seedlings planted so far have died, raising the question whether collecting and storing seeds is a gesture of hope.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re going to lose a species if we don’t try,” she says. “We just gotta keep trying.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984240\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984240\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_52_custom-5e07e098f0aa839d06d569bafc0c04cc54a3d7ed-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sanchez stands next to a chest freezer holding a jar of Joshua tree seeds that were harvested prior to the York Fire. The freezer is already half full of jars brimming with roughly 300,000 Joshua tree seeds. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Debra Hughson acknowledges that the replanting effort is just a “drop in the ocean,” given the massive losses of Joshua trees here in recent years. “That’s a few hundred we’ve managed, in a landscape that had 1.3 million,” she says. “So you can do the math.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Numbers aside, Hughson expresses skepticism that people really have much of a role in “rebuilding” wilderness. “I don’t think that wilderness areas can be built. They can be designated, but nature created it,” she says. “We seem to be capable of destroying it … but we can’t create something that we don’t really even understand.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984241\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984241\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1705\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/09/2023-08-joshuatressjojavedesert-kramirez_11_custom-02457637f193030b8433188b613f4e908e2d1e06-1920x1279.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A Banana yucca sprouts in the burned landscape near Valley View Ranch. \u003ccite>(Krystal Ramirez/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Even so, the replanting project continues in October. The goal is to get 2,000 more Joshua trees in the ground over the next two years, and as before, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/moja/getinvolved/cima-dome-joshua-tree-forest-restoration.htm\">the preserve is relying on wilderness-savvy volunteers\u003c/a>. That human aspect, Hughson says, might be one of the most compelling reasons to do what seems very difficult, if not near impossible, on an ecological scale.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It makes us feel better. You know, psychologically, there were a lot of people that got a lot of good feelings and satisfaction from helping with the Joshua tree planting,” she says. “And to try to help makes you feel better about yourself and more hopeful about the future. And that in itself is a valuable thing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=In+a+charred+moonscape%2C+a+band+of+hopeful+workers+try+to+save+the+Joshua+tree&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1984229/in-a-charred-moonscape-a-band-of-hopeful-workers-try-to-save-the-joshua-tree",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1984229"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_35",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_5178",
"science_182",
"science_205",
"science_112",
"science_438",
"science_113"
],
"featImg": "science_1984231",
"label": "source_science_1984229"
},
"science_1984216": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1984216",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984216",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1694025646000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1694025646,
"format": "standard",
"title": "One Way to Save Coral Reefs? Deep Freeze Them for the Future",
"headTitle": "One Way to Save Coral Reefs? Deep Freeze Them for the Future | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Ocean temperatures have been extremely hot this summer, wreaking havoc on some of the world’s highly vulnerable coral reefs. With marine heat waves only expected to get worse as the climate changes, scientists are increasingly focusing on an emergency plan: collecting coral specimens and safeguarding them onshore.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A library of corals, brought in from the wild, could be an insurance policy in the face of climate change, providing the genetic material to restore the reefs of the future. For long-term storage, some corals could end up in the deep freezer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scientists are working on preserving corals by cryogenically freezing them. In a new study, a team from the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, UC Berkeley and the University of Hawaii at Manoa report they \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-40500-w\">successfully brought a coral fragment back to life\u003c/a> after freezing it at -196 degrees Celsius.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The world’s coral reefs face an existential threat from climate change, if humans don’t reduce emissions from burning fossil fuels. The reefs’ vital ecosystems support about a quarter of all marine life and provide coastal protection from waves and storm surge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cryopreservation, as the freezing technique is known, could provide a safe haven for the broad range genetic material across coral species, which could be key to adapting to future conditions. In Florida, as water temperatures rose to 100 degrees Fahrenheit this summer, restoration teams raced to collect coral specimens and put them in onshore tanks to preserve the unique individuals of the reef.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to gut through this,” says Mary Hagedorn, senior scientist at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute and the University of Hawaii at Manoa. “We have to do whatever is necessary to maintain the ecosystems on our planet.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Deep freezing coral\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As a cryo-preservationist, Hagedorn gets questions that border science fiction, where humans seek to preserve themselves for centuries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They think of head freezers,” she says, laughing. “They think of all this weird stuff.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead, her work is much closer to human fertility treatments, where eggs and sperm are frozen to use later. Marine scientists have used the technique on coral sperm and young coral larvae, but freezing a living animal is much more complex.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Mary Hagedorn, senior scientist, National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute and the University of Hawaii\"]‘We have to gut through this. … We have to do whatever is necessary to maintain the ecosystems on our planet.’[/pullquote]Collecting coral sperm is tricky, however, since most corals only spawn only one or two days a year. Since they’re fastened to the sea floor, they release their genetic material all at once in big underwater clouds. To capture it, scientists have to be in the right place at the right time, often in remote and challenging conditions. Preserving living pieces of coral would allow more opportunities to collect specimens.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That would allow us to go out almost every day of the year and collect material throughout the world,” Hagedorn says. “It would speed up our ability to secure the genetic diversity of corals.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With coral fragments from Hawaii, Hagedorn and her colleagues froze them at extremely cold temperatures in special chambers that prevent damaging ice crystals from forming. They were then able to thaw them and show the corals were still alive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Making the corals healthy again after thawing is the next challenge, especially given that corals have roommates. Photosynthetic algae live in their tissue, creating food for the coral. But when stressed, the corals lose their algae, turning them white. Hagedorn says goring forward, restoring the algae will be key to reviving coral that can reproduce again.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Genetic library of coral\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As marine heat waves become more common and intense, a global effort is underway to preserve the genetic diversity of corals. The \u003ca href=\"https://nationalzoo.si.edu/center-for-species-survival/coral-biobank-alliance\">Coral Biobank Alliance\u003c/a> is seeking to collect specimens from all over the world. Hagedorn says cryopreservation could be a vital strategy for building a library of corals, which hopefully one day could repopulate reefs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Noah’s ark only brought two,” she says. “We’re doing way more than that.”[aside label=\"Related Stories\" postID=\"science_29852,science_29756,science_14466\"]Reefs can recover from a bleaching event, but repeated marine heat waves make it less likely for corals to survive or reproduce successfully. The oceans are also acidifying as they absorb carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels, which can harm corals and make it difficult for them to build their skeletons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Corals will continue to die and unless we are replacing them with restoration, there won’t be corals available in the future, even if we were to fix all of the threats,” says Jennifer Moore, coral recovery coordinator with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As temperatures peaked on Florida’s reefs this summer, Moore says some corals died outright from the heat. Research teams raced to preserve specimens from key coral species, collecting 150 elkhorn coral and 300 staghorn coral samples.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s less than one percent of their previous population,” she says. “So we’re already in a diminished state of genetic diversity. We can’t afford to lose anything that we have.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Having those specimens could help breed the reefs of the future, since it’s unknown what combination of genes could make corals more resistant to the threats they may face, be it heat or disease.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Moore says cryopreservation could be a key piece of the puzzle in bringing reefs back. But the success of restoration depends on curbing the emissions from burning fossil fuels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is not a foregone conclusion,” Moore says. “There are still things that can be done to combat climate change so that we are not forced to be on a trajectory to a place where there are no more coral reefs.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=One+way+to+save+coral+reefs%3F+Deep+freeze+them+for+the+future&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 1022,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 22
},
"modified": 1704845907,
"excerpt": "As oceans get hotter, coral reefs are suffering. Scientists are working on ways to preserve coral by freezing and then reviving them to restore reefs someday.",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "As oceans get hotter, coral reefs are suffering. Scientists are working on ways to preserve coral by freezing and then reviving them to restore reefs someday.",
"title": "One Way to Save Coral Reefs? Deep Freeze Them for the Future | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "One Way to Save Coral Reefs? Deep Freeze Them for the Future",
"datePublished": "2023-09-06T11:40:46-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:18:27-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "one-way-to-save-coral-reefs-deep-freeze-them-for-the-future",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1197792650&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Wed, 06 Sep 2023 07:42:46 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Wed, 06 Sep 2023 07:42:46 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/2023/09/06/1197792650/coral-reefs-bleaching-restoration-climate?ft=nprml&f=1197792650",
"nprImageAgency": "Getty Images",
"source": "NPR",
"nprStoryId": "1197792650",
"sourceUrl": "https://www.npr.org/",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/803934365/lauren-sommer\">Lauren Sommer\u003c/a>",
"sticky": false,
"nprImageCredit": "Donald Miralle",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Wed, 06 Sep 2023 07:42:00 -0400",
"path": "/science/1984216/one-way-to-save-coral-reefs-deep-freeze-them-for-the-future",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Ocean temperatures have been extremely hot this summer, wreaking havoc on some of the world’s highly vulnerable coral reefs. With marine heat waves only expected to get worse as the climate changes, scientists are increasingly focusing on an emergency plan: collecting coral specimens and safeguarding them onshore.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A library of corals, brought in from the wild, could be an insurance policy in the face of climate change, providing the genetic material to restore the reefs of the future. For long-term storage, some corals could end up in the deep freezer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scientists are working on preserving corals by cryogenically freezing them. In a new study, a team from the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, UC Berkeley and the University of Hawaii at Manoa report they \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-40500-w\">successfully brought a coral fragment back to life\u003c/a> after freezing it at -196 degrees Celsius.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The world’s coral reefs face an existential threat from climate change, if humans don’t reduce emissions from burning fossil fuels. The reefs’ vital ecosystems support about a quarter of all marine life and provide coastal protection from waves and storm surge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cryopreservation, as the freezing technique is known, could provide a safe haven for the broad range genetic material across coral species, which could be key to adapting to future conditions. In Florida, as water temperatures rose to 100 degrees Fahrenheit this summer, restoration teams raced to collect coral specimens and put them in onshore tanks to preserve the unique individuals of the reef.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to gut through this,” says Mary Hagedorn, senior scientist at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute and the University of Hawaii at Manoa. “We have to do whatever is necessary to maintain the ecosystems on our planet.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Deep freezing coral\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As a cryo-preservationist, Hagedorn gets questions that border science fiction, where humans seek to preserve themselves for centuries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They think of head freezers,” she says, laughing. “They think of all this weird stuff.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instead, her work is much closer to human fertility treatments, where eggs and sperm are frozen to use later. Marine scientists have used the technique on coral sperm and young coral larvae, but freezing a living animal is much more complex.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "‘We have to gut through this. … We have to do whatever is necessary to maintain the ecosystems on our planet.’",
"name": "pullquote",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"align": "right",
"size": "medium",
"citation": "Mary Hagedorn, senior scientist, National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute and the University of Hawaii",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Collecting coral sperm is tricky, however, since most corals only spawn only one or two days a year. Since they’re fastened to the sea floor, they release their genetic material all at once in big underwater clouds. To capture it, scientists have to be in the right place at the right time, often in remote and challenging conditions. Preserving living pieces of coral would allow more opportunities to collect specimens.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That would allow us to go out almost every day of the year and collect material throughout the world,” Hagedorn says. “It would speed up our ability to secure the genetic diversity of corals.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With coral fragments from Hawaii, Hagedorn and her colleagues froze them at extremely cold temperatures in special chambers that prevent damaging ice crystals from forming. They were then able to thaw them and show the corals were still alive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Making the corals healthy again after thawing is the next challenge, especially given that corals have roommates. Photosynthetic algae live in their tissue, creating food for the coral. But when stressed, the corals lose their algae, turning them white. Hagedorn says goring forward, restoring the algae will be key to reviving coral that can reproduce again.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Genetic library of coral\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As marine heat waves become more common and intense, a global effort is underway to preserve the genetic diversity of corals. The \u003ca href=\"https://nationalzoo.si.edu/center-for-species-survival/coral-biobank-alliance\">Coral Biobank Alliance\u003c/a> is seeking to collect specimens from all over the world. Hagedorn says cryopreservation could be a vital strategy for building a library of corals, which hopefully one day could repopulate reefs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Noah’s ark only brought two,” she says. “We’re doing way more than that.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "Related Stories ",
"postid": "science_29852,science_29756,science_14466"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Reefs can recover from a bleaching event, but repeated marine heat waves make it less likely for corals to survive or reproduce successfully. The oceans are also acidifying as they absorb carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels, which can harm corals and make it difficult for them to build their skeletons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Corals will continue to die and unless we are replacing them with restoration, there won’t be corals available in the future, even if we were to fix all of the threats,” says Jennifer Moore, coral recovery coordinator with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As temperatures peaked on Florida’s reefs this summer, Moore says some corals died outright from the heat. Research teams raced to preserve specimens from key coral species, collecting 150 elkhorn coral and 300 staghorn coral samples.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s less than one percent of their previous population,” she says. “So we’re already in a diminished state of genetic diversity. We can’t afford to lose anything that we have.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Having those specimens could help breed the reefs of the future, since it’s unknown what combination of genes could make corals more resistant to the threats they may face, be it heat or disease.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Moore says cryopreservation could be a key piece of the puzzle in bringing reefs back. But the success of restoration depends on curbing the emissions from burning fossil fuels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is not a foregone conclusion,” Moore says. “There are still things that can be done to combat climate change so that we are not forced to be on a trajectory to a place where there are no more coral reefs.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=One+way+to+save+coral+reefs%3F+Deep+freeze+them+for+the+future&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1984216/one-way-to-save-coral-reefs-deep-freeze-them-for-the-future",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1984216"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_182",
"science_205",
"science_1003"
],
"featImg": "science_1984217",
"label": "source_science_1984216"
},
"science_1984149": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1984149",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984149",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1693578600000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1693578600,
"format": "standard",
"title": "As Klamath Dams Come Down, a Once-in-a-Generation River Restoration Begins",
"headTitle": "As Klamath Dams Come Down, a Once-in-a-Generation River Restoration Begins | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>[dropcap]O[/dropcap]shun O’Rourke waded into the dark green water, splashing toward a net that her colleagues gently closed around a cluster of finger-length fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Klamath River is wide and still here, making its final turn north to the coast as it winds through the Yurok reservation in Humboldt County. About 150 baby chinook salmon, on their long journey to the Pacific, were resting in cool waters that poured down from the forest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>O’Rourke’s colleagues hoisted the net into a mesh-sided bin in the shallows to sort through their catch, in search of young chinook to test for a parasite \u003ca href=\"https://microbiology.oregonstate.edu.prod.acquia.cosine.oregonstate.edu/research/aquatic-microbiology-ecology/monitoring-studies\">that can rot fish from the inside\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two years ago, during a deepening drought, most \u003ca href=\"https://kbmp.net/images/stories/pdf/KFHAT/2022/Final_KR21_Report_1-31-22.pdf\">salmon captured for testing (PDF)\u003c/a> during peak migration were infected with the lethal parasite. One tribal leader called it “\u003ca href=\"https://www.yuroktribe.org/post/catastrophic-juvenile-fish-kill-unfolds-in-real-time-on-the-klamath-river#:~:text=On%20May%204%2C%202021%2C%20the,will%20be%20dead%20within%20days.\">an absolute worst-case scenario\u003c/a>” for the Yurok, who rely on salmon for their food, culture and economy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>O’Rourke and fisheries biologist Leanne Knutson laid out 20 small dead fish on paper towels, then wrapped them in plastic to send to a lab that will check for the parasite. The rest were released back into the river, where they will swim for days to reach the ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A few years from now, when these fish return as adults ready to spawn, it will be to a Klamath remade.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These ones will return either as 3- or 4-year-olds,” O’Rourke said, standing barefoot on the riverbank flecked with fool’s gold and crossed by an otter’s footprints. “And the dams will be gone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/relicensing/klamath-final-license-application/Appendix_E_6D_Historic_Context.pdf\">more than a hundred years (PDF)\u003c/a>, dams have \u003ca href=\"https://www.fws.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Full%20SDOR%20accessible%20022216.pdf\">stilled the Klamath’s flows (PDF)\u003c/a>, jeopardizing the salmon and other fish, and creating \u003ca href=\"https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/688342\">ideal conditions for the parasite to spread\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But now these vestiges of an early \u003ca href=\"https://energyhistory.yale.edu/the-big-dam-era/\">20th-century approach to water and power\u003c/a> are being dismantled: The \u003ca href=\"https://www.usgs.gov/centers/california-water-science-center/science/klamath-dam-removal-studies#:~:text=Klamath%20River%2C%20California&text=The%20planned%20removal%20of%20four,restoration%20efforts%20in%20US%20history.\">world’s largest dam removal project\u003c/a> is now underway on the Klamath River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/project-materials/\">the end of 2024\u003c/a>, four aging hydroelectric dams spanning the California-Oregon state line will be gone. One hundred thousand cubic yards of concrete, 1.3 million cubic yards of earth and 2,000 tons of steel will be hauled out of the river’s path.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tribal members, researchers, rural residents near the dams, conservationists and the fishing industry are all anxiously waiting to see how this river, dammed for decades, will change — and with it, its fish, wildlife and human neighbors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s an existential question for rivers, especially in a region where water left in nature is often deemed wasted: “Once a river is dammed, is it damned forever?” \u003ca href=\"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6327834/\">experts ask\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So many uncertainties remain as the Klamath reemerges: Will sediment from the demolition harm the river and its inhabitants? Will healthy numbers of salmon finally return? Will it flood its banks more readily? What will the riverfront look like?\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984165\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984165\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Young chinook salmon are collected for lab testing on the Klamath River near Weitchpec on July 20, 2023. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984188\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1985px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984188 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1.png\" alt=\"On left: Gilbert Myers, Oshun O’Rourke, Keenan O’Rourke and Leanne Knutson. In middle: Keenan O’Rourke. On right: The technicians open a probe to collect tracking data. \" width=\"1985\" height=\"434\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1.png 1985w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-800x175.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-1020x223.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-160x35.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-768x168.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-1536x336.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-1920x420.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1985px) 100vw, 1985px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Fisheries biologists and technicians from the Yurok Tribe’s Klamath program are collecting salmon on the Klamath River. On left: Gilbert Myers, Oshun O’Rourke, Keenan O’Rourke and Leanne Knutson. In middle: Keenan O’Rourke. On right: The technicians open a probe to collect tracking data. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For O’Rourke, 31, a Yurok tribal member, the Klamath is more than a study subject — it’s home for her and her team, and the lifeblood of their tribe, which has inhabited this region since time immemorial. From the research boat, she gestures to the stretch of river where she grew up in her ancestral village, fishing with her father.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>O’Rourke is hopeful that tearing down the dams will mean her son will have salmon to fish, too. But, as a scientist, she plans to investigate, seeking evidence that the river will rebound for the next generation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s hard to say for sure,” she said, “what things will be like in the future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘To fix a place and right past wrongs’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Klamath is often described \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/west-coast/habitat-conservation/klamath-river-basin\">as an upside-down river\u003c/a>. It’s born in the high deserts of eastern Oregon \u003ca href=\"https://www.usbr.gov/watersmart/bsp/docs/klamath/fullreport.pdf\">as a trickle (PDF)\u003c/a>, and by the time it reaches the Pacific more than 250 miles later, it swells with water drained from more than 12,000 square miles of land, spanning \u003ca href=\"https://www.usbr.gov/watersmart/bsp/docs/klamath/fullreport.pdf\">five national forests and seven counties across two states (PDF)\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s a stretch of river, crossing the California-Oregon state line, where feral horses pick their way up pine-studded slopes and osprey nest on power poles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is where, \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/relicensing/klamath-final-license-application/Appendix_E_6D_Historic_Context.pdf\">in 1918 (PDF)\u003c/a>, a power company began operating the first of its hydroelectric dams on the river to light the \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/relicensing/klamath-final-license-application/Appendix_E_6D_Historic_Context.pdf\">towns and power the farms, mines and mills (PDF)\u003c/a> of California’s far north and Oregon beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is where dam construction dispossessed \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/relicensing/klamath-final-license-application/Exhibit_E_Cultural_Resources.pdf\">the Shasta people (PDF)\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.usgs.gov/centers/california-water-science-center/science/klamath-dam-removal-studies#overview\">blockaded salmon runs and stewed the river’s water\u003c/a> into a warm, algal brew — drawing decades of activism from tribes and conservationists.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And this is where demolition has begun.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For more than 20 years, four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath have been \u003ca href=\"https://bringthesalmonhome.org/understanding-dam-removal/\">at the center of a fight\u003c/a> to restore the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984171\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984171\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A view of Iron Gate dam, one of 3 hydroelectric dams being removed on the Klamath River, on July 17, 2023.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984190\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1990px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984190 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1990\" height=\"642\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2.png 1990w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-800x258.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-1020x329.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-160x52.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-768x248.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-1536x496.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-1920x619.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1990px) 100vw, 1990px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">On left: Copco Number 1 Dam. On right: Copco Number 2 Dam. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The dams weren’t built to store water for drinking, irrigation, or to stop floods. They generated electricity for PacifiCorp, a subsidiary of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Energy, producing less than 2% of its customers’ power supply.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On one side are Native tribes in California and Oregon, conservationists and the fishing industry — all fighting to restore native salmon, steelhead and Pacific lamprey that have dwindled \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/A7-Full-SDOR-accessible-022216.pdf\">under the combined threats (PDF)\u003c/a> of changing ocean conditions, farming and ranching, timber harvesting, mining, overfishing and dams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the other side are \u003ca href=\"https://lamalfa.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/rep-lamalfa-comments-on-klamath-dam-removal-announcement\">nearby residents and their politicians\u003c/a>, who see demolition as another way for state and federal agencies to impose their environmental wills on their rural way of life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And in the middle is PacifiCorp. The company had planned to \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/west-coast/habitat-conservation/hydroelectric-management-and-dam-removal-activities\">continue operating the dams to generate electricity after its license expired in 2006\u003c/a>. But by 2010, facing growing protests and \u003ca href=\"https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IF/IF11616\">hundreds of millions of dollars\u003c/a> in federally mandated updates to make them less dangerous to fish, PacifiCorp agreed to demolish them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984172\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984172 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-800x1200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1200\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-800x1200.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-1020x1530.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28.jpg 1333w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Klamath River near Happy Camp on July 19, 2023. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Deals between the company, California, Oregon, the Secretary of the Interior and others were struck, blocked in Congress, and remade until, last \u003ca href=\"https://resources.ca.gov/Newsroom/Page-Content/News-List/Federal-Energy-regulator-gives-final-go-ahead-for-historic-Klamath-Dam-removal-plan\">November, when federal energy regulators gave their final blessing\u003c/a> to demolish the dams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s about damn time we got this done,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7rACSwN4g4\">said in December at the fish hatchery below Iron Gate dam\u003c/a>, the most downstream of the dams slated for demolition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California taxpayers will cover $250 million of the roughly $450–$500 million bill with funds from the Proposition 1 water bond approved by voters in 2014. Another $200 million comes from \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/khsa-implementation/implementation-plans/2021-10-21_2020-KHSA-Impl-Rpt.pdf\">surcharges that PacifiCorp customers (PDF)\u003c/a>, mostly in Oregon, have already paid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For California officials, the cost of demolishing a private company’s infrastructure is worth the benefit of a more free-flowing river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Sometimes, the need to do something so bold — to fix a place and right past wrongs — means you have to sit down and just be pragmatic on how you’re going to get a deal done,” \u003ca href=\"https://wildlife.ca.gov/Director\">Chuck Bonham\u003c/a>, director of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, told CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Native tribes and scientists see demolition as a victory for the river’s first peoples and the fish they depend on for their food, cultures and livelihoods. Chinook populations have crashed, so much so that the 2023 \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/water/2023/03/california-salmon-fishery-shut-down/\">fishing season was cancelled statewide\u003c/a>. The river’s spring-run chinook are listed as threatened under California endangered species law, while coho are listed under both the state and federal laws.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984191\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984191 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mike Polmateer, a Karuk fisheries field supervisor, at Horse Creek along the Klamath River. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Removing the dams is expected to reopen more than 400 miles of habitat for steelhead and other threatened and iconic fish, and restore flows that can better flush away toxic algae and disease.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But \u003ca href=\"https://www.siskiyoucountywaterusersassociation.org/\">residents\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.siskiyou.ca.us/sites/default/files/fileattachments/natural_resources/page/7851/nr-20190313_siskiyou_county_comments_definite_plan.pdf\">officials (PDF)\u003c/a> in Siskiyou County worry about the sediment that the project will unleash into the river and the consequences of losing a reservoir to re-feed groundwater wells, fight fires and recreate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Landowners mourn lakeside property that will no longer be waterfront as reservoirs vanish and the exposed land becomes the property of the state of California or a designated third party.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984150\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984150\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">‘It’s hard to say for sure what things will be like in the future,’ said Oshun O’Rourke, a senior fisheries biologist with the Yurok Tribe who is shown near a study site along the Klamath River near Weitchpec. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>What is clear is that the Klamath won’t return to the river it once was. Designated as a wild and scenic river, the Klamath has long been the nexus of some of the \u003ca href=\"https://islandpress.org/books/water-war-klamath-basin\">West’s fiercest water wars\u003c/a>, and removing PacifiCorp’s hydroelectric dams ends only some of the battles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other dams will remain upriver in Oregon, where the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation controls flows from Upper Klamath Lake — portioning out too little water to satisfy tribes, wildlife refuges, lake, river, farms and fish. The battle over water allocation will continue, as will the \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drought/scott_shasta_rivers/docs/2023/petition-minimum-flows.pdf\">fights over tributaries (PDF)\u003c/a> downstream of the dams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The work is not done, by any means,” O’Rourke said, the Klamath River rushing beside her. “There’s still so much to do after the dams come out.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>As construction begins, ‘there is no going back’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The smallest of the four dams, the \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/the-project/\">33-foot Copco Number 2\u003c/a>, located in Siskiyou County, is already almost gone. Water rushed past it by mid-July, and only a concrete and steel structure on the river’s bank remained visible from above.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Quite a remarkable sight to see and feeling to feel,” said Mark Bransom, CEO of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation, the nonprofit formed to oversee the removal effort. “Knowing that we’ve broken ground and allowed for the river to start that healing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This time last year, Bransom said, the riverbed was dry, the water diverted to generate power. Trees now crowd the canyon floor where they sprouted from a riverbed long absent its river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By October of 2024, the river will flow freely past the other three dams as well — the J.C. Boyle dam in Oregon and the Copco Number 1 and Iron Gate dams in California’s Siskiyou County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At this point, Bransom said, “there is no going back.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984151\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984151\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mark Bransom, chief executive officer of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation, stands above the Copco Number 1 Dam, one of four hydroelectric dams being removed on the Klamath River. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Driving around the mirror-still reservoirs reveals clusters of activity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neon-vested workers on the hillsides collect seeds to replant the bare landscape exposed by drained reservoirs. Overlooking Copco Number 1 dam, the pop-pop-pop of target practice in the distance is audible over the din of drilling for a new groundwater monitoring well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From a hillside above Iron Gate dam, Bransom explains the \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/LKP-FERC-Definite-Plan.pdf\">vast undertaking (PDF)\u003c/a> that is unmaking four dams and a century of environmental interference.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Starting in January 2024, contractor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kiewit.com/pages/opportunities/klamath-river-renewal-project/\">Kiewit Infrastructure West\u003c/a> will use explosives to blast out concrete walls beneath the spillway at J.C. Boyle dam in Oregon and remove the last plug of concrete from a tunnel drilled into the Copco Number 1 dam downstream. Water will flow into Iron Gate reservoir.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A yellow front-end loader trundles to a tunnel at the base of the Iron Gate dam, next to the spillway. This tunnel is where every drop of muddy water will pour into the river starting in January, draining Iron Gate reservoir by up to about 5 feet a day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>About 20 million cubic yards of sediment have collected behind the dams over decades — enough to fill about 2 million dump trucks, though only about a quarter to a third of it is expected to end up in the river, Bransom said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The sediment can choke salmon and other life, and cause oxygen levels in the river to drop. But the work will be timed to avoid migrations, and the ill effects are expected to diminish with time and distance. Federal officials report that ultimately the new conditions will be beneficial to the river and its fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From June through October, excavators will dig into the earthen parts of J.C. Boyle dam in Oregon and use the material to fill in an eroded riverbank and the canal diverting water to the powerhouse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-1984152\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-800x618.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"618\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-800x618.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-1020x788.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-160x124.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-768x593.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-1536x1187.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-2048x1582.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-1920x1484.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Contractors will use explosives to break up the concrete of the Copco Number 1 dam into chunks and cart it away. Iron Gate will be unzipped from top to bottom by excavators that will deposit the earth in the spillway and a scar left by the dam’s construction.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Klamath_Brochure_Restoring_Habitat_May2021.pdf\">Restoration (PDF)\u003c/a> will also start when the reservoirs are drained, replanting the newly exposed land and restoring habitat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Looking down at Iron Gate dam, where water still churns from the turbines generating power, Bransom said he thinks of the river as a creature exploring new territory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m most curious and excited to basically watch the river emerge, and to see where the river wants to find its way back through this area where it’s been so constrained for 100 years,” Bransom said. “There’ll be some curiosities and trepidation, but it will be only forward progress.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Neighbors living in limbo\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, newlyweds Francis Gill and Danny Fontaine are living in limbo in the Copco Lake community, built on the reservoir, soon to vanish, formed by the Copco Number 1 dam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gill, chief of the Copco Lake volunteer fire department, and Fontaine, a realtor, own a home, rental properties, the long-empty Copco Lake store and a workshop next door. Gill estimates that around 75 to 85 people live in the community full time — double that when those with vacation homes are there.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At Gill and Fontaine’s workshop, a sign on the wall lists Lake Rules. “Go barefoot,” reads one. “Jump off the dock.” But the water has already lowered enough during deconstruction that the dock now rests on the reservoir’s grassy bank, foreshadowing the future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984192\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984192 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"653\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3.png 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-800x261.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-1020x333.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-160x52.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-768x251.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-1536x502.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-1920x627.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Francis Gill, left, and his husband Danny Fontaine, right, in front of their lakefront property on Copco Lake on July 17, 2023. Their property will no longer be lakeside when the dams come down, since the reservoir will disappear. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>At first, when the deal was finalized, they were angry — a feeling that \u003ca href=\"https://lamalfa.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/congressmen-lamalfa-and-bentz-klamath-dams-are-engines-of-energy-and\">reverberates across Siskiyou County\u003c/a>, which has long chafed against the reach of state and federal agencies meddling with local industries. County residents \u003ca href=\"https://ballotpedia.org/Klamath_River_Dam_Removal_Advisory_Vote,_Measure_G_(November_2010)\">overwhelmingly voted to keep the dams\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, with dam removal starting in earnest, Gill and Fontaine are feeling more resigned.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s kind of like a facelift,” Fontaine said. “What’s it going to look like? I hope it looks good!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Do I really trust this doctor?” Gill joked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/water_quality_cert/lower_klamath_ferc14803_deir.html\">State\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/22_0826-3006_P-14803-Final-EIS-Lower-Klamath-Hydrpelectric-Project.pdf\">federal (PDF)\u003c/a> environmental assessments spell out the potential impacts on local residents, including the loss of lakewater for firefighting, some unstable lakeside slopes and a drop in groundwater levels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Downstream of the dams, floodwaters could rise as much as 20 inches higher during extreme, 100-year floods, with levels dropping back down to normal 19 miles downstream, \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/22_0826-3006_P-14803-Final-EIS-Lower-Klamath-Hydrpelectric-Project.pdf\">according to federal projections (PDF)\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some of the money in the budget — the dam removal corporation won’t say how much — has been set aside for \u003ca href=\"https://klamathmitigation.org/faqs\">an independently managed mitigation fund\u003c/a> that residents can apply to, provided they agree not to sue. CalFire \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/fire-management-plan/\">has also signed off\u003c/a> on a plan \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Fire-Plan-Dec-2022-FERC-14803.pdf\">to address local firefighting capacity (PDF)\u003c/a>, which includes dry hydrants and a camera network to spot fires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gill and Fontaine fear they will lose access to the water their community was built around. They are holding out hope that at least the river will be close, feeling for the bottom of the lake when they go swimming and measuring it with a depth probe, looking for the river’s original channel. Fontaine thinks he discovered it while swimming off of the store’s boat ramp.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was kind of exciting, that maybe it could be right there. But we don’t know,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984155\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984155\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Docks lay on the banks of a receding shoreline of Copco Lake on July 17, 2023. This land will soon be riverfront as the reservoir disappears when the dams are removed. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>They are clear-eyed about the algae that turns the lake green every summer. But the two aren’t convinced that removing the dams will fix it. Gill said he heard that before the dams were constructed, the river would slow to a trickle between puddles of algae in the summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The river’s flows will \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/water_quality_cert/docs/lower_klamath_ferc14803_deir/3_6.pdf\">continue to be controlled by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (PDF)\u003c/a>, which declined to answer CalMatters’ questions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The original locals, the Shasta Indian Nation, also have mixed feelings about the dam removal. Though they support the river’s restoration, they’re bracing for what deconstruction and drainage will reveal. Dispossessed by the dam’s construction, the Shasta Indian Nation now faces disturbance once again of burials and other cultural sites.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There are consequences with the construction of the dams,” said \u003ca href=\"https://www.shastaindiannation.org/tribal-council.html\">Sami Jo Difuntorum\u003c/a>, culture preservation officer of the Shasta Indian Nation. “And now with the dams coming out, we have consequences that are unique to our people — the disruption and disturbance to our sacred sites.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘More than just a river to us’: Awaiting return of healthy salmon\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Richard Marshall, president of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.siskiyoucountywaterusersassociation.org/board\">Siskiyou County Water Users Association\u003c/a>, which opposes dam removal, doubts the disruption will be worth it. The idea that demolition is going to “automatically create salmon,” he said, “is simply not true.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Marshall suspects that warm water upriver, underwater barriers to fish migration and predators have always made the upper basin inhospitable to salmon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Federal scientists disagree. They \u003ca href=\"https://fisheries.org/docs/fisheries_magazine_archive/fisheries_3004.pdf\">point to historical descriptions of chinook (PDF)\u003c/a>, steelhead, coho salmon and lamprey above the dams. A photograph from the Klamath County Historical Society from 1891 shows men in suits, ties and hats displaying their salmon catch on the Link River, which flows from Upper Klamath Lake.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s a matter of timing, said Jim Simondet, Klamath branch supervisor for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s fisheries division. Temperatures should be cold enough and flows sufficient for spring-run chinook salmon, \u003ca href=\"https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=109405&inline\">a state-protected species\u003c/a>, to migrate above the dams in the spring, but should also support fall-run chinook migrating after the heat of the summer subsides.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Simondet said scientists will be keeping a close watch for any bottlenecks that might prevent fish from reaching the upper basin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a lot of fish that are bumping their heads up against Iron Gate Dam currently,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The river’s coho salmon, listed as threatened at the \u003ca href=\"https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=109405&inline\">state and federal level\u003c/a>, are also expected to use about 70 miles of habitat above the former dam sites after demolition, Simondet said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984156\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984156\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Juvenile coho salmon collected for tagging in Horse Creek along the Klamath River. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Mike Polmateer is helping the Karuk tribe track them — if and when they do return.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We believe wholeheartedly that once the dams come down, the fish will return,” said Polmateer, a field supervisor with the Karuk Tribal Fisheries Program. The Karuk and the Yurok downriver are the largest tribes in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Polmateer is also a traditional fisherman and a fatawana, which he describes as a medicine man. He’s been protesting the dams for years, after a \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/bay_delta/california_waterfix/exhibits/docs/PCFFA&IGFR/part2/pcffa_155.pdf\">massive fish die-off on the lower Klamath in 2002 (PDF)\u003c/a> catalyzed the \u003ca href=\"https://bringthesalmonhome.org/understanding-dam-removal/\">movement to restore the river\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s still the water that runs through my veins. We only want it to be taken care of,” Polmateer said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984157\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984157\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-1920x1281.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mike Polmateer, a fisheries field supervisor and member of the Karuk tribe, at a pond built as a refuge for coho. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984193\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984193\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"635\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4.png 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-800x254.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-1020x324.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-160x51.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-768x244.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-1536x488.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-1920x610.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Left: Juvenile coho salmon are weighed and measured before tagging in Horse Creek. Right: Fisheries technician Clay Tuttle injects a tag into a coho salmon. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Highway 96 unfurls along the river from the dry volcanic slopes downstream of the dams to wooded canyons downriver. And just off the highway, tucked away down a bumpy dirt road where horned cattle rest in the shade, is a clear blue pond built as a refuge for young coho salmon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Polmateer meets his team there — three younger men in wetsuits who wade into the pond to capture the small silver fish for tagging.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The operation takes seconds: The fish, less than three inches long, are sedated in a bucket of water laced with clove oil and something more, then weighed, measured and scanned for existing tags. Then, a deft poke into the fish’s abdomen with a needle, and a tag, no bigger than a grain of rice, is slipped inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tagged, these coho can be tracked on their way to the ocean and as they return, after the dams are gone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Polmateer, now 63, will be retired by then, but he hopes that his crew, the next generation, will continue the work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s more than just a river to us. It’s more than just something that harbors fish,” Polmateer said. “It’s who we are as a people. We’re fix-the-world-people, Karuk people are.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Hunting bugs — a critical link in the river’s food web\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Green gobbets of algae raced down the Klamath about 11 miles downriver of Iron Gate dam. Big rigs roared in the opposite direction on Interstate 5 above, rumbling towards Oregon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And in the middle of the river, water up to his knees, stood Yurok fisheries technician Gilbert Meyers, a net plunged into the gravel and muck. A team of researchers was there to take the river’s pulse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One way to do that, said Meyers’ boss, Jamie Holt, is by capturing bugs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Fish eat bugs, so it directly equates to fish food,” said Holt, a senior fisheries technician with the Yurok Tribe’s Klamath program.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984160\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984160\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gilbert Myers, a fisheries technician with the Yurok Tribe, collects mayflies and other aquatic bugs from the Klamath River near I-5 on July 19, 2023. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984197\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984197\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"649\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5.png 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-800x260.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-1020x331.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-160x52.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-768x249.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-1536x498.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-1920x623.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Left: Dragonfly larvae collected from the Klamath River. Right: A fly perched on a branch at Tree of Heaven Campground.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Monitoring which insects like mayflies, caddisflies and salmon flies are living where, and in what numbers, offers a real-time view into the river’s health before and after the dams come down. The work, \u003ca href=\"https://sites.google.com/view/lusardi-lab/research?pli=1\">a collaboration with UC Davis and California Trout\u003c/a>, spans the basin, fingerprinting conditions on the Klamath over time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The crew’s next sampling location, at a campground downriver, is more scenic than the site under I-5. But here, too, algae clogs the sampling nets.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A flotilla of children on rafts have scared away the fish the team tries to survey, and they break for food — salmon that Yurok fisheries technician Keenan O’Rourke caught, smoked and jarred last summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, salmon projections are so dismal that federal officials and the Yurok tribe canceled commercial and subsistence fisheries, a devastating decision for people with an average income of \u003ca href=\"https://censusreporter.org/profiles/25200US4760R-yurok-reservation/\">less than $21,000 a year\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984163\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984163\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jamie Holt, a Yurok senior fisheries technician, examines insects taken from the Klamath River on July 19, 2023. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Holt warns that the dam removal won’t be a panacea as the federal government will still control flows upriver. But she’s optimistic about all the ways it will improve the river’s health. “It’s just going to harbor far more life … It’s going to hatch all kinds of bugs, which grow bigger fish,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Holt’s been hearing about demolition of the dams for so long that it doesn’t seem real that they’ll soon be gone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I kind of joked around for a lot of years that I’ll believe it when I’m floating over where they used to stand,” she said. “And it still kind of holds.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 4259,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 102
},
"modified": 1704845908,
"excerpt": "As four aging hydroelectric dams are demolished, tribes and communities along the Klamath River wait anxiously to see what the future holds. “Once a river is dammed, is it damned forever?” experts ask.",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "As four aging hydroelectric dams are demolished, tribes and communities along the Klamath River wait anxiously to see what the future holds. “Once a river is dammed, is it damned forever?” experts ask.",
"title": "As Klamath Dams Come Down, a Once-in-a-Generation River Restoration Begins | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "As Klamath Dams Come Down, a Once-in-a-Generation River Restoration Begins",
"datePublished": "2023-09-01T07:30:00-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:18:28-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "as-klamath-dams-come-down-a-once-in-a-generation-river-restoration-begins",
"status": "publish",
"sourceUrl": "https://calmatters.org/",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/author/rachel-becker/\">Rachel Becker\u003c/a>",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"sticky": false,
"source": "calmatters",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/science/1984149/as-klamath-dams-come-down-a-once-in-a-generation-river-restoration-begins",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__dropcapShortcode__dropcap\">O\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>shun O’Rourke waded into the dark green water, splashing toward a net that her colleagues gently closed around a cluster of finger-length fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Klamath River is wide and still here, making its final turn north to the coast as it winds through the Yurok reservation in Humboldt County. About 150 baby chinook salmon, on their long journey to the Pacific, were resting in cool waters that poured down from the forest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>O’Rourke’s colleagues hoisted the net into a mesh-sided bin in the shallows to sort through their catch, in search of young chinook to test for a parasite \u003ca href=\"https://microbiology.oregonstate.edu.prod.acquia.cosine.oregonstate.edu/research/aquatic-microbiology-ecology/monitoring-studies\">that can rot fish from the inside\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two years ago, during a deepening drought, most \u003ca href=\"https://kbmp.net/images/stories/pdf/KFHAT/2022/Final_KR21_Report_1-31-22.pdf\">salmon captured for testing (PDF)\u003c/a> during peak migration were infected with the lethal parasite. One tribal leader called it “\u003ca href=\"https://www.yuroktribe.org/post/catastrophic-juvenile-fish-kill-unfolds-in-real-time-on-the-klamath-river#:~:text=On%20May%204%2C%202021%2C%20the,will%20be%20dead%20within%20days.\">an absolute worst-case scenario\u003c/a>” for the Yurok, who rely on salmon for their food, culture and economy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>O’Rourke and fisheries biologist Leanne Knutson laid out 20 small dead fish on paper towels, then wrapped them in plastic to send to a lab that will check for the parasite. The rest were released back into the river, where they will swim for days to reach the ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A few years from now, when these fish return as adults ready to spawn, it will be to a Klamath remade.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These ones will return either as 3- or 4-year-olds,” O’Rourke said, standing barefoot on the riverbank flecked with fool’s gold and crossed by an otter’s footprints. “And the dams will be gone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/relicensing/klamath-final-license-application/Appendix_E_6D_Historic_Context.pdf\">more than a hundred years (PDF)\u003c/a>, dams have \u003ca href=\"https://www.fws.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Full%20SDOR%20accessible%20022216.pdf\">stilled the Klamath’s flows (PDF)\u003c/a>, jeopardizing the salmon and other fish, and creating \u003ca href=\"https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/688342\">ideal conditions for the parasite to spread\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But now these vestiges of an early \u003ca href=\"https://energyhistory.yale.edu/the-big-dam-era/\">20th-century approach to water and power\u003c/a> are being dismantled: The \u003ca href=\"https://www.usgs.gov/centers/california-water-science-center/science/klamath-dam-removal-studies#:~:text=Klamath%20River%2C%20California&text=The%20planned%20removal%20of%20four,restoration%20efforts%20in%20US%20history.\">world’s largest dam removal project\u003c/a> is now underway on the Klamath River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/project-materials/\">the end of 2024\u003c/a>, four aging hydroelectric dams spanning the California-Oregon state line will be gone. One hundred thousand cubic yards of concrete, 1.3 million cubic yards of earth and 2,000 tons of steel will be hauled out of the river’s path.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tribal members, researchers, rural residents near the dams, conservationists and the fishing industry are all anxiously waiting to see how this river, dammed for decades, will change — and with it, its fish, wildlife and human neighbors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s an existential question for rivers, especially in a region where water left in nature is often deemed wasted: “Once a river is dammed, is it damned forever?” \u003ca href=\"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6327834/\">experts ask\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So many uncertainties remain as the Klamath reemerges: Will sediment from the demolition harm the river and its inhabitants? Will healthy numbers of salmon finally return? Will it flood its banks more readily? What will the riverfront look like?\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984165\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984165\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_12.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Young chinook salmon are collected for lab testing on the Klamath River near Weitchpec on July 20, 2023. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984188\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1985px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984188 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1.png\" alt=\"On left: Gilbert Myers, Oshun O’Rourke, Keenan O’Rourke and Leanne Knutson. In middle: Keenan O’Rourke. On right: The technicians open a probe to collect tracking data. \" width=\"1985\" height=\"434\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1.png 1985w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-800x175.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-1020x223.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-160x35.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-768x168.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-1536x336.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters1-1920x420.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1985px) 100vw, 1985px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Fisheries biologists and technicians from the Yurok Tribe’s Klamath program are collecting salmon on the Klamath River. On left: Gilbert Myers, Oshun O’Rourke, Keenan O’Rourke and Leanne Knutson. In middle: Keenan O’Rourke. On right: The technicians open a probe to collect tracking data. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For O’Rourke, 31, a Yurok tribal member, the Klamath is more than a study subject — it’s home for her and her team, and the lifeblood of their tribe, which has inhabited this region since time immemorial. From the research boat, she gestures to the stretch of river where she grew up in her ancestral village, fishing with her father.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>O’Rourke is hopeful that tearing down the dams will mean her son will have salmon to fish, too. But, as a scientist, she plans to investigate, seeking evidence that the river will rebound for the next generation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s hard to say for sure,” she said, “what things will be like in the future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘To fix a place and right past wrongs’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Klamath is often described \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/west-coast/habitat-conservation/klamath-river-basin\">as an upside-down river\u003c/a>. It’s born in the high deserts of eastern Oregon \u003ca href=\"https://www.usbr.gov/watersmart/bsp/docs/klamath/fullreport.pdf\">as a trickle (PDF)\u003c/a>, and by the time it reaches the Pacific more than 250 miles later, it swells with water drained from more than 12,000 square miles of land, spanning \u003ca href=\"https://www.usbr.gov/watersmart/bsp/docs/klamath/fullreport.pdf\">five national forests and seven counties across two states (PDF)\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s a stretch of river, crossing the California-Oregon state line, where feral horses pick their way up pine-studded slopes and osprey nest on power poles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is where, \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/relicensing/klamath-final-license-application/Appendix_E_6D_Historic_Context.pdf\">in 1918 (PDF)\u003c/a>, a power company began operating the first of its hydroelectric dams on the river to light the \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/relicensing/klamath-final-license-application/Appendix_E_6D_Historic_Context.pdf\">towns and power the farms, mines and mills (PDF)\u003c/a> of California’s far north and Oregon beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is where dam construction dispossessed \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/relicensing/klamath-final-license-application/Exhibit_E_Cultural_Resources.pdf\">the Shasta people (PDF)\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.usgs.gov/centers/california-water-science-center/science/klamath-dam-removal-studies#overview\">blockaded salmon runs and stewed the river’s water\u003c/a> into a warm, algal brew — drawing decades of activism from tribes and conservationists.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And this is where demolition has begun.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For more than 20 years, four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath have been \u003ca href=\"https://bringthesalmonhome.org/understanding-dam-removal/\">at the center of a fight\u003c/a> to restore the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984171\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984171\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_05-2.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A view of Iron Gate dam, one of 3 hydroelectric dams being removed on the Klamath River, on July 17, 2023.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984190\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1990px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984190 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1990\" height=\"642\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2.png 1990w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-800x258.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-1020x329.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-160x52.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-768x248.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-1536x496.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters2-1920x619.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1990px) 100vw, 1990px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">On left: Copco Number 1 Dam. On right: Copco Number 2 Dam. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The dams weren’t built to store water for drinking, irrigation, or to stop floods. They generated electricity for PacifiCorp, a subsidiary of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Energy, producing less than 2% of its customers’ power supply.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On one side are Native tribes in California and Oregon, conservationists and the fishing industry — all fighting to restore native salmon, steelhead and Pacific lamprey that have dwindled \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/A7-Full-SDOR-accessible-022216.pdf\">under the combined threats (PDF)\u003c/a> of changing ocean conditions, farming and ranching, timber harvesting, mining, overfishing and dams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the other side are \u003ca href=\"https://lamalfa.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/rep-lamalfa-comments-on-klamath-dam-removal-announcement\">nearby residents and their politicians\u003c/a>, who see demolition as another way for state and federal agencies to impose their environmental wills on their rural way of life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And in the middle is PacifiCorp. The company had planned to \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/west-coast/habitat-conservation/hydroelectric-management-and-dam-removal-activities\">continue operating the dams to generate electricity after its license expired in 2006\u003c/a>. But by 2010, facing growing protests and \u003ca href=\"https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IF/IF11616\">hundreds of millions of dollars\u003c/a> in federally mandated updates to make them less dangerous to fish, PacifiCorp agreed to demolish them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984172\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984172 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-800x1200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1200\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-800x1200.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-1020x1530.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_28.jpg 1333w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Klamath River near Happy Camp on July 19, 2023. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Deals between the company, California, Oregon, the Secretary of the Interior and others were struck, blocked in Congress, and remade until, last \u003ca href=\"https://resources.ca.gov/Newsroom/Page-Content/News-List/Federal-Energy-regulator-gives-final-go-ahead-for-historic-Klamath-Dam-removal-plan\">November, when federal energy regulators gave their final blessing\u003c/a> to demolish the dams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s about damn time we got this done,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7rACSwN4g4\">said in December at the fish hatchery below Iron Gate dam\u003c/a>, the most downstream of the dams slated for demolition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California taxpayers will cover $250 million of the roughly $450–$500 million bill with funds from the Proposition 1 water bond approved by voters in 2014. Another $200 million comes from \u003ca href=\"https://www.pacificorp.com/content/dam/pcorp/documents/en/pacificorp/energy/hydro/klamath-river/khsa-implementation/implementation-plans/2021-10-21_2020-KHSA-Impl-Rpt.pdf\">surcharges that PacifiCorp customers (PDF)\u003c/a>, mostly in Oregon, have already paid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For California officials, the cost of demolishing a private company’s infrastructure is worth the benefit of a more free-flowing river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Sometimes, the need to do something so bold — to fix a place and right past wrongs — means you have to sit down and just be pragmatic on how you’re going to get a deal done,” \u003ca href=\"https://wildlife.ca.gov/Director\">Chuck Bonham\u003c/a>, director of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, told CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Native tribes and scientists see demolition as a victory for the river’s first peoples and the fish they depend on for their food, cultures and livelihoods. Chinook populations have crashed, so much so that the 2023 \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/water/2023/03/california-salmon-fishery-shut-down/\">fishing season was cancelled statewide\u003c/a>. The river’s spring-run chinook are listed as threatened under California endangered species law, while coho are listed under both the state and federal laws.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984191\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984191 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_01-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mike Polmateer, a Karuk fisheries field supervisor, at Horse Creek along the Klamath River. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Removing the dams is expected to reopen more than 400 miles of habitat for steelhead and other threatened and iconic fish, and restore flows that can better flush away toxic algae and disease.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But \u003ca href=\"https://www.siskiyoucountywaterusersassociation.org/\">residents\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.co.siskiyou.ca.us/sites/default/files/fileattachments/natural_resources/page/7851/nr-20190313_siskiyou_county_comments_definite_plan.pdf\">officials (PDF)\u003c/a> in Siskiyou County worry about the sediment that the project will unleash into the river and the consequences of losing a reservoir to re-feed groundwater wells, fight fires and recreate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Landowners mourn lakeside property that will no longer be waterfront as reservoirs vanish and the exposed land becomes the property of the state of California or a designated third party.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984150\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984150\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072023_Yurok-Salmon-Counting_SN_CM_25.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">‘It’s hard to say for sure what things will be like in the future,’ said Oshun O’Rourke, a senior fisheries biologist with the Yurok Tribe who is shown near a study site along the Klamath River near Weitchpec. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>What is clear is that the Klamath won’t return to the river it once was. Designated as a wild and scenic river, the Klamath has long been the nexus of some of the \u003ca href=\"https://islandpress.org/books/water-war-klamath-basin\">West’s fiercest water wars\u003c/a>, and removing PacifiCorp’s hydroelectric dams ends only some of the battles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other dams will remain upriver in Oregon, where the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation controls flows from Upper Klamath Lake — portioning out too little water to satisfy tribes, wildlife refuges, lake, river, farms and fish. The battle over water allocation will continue, as will the \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drought/scott_shasta_rivers/docs/2023/petition-minimum-flows.pdf\">fights over tributaries (PDF)\u003c/a> downstream of the dams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The work is not done, by any means,” O’Rourke said, the Klamath River rushing beside her. “There’s still so much to do after the dams come out.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>As construction begins, ‘there is no going back’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The smallest of the four dams, the \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/the-project/\">33-foot Copco Number 2\u003c/a>, located in Siskiyou County, is already almost gone. Water rushed past it by mid-July, and only a concrete and steel structure on the river’s bank remained visible from above.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Quite a remarkable sight to see and feeling to feel,” said Mark Bransom, CEO of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation, the nonprofit formed to oversee the removal effort. “Knowing that we’ve broken ground and allowed for the river to start that healing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This time last year, Bransom said, the riverbed was dry, the water diverted to generate power. Trees now crowd the canyon floor where they sprouted from a riverbed long absent its river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By October of 2024, the river will flow freely past the other three dams as well — the J.C. Boyle dam in Oregon and the Copco Number 1 and Iron Gate dams in California’s Siskiyou County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At this point, Bransom said, “there is no going back.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984151\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984151\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_25.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mark Bransom, chief executive officer of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation, stands above the Copco Number 1 Dam, one of four hydroelectric dams being removed on the Klamath River. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Driving around the mirror-still reservoirs reveals clusters of activity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neon-vested workers on the hillsides collect seeds to replant the bare landscape exposed by drained reservoirs. Overlooking Copco Number 1 dam, the pop-pop-pop of target practice in the distance is audible over the din of drilling for a new groundwater monitoring well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From a hillside above Iron Gate dam, Bransom explains the \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/LKP-FERC-Definite-Plan.pdf\">vast undertaking (PDF)\u003c/a> that is unmaking four dams and a century of environmental interference.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Starting in January 2024, contractor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kiewit.com/pages/opportunities/klamath-river-renewal-project/\">Kiewit Infrastructure West\u003c/a> will use explosives to blast out concrete walls beneath the spillway at J.C. Boyle dam in Oregon and remove the last plug of concrete from a tunnel drilled into the Copco Number 1 dam downstream. Water will flow into Iron Gate reservoir.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A yellow front-end loader trundles to a tunnel at the base of the Iron Gate dam, next to the spillway. This tunnel is where every drop of muddy water will pour into the river starting in January, draining Iron Gate reservoir by up to about 5 feet a day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>About 20 million cubic yards of sediment have collected behind the dams over decades — enough to fill about 2 million dump trucks, though only about a quarter to a third of it is expected to end up in the river, Bransom said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The sediment can choke salmon and other life, and cause oxygen levels in the river to drop. But the work will be timed to avoid migrations, and the ill effects are expected to diminish with time and distance. Federal officials report that ultimately the new conditions will be beneficial to the river and its fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From June through October, excavators will dig into the earthen parts of J.C. Boyle dam in Oregon and use the material to fill in an eroded riverbank and the canal diverting water to the powerhouse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-1984152\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-800x618.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"618\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-800x618.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-1020x788.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-160x124.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-768x593.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-1536x1187.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-2048x1582.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/Klamath-River_dam-removal-scaled-1-1920x1484.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Contractors will use explosives to break up the concrete of the Copco Number 1 dam into chunks and cart it away. Iron Gate will be unzipped from top to bottom by excavators that will deposit the earth in the spillway and a scar left by the dam’s construction.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Klamath_Brochure_Restoring_Habitat_May2021.pdf\">Restoration (PDF)\u003c/a> will also start when the reservoirs are drained, replanting the newly exposed land and restoring habitat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Looking down at Iron Gate dam, where water still churns from the turbines generating power, Bransom said he thinks of the river as a creature exploring new territory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m most curious and excited to basically watch the river emerge, and to see where the river wants to find its way back through this area where it’s been so constrained for 100 years,” Bransom said. “There’ll be some curiosities and trepidation, but it will be only forward progress.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Neighbors living in limbo\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, newlyweds Francis Gill and Danny Fontaine are living in limbo in the Copco Lake community, built on the reservoir, soon to vanish, formed by the Copco Number 1 dam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gill, chief of the Copco Lake volunteer fire department, and Fontaine, a realtor, own a home, rental properties, the long-empty Copco Lake store and a workshop next door. Gill estimates that around 75 to 85 people live in the community full time — double that when those with vacation homes are there.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At Gill and Fontaine’s workshop, a sign on the wall lists Lake Rules. “Go barefoot,” reads one. “Jump off the dock.” But the water has already lowered enough during deconstruction that the dock now rests on the reservoir’s grassy bank, foreshadowing the future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984192\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1984192 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"653\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3.png 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-800x261.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-1020x333.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-160x52.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-768x251.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-1536x502.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters3-1920x627.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Francis Gill, left, and his husband Danny Fontaine, right, in front of their lakefront property on Copco Lake on July 17, 2023. Their property will no longer be lakeside when the dams come down, since the reservoir will disappear. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>At first, when the deal was finalized, they were angry — a feeling that \u003ca href=\"https://lamalfa.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/congressmen-lamalfa-and-bentz-klamath-dams-are-engines-of-energy-and\">reverberates across Siskiyou County\u003c/a>, which has long chafed against the reach of state and federal agencies meddling with local industries. County residents \u003ca href=\"https://ballotpedia.org/Klamath_River_Dam_Removal_Advisory_Vote,_Measure_G_(November_2010)\">overwhelmingly voted to keep the dams\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, with dam removal starting in earnest, Gill and Fontaine are feeling more resigned.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s kind of like a facelift,” Fontaine said. “What’s it going to look like? I hope it looks good!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Do I really trust this doctor?” Gill joked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/water_quality_cert/lower_klamath_ferc14803_deir.html\">State\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/22_0826-3006_P-14803-Final-EIS-Lower-Klamath-Hydrpelectric-Project.pdf\">federal (PDF)\u003c/a> environmental assessments spell out the potential impacts on local residents, including the loss of lakewater for firefighting, some unstable lakeside slopes and a drop in groundwater levels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Downstream of the dams, floodwaters could rise as much as 20 inches higher during extreme, 100-year floods, with levels dropping back down to normal 19 miles downstream, \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/22_0826-3006_P-14803-Final-EIS-Lower-Klamath-Hydrpelectric-Project.pdf\">according to federal projections (PDF)\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some of the money in the budget — the dam removal corporation won’t say how much — has been set aside for \u003ca href=\"https://klamathmitigation.org/faqs\">an independently managed mitigation fund\u003c/a> that residents can apply to, provided they agree not to sue. CalFire \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/fire-management-plan/\">has also signed off\u003c/a> on a plan \u003ca href=\"https://klamathrenewal.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Fire-Plan-Dec-2022-FERC-14803.pdf\">to address local firefighting capacity (PDF)\u003c/a>, which includes dry hydrants and a camera network to spot fires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gill and Fontaine fear they will lose access to the water their community was built around. They are holding out hope that at least the river will be close, feeling for the bottom of the lake when they go swimming and measuring it with a depth probe, looking for the river’s original channel. Fontaine thinks he discovered it while swimming off of the store’s boat ramp.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was kind of exciting, that maybe it could be right there. But we don’t know,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984155\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984155\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071723_Dam-Tour-and-Copco-Lake_SN_CM_31.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Docks lay on the banks of a receding shoreline of Copco Lake on July 17, 2023. This land will soon be riverfront as the reservoir disappears when the dams are removed. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>They are clear-eyed about the algae that turns the lake green every summer. But the two aren’t convinced that removing the dams will fix it. Gill said he heard that before the dams were constructed, the river would slow to a trickle between puddles of algae in the summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The river’s flows will \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/water_quality_cert/docs/lower_klamath_ferc14803_deir/3_6.pdf\">continue to be controlled by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (PDF)\u003c/a>, which declined to answer CalMatters’ questions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The original locals, the Shasta Indian Nation, also have mixed feelings about the dam removal. Though they support the river’s restoration, they’re bracing for what deconstruction and drainage will reveal. Dispossessed by the dam’s construction, the Shasta Indian Nation now faces disturbance once again of burials and other cultural sites.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There are consequences with the construction of the dams,” said \u003ca href=\"https://www.shastaindiannation.org/tribal-council.html\">Sami Jo Difuntorum\u003c/a>, culture preservation officer of the Shasta Indian Nation. “And now with the dams coming out, we have consequences that are unique to our people — the disruption and disturbance to our sacred sites.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘More than just a river to us’: Awaiting return of healthy salmon\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Richard Marshall, president of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.siskiyoucountywaterusersassociation.org/board\">Siskiyou County Water Users Association\u003c/a>, which opposes dam removal, doubts the disruption will be worth it. The idea that demolition is going to “automatically create salmon,” he said, “is simply not true.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Marshall suspects that warm water upriver, underwater barriers to fish migration and predators have always made the upper basin inhospitable to salmon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Federal scientists disagree. They \u003ca href=\"https://fisheries.org/docs/fisheries_magazine_archive/fisheries_3004.pdf\">point to historical descriptions of chinook (PDF)\u003c/a>, steelhead, coho salmon and lamprey above the dams. A photograph from the Klamath County Historical Society from 1891 shows men in suits, ties and hats displaying their salmon catch on the Link River, which flows from Upper Klamath Lake.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s a matter of timing, said Jim Simondet, Klamath branch supervisor for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s fisheries division. Temperatures should be cold enough and flows sufficient for spring-run chinook salmon, \u003ca href=\"https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=109405&inline\">a state-protected species\u003c/a>, to migrate above the dams in the spring, but should also support fall-run chinook migrating after the heat of the summer subsides.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Simondet said scientists will be keeping a close watch for any bottlenecks that might prevent fish from reaching the upper basin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s a lot of fish that are bumping their heads up against Iron Gate Dam currently,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The river’s coho salmon, listed as threatened at the \u003ca href=\"https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=109405&inline\">state and federal level\u003c/a>, are also expected to use about 70 miles of habitat above the former dam sites after demolition, Simondet said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984156\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984156\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_16.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Juvenile coho salmon collected for tagging in Horse Creek along the Klamath River. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Mike Polmateer is helping the Karuk tribe track them — if and when they do return.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We believe wholeheartedly that once the dams come down, the fish will return,” said Polmateer, a field supervisor with the Karuk Tribal Fisheries Program. The Karuk and the Yurok downriver are the largest tribes in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Polmateer is also a traditional fisherman and a fatawana, which he describes as a medicine man. He’s been protesting the dams for years, after a \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/bay_delta/california_waterfix/exhibits/docs/PCFFA&IGFR/part2/pcffa_155.pdf\">massive fish die-off on the lower Klamath in 2002 (PDF)\u003c/a> catalyzed the \u003ca href=\"https://bringthesalmonhome.org/understanding-dam-removal/\">movement to restore the river\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s still the water that runs through my veins. We only want it to be taken care of,” Polmateer said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984157\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984157\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02-1920x1281.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071823_Karuk-Fish-Tagging_SN_CM_02.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mike Polmateer, a fisheries field supervisor and member of the Karuk tribe, at a pond built as a refuge for coho. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984193\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984193\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"635\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4.png 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-800x254.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-1020x324.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-160x51.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-768x244.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-1536x488.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters-4-1920x610.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Left: Juvenile coho salmon are weighed and measured before tagging in Horse Creek. Right: Fisheries technician Clay Tuttle injects a tag into a coho salmon. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Highway 96 unfurls along the river from the dry volcanic slopes downstream of the dams to wooded canyons downriver. And just off the highway, tucked away down a bumpy dirt road where horned cattle rest in the shade, is a clear blue pond built as a refuge for young coho salmon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Polmateer meets his team there — three younger men in wetsuits who wade into the pond to capture the small silver fish for tagging.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The operation takes seconds: The fish, less than three inches long, are sedated in a bucket of water laced with clove oil and something more, then weighed, measured and scanned for existing tags. Then, a deft poke into the fish’s abdomen with a needle, and a tag, no bigger than a grain of rice, is slipped inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tagged, these coho can be tracked on their way to the ocean and as they return, after the dams are gone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Polmateer, now 63, will be retired by then, but he hopes that his crew, the next generation, will continue the work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s more than just a river to us. It’s more than just something that harbors fish,” Polmateer said. “It’s who we are as a people. We’re fix-the-world-people, Karuk people are.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Hunting bugs — a critical link in the river’s food web\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Green gobbets of algae raced down the Klamath about 11 miles downriver of Iron Gate dam. Big rigs roared in the opposite direction on Interstate 5 above, rumbling towards Oregon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And in the middle of the river, water up to his knees, stood Yurok fisheries technician Gilbert Meyers, a net plunged into the gravel and muck. A team of researchers was there to take the river’s pulse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One way to do that, said Meyers’ boss, Jamie Holt, is by capturing bugs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Fish eat bugs, so it directly equates to fish food,” said Holt, a senior fisheries technician with the Yurok Tribe’s Klamath program.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984160\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984160\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_02.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gilbert Myers, a fisheries technician with the Yurok Tribe, collects mayflies and other aquatic bugs from the Klamath River near I-5 on July 19, 2023. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984197\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1984197\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"649\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5.png 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-800x260.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-1020x331.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-160x52.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-768x249.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-1536x498.png 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/calmatters5-1920x623.png 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Left: Dragonfly larvae collected from the Klamath River. Right: A fly perched on a branch at Tree of Heaven Campground.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Monitoring which insects like mayflies, caddisflies and salmon flies are living where, and in what numbers, offers a real-time view into the river’s health before and after the dams come down. The work, \u003ca href=\"https://sites.google.com/view/lusardi-lab/research?pli=1\">a collaboration with UC Davis and California Trout\u003c/a>, spans the basin, fingerprinting conditions on the Klamath over time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The crew’s next sampling location, at a campground downriver, is more scenic than the site under I-5. But here, too, algae clogs the sampling nets.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A flotilla of children on rafts have scared away the fish the team tries to survey, and they break for food — salmon that Yurok fisheries technician Keenan O’Rourke caught, smoked and jarred last summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, salmon projections are so dismal that federal officials and the Yurok tribe canceled commercial and subsistence fisheries, a devastating decision for people with an average income of \u003ca href=\"https://censusreporter.org/profiles/25200US4760R-yurok-reservation/\">less than $21,000 a year\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1984163\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1984163\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/071923_Yurok-Bug-Sampling_SN_CM_12.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jamie Holt, a Yurok senior fisheries technician, examines insects taken from the Klamath River on July 19, 2023. \u003ccite>(Semantha Norris/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Holt warns that the dam removal won’t be a panacea as the federal government will still control flows upriver. But she’s optimistic about all the ways it will improve the river’s health. “It’s just going to harbor far more life … It’s going to hatch all kinds of bugs, which grow bigger fish,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Holt’s been hearing about demolition of the dams for so long that it doesn’t seem real that they’ll soon be gone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I kind of joked around for a lot of years that I’ll believe it when I’m floating over where they used to stand,” she said. “And it still kind of holds.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1984149/as-klamath-dams-come-down-a-once-in-a-generation-river-restoration-begins",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1984149"
],
"categories": [
"science_2874",
"science_31",
"science_35",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_4414",
"science_247"
],
"featImg": "science_1984164",
"label": "source_science_1984149"
},
"science_1984200": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1984200",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1984200",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1693567814000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1693567814,
"format": "standard",
"title": "Climate Change Makes Wildfires in California More Extreme",
"headTitle": "Climate Change Makes Wildfires in California More Extreme | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>During some of the worst hours in Camp Fire, which in 2018 burned the town of Paradise, California to the ground, the fire was growing so fast it \u003ca href=\"https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/09/us/california-wildfires-superlatives-wcx/index.html\">ate up 10,000 acres\u003c/a> within just 90 minutes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wildfires like the\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2018/11/13/667315613/californias-camp-fire-becomes-the-deadliest-in-state-history\"> Camp\u003c/a> Fire that intensify and spread enormously within a\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2019/11/09/777801169/the-camp-fire-destroyed-11-000-homes-a-year-later-only-11-have-been-rebuilt\"> single day, hour, or even minutes\u003c/a>, keep fire experts up at night. Now a \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06444-3\">new study\u003c/a>, published Wednesday in \u003cem>Nature\u003c/em>, uses a machine-learning model to show that climate change has nudged the risk of fast-spreading fires up by about 25% on average in California. That’s compared to a time before humans heated up Earth’s atmosphere by burning vast amounts of fossil fuels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re seeing the impact of climate change for the first time on that high-resolution fire behavior,” says Patrick Brown, the study’s lead author and a climate scientist at Berkeley’s Breakthrough Institute.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The dangers didn’t increase evenly. Of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.fire.ca.gov/our-impact/statistics\">18,000 California fires\u003c/a> that sprang to life from 2003 to 2020, 380 of them included at least one day when they grew by at least 10,000 acres — an area as big as most of Manhattan. Climate change ramped up the likelihood of that growth for most of the fires–but not all of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The team found there were critical thresholds governing fire behavior. For fires burning near the thresholds, climate change could tip them into a more dangerous state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s kind of like if you’re wondering if growing a couple inches will help you dunk,” Brown explains. If you’re really tall already, he says, a few extra inches won’t make a big difference. But if you’re 5′ 10″, a little boost could get you over the rim. “We see the same thing with wildfires. If you’re right on the precipice of these thresholds, then warming causes them to cross over that threshold and increase the risk of danger,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The atmosphere is a thirstier sponge\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The thresholds were primarily associated with the \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2012/08/24/159848194/in-southwest-worst-case-fire-scenario-plays-out\">vapor pressure deficit\u003c/a>, a fancy term for how air pulls water out of dead or live plants and other burnable materials. Hotter air –one of the hallmarks of human-caused climate change–sucks moisture more strongly out of those pieces of potential tinder. \u003ca href=\"https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2019EF001210\">Years of prior research\u003c/a> has shown that fires can grow much bigger and more intense when they have plenty of dry, crispy fuel to burn, a factor heavily influenced by big vapor pressure deficits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new research substantiates those earlier findings, showing fires to be nearly five times likely to burn explosively if those thresholds were crossed. But when the weather was already extremely hot and dry, or by contrast very moist, climate change’s extra nudge didn’t make as big a difference to fire behavior.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As much influence as a heated-up atmosphere can have, it’s far from the only factor at play. “Explosive growth of fires is almost always in some way correlated with high winds,” which whips small fires into enormous ones, points out Max Moritz, a fire expert at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who wasn’t involved in the study.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Where fires start, and how, affects their behavior as well. Fires act differently in forests than in grass or shrublands, or in areas full of houses. “The things we need to continue to keep in mind are the factors alongside climate that are equally if not more important: how is the land use going to change, and how is vegetation going to change?,” says Alexandra Syphard, a fire scientist with the Corvallis, Oregon-based nonprofit Conservation Biology Institute.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The researchers trained a machine learning model on California’s 18,000 fires over the past two decades and the weather conditions under which they burned so that the model could pick out the weather factors that influence fire behavior. Using climate models, they simulated that same world, but minus human-caused climate change. Then they compared fire behavior in the simulated, un-warmed world with the real, overheated one.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Controlling risks for the future\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Risks of explosively growing fires are almost certainly going up, the research found, even if global emissions are reduced quickly and decisively. Global temperatures will continue to rise even after emissions slow or stop, continuing to push fires into more dangerous territory. The number of fast-growing fires could almost double by the end of the century, the researchers found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But, says Brown, those climate-driven increases in risk can be nearly — or entirely — offset by smarter management of the non-climate parts of the fire story. Clearing extra fuel from \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/08/27/1119428879/why-suppressing-wildfires-may-be-making-the-western-fire-crisis-worse\">overcrowded forests\u003c/a> via strategies like\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/pictureshow/2022/06/07/1101257256/neighbors-use-prescribed-fire-to-restore-great-plains-grasslands\"> prescribed fire\u003c/a>, for example, means there’s less fuel to burn. More than \u003ca href=\"https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm20/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/765573\">80% of U.S. fires\u003c/a> are started by people, and those fires burn\u003ca href=\"https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1617394114\"> faster and wider than naturally ignited ones\u003c/a>. Getting that number in check could greatly lessen risks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To Mortiz, the challenge now is partly about considering climate’s influence on wildfire risk while figuring out how to minimize the risks of fire for \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/05/16/1098813861/wildfire-home-real-estate-risk-climate-change\">people and their homes\u003c/a> and communities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His research group has looked at how human-scale decisions, like neighborhood design or house placement, affects \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/10/21/924507691/millions-of-homes-are-at-risk-of-wildfires-but-its-rarely-disclosed\">wildfire risks to communities\u003c/a>. “We realized the strength of housing densities on fire activity rivals the strength of climate variables in some parts of California,” he says. Those choices are well within peoples’ ability to control, through zoning policy, or building codes, or \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1941685/this-california-neighborhood-was-built-to-survive-a-wildfire-and-it-worked\">fire-smart neighborhood design\u003c/a>. “We have to be more holistic in our understanding of ‘risk,’ to look at the human side as well,” Mortiz says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=Climate+change+makes+wildfires+in+California+more+explosive+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 996,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 17
},
"modified": 1704845910,
"excerpt": "A new study pins about 25% of the extra risk on human-caused climate change. ",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "A new study pins about 25% of the extra risk on human-caused climate change. ",
"title": "Climate Change Makes Wildfires in California More Extreme | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "Climate Change Makes Wildfires in California More Extreme",
"datePublished": "2023-09-01T04:30:14-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:18:30-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "climate-change-makes-wildfires-in-california-more-extreme",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1196637141&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Wed, 30 Aug 2023 11:42:54 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Wed, 30 Aug 2023 15:44:17 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/2023/08/30/1196637141/climate-change-makes-wildfires-in-california-more-explosive?ft=nprml&f=1196637141",
"nprImageAgency": "Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images",
"source": "NPR",
"nprStoryId": "1196637141",
"sourceUrl": "https://www.npr.org/",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/1193795778/alejandra-borunda\">Alejandra Borunda\u003c/a>",
"sticky": false,
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Wed, 30 Aug 2023 15:44:00 -0400",
"path": "/science/1984200/climate-change-makes-wildfires-in-california-more-extreme",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>During some of the worst hours in Camp Fire, which in 2018 burned the town of Paradise, California to the ground, the fire was growing so fast it \u003ca href=\"https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/09/us/california-wildfires-superlatives-wcx/index.html\">ate up 10,000 acres\u003c/a> within just 90 minutes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wildfires like the\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2018/11/13/667315613/californias-camp-fire-becomes-the-deadliest-in-state-history\"> Camp\u003c/a> Fire that intensify and spread enormously within a\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2019/11/09/777801169/the-camp-fire-destroyed-11-000-homes-a-year-later-only-11-have-been-rebuilt\"> single day, hour, or even minutes\u003c/a>, keep fire experts up at night. Now a \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06444-3\">new study\u003c/a>, published Wednesday in \u003cem>Nature\u003c/em>, uses a machine-learning model to show that climate change has nudged the risk of fast-spreading fires up by about 25% on average in California. That’s compared to a time before humans heated up Earth’s atmosphere by burning vast amounts of fossil fuels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re seeing the impact of climate change for the first time on that high-resolution fire behavior,” says Patrick Brown, the study’s lead author and a climate scientist at Berkeley’s Breakthrough Institute.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The dangers didn’t increase evenly. Of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.fire.ca.gov/our-impact/statistics\">18,000 California fires\u003c/a> that sprang to life from 2003 to 2020, 380 of them included at least one day when they grew by at least 10,000 acres — an area as big as most of Manhattan. Climate change ramped up the likelihood of that growth for most of the fires–but not all of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The team found there were critical thresholds governing fire behavior. For fires burning near the thresholds, climate change could tip them into a more dangerous state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s kind of like if you’re wondering if growing a couple inches will help you dunk,” Brown explains. If you’re really tall already, he says, a few extra inches won’t make a big difference. But if you’re 5′ 10″, a little boost could get you over the rim. “We see the same thing with wildfires. If you’re right on the precipice of these thresholds, then warming causes them to cross over that threshold and increase the risk of danger,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The atmosphere is a thirstier sponge\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The thresholds were primarily associated with the \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2012/08/24/159848194/in-southwest-worst-case-fire-scenario-plays-out\">vapor pressure deficit\u003c/a>, a fancy term for how air pulls water out of dead or live plants and other burnable materials. Hotter air –one of the hallmarks of human-caused climate change–sucks moisture more strongly out of those pieces of potential tinder. \u003ca href=\"https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2019EF001210\">Years of prior research\u003c/a> has shown that fires can grow much bigger and more intense when they have plenty of dry, crispy fuel to burn, a factor heavily influenced by big vapor pressure deficits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new research substantiates those earlier findings, showing fires to be nearly five times likely to burn explosively if those thresholds were crossed. But when the weather was already extremely hot and dry, or by contrast very moist, climate change’s extra nudge didn’t make as big a difference to fire behavior.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As much influence as a heated-up atmosphere can have, it’s far from the only factor at play. “Explosive growth of fires is almost always in some way correlated with high winds,” which whips small fires into enormous ones, points out Max Moritz, a fire expert at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who wasn’t involved in the study.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Where fires start, and how, affects their behavior as well. Fires act differently in forests than in grass or shrublands, or in areas full of houses. “The things we need to continue to keep in mind are the factors alongside climate that are equally if not more important: how is the land use going to change, and how is vegetation going to change?,” says Alexandra Syphard, a fire scientist with the Corvallis, Oregon-based nonprofit Conservation Biology Institute.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The researchers trained a machine learning model on California’s 18,000 fires over the past two decades and the weather conditions under which they burned so that the model could pick out the weather factors that influence fire behavior. Using climate models, they simulated that same world, but minus human-caused climate change. Then they compared fire behavior in the simulated, un-warmed world with the real, overheated one.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Controlling risks for the future\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Risks of explosively growing fires are almost certainly going up, the research found, even if global emissions are reduced quickly and decisively. Global temperatures will continue to rise even after emissions slow or stop, continuing to push fires into more dangerous territory. The number of fast-growing fires could almost double by the end of the century, the researchers found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But, says Brown, those climate-driven increases in risk can be nearly — or entirely — offset by smarter management of the non-climate parts of the fire story. Clearing extra fuel from \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/08/27/1119428879/why-suppressing-wildfires-may-be-making-the-western-fire-crisis-worse\">overcrowded forests\u003c/a> via strategies like\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/pictureshow/2022/06/07/1101257256/neighbors-use-prescribed-fire-to-restore-great-plains-grasslands\"> prescribed fire\u003c/a>, for example, means there’s less fuel to burn. More than \u003ca href=\"https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm20/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/765573\">80% of U.S. fires\u003c/a> are started by people, and those fires burn\u003ca href=\"https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1617394114\"> faster and wider than naturally ignited ones\u003c/a>. Getting that number in check could greatly lessen risks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To Mortiz, the challenge now is partly about considering climate’s influence on wildfire risk while figuring out how to minimize the risks of fire for \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/05/16/1098813861/wildfire-home-real-estate-risk-climate-change\">people and their homes\u003c/a> and communities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His research group has looked at how human-scale decisions, like neighborhood design or house placement, affects \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/10/21/924507691/millions-of-homes-are-at-risk-of-wildfires-but-its-rarely-disclosed\">wildfire risks to communities\u003c/a>. “We realized the strength of housing densities on fire activity rivals the strength of climate variables in some parts of California,” he says. Those choices are well within peoples’ ability to control, through zoning policy, or building codes, or \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1941685/this-california-neighborhood-was-built-to-survive-a-wildfire-and-it-worked\">fire-smart neighborhood design\u003c/a>. “We have to be more holistic in our understanding of ‘risk,’ to look at the human side as well,” Mortiz says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=Climate+change+makes+wildfires+in+California+more+explosive+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1984200/climate-change-makes-wildfires-in-california-more-extreme",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1984200"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_4877",
"science_3820",
"science_182",
"science_194",
"science_112"
],
"featImg": "science_1984201",
"label": "source_science_1984200"
},
"science_1983983": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1983983",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983983",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1692385409000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1692385409,
"format": "standard",
"title": "Wildfire Prevention Strategies Maui Can Adopt From California",
"headTitle": "Wildfire Prevention Strategies Maui Can Adopt From California | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>As the community in West Maui begins a slow recovery after the deadliest U.S. wildfire in the last century, one of the biggest questions is how a similar tragedy can be prevented.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hawaii may not have to look far. Other states, like California, have adopted strategies that are known to reduce the risk that a wildfire will spread.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many of them are no secret to Hawaii state officials. The government’s own reports have shown that West Maui is at severe risk for wildfire, its foothills covered in dry, invasive grasses that are highly flammable. Previous recommendations included improving evacuation plans, managing dry vegetation around towns and clearing defensible space around houses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other Western states have mandated those policies after their own histories with destructive wildfires. Despite the recommendations, Hawaii fire experts say little was accomplished to do wildfire prevention in West Maui. Like so many communities, it struggled to find funding to clear large areas of vegetation and maintain them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No precautions are guaranteed to stop a fire, especially in extreme winds. However, fire experts say the tragedy shows communities cannot ignore their own warnings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My hope would be that what just happened in Hawaii is really a wake-up call, so that any state that has fire risk of this sort is planning ahead to keep their citizens safe,” says Michael Wara, director of the Climate and Energy Policy Program at the Woods Institute for the Environment at Stanford University.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As Hawaii takes a close look at its wildfire policies, there are three core strategies it could adopt.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Use better evacuation technology\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For many residents in downtown Lahaina, the only warning to leave was seeing the flames race toward their home. In the aftermath of the fire, many are angry that the town’s network of warning sirens weren’t turned on.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If I would have heard the siren that morning, I would have at least prepared, packed something in my car, called my parents,” says Alex Calma, a Lahaina resident who lost his home.[aside postID='news_11957996,science_1983909' label='Related coverage']Instead, he and his neighbors drove away with little time to spare, jamming one of the only roads out of town.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Government officials instead turned on the Wireless Emergency Alert system, which blasts a message to people’s phones, like AMBER Alerts for missing children. Many residents NPR spoke to didn’t receive it. High winds, power outages and flames took out the cell service network. A similar thing happened in \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/california-wildfires/article/County-officials-failed-to-use-cell-phone-alerts-13400300.php\">California’s deadly Camp Fire in 2018\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Look at how often it doesn’t work — how often cell phone towers like in Paradise and Maui get burned right away,” says Thomas Cova, a professor of geography who studies evacuations at the University of Utah. “That’s the first thing that happens is the fire burns the cell phone tower.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maui officials defended their choice not to turn on the sirens, saying the public would have been confused. People, they say, associate the sirens with tsunami warnings and could have run into the hills instead. That’s despite the fact that it was the direction the flames were coming from.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To clarify the alerts, a number of cities have installed new siren networks that can also broadcast voice messages, like \u003ca href=\"https://www.cityofmillvalley.org/213/Warnings-Alerts\">Mill Valley, California\u003c/a>, where wildfires are a danger. In Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kpb.us/emergency-mgmt/oem/50-borough/emergency-management/491-sirens\">sirens play pre-recorded messages\u003c/a> to tell residents what kind of threat they’re alerting about, like a volcano, tsunami or storm, then instruct residents to tune into the radio for more details.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Disaster response experts stress that cities need to have multiple strategies to alert and evacuate people safely, especially ones that don’t rely entirely on cell networks.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Pass a requirement to clear flammable brush and grass\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As one of the people who has worked to prevent fires near Lahaina, it’s not easy for Gordon Firestein to look at the view from his house: a dark black burn scar and the blue Pacific Ocean beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983985\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983985\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A man wearing a light brown t-shirt and sunglasses stands in front of a mountain shadowed by white clouds above it. In the background there are a few palm trees, with a view of the ocean, dry grass, and plants.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93.jpg 1499w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">For years, Gordon Firestein has worked with neighbors to make Lahaina safer from wildfires. He’s hopeful the state will pass mandatory policies to clear vegetation. \u003ccite>(Lauren Sommer/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Once a California resident, Firestein moved to West Maui 15 years ago and found the golden hillsides were all too reminiscent of his home state. Former sugarcane fields have been abandoned and overrun with invasive grasses. He banded together with a few neighbors to join \u003ca href=\"https://www.nfpa.org/Public-Education/Fire-causes-and-risks/Wildfire/Firewise-USA\">the FireWise program\u003c/a>. Run by the nonprofit National Fire Protection Association, it provides a blueprint for communities to become better prepared for wildfires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Firestein says they’ve educated neighbors about trimming the dry vegetation directly around a home to create defensible space. But Hawaii doesn’t have mandatory rules that compel homeowners to do it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>States like California \u003ca href=\"https://www.readyforwildfire.org/prepare-for-wildfire/get-ready/defensible-space/\">require homeowners in high risk areas to clear brush\u003c/a> and inspections are done by both city and state fire agencies. In San Diego, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1943058/whos-checking-homes-for-flammable-brush-in-some-high-risk-areas-maybe-no-one\">if a homeowner doesn’t comply, the city hires a contractor\u003c/a> to do the work and puts a lien on the property to recoup the cost.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I certainly hope that’s part of the post-fire process — that we begin to look seriously at California, for example, as a model,” Firestein says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Larger areas at the edges of towns also need to be cleared of dry grass to act as a buffer against fire. On the outskirts of Lahaina, rows of houses are nestled in the hills. After the fire, some residents said the problem had been ignored for years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We need some accountability,” says Chris Arnold, a Lahaina resident who lost his home. “Give us some fire breaks and I don’t want to hear any more excuses.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983986\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983986\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"Image shows destruction caused in a town after a wildfire. \" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4.jpg 1598w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">After the destruction in Lahaina, Hawaii, fire experts say they’re hopeful the state will take a hard look at its wildfire policies. \u003ccite>(Deanne Fitzmaurice for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Almost a decade ago, a \u003ca href=\"https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5254fbe2e4b04bbc53b57821/t/54ff533ee4b0d8debf83ed8d/1426019167515/Western+Maui+CWPP+Final+with+Appendices.pdf\">community protection plan (PDF)\u003c/a> was written for Western Maui, which found wildfire was an extreme risk there. It recommended managing invasive grasses, creating defensible space and working with private landowners to create fire breaks. Another \u003ca href=\"https://www.mauicounty.gov/DocumentCenter/View/129493/Report-on-Wildfire-Prevention--Cost-Recovery-on-Maui---Part-1-Report--Exhibits-A-B-33-MB\">Maui county report (PDF)\u003c/a> two years ago made similar recommendations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some of the projects were completed, but not the majority, especially given that grasses grow back and must be maintained every year. West Maui, like other fire-prone regions, has struggled to find the funding to manage vegetation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The scope and level and amount that needed to get done was never really reached, because we actually really never found funds or capacity to do the full scale of what we’d like to have done,” says Elizabeth Pickett with the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, a nonprofit that helped write the plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Rebuild homes to resist wildfire embers\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Residents who fled Lahaina describe leaving in a rain of embers from the sky. In most wildfires, houses catch on fire because of these embers, not because of the advancing flames.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2019/04/02/704854496/step-1-build-a-house-step-2-set-it-on-fire\">Fire researchers have documented\u003c/a> how embers can get caught on wood-shingled roofs and siding, fall into gutters with leaves or even get blown into attic vents, igniting the building from the inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California and a handful of other states have \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/11/25/936685629/rebuilding-after-a-wildfire-most-states-dont-require-fire-resistant-materials\">passed wildfire building codes\u003c/a>, requiring new homes to use fire-resistant materials if they’re built in risky areas. The rules cover roofs, siding, windows and ventilation, since attic vents can be protected by covering them with a fine mesh screen. Research shows for new construction, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/07/28/1114242871/fireproofing-your-home-isnt-very-expensive-but-few-states-require-it\">it’s not substantially more expensive\u003c/a> to build that way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While residents in Lahaina will have the option to build this way, fire experts say using mandatory building codes ensures all new buildings have a better chance of surviving and are less likely to spread fire to other structures. For older homes that are already built, some communities \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/10/21/924507691/millions-of-homes-are-at-risk-of-wildfires-but-its-rarely-disclosed\">offer home inspections\u003c/a> to give homeowners a specific list of recommendations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Communities need to start investing in those strategies and perhaps recognizing that everyone is in this together, that people need to be given assistance to do these things,” Wara says. “They also need to be pushed to take the steps that will protect the whole community from a wildfire.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wildfire building codes \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/11/25/936685629/rebuilding-after-a-wildfire-most-states-dont-require-fire-resistant-materials\">have faced pushback in some states\u003c/a> that have proposed them, especially from home building associations. Fire experts in Hawaii say they’re hopeful that, given the heavy toll of Maui’s fires, lawmakers will embrace change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I really want to believe that we will rally the way that we do so well as an island state and use this toward progress, improvement, and all the things that felt too big to deal with,” Pickett says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=3+strategies+Maui+can+adopt+from+other+states+to+help+prevent+dangerous+wildfires+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 1503,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 33
},
"modified": 1704845921,
"excerpt": "In preparing for future fires, Maui doesn't have to look far. States like California have passed wildfire policies to reduce the risk that a community will be destroyed. ",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "In preparing for future fires, Maui doesn't have to look far. States like California have passed wildfire policies to reduce the risk that a community will be destroyed. ",
"title": "Wildfire Prevention Strategies Maui Can Adopt From California | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "Wildfire Prevention Strategies Maui Can Adopt From California",
"datePublished": "2023-08-18T12:03:29-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:18:41-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "wildfire-prevention-strategies-maui-can-adopt-from-california",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1194505306&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Fri, 18 Aug 2023 06:00:31 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Fri, 18 Aug 2023 11:08:25 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/2023/08/18/1194505306/3-strategies-maui-can-adopt-from-other-states-to-help-prevent-dangerous-wildfire?ft=nprml&f=1194505306",
"nprImageAgency": "Deanne Fitzmaurice for NPR",
"source": "NPR",
"nprStoryId": "1194505306",
"sourceUrl": "https://www.npr.org/",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/803934365/lauren-sommer\">Lauren Sommer\u003c/a>",
"sticky": false,
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Fri, 18 Aug 2023 11:08:00 -0400",
"path": "/science/1983983/wildfire-prevention-strategies-maui-can-adopt-from-california",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>As the community in West Maui begins a slow recovery after the deadliest U.S. wildfire in the last century, one of the biggest questions is how a similar tragedy can be prevented.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hawaii may not have to look far. Other states, like California, have adopted strategies that are known to reduce the risk that a wildfire will spread.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many of them are no secret to Hawaii state officials. The government’s own reports have shown that West Maui is at severe risk for wildfire, its foothills covered in dry, invasive grasses that are highly flammable. Previous recommendations included improving evacuation plans, managing dry vegetation around towns and clearing defensible space around houses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other Western states have mandated those policies after their own histories with destructive wildfires. Despite the recommendations, Hawaii fire experts say little was accomplished to do wildfire prevention in West Maui. Like so many communities, it struggled to find funding to clear large areas of vegetation and maintain them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No precautions are guaranteed to stop a fire, especially in extreme winds. However, fire experts say the tragedy shows communities cannot ignore their own warnings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My hope would be that what just happened in Hawaii is really a wake-up call, so that any state that has fire risk of this sort is planning ahead to keep their citizens safe,” says Michael Wara, director of the Climate and Energy Policy Program at the Woods Institute for the Environment at Stanford University.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As Hawaii takes a close look at its wildfire policies, there are three core strategies it could adopt.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Use better evacuation technology\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For many residents in downtown Lahaina, the only warning to leave was seeing the flames race toward their home. In the aftermath of the fire, many are angry that the town’s network of warning sirens weren’t turned on.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If I would have heard the siren that morning, I would have at least prepared, packed something in my car, called my parents,” says Alex Calma, a Lahaina resident who lost his home.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_11957996,science_1983909",
"label": "Related coverage "
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Instead, he and his neighbors drove away with little time to spare, jamming one of the only roads out of town.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Government officials instead turned on the Wireless Emergency Alert system, which blasts a message to people’s phones, like AMBER Alerts for missing children. Many residents NPR spoke to didn’t receive it. High winds, power outages and flames took out the cell service network. A similar thing happened in \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/california-wildfires/article/County-officials-failed-to-use-cell-phone-alerts-13400300.php\">California’s deadly Camp Fire in 2018\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Look at how often it doesn’t work — how often cell phone towers like in Paradise and Maui get burned right away,” says Thomas Cova, a professor of geography who studies evacuations at the University of Utah. “That’s the first thing that happens is the fire burns the cell phone tower.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maui officials defended their choice not to turn on the sirens, saying the public would have been confused. People, they say, associate the sirens with tsunami warnings and could have run into the hills instead. That’s despite the fact that it was the direction the flames were coming from.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To clarify the alerts, a number of cities have installed new siren networks that can also broadcast voice messages, like \u003ca href=\"https://www.cityofmillvalley.org/213/Warnings-Alerts\">Mill Valley, California\u003c/a>, where wildfires are a danger. In Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kpb.us/emergency-mgmt/oem/50-borough/emergency-management/491-sirens\">sirens play pre-recorded messages\u003c/a> to tell residents what kind of threat they’re alerting about, like a volcano, tsunami or storm, then instruct residents to tune into the radio for more details.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Disaster response experts stress that cities need to have multiple strategies to alert and evacuate people safely, especially ones that don’t rely entirely on cell networks.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Pass a requirement to clear flammable brush and grass\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As one of the people who has worked to prevent fires near Lahaina, it’s not easy for Gordon Firestein to look at the view from his house: a dark black burn scar and the blue Pacific Ocean beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983985\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983985\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A man wearing a light brown t-shirt and sunglasses stands in front of a mountain shadowed by white clouds above it. In the background there are a few palm trees, with a view of the ocean, dry grass, and plants.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gordon-fire-eb3237a6ffc83a4ee304e8e5be8e5a0e5920fb93.jpg 1499w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">For years, Gordon Firestein has worked with neighbors to make Lahaina safer from wildfires. He’s hopeful the state will pass mandatory policies to clear vegetation. \u003ccite>(Lauren Sommer/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Once a California resident, Firestein moved to West Maui 15 years ago and found the golden hillsides were all too reminiscent of his home state. Former sugarcane fields have been abandoned and overrun with invasive grasses. He banded together with a few neighbors to join \u003ca href=\"https://www.nfpa.org/Public-Education/Fire-causes-and-risks/Wildfire/Firewise-USA\">the FireWise program\u003c/a>. Run by the nonprofit National Fire Protection Association, it provides a blueprint for communities to become better prepared for wildfires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Firestein says they’ve educated neighbors about trimming the dry vegetation directly around a home to create defensible space. But Hawaii doesn’t have mandatory rules that compel homeowners to do it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>States like California \u003ca href=\"https://www.readyforwildfire.org/prepare-for-wildfire/get-ready/defensible-space/\">require homeowners in high risk areas to clear brush\u003c/a> and inspections are done by both city and state fire agencies. In San Diego, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1943058/whos-checking-homes-for-flammable-brush-in-some-high-risk-areas-maybe-no-one\">if a homeowner doesn’t comply, the city hires a contractor\u003c/a> to do the work and puts a lien on the property to recoup the cost.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I certainly hope that’s part of the post-fire process — that we begin to look seriously at California, for example, as a model,” Firestein says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Larger areas at the edges of towns also need to be cleared of dry grass to act as a buffer against fire. On the outskirts of Lahaina, rows of houses are nestled in the hills. After the fire, some residents said the problem had been ignored for years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We need some accountability,” says Chris Arnold, a Lahaina resident who lost his home. “Give us some fire breaks and I don’t want to hear any more excuses.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983986\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983986\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"Image shows destruction caused in a town after a wildfire. \" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/lahaina-town-a3deb94d8652b208c556c0430e55fb6d74640ba4.jpg 1598w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">After the destruction in Lahaina, Hawaii, fire experts say they’re hopeful the state will take a hard look at its wildfire policies. \u003ccite>(Deanne Fitzmaurice for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Almost a decade ago, a \u003ca href=\"https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5254fbe2e4b04bbc53b57821/t/54ff533ee4b0d8debf83ed8d/1426019167515/Western+Maui+CWPP+Final+with+Appendices.pdf\">community protection plan (PDF)\u003c/a> was written for Western Maui, which found wildfire was an extreme risk there. It recommended managing invasive grasses, creating defensible space and working with private landowners to create fire breaks. Another \u003ca href=\"https://www.mauicounty.gov/DocumentCenter/View/129493/Report-on-Wildfire-Prevention--Cost-Recovery-on-Maui---Part-1-Report--Exhibits-A-B-33-MB\">Maui county report (PDF)\u003c/a> two years ago made similar recommendations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some of the projects were completed, but not the majority, especially given that grasses grow back and must be maintained every year. West Maui, like other fire-prone regions, has struggled to find the funding to manage vegetation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The scope and level and amount that needed to get done was never really reached, because we actually really never found funds or capacity to do the full scale of what we’d like to have done,” says Elizabeth Pickett with the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, a nonprofit that helped write the plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Rebuild homes to resist wildfire embers\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Residents who fled Lahaina describe leaving in a rain of embers from the sky. In most wildfires, houses catch on fire because of these embers, not because of the advancing flames.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2019/04/02/704854496/step-1-build-a-house-step-2-set-it-on-fire\">Fire researchers have documented\u003c/a> how embers can get caught on wood-shingled roofs and siding, fall into gutters with leaves or even get blown into attic vents, igniting the building from the inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California and a handful of other states have \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/11/25/936685629/rebuilding-after-a-wildfire-most-states-dont-require-fire-resistant-materials\">passed wildfire building codes\u003c/a>, requiring new homes to use fire-resistant materials if they’re built in risky areas. The rules cover roofs, siding, windows and ventilation, since attic vents can be protected by covering them with a fine mesh screen. Research shows for new construction, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/07/28/1114242871/fireproofing-your-home-isnt-very-expensive-but-few-states-require-it\">it’s not substantially more expensive\u003c/a> to build that way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While residents in Lahaina will have the option to build this way, fire experts say using mandatory building codes ensures all new buildings have a better chance of surviving and are less likely to spread fire to other structures. For older homes that are already built, some communities \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/10/21/924507691/millions-of-homes-are-at-risk-of-wildfires-but-its-rarely-disclosed\">offer home inspections\u003c/a> to give homeowners a specific list of recommendations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Communities need to start investing in those strategies and perhaps recognizing that everyone is in this together, that people need to be given assistance to do these things,” Wara says. “They also need to be pushed to take the steps that will protect the whole community from a wildfire.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wildfire building codes \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/11/25/936685629/rebuilding-after-a-wildfire-most-states-dont-require-fire-resistant-materials\">have faced pushback in some states\u003c/a> that have proposed them, especially from home building associations. Fire experts in Hawaii say they’re hopeful that, given the heavy toll of Maui’s fires, lawmakers will embrace change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I really want to believe that we will rally the way that we do so well as an island state and use this toward progress, improvement, and all the things that felt too big to deal with,” Pickett says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=3+strategies+Maui+can+adopt+from+other+states+to+help+prevent+dangerous+wildfires+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1983983/wildfire-prevention-strategies-maui-can-adopt-from-california",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1983983"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_4877",
"science_182",
"science_194",
"science_113",
"science_1498"
],
"featImg": "science_1983984",
"label": "source_science_1983983"
},
"science_1983909": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1983909",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983909",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1692126030000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1692126030,
"format": "standard",
"title": "Maui Fires Now Among Deadliest US Wildfires Ever. Here Are Some Others",
"headTitle": "Maui Fires Now Among Deadliest US Wildfires Ever. Here Are Some Others | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>The wildfires that tore through western Maui last week have already earned the tragic distinction of being among the deadliest in modern U.S. history — and the death toll is only expected to climb as recovery efforts continue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hawaii officials confirmed 99 fatalities as of late Monday, and have warned that number is \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/08/12/1193614596/death-toll-on-maui-climbs-to-80-as-questions-over-islands-emergency-response-gro\">likely to keep rising\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is the largest natural disaster we’ve ever experienced,” Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said \u003ca href=\"https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/14/us/maui-wildfires-what-we-know/index.html#:~:text=The%20Maui%20wildfires%20are%20the,the%20National%20Fire%20Protection%20Association.\">over the weekend\u003c/a>. “It’s going to also be a natural disaster that’s going to take an incredible amount of time to recover from.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week’s wildfires — which destroyed the historic town of Lahaina and left thousands of residents without homes — also constitute the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century. They surpass the 2018 Camp Fire in Paradise, Calif., which killed 85 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://apps.npr.org/datawrapper/henz5/1/?initialWidth=953&childId=responsive-embed-henz5&parentTitle=Maui%20joins%20the%20list%20of%20deadliest%20wildfires%20in%20recorded%20U.S.%20history%20%3A%20NPR&parentUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.npr.org%2F2023%2F08%2F15%2F1193710165%2Fmaui-wildfires-deadliest-us-history\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Maui fire now ranks among the top 10 deadliest U.S. wildfires on record since 1871, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.nfpa.org/-/media/Files/News-and-Research/Fire-statistics-and-reports/WUI/Wildland-Fires-in-the-US-history-with-10-or-more-deaths.ashx\">National Fire Protection Association\u003c/a> (NFPA), a global nonprofit focused on eliminating loss due to fire hazards. Four of them — Maui included — have happened in the years since 2017.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Climate change is increasing the risk of major wildfires across the U.S., and more people are moving to fire-prone areas without realizing it, as \u003ca href=\"https://apps.npr.org/us-wildfires-impact-environment-climate-change/\">NPR has reported\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many of the most devastating wildfires in U.S. history ravaged western states. But others — including the 1871 Peshtigo Fire, the deadliest on record — have struck elsewhere, including in the Midwest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here’s a look at some of the other tragedies on that list, and some lessons learned.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Peshtigo Fire, 1871\u003c/h2>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983911\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983911\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-800x595.jpg\" alt=\"An illustration shows people trying to flee a fire.\" width=\"800\" height=\"595\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-800x595.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-1020x759.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-160x119.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-768x571.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-1536x1143.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-2048x1524.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-1920x1429.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An illustration shows people trying to flee the fire of Peshtigo in Wisconsin in 1871. \u003ccite>(Bettmann/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The deadliest \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/grb/peshtigofire\">wildfire in U.S. history\u003c/a> tore through northeastern Wisconsin in October 1871 — the exact same day as, and only about 250 miles away from, the better known \u003ca href=\"https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2021/10/08/great-chicago-fire\">Great Chicago Fire\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Peshtigo fire scorched about 1.5 million acres, leaving only one building standing. It killed at least 1,152 people, injured about 1,500 and left another 3,000 homeless, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS1750\">Wisconsin Historical Society\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the time, Peshtigo was home to many immigrants working in the lumbering and railroad industries — and a lot of wood, according to the \u003ca href=\"http://www.peshtigofiremuseum.com/fire/\">Peshtigo Fire Museum\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It boasted the world’s largest woodenware factory, as well as one of the country’s largest sawmills. The town was surrounded by pine forests, most of its structures and sidewalks were made of wood and the streets were covered in sawdust from the factory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lumberjacks and railroad construction crews regularly set fires in the area to clear debris, the museum explains, so it wasn’t unusual for the air to be filled with smoke (or for ships to navigate by compass during the day, or for schools to close, or for people to get sick).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The citizens of Peshtigo had become used to the smell of ashes and thought nothing amiss when they retired on the night of October 8, 1871,” reads the historical society’s website. “Suddenly ‘all hell rode into town on the back of a wind.'”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the fire spread, some people hid in water wells while others rushed to the river, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2021/07/07/1013898724/the-deadliest-fire-in-american-history-happened-in-a-place-you-wouldnt-expect\">as NPR has reported\u003c/a>. Of those that survived the initial fire, many died of drowning and hypothermia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/grb/peshtigofire2#:~:text=Fire%20reached%20Peshtigo%20during%20the,the%20fire%20(Figure%201).\">National Weather Service\u003c/a> attributes the fire to several factors, including prolonged drought, a strong autumn storm system, logging and clearing of land for agriculture and the “ignorance and indifference of the population,” as timber was often discarded with little regard for its flammability.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The tragedy, it adds, was an important wake-up call about land-use practices of the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Thumb Fire, 1881\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Thumb Fire swept through central Michigan in September 1881. It burned a million acres in Sanilac and Huron Counties alone, according to a \u003ca href=\"https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=160706\">historical marker\u003c/a> near Bay Port.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Small fires were burning in the forests of the Thumb, tinder-dry after a long, hot summer, when a gale swept in from the southwest on Sept. 5, 1881,” it reads. “Fanned into an inferno, the fires raged for three days.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://news.umich.edu/fires-ravaged-michigans-thumb-in-1871-1881/\">University of Michigan\u003c/a> says the fire killed at least 300 people (NFPA puts the death toll at 282), destroyed 1,521 dwellings and left more than 14,000 people dependent on public aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many residents were left either temporarily or permanently blinded by the smoke and flying ashes that “traveled faster than a whirlwind and blotted out the sun for days,” according to \u003ca href=\"https://thumbwind.com/2021/09/04/1881-michigan-fire/\">Thumbwind.com\u003c/a>. It adds that yellow smoke made its way east, where it darkened the skies over all six New England states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The American Red Cross, which had been founded earlier that year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.redcross.org/content/dam/redcross/enterprise-assets/about-us/history/history-clara-barton-v5-4-19-23.pdf\">collected funds and clothing (PDF)\u003c/a> to support victims — marking its first-ever official disaster relief effort.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Great Fire, 1910\u003c/h2>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983912\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983912\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-800x588.jpg\" alt=\"A black and white photograph of a town destroyed by fires. \" width=\"800\" height=\"588\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-800x588.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-1020x750.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-160x118.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-768x564.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-1536x1129.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-2048x1505.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-1920x1411.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A view of Wallace, Idaho, destroyed by forest fires in 1910. \u003ccite>(HUM Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Great Fire of 1910 was a \u003ca href=\"https://foresthistory.org/research-explore/us-forest-service-history/policy-and-law/fire-u-s-forest-service/famous-fires/the-1910-fires/\">series of forest fires\u003c/a> that burned through Idaho, Montana and Washington between April and August, culminating in the so-called “Big Blowup.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hurricane-force winds arrived on Aug. 20, whipping the small fires into flames hundreds of feet high. Forester Edward Stahl \u003ca href=\"https://www.nationalforests.org/our-forests/your-national-forests-magazine/blazing-battles-the-1910-fire-and-its-legacy\">described them\u003c/a> as being “fanned by a tornado wind so violent that the flames flattened out ahead, swooping to earth in great darting curves, truly a veritable red demon from hell.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fire lasted for \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5444731.pdf\">two days and two nights (PDF)\u003c/a>, devastating more than 3 million acres of timberland in the Northern Rockies. The exact death toll varies, with the \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5444731.pdf\">U.S. Forest Service (PDF)\u003c/a> putting it at 86, saying most were firefighters on the front lines.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Notably, the Forest Service had only existed for five years by this point. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.nationalforests.org/our-forests/your-national-forests-magazine/blazing-battles-the-1910-fire-and-its-legacy\">National Forest Foundation\u003c/a> says the fire “left not only scars on the land, but also lasting and fervent opinions about how forests and wildfire should be managed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Cloquet and Moose Lake Fires, 1918\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Cloquet and Moose Lake fires of 1918 (which were actually made up of \u003ca href=\"https://mndigital.org/projects/primary-source-sets/natural-disasters-minnesota#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20worst%20natural,provided%20fuel%20for%20the%20fires.\">50 blazes\u003c/a>) remain one of the deadliest natural disasters in Minnesota history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Records from the \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/dlh/MooseLake_Cloquet_1918Fires\">National Weather Service\u003c/a> show Northeast Minnesota was experiencing its “driest season in 48 years” when sparks from a passing train, fueled by gusty winds, ignited fires that lasted for several days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fire consumed approximately 1,500 square miles and killed more than 450 people, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://mndigital.org/projects/primary-source-sets/natural-disasters-minnesota#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20worst%20natural,provided%20fuel%20for%20the%20fires.\">Minnesota Digital Library\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly half of the victims were from the Moose Lake area. Many of them died trying to escape in cars or suffocating in root cellars and wells, as \u003ca href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2018/10/12/moose-lake-fire-no-less-horrible-100-years-later\">MPR News\u003c/a> reported on the 100th anniversary.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Natalie Frohrip, the vice president of the Moose Lake Area Historical Society, told the station that her mother-in-law, a teenager at the time, had survived the fire by wading into the lake.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“She said that when she had been in Sunday school, she had learned that when the end of the world came, the stars were going to fall out of the sky,” Frohrip said. “And so when they came down the hill and saw all the sparks, she was sure this was going to be the end.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Griffith Park Fire, 1933\u003c/h2>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983913\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983913\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-800x531.jpg\" alt=\"A group of people plant a pine tree. \" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-800x531.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-1020x677.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-768x510.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-1536x1019.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-2048x1359.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-1920x1274.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">John Loa (right), a survivor of the 1933 Griffith Park fire, helped plant a pine tree in memoriam in 2007, at the age of 96. \u003ccite>(Al Seib/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Griffith Park fire was once the deadliest fire in California history, killing 29 people in 1933. But it burned a relatively small 47 acres and damaged no property.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All of the victims of the fire were civilians who had been doing cleanup and assistance work in the Los Angeles park for 40 cents an hour through a Depression-era government program, as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11705774/remembering-l-a-s-1933-griffith-park-fire-the-states-deadliest-fire-until-now\">member station KQED reported\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There were 3,784 workers in the park when a brush fire broke out on the afternoon of Oct. 3.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Accounts differ on whether workers were ordered by their foremen to head down into Mineral Wells Canyon to fight the fire or whether they were simply asked to help put out the flames,” KQED reported. “Either way, into the canyon they went, with only shovels, their hands and the earth at their feet to work with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fire department had arrived relatively quickly but was \u003ca href=\"https://friendsofgriffithpark.org/griffith-parks-1933-fire/\">reportedly overwhelmed\u003c/a> by the thousands of amateurs crowding the scene. Then a sudden change in the winds sent the fire up the canyon, \u003ca href=\"https://lafire.com/famous_fires/1933-1003_GriffithParkFire/1933-1003_GriffithParkFire.htm\">killing 29 workers\u003c/a> of thermal burns and injuring more than 150 others.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Reporter Caroline Walker \u003ca href=\"https://lafire.com/famous_fires/1933-1003_GriffithParkFire/1933-1003_GriffithParkFire.htm\">wrote in the Oct. 4, 1933 issue\u003c/a> of the \u003cem>Los Angeles Herald-Express\u003c/em> of the men, that “in their hearts a little candle of hope had been burning again because they had a chance to earn a little money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was only a brush fire that they were asked to extinguish. It was the sort that skilled fireworkers know how to handle. But the men in the park weren’t fire fighters. They did not know that canyons become flutes in a brush fire, or that flames travel with such deadly swiftness over grass and trees grown brittle with the summer drought. It was work. That was all that mattered.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Camp Fire, 2018\u003c/h2>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983915\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983915\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"Crosses are seen lined up at a memorial.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Crosses line the road to remember the people who died as a result of the Camp Fire in Paradise, Butte County. \u003ccite>(Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Camp Fire broke out in Northern California in November 2018, sweeping through the towns of Paradise and Concow — which each lost about 95% of their structures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It spanned an area of 153,336 acres, and eventually killed at least 85 people, injuring 12 civilians and five firefighters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A yearlong investigation found that the fire had been ignited by outdated power lines. Pacific Gas & Electric \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/06/16/879008760/pg-e-pleads-guilty-on-2018-california-camp-fire-our-equipment-started-that-fire\">pleaded guilty\u003c/a> in 2020 to 84 separate counts of involuntary manslaughter and one felony count of unlawfully starting a fire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>PG&E has been blamed for more than 30 wildfires, which have killed \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/04/12/1092259419/california-wildfires-pacific-gas-electric-55-million\">more than 100 people since 2017\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>California Fire Siege, 2020\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>More than 8,600 wildfires burned across California in 2020, scorching some 4.2 million acres — a state record — and killing 33 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The 2020 California wildfire year was characterized by record-setting wildfires that burned across the state of California as measured during the modern era of wildfire management and record keeping,” according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.fire.ca.gov/incidents/2020\">California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The years 2020 and 2021 together burned more area than the previous seven years combined, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news/californias-2020-wildfire-season-numbers\">University of California, Davis\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials described 2020 as a “fire siege” because it saw 18 of the state’s 20 most destructive fires on record, as \u003ca href=\"https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/californias-2020-wildfires-negated-years-of-emission-cuts/\">\u003cem>Scientific American\u003c/em>\u003c/a> explains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Among them was the \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/mendocino/home/?cid=FSEPRD860382\">August Complex\u003c/a> fire, which officials called the first “gigafire” since it burned more than 1 million acres. It was ignited by lightning in mid-August and burned for four months, scorching an area larger than the state of Rhode Island to become the largest fire in California history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=Maui%27s+wildfires+are+among+the+deadliest+on+record+in+the+U.S.+Here+are+some+others&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": true,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 1923,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [
"https://apps.npr.org/datawrapper/henz5/1/"
],
"paragraphCount": 51
},
"modified": 1704845926,
"excerpt": "The wildfires that killed at least 99 people in Maui are the deadliest to hit the US in more than a century. Here's a look back at some of the country's most lethal blazes and lessons learned.",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "The wildfires that killed at least 99 people in Maui are the deadliest to hit the US in more than a century. Here's a look back at some of the country's most lethal blazes and lessons learned.",
"title": "Maui Fires Now Among Deadliest US Wildfires Ever. Here Are Some Others | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "Maui Fires Now Among Deadliest US Wildfires Ever. Here Are Some Others",
"datePublished": "2023-08-15T12:00:30-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:18:46-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "maui-fires-now-among-uss-deadliest-wildfires-ever-here-are-some-others",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1193710165&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Tue, 15 Aug 2023 05:00:38 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Tue, 15 Aug 2023 05:00:38 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/2023/08/15/1193710165/maui-wildfires-deadliest-us-history?ft=nprml&f=1193710165",
"nprImageAgency": "AFP via Getty Images",
"source": "NPR",
"nprStoryId": "1193710165",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/776048102/rachel-treisman\">Rachel Treisman\u003c/a>",
"sticky": false,
"nprImageCredit": "Patrick T. Fallon",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Tue, 15 Aug 2023 05:00:00 -0400",
"path": "/science/1983909/maui-fires-now-among-uss-deadliest-wildfires-ever-here-are-some-others",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The wildfires that tore through western Maui last week have already earned the tragic distinction of being among the deadliest in modern U.S. history — and the death toll is only expected to climb as recovery efforts continue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hawaii officials confirmed 99 fatalities as of late Monday, and have warned that number is \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/08/12/1193614596/death-toll-on-maui-climbs-to-80-as-questions-over-islands-emergency-response-gro\">likely to keep rising\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is the largest natural disaster we’ve ever experienced,” Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said \u003ca href=\"https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/14/us/maui-wildfires-what-we-know/index.html#:~:text=The%20Maui%20wildfires%20are%20the,the%20National%20Fire%20Protection%20Association.\">over the weekend\u003c/a>. “It’s going to also be a natural disaster that’s going to take an incredible amount of time to recover from.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week’s wildfires — which destroyed the historic town of Lahaina and left thousands of residents without homes — also constitute the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century. They surpass the 2018 Camp Fire in Paradise, Calif., which killed 85 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://apps.npr.org/datawrapper/henz5/1/?initialWidth=953&childId=responsive-embed-henz5&parentTitle=Maui%20joins%20the%20list%20of%20deadliest%20wildfires%20in%20recorded%20U.S.%20history%20%3A%20NPR&parentUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.npr.org%2F2023%2F08%2F15%2F1193710165%2Fmaui-wildfires-deadliest-us-history\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Maui fire now ranks among the top 10 deadliest U.S. wildfires on record since 1871, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.nfpa.org/-/media/Files/News-and-Research/Fire-statistics-and-reports/WUI/Wildland-Fires-in-the-US-history-with-10-or-more-deaths.ashx\">National Fire Protection Association\u003c/a> (NFPA), a global nonprofit focused on eliminating loss due to fire hazards. Four of them — Maui included — have happened in the years since 2017.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Climate change is increasing the risk of major wildfires across the U.S., and more people are moving to fire-prone areas without realizing it, as \u003ca href=\"https://apps.npr.org/us-wildfires-impact-environment-climate-change/\">NPR has reported\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many of the most devastating wildfires in U.S. history ravaged western states. But others — including the 1871 Peshtigo Fire, the deadliest on record — have struck elsewhere, including in the Midwest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here’s a look at some of the other tragedies on that list, and some lessons learned.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Peshtigo Fire, 1871\u003c/h2>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983911\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983911\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-800x595.jpg\" alt=\"An illustration shows people trying to flee a fire.\" width=\"800\" height=\"595\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-800x595.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-1020x759.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-160x119.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-768x571.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-1536x1143.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-2048x1524.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-517220336_custom-36b3960e4206c18876faf4e6df40069608991ea9-1920x1429.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An illustration shows people trying to flee the fire of Peshtigo in Wisconsin in 1871. \u003ccite>(Bettmann/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The deadliest \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/grb/peshtigofire\">wildfire in U.S. history\u003c/a> tore through northeastern Wisconsin in October 1871 — the exact same day as, and only about 250 miles away from, the better known \u003ca href=\"https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2021/10/08/great-chicago-fire\">Great Chicago Fire\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Peshtigo fire scorched about 1.5 million acres, leaving only one building standing. It killed at least 1,152 people, injured about 1,500 and left another 3,000 homeless, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS1750\">Wisconsin Historical Society\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the time, Peshtigo was home to many immigrants working in the lumbering and railroad industries — and a lot of wood, according to the \u003ca href=\"http://www.peshtigofiremuseum.com/fire/\">Peshtigo Fire Museum\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It boasted the world’s largest woodenware factory, as well as one of the country’s largest sawmills. The town was surrounded by pine forests, most of its structures and sidewalks were made of wood and the streets were covered in sawdust from the factory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lumberjacks and railroad construction crews regularly set fires in the area to clear debris, the museum explains, so it wasn’t unusual for the air to be filled with smoke (or for ships to navigate by compass during the day, or for schools to close, or for people to get sick).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The citizens of Peshtigo had become used to the smell of ashes and thought nothing amiss when they retired on the night of October 8, 1871,” reads the historical society’s website. “Suddenly ‘all hell rode into town on the back of a wind.'”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the fire spread, some people hid in water wells while others rushed to the river, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2021/07/07/1013898724/the-deadliest-fire-in-american-history-happened-in-a-place-you-wouldnt-expect\">as NPR has reported\u003c/a>. Of those that survived the initial fire, many died of drowning and hypothermia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/grb/peshtigofire2#:~:text=Fire%20reached%20Peshtigo%20during%20the,the%20fire%20(Figure%201).\">National Weather Service\u003c/a> attributes the fire to several factors, including prolonged drought, a strong autumn storm system, logging and clearing of land for agriculture and the “ignorance and indifference of the population,” as timber was often discarded with little regard for its flammability.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The tragedy, it adds, was an important wake-up call about land-use practices of the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Thumb Fire, 1881\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Thumb Fire swept through central Michigan in September 1881. It burned a million acres in Sanilac and Huron Counties alone, according to a \u003ca href=\"https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=160706\">historical marker\u003c/a> near Bay Port.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Small fires were burning in the forests of the Thumb, tinder-dry after a long, hot summer, when a gale swept in from the southwest on Sept. 5, 1881,” it reads. “Fanned into an inferno, the fires raged for three days.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://news.umich.edu/fires-ravaged-michigans-thumb-in-1871-1881/\">University of Michigan\u003c/a> says the fire killed at least 300 people (NFPA puts the death toll at 282), destroyed 1,521 dwellings and left more than 14,000 people dependent on public aid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many residents were left either temporarily or permanently blinded by the smoke and flying ashes that “traveled faster than a whirlwind and blotted out the sun for days,” according to \u003ca href=\"https://thumbwind.com/2021/09/04/1881-michigan-fire/\">Thumbwind.com\u003c/a>. It adds that yellow smoke made its way east, where it darkened the skies over all six New England states.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The American Red Cross, which had been founded earlier that year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.redcross.org/content/dam/redcross/enterprise-assets/about-us/history/history-clara-barton-v5-4-19-23.pdf\">collected funds and clothing (PDF)\u003c/a> to support victims — marking its first-ever official disaster relief effort.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Great Fire, 1910\u003c/h2>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983912\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983912\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-800x588.jpg\" alt=\"A black and white photograph of a town destroyed by fires. \" width=\"800\" height=\"588\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-800x588.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-1020x750.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-160x118.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-768x564.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-1536x1129.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-2048x1505.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1354519558_custom-2150f760df2bd256c6bd8f7a8842f848f4107737-1920x1411.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A view of Wallace, Idaho, destroyed by forest fires in 1910. \u003ccite>(HUM Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Great Fire of 1910 was a \u003ca href=\"https://foresthistory.org/research-explore/us-forest-service-history/policy-and-law/fire-u-s-forest-service/famous-fires/the-1910-fires/\">series of forest fires\u003c/a> that burned through Idaho, Montana and Washington between April and August, culminating in the so-called “Big Blowup.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hurricane-force winds arrived on Aug. 20, whipping the small fires into flames hundreds of feet high. Forester Edward Stahl \u003ca href=\"https://www.nationalforests.org/our-forests/your-national-forests-magazine/blazing-battles-the-1910-fire-and-its-legacy\">described them\u003c/a> as being “fanned by a tornado wind so violent that the flames flattened out ahead, swooping to earth in great darting curves, truly a veritable red demon from hell.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fire lasted for \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5444731.pdf\">two days and two nights (PDF)\u003c/a>, devastating more than 3 million acres of timberland in the Northern Rockies. The exact death toll varies, with the \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5444731.pdf\">U.S. Forest Service (PDF)\u003c/a> putting it at 86, saying most were firefighters on the front lines.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Notably, the Forest Service had only existed for five years by this point. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.nationalforests.org/our-forests/your-national-forests-magazine/blazing-battles-the-1910-fire-and-its-legacy\">National Forest Foundation\u003c/a> says the fire “left not only scars on the land, but also lasting and fervent opinions about how forests and wildfire should be managed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Cloquet and Moose Lake Fires, 1918\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Cloquet and Moose Lake fires of 1918 (which were actually made up of \u003ca href=\"https://mndigital.org/projects/primary-source-sets/natural-disasters-minnesota#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20worst%20natural,provided%20fuel%20for%20the%20fires.\">50 blazes\u003c/a>) remain one of the deadliest natural disasters in Minnesota history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Records from the \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/dlh/MooseLake_Cloquet_1918Fires\">National Weather Service\u003c/a> show Northeast Minnesota was experiencing its “driest season in 48 years” when sparks from a passing train, fueled by gusty winds, ignited fires that lasted for several days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fire consumed approximately 1,500 square miles and killed more than 450 people, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://mndigital.org/projects/primary-source-sets/natural-disasters-minnesota#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20worst%20natural,provided%20fuel%20for%20the%20fires.\">Minnesota Digital Library\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nearly half of the victims were from the Moose Lake area. Many of them died trying to escape in cars or suffocating in root cellars and wells, as \u003ca href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2018/10/12/moose-lake-fire-no-less-horrible-100-years-later\">MPR News\u003c/a> reported on the 100th anniversary.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Natalie Frohrip, the vice president of the Moose Lake Area Historical Society, told the station that her mother-in-law, a teenager at the time, had survived the fire by wading into the lake.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“She said that when she had been in Sunday school, she had learned that when the end of the world came, the stars were going to fall out of the sky,” Frohrip said. “And so when they came down the hill and saw all the sparks, she was sure this was going to be the end.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Griffith Park Fire, 1933\u003c/h2>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983913\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983913\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-800x531.jpg\" alt=\"A group of people plant a pine tree. \" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-800x531.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-1020x677.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-768x510.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-1536x1019.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-2048x1359.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-564024413_custom-46d66869284461412635fcaa8442688a9cc40b97-1920x1274.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">John Loa (right), a survivor of the 1933 Griffith Park fire, helped plant a pine tree in memoriam in 2007, at the age of 96. \u003ccite>(Al Seib/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Griffith Park fire was once the deadliest fire in California history, killing 29 people in 1933. But it burned a relatively small 47 acres and damaged no property.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All of the victims of the fire were civilians who had been doing cleanup and assistance work in the Los Angeles park for 40 cents an hour through a Depression-era government program, as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11705774/remembering-l-a-s-1933-griffith-park-fire-the-states-deadliest-fire-until-now\">member station KQED reported\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There were 3,784 workers in the park when a brush fire broke out on the afternoon of Oct. 3.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Accounts differ on whether workers were ordered by their foremen to head down into Mineral Wells Canyon to fight the fire or whether they were simply asked to help put out the flames,” KQED reported. “Either way, into the canyon they went, with only shovels, their hands and the earth at their feet to work with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fire department had arrived relatively quickly but was \u003ca href=\"https://friendsofgriffithpark.org/griffith-parks-1933-fire/\">reportedly overwhelmed\u003c/a> by the thousands of amateurs crowding the scene. Then a sudden change in the winds sent the fire up the canyon, \u003ca href=\"https://lafire.com/famous_fires/1933-1003_GriffithParkFire/1933-1003_GriffithParkFire.htm\">killing 29 workers\u003c/a> of thermal burns and injuring more than 150 others.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Reporter Caroline Walker \u003ca href=\"https://lafire.com/famous_fires/1933-1003_GriffithParkFire/1933-1003_GriffithParkFire.htm\">wrote in the Oct. 4, 1933 issue\u003c/a> of the \u003cem>Los Angeles Herald-Express\u003c/em> of the men, that “in their hearts a little candle of hope had been burning again because they had a chance to earn a little money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was only a brush fire that they were asked to extinguish. It was the sort that skilled fireworkers know how to handle. But the men in the park weren’t fire fighters. They did not know that canyons become flutes in a brush fire, or that flames travel with such deadly swiftness over grass and trees grown brittle with the summer drought. It was work. That was all that mattered.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Camp Fire, 2018\u003c/h2>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983915\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983915\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"Crosses are seen lined up at a memorial.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/gettyimages-1177682049-26f322515b8f907ddecb5aef035dd77b47bd1e33-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Crosses line the road to remember the people who died as a result of the Camp Fire in Paradise, Butte County. \u003ccite>(Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Camp Fire broke out in Northern California in November 2018, sweeping through the towns of Paradise and Concow — which each lost about 95% of their structures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It spanned an area of 153,336 acres, and eventually killed at least 85 people, injuring 12 civilians and five firefighters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A yearlong investigation found that the fire had been ignited by outdated power lines. Pacific Gas & Electric \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/06/16/879008760/pg-e-pleads-guilty-on-2018-california-camp-fire-our-equipment-started-that-fire\">pleaded guilty\u003c/a> in 2020 to 84 separate counts of involuntary manslaughter and one felony count of unlawfully starting a fire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>PG&E has been blamed for more than 30 wildfires, which have killed \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/04/12/1092259419/california-wildfires-pacific-gas-electric-55-million\">more than 100 people since 2017\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>California Fire Siege, 2020\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>More than 8,600 wildfires burned across California in 2020, scorching some 4.2 million acres — a state record — and killing 33 people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The 2020 California wildfire year was characterized by record-setting wildfires that burned across the state of California as measured during the modern era of wildfire management and record keeping,” according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.fire.ca.gov/incidents/2020\">California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The years 2020 and 2021 together burned more area than the previous seven years combined, according to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news/californias-2020-wildfire-season-numbers\">University of California, Davis\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials described 2020 as a “fire siege” because it saw 18 of the state’s 20 most destructive fires on record, as \u003ca href=\"https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/californias-2020-wildfires-negated-years-of-emission-cuts/\">\u003cem>Scientific American\u003c/em>\u003c/a> explains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Among them was the \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/mendocino/home/?cid=FSEPRD860382\">August Complex\u003c/a> fire, which officials called the first “gigafire” since it burned more than 1 million acres. It was ignited by lightning in mid-August and burned for four months, scorching an area larger than the state of Rhode Island to become the largest fire in California history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=Maui%27s+wildfires+are+among+the+deadliest+on+record+in+the+U.S.+Here+are+some+others&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1983909/maui-fires-now-among-uss-deadliest-wildfires-ever-here-are-some-others",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1983909"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_182",
"science_194",
"science_4414",
"science_112",
"science_2184",
"science_113"
],
"featImg": "science_1983910",
"label": "source_science_1983909"
},
"science_1983775": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1983775",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983775",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1691175286000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "as-algal-bloom-returns-to-the-bay-is-swimming-safe-for-humans-and-pets",
"title": "Algal Blooms in the Bay Area: What You Need to Know About Swimming Safety",
"publishDate": 1691175286,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "Algal Blooms in the Bay Area: What You Need to Know About Swimming Safety | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"site": "science"
},
"content": "\u003cp>The red tide that killed an immeasurable number of fish in San Francisco Bay last year has again emerged, covering parts of the bay in a light brown sheen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state agency in charge of regulating flows into the bay held a press conference in early August alerting the public about the return of the tea-colored water. This alert came after an environmental watchdog group, San Francisco Baykeeper, received a series of calls at the end of July about \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1983631/last-summers-fish-killing-algae-bloom-is-back-in-the-bay\">a reddish-brown film floating on the surface of the water in places like Berkeley, Emeryville, Albany and Tiburon\u003c/a>.[aside postID=science_1983631 hero='https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg']Environmental scientists believe the algal bloom, while a natural occurrence and likely not harmful to human health, is fueled by treated sewage put out by wastewater treatment plants across the Bay Area — and could be worsened by climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scientists aren’t sure how large this bloom will grow or how many fish will die, but they are examining the organism closely. Still, scientists are sure of one thing: Humans are a big part of the problem.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jump straight to:\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#algaebloomsafepets\">Is the red tide harmful to humans or pets?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#reportalgaebloom\">What should I do if I find a red tide or a dead fish?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#algaesafetofish\">Can I still fish in the bay?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#redtideclimatechange\">How is the red tide related to climate change?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>“It’s almost all about us to blame,” said Peter Roopnarine, curator of invertebrate zoology & geology at the California Academy of Sciences. “The bay is kind of a gigantic laboratory flask in some ways where you can put in ingredients, can mix them and it’s not easy for those to have an outside influence from the ocean.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Keep reading for what you need to know about this latest algal bloom.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What is red tide?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Ominous sounding, the term red tide is broadly defined. It typically means anytime a bloom of phytoplankton — microscopic plant-like organisms that are the base of the marine food web — discolor a body of water to the point it is visible to the human eye.[aside postID='news_11910495,science_1983522,news_11953853,news_11953794' label='More Outdoor Guides From KQED']Red tides aren’t always red. They can in fact range from rusty orange to brown to green, but millions (if not billions or trillions) of these little creatures are needed for a red tide to be visible.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not every red tide, or algal bloom, is toxic — although they can be. The species behind the recurring algal bloom in San Francisco Bay is called \u003ca href=\"https://coastalscience.noaa.gov/project/toxicity-toxic-alga-heterosigma-akashiwo-puget-sound/\">Heterosigma akashiwo\u003c/a> and \u003cem>isn’t\u003c/em> known at this time to be toxic to humans (see more below). The microscopic critter looks like a swimming potato chip with a tail, said Raphael Kudela, a phytoplankton ecologist at UC Santa Cruz.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said the organism thrives in the bay because the shallow water warms up quickly. Plus, it’s full of tasty treats it likes to fill up on.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just really happy when it’s in the bay,” he said. “As long as it’s happy, it’s just going to keep going, and going, and going. And that’s basically what a red tide is.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983659\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983659\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut.jpg\" alt=\"White sailboats float in reddish brown water.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Reddish-brown water due to an algae bloom can be seen in the Berkeley Marina on July 31, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"algaebloomsafepets\">\u003c/a>Is the red tide harmful to humans or pets??\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Scientists don’t think the red tide in the bay harms human health or pets, but they are hesitant to say that for certain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For that reason, experts do not recommend swimming in — or otherwise coming into contact with — murky water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David Senn, senior scientist at the San Francisco Estuary Institute, (SFEI) said there’s very little information available about the toxicity of the algae on people when they come in contact with it. That’s why the general guidance is: Don’t take a dip into areas of the bay where blooms are present.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It makes sense to avoid discolored water in general, particularly in this case,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What is known is that an algae bloom of this nature often kills fish by eliminating the oxygen they need to breathe in the water. (Jump to more information about \u003ca href=\"#reportalgaebloom\">what to do if you find a dead fish or other organism near a red tide.\u003c/a>)\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983788\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983788\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"961\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-800x400.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-1020x511.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-160x80.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-768x384.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-1536x769.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A photo submitted by Damon Tighe to inaturalist.org, showing a dead bat ray found in Emeryville. \u003ccite>(Damon Tighe via inaturalist.org)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But there is a caveat for humans, said Kudela at UC Santa Cruz. Dense red tides are often accompanied by organic material and bacteria, which \u003cem>can\u003c/em> harm human health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Heterosigma is not going to harm humans or dogs. But just being in that organic soup, you could be exposed to pathogenic bacteria or other things,” he said. “If the water is super thick and red, you probably don’t want to be in it anyway.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In short: While the risks are probably low, it’s just a good idea to keep yourself — and your pets — out of a body of water that has a red tide.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"reportalgaebloom\">\u003c/a>What do I do if I spot a red tide??\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>To report a red tide or algae bloom you can reach SF Baykeeper’s pollution hotline by:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Calling 1-800-KEEP-Bay.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Emailing \u003ca href=\"mailto:hotline@baykeeper.org\">hotline@baykeeper.org.\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://baykeeper.org/content/report-pollution\">Filling out a form online\u003c/a> to submit a confidential pollution tip.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Algal blooms can also be reported to the California State Water Resources Control Board’s Freshwater and Estuarine Harmful Algal Bloom (FHAB) Program. You can reach the agency hotline by:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Calling 1-844-729-6466.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Emailing \u003ca href=\"mailto:CyanoHAB.Reports@waterboards.ca.gov\">CyanoHAB.Reports@waterboards.ca.gov.\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Filling out\u003ca href=\"https://mywaterquality.ca.gov/habs/do/bloomreport.html\"> a digital form to submit an algal bloom report\u003c/a>.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>If you’re reporting a red tide, be sure to include the time, date, location and a description of what you saw.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Spotted a dead fish near a red tide?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To report a dead fish in an area where there is red tide present, you can \u003ca href=\"https://www.inaturalist.org/\">download the app iNaturalist\u003c/a>. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife is collecting \u003ca href=\"https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/sf-bay-harmful-algae-bloom-2023\">these observations of dead organisms related to the algae bloom\u003c/a> in San Francisco Bay, so make sure you log a photo, location and (if possible) species.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://oaklandside.org/2023/08/03/harmful-algae-bloom-red-tide-bay-area-lake-merritt-inaturalist-project-research/\">Read more about how to report dead fish using iNaturalist from The Oaklandside\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983783\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983783\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1062\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-800x443.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-1020x564.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-160x89.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-768x425.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-1536x850.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-672x372.jpg 672w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A map of the Bay Area on inaturalist.org showing user reports of dead organisms around a red tide \u003ccite>(inaturalist.org)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"algaesafetofish\">\u003c/a>Can I continue fishing in the bay with the algae present?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>UC Santa Cruz’s Kudela said it’s perfectly fine to continue fishing in the bay, even in areas where the algae bloom is present because the algae do not contaminate the meat of the fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>‘While it can kill the fish, if you’re eating the meat and cleaning it, there’s no risk,” Kudela said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s up to you whether you want to fish or eat stressed fish, but there’s nothing wrong with fishing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Keep reading for more background on the 2023 algal bloom.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What is causing this year’s algal bloom?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Heterosigma akashiwo got lucky in 2023 — for the second year in a row.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A series of environmental conditions are allowing this minuscule creature to show up en masse. This organism needs four things to flourish: light, warm water, relatively calm water and oodles of food. It got all four this summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scientists think the organism deposited itself in sediment under the bay after it died off last year, acting like a dormant seed until the right conditions allow it to grow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, the San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board has confirmed the organism in bay waters near Emeryville, Albany, the Berkeley Marina, Richardson Bay and Belvedere Cove.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since the bay’s east side is often shallow — water heats up faster there than in other parts of the region — the red tide was first spotted there, likely because it’s an ideal place for the algae to thrive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#tellus\">Tell us: Is there another guide to something you’d like to read?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>“It’s definitely responding to warm temperatures,” said UC Santa Cruz’s Kudela. The organisms swim near the water’s surface during daytime hours to gather more light and swim toward nutrients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With winter storms long in the rearview mirror, tides in the bay also are at their mellowest point of the year, which decreases ocean water circulation into the bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The algae also have a lot to eat for several reasons. They munch on tiny particles, nutrients of nitrogen and phosphorus. While naturally occurring, there is an influx of these nutrients into the bay from 37 wastewater treatment plants that discharge treated sewage into the bay. This rush of nutrients provides a buffet for the algae to feast upon, allowing them to grow voraciously.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“San Francisco Bay has some of the highest levels of nutrient pollution of any estuary in the world,” said Jon Rosenfield, senior scientist with SF Baykeeper.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983657\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983657\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"Dark reddish-orange looking water splashes agains rocks in the foreground with the San Francisco skyline in the distance.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An algae bloom in the San Francisco Bay near the Berkeley Marina on July 31, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>When will the red tide go away?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In the near term, scientists say nothing can be done to stop a red tide once it shows up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You just have to wait for conditions to change,” said Kudela.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The options are limited. The algae can consume all the nutrients like PAC-MAN eating dots in a video game until there isn’t enough left to support the organism. Or a heavy rain storm or a wind event can churn up the bay, altering the water’s temperature, and reversing the conditions that can support it. Some scientists think that’s what caused the red tide to dissipate last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We had some really big wind events, and it was gone,” said William Cochlan, a marine biologist and an emeritus professor at San Francisco State University. “The winds stir up the whole system, they don’t get enough light and that’s usually the end of the bloom.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the algae, in this case, are tricksters. Scientists believe that when their conditions change, they produce a cyst and embed themselves into the sediment at the bottom of the bay, not emerging again until the right conditions persist for them to grow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SFEI’s Senn said they don’t yet know what triggers the cysts to hatch. His team is testing the bay’s water and monitoring satellite imagery to see if the bloom is expanding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What struck the match last year was a mystery. But once the match was struck, it was enough for this organism to get a toehold and then it had fuel to continue to grow,” said Senn.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What are scientists and officials doing to address the red tide?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In the long term, the region’s 37 wastewater treatment plants can limit the nutrient pollution they dump into the San Francisco Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These plants regularly discharge treated sewage water full of tiny particles, which algae love to devour. Cochlan said these plants contribute “the vast majority” of the nutrients (or algae food) into the bay, especially during the summer when the water is warmer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Next year, the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board will consider changing its rules for these plants, when their permits are up for renewal. This is an opportunity for regulators to clamp down on the nutrient load the plants are allowed to release.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While these plants treat the sewage, most do not filter out all the nutrients before discharging the water into the bay. Fixing the problem could cost at least $12 billion and maybe twice that much, according to Bay Area Clean Water Agencies, which represent local water districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some plants are already redesigning their facilities to reduce the amount of nutrients released into the bay, said Eileen White, the water board executive officer. But not all plants are doing that — and there is currently no formal requirement for plant operators to reduce the discharged nutrient loads.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Climate scientists also say red tides will likely occur more often as the climate warms and raises water temperatures. The even bigger fix is addressing climate change at its root by ending the burning of fossil fuels that cause global warming.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"redtideclimatechange\">\u003c/a>What does climate change have to do with red tides?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Climate change will likely increase the frequency of red tides because the bay and ocean will be warmer. The bay could also absorb more runoff during significant wet years and less water during periods of drought. This off-and-on cycle could accentuate the warm and relatively calm conditions the algae proliferate in.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We could expect more unpredictable and more frequent algal blooms of all kinds,” said Kudela at UC Santa Cruz. “It’s not surprising that we’re seeing bigger and longer-lasting blooms as the climate shifts.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The increasing water temperature is critical to the algae’s lifespan, and a warming climate only increases the odds of the species thriving in the bay, said San Francisco State University’s Cochlan.\u003cbr>\n“We may be exacerbating these plumes, making them more frequent, of greater duration and more intense by increasing temperature through climate change,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to expect to see these changes in the bay or the coast with climate change,” Cochlan said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cleaning up what the treatment plants dump into the bay and warming water is “like a one-two punch — and we really need to tackle both of the problems,” said Emily Jeffers, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But the one that we can address more readily and more quickly is the nutrient loads from the wastewater-treatment facilities.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Is the Bay Area red tide related to the algal bloom off the Southern California coast?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The red tide in San Francisco Bay is unrelated to \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-07-07/as-toxic-algae-bloom-afflicts-california-coast-wildlife-care-center-calls-for-aid\">the algal bloom in the Pacific Ocean, currently off the coast of Southern California\u003c/a>. The organism causing the death of dolphins and sea lions is \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/toxic-algal-bloom-suspected-dolphin-and-sea-lion-deaths-southern-california\">a different type of algae, Pseudo-nitzschia\u003c/a>, that causes the production of a neurotoxin called domoic acid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That toxin is transmitted via the complex food web. Birds and marine mammals can die when ingesting the toxin in animals and fish that they eat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They get a big dose of domoic acid; it causes brain damage,” said Kudela. “Humans can get the same thing, but almost nobody in California gets sick because it’s super well regulated. But it can get into the shellfish and things like spiny lobster.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The algae bloom in the bay and in the Pacific Ocean are similar because they’re both phytoplankton blooms and flourish in relatively warmer water, although at somewhat different temperatures. The more dangerous algae currently circulating in the Pacific Ocean could spread into the bay if the conditions are right. But Kudela said the likelihood of that happening is slim because the bay is consistently too warm for the species.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"tellus\">\u003c/a>Tell us: What else do you need information about?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At KQED, we know that it can sometimes be hard to track down the answers to navigate life in the Bay Area in 2023. We’ve published \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/coronavirus-resources-and-explainers\">clear, practical explainers and guides about COVID\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11936674/how-to-prepare-for-this-weeks-atmospheric-river-storm-sandbags-emergency-kits-and-more\">how to cope with intense winter weather\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11821950/how-to-safely-attend-a-protest-in-the-bay-area\">how to exercise your right to protest safely\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So tell us: What do you need to know more about? Tell us, and you could see your question answered online or on social media. What you submit will make our reporting stronger, and help us decide what to cover here on our site, and on KQED Public Radio, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[hearken id=\"10483\" src=\"https://modules.wearehearken.com/kqed/embed/10483.js\"]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "That 'red tide' is back in parts of the San Francisco Bay Area. Here's what you need to know about swimming near it, pet safety and how this 2023 algae is related to climate change.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1749131232,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": true,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 65,
"wordCount": 2723
},
"headData": {
"title": "Algal Blooms and Swimming Safety in the Bay Area | KQED",
"description": "Find out if swimming is safe for both humans and pets, and what precautions to take to stay protected As algal blooms return to the Bay Area.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"socialTitle": "Algal Blooms and Swimming Safety in the Bay Area | KQED",
"socialDescription": "Find out if swimming is safe for both humans and pets, and what precautions to take to stay protected As algal blooms return to the Bay Area.",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "Algal Blooms in the Bay Area: What You Need to Know About Swimming Safety",
"datePublished": "2023-08-04T11:54:46-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-06-05T06:47:12-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"sticky": false,
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/science/1983775/as-algal-bloom-returns-to-the-bay-is-swimming-safe-for-humans-and-pets",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The red tide that killed an immeasurable number of fish in San Francisco Bay last year has again emerged, covering parts of the bay in a light brown sheen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state agency in charge of regulating flows into the bay held a press conference in early August alerting the public about the return of the tea-colored water. This alert came after an environmental watchdog group, San Francisco Baykeeper, received a series of calls at the end of July about \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1983631/last-summers-fish-killing-algae-bloom-is-back-in-the-bay\">a reddish-brown film floating on the surface of the water in places like Berkeley, Emeryville, Albany and Tiburon\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "science_1983631",
"hero": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Environmental scientists believe the algal bloom, while a natural occurrence and likely not harmful to human health, is fueled by treated sewage put out by wastewater treatment plants across the Bay Area — and could be worsened by climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scientists aren’t sure how large this bloom will grow or how many fish will die, but they are examining the organism closely. Still, scientists are sure of one thing: Humans are a big part of the problem.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jump straight to:\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#algaebloomsafepets\">Is the red tide harmful to humans or pets?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#reportalgaebloom\">What should I do if I find a red tide or a dead fish?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#algaesafetofish\">Can I still fish in the bay?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#redtideclimatechange\">How is the red tide related to climate change?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>“It’s almost all about us to blame,” said Peter Roopnarine, curator of invertebrate zoology & geology at the California Academy of Sciences. “The bay is kind of a gigantic laboratory flask in some ways where you can put in ingredients, can mix them and it’s not easy for those to have an outside influence from the ocean.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Keep reading for what you need to know about this latest algal bloom.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What is red tide?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Ominous sounding, the term red tide is broadly defined. It typically means anytime a bloom of phytoplankton — microscopic plant-like organisms that are the base of the marine food web — discolor a body of water to the point it is visible to the human eye.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_11910495,science_1983522,news_11953853,news_11953794",
"label": "More Outdoor Guides From KQED "
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Red tides aren’t always red. They can in fact range from rusty orange to brown to green, but millions (if not billions or trillions) of these little creatures are needed for a red tide to be visible.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not every red tide, or algal bloom, is toxic — although they can be. The species behind the recurring algal bloom in San Francisco Bay is called \u003ca href=\"https://coastalscience.noaa.gov/project/toxicity-toxic-alga-heterosigma-akashiwo-puget-sound/\">Heterosigma akashiwo\u003c/a> and \u003cem>isn’t\u003c/em> known at this time to be toxic to humans (see more below). The microscopic critter looks like a swimming potato chip with a tail, said Raphael Kudela, a phytoplankton ecologist at UC Santa Cruz.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said the organism thrives in the bay because the shallow water warms up quickly. Plus, it’s full of tasty treats it likes to fill up on.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s just really happy when it’s in the bay,” he said. “As long as it’s happy, it’s just going to keep going, and going, and going. And that’s basically what a red tide is.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983659\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983659\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut.jpg\" alt=\"White sailboats float in reddish brown water.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67416_230731-RedTideAlgae-08-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Reddish-brown water due to an algae bloom can be seen in the Berkeley Marina on July 31, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"algaebloomsafepets\">\u003c/a>Is the red tide harmful to humans or pets??\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Scientists don’t think the red tide in the bay harms human health or pets, but they are hesitant to say that for certain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For that reason, experts do not recommend swimming in — or otherwise coming into contact with — murky water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David Senn, senior scientist at the San Francisco Estuary Institute, (SFEI) said there’s very little information available about the toxicity of the algae on people when they come in contact with it. That’s why the general guidance is: Don’t take a dip into areas of the bay where blooms are present.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It makes sense to avoid discolored water in general, particularly in this case,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What is known is that an algae bloom of this nature often kills fish by eliminating the oxygen they need to breathe in the water. (Jump to more information about \u003ca href=\"#reportalgaebloom\">what to do if you find a dead fish or other organism near a red tide.\u003c/a>)\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983788\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983788\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"961\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-800x400.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-1020x511.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-160x80.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-768x384.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/bat-ray-1536x769.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A photo submitted by Damon Tighe to inaturalist.org, showing a dead bat ray found in Emeryville. \u003ccite>(Damon Tighe via inaturalist.org)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But there is a caveat for humans, said Kudela at UC Santa Cruz. Dense red tides are often accompanied by organic material and bacteria, which \u003cem>can\u003c/em> harm human health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Heterosigma is not going to harm humans or dogs. But just being in that organic soup, you could be exposed to pathogenic bacteria or other things,” he said. “If the water is super thick and red, you probably don’t want to be in it anyway.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In short: While the risks are probably low, it’s just a good idea to keep yourself — and your pets — out of a body of water that has a red tide.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"reportalgaebloom\">\u003c/a>What do I do if I spot a red tide??\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>To report a red tide or algae bloom you can reach SF Baykeeper’s pollution hotline by:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Calling 1-800-KEEP-Bay.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Emailing \u003ca href=\"mailto:hotline@baykeeper.org\">hotline@baykeeper.org.\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://baykeeper.org/content/report-pollution\">Filling out a form online\u003c/a> to submit a confidential pollution tip.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Algal blooms can also be reported to the California State Water Resources Control Board’s Freshwater and Estuarine Harmful Algal Bloom (FHAB) Program. You can reach the agency hotline by:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>Calling 1-844-729-6466.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Emailing \u003ca href=\"mailto:CyanoHAB.Reports@waterboards.ca.gov\">CyanoHAB.Reports@waterboards.ca.gov.\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Filling out\u003ca href=\"https://mywaterquality.ca.gov/habs/do/bloomreport.html\"> a digital form to submit an algal bloom report\u003c/a>.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>If you’re reporting a red tide, be sure to include the time, date, location and a description of what you saw.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Spotted a dead fish near a red tide?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To report a dead fish in an area where there is red tide present, you can \u003ca href=\"https://www.inaturalist.org/\">download the app iNaturalist\u003c/a>. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife is collecting \u003ca href=\"https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/sf-bay-harmful-algae-bloom-2023\">these observations of dead organisms related to the algae bloom\u003c/a> in San Francisco Bay, so make sure you log a photo, location and (if possible) species.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://oaklandside.org/2023/08/03/harmful-algae-bloom-red-tide-bay-area-lake-merritt-inaturalist-project-research/\">Read more about how to report dead fish using iNaturalist from The Oaklandside\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983783\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983783\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1062\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-800x443.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-1020x564.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-160x89.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-768x425.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-1536x850.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/algal-bloom-map-672x372.jpg 672w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A map of the Bay Area on inaturalist.org showing user reports of dead organisms around a red tide \u003ccite>(inaturalist.org)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"algaesafetofish\">\u003c/a>Can I continue fishing in the bay with the algae present?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>UC Santa Cruz’s Kudela said it’s perfectly fine to continue fishing in the bay, even in areas where the algae bloom is present because the algae do not contaminate the meat of the fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>‘While it can kill the fish, if you’re eating the meat and cleaning it, there’s no risk,” Kudela said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s up to you whether you want to fish or eat stressed fish, but there’s nothing wrong with fishing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Keep reading for more background on the 2023 algal bloom.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What is causing this year’s algal bloom?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Heterosigma akashiwo got lucky in 2023 — for the second year in a row.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A series of environmental conditions are allowing this minuscule creature to show up en masse. This organism needs four things to flourish: light, warm water, relatively calm water and oodles of food. It got all four this summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scientists think the organism deposited itself in sediment under the bay after it died off last year, acting like a dormant seed until the right conditions allow it to grow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This year, the San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board has confirmed the organism in bay waters near Emeryville, Albany, the Berkeley Marina, Richardson Bay and Belvedere Cove.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since the bay’s east side is often shallow — water heats up faster there than in other parts of the region — the red tide was first spotted there, likely because it’s an ideal place for the algae to thrive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>\u003ca href=\"#tellus\">Tell us: Is there another guide to something you’d like to read?\u003c/a>\u003c/strong>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>“It’s definitely responding to warm temperatures,” said UC Santa Cruz’s Kudela. The organisms swim near the water’s surface during daytime hours to gather more light and swim toward nutrients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With winter storms long in the rearview mirror, tides in the bay also are at their mellowest point of the year, which decreases ocean water circulation into the bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The algae also have a lot to eat for several reasons. They munch on tiny particles, nutrients of nitrogen and phosphorus. While naturally occurring, there is an influx of these nutrients into the bay from 37 wastewater treatment plants that discharge treated sewage into the bay. This rush of nutrients provides a buffet for the algae to feast upon, allowing them to grow voraciously.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“San Francisco Bay has some of the highest levels of nutrient pollution of any estuary in the world,” said Jon Rosenfield, senior scientist with SF Baykeeper.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983657\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983657\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"Dark reddish-orange looking water splashes agains rocks in the foreground with the San Francisco skyline in the distance.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/RS67422_230731-RedTideAlgae-18-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An algae bloom in the San Francisco Bay near the Berkeley Marina on July 31, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>When will the red tide go away?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In the near term, scientists say nothing can be done to stop a red tide once it shows up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You just have to wait for conditions to change,” said Kudela.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The options are limited. The algae can consume all the nutrients like PAC-MAN eating dots in a video game until there isn’t enough left to support the organism. Or a heavy rain storm or a wind event can churn up the bay, altering the water’s temperature, and reversing the conditions that can support it. Some scientists think that’s what caused the red tide to dissipate last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We had some really big wind events, and it was gone,” said William Cochlan, a marine biologist and an emeritus professor at San Francisco State University. “The winds stir up the whole system, they don’t get enough light and that’s usually the end of the bloom.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the algae, in this case, are tricksters. Scientists believe that when their conditions change, they produce a cyst and embed themselves into the sediment at the bottom of the bay, not emerging again until the right conditions persist for them to grow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SFEI’s Senn said they don’t yet know what triggers the cysts to hatch. His team is testing the bay’s water and monitoring satellite imagery to see if the bloom is expanding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What struck the match last year was a mystery. But once the match was struck, it was enough for this organism to get a toehold and then it had fuel to continue to grow,” said Senn.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What are scientists and officials doing to address the red tide?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In the long term, the region’s 37 wastewater treatment plants can limit the nutrient pollution they dump into the San Francisco Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These plants regularly discharge treated sewage water full of tiny particles, which algae love to devour. Cochlan said these plants contribute “the vast majority” of the nutrients (or algae food) into the bay, especially during the summer when the water is warmer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Next year, the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board will consider changing its rules for these plants, when their permits are up for renewal. This is an opportunity for regulators to clamp down on the nutrient load the plants are allowed to release.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While these plants treat the sewage, most do not filter out all the nutrients before discharging the water into the bay. Fixing the problem could cost at least $12 billion and maybe twice that much, according to Bay Area Clean Water Agencies, which represent local water districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some plants are already redesigning their facilities to reduce the amount of nutrients released into the bay, said Eileen White, the water board executive officer. But not all plants are doing that — and there is currently no formal requirement for plant operators to reduce the discharged nutrient loads.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Climate scientists also say red tides will likely occur more often as the climate warms and raises water temperatures. The even bigger fix is addressing climate change at its root by ending the burning of fossil fuels that cause global warming.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"redtideclimatechange\">\u003c/a>What does climate change have to do with red tides?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Climate change will likely increase the frequency of red tides because the bay and ocean will be warmer. The bay could also absorb more runoff during significant wet years and less water during periods of drought. This off-and-on cycle could accentuate the warm and relatively calm conditions the algae proliferate in.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We could expect more unpredictable and more frequent algal blooms of all kinds,” said Kudela at UC Santa Cruz. “It’s not surprising that we’re seeing bigger and longer-lasting blooms as the climate shifts.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The increasing water temperature is critical to the algae’s lifespan, and a warming climate only increases the odds of the species thriving in the bay, said San Francisco State University’s Cochlan.\u003cbr>\n“We may be exacerbating these plumes, making them more frequent, of greater duration and more intense by increasing temperature through climate change,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to expect to see these changes in the bay or the coast with climate change,” Cochlan said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cleaning up what the treatment plants dump into the bay and warming water is “like a one-two punch — and we really need to tackle both of the problems,” said Emily Jeffers, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But the one that we can address more readily and more quickly is the nutrient loads from the wastewater-treatment facilities.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Is the Bay Area red tide related to the algal bloom off the Southern California coast?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The red tide in San Francisco Bay is unrelated to \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-07-07/as-toxic-algae-bloom-afflicts-california-coast-wildlife-care-center-calls-for-aid\">the algal bloom in the Pacific Ocean, currently off the coast of Southern California\u003c/a>. The organism causing the death of dolphins and sea lions is \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/toxic-algal-bloom-suspected-dolphin-and-sea-lion-deaths-southern-california\">a different type of algae, Pseudo-nitzschia\u003c/a>, that causes the production of a neurotoxin called domoic acid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That toxin is transmitted via the complex food web. Birds and marine mammals can die when ingesting the toxin in animals and fish that they eat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They get a big dose of domoic acid; it causes brain damage,” said Kudela. “Humans can get the same thing, but almost nobody in California gets sick because it’s super well regulated. But it can get into the shellfish and things like spiny lobster.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The algae bloom in the bay and in the Pacific Ocean are similar because they’re both phytoplankton blooms and flourish in relatively warmer water, although at somewhat different temperatures. The more dangerous algae currently circulating in the Pacific Ocean could spread into the bay if the conditions are right. But Kudela said the likelihood of that happening is slim because the bay is consistently too warm for the species.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca id=\"tellus\">\u003c/a>Tell us: What else do you need information about?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At KQED, we know that it can sometimes be hard to track down the answers to navigate life in the Bay Area in 2023. We’ve published \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/coronavirus-resources-and-explainers\">clear, practical explainers and guides about COVID\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11936674/how-to-prepare-for-this-weeks-atmospheric-river-storm-sandbags-emergency-kits-and-more\">how to cope with intense winter weather\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11821950/how-to-safely-attend-a-protest-in-the-bay-area\">how to exercise your right to protest safely\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So tell us: What do you need to know more about? Tell us, and you could see your question answered online or on social media. What you submit will make our reporting stronger, and help us decide what to cover here on our site, and on KQED Public Radio, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "hearken",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"id": "10483",
"src": "https://modules.wearehearken.com/kqed/embed/10483.js",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1983775/as-algal-bloom-returns-to-the-bay-is-swimming-safe-for-humans-and-pets",
"authors": [
"11746"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_323",
"science_1413",
"science_747",
"science_4992",
"science_4417",
"science_3243"
],
"featImg": "science_1983791",
"label": "science"
},
"science_1983699": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1983699",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983699",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1691062241000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1691062241,
"format": "standard",
"title": "From Sewage to Drinking Glass: California's Plan to Recycle Water",
"headTitle": "From Sewage to Drinking Glass: California’s Plan to Recycle Water | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Californians could drink highly purified sewage water that is piped directly into drinking water supplies for the first time under proposed rules unveiled by state water officials.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The drought-prone state has turned to recycled water for \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/documents/direct_potable_reuse/dprframewkseced.pdf\">more than 60 years (PDF)\u003c/a> to bolster its scarce supplies, but the current regulations require it to first make a pit stop in a reservoir or an aquifer before it can flow to taps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new rules, \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/documents/direct_potable_reuse/dprframewkseced.pdf\">mandated by state law (PDF)\u003c/a>, would require extensive treatment and monitoring before wastewater can be piped to taps or mingled with raw water upstream of a drinking water treatment plant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Toilet-to-tap” this is not.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between flush and faucet, a slew of steps are designed to remove chemicals and pathogens that remain in sewage after it has already undergone \u003ca href=\"https://www3.epa.gov/npdes/pubs/bastre.pdf\">traditional primary, secondary and sometimes tertiary treatment (PDF).\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It is bubbled with ozone, chewed by bacteria, filtered through activated carbon, pushed at high pressures through reverse osmosis membranes multiple times, cleansed with an oxidizer like hydrogen peroxide and beamed with high-intensity UV light. Valuable minerals such as calcium, that were filtered out, are restored. And then, finally, the wastewater is subjected to the regular treatment that all drinking water \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/public/water_treatment.html\">currently undergoes\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Quite honestly, it’ll be the cleanest drinking water around,” said Darrin Polhemus, deputy director of the state’s Division of Drinking Water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/docs/rulemaking/dpr_draft_reg_text.pdf\">62 pages of proposed rules (PDF)\u003c/a>, more than \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=200920100SB918\">a decade in the making\u003c/a>, are not triggering much, if any, debate among health or water experts. A panel of engineering and water quality scientists \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/docs/2022/nwri-ep-finalmemoprelimfind.pdf\">deemed an earlier version of the regulations protective of public health (PDF)\u003c/a>, although they raised concerns that the treatment process would be energy-intensive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I would have no hesitation drinking this water my whole life,” said \u003ca href=\"https://viterbi.usc.edu/directory/faculty/McCurry/Daniel\">Daniel McCurry\u003c/a>, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Southern California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This water is expected to be more expensive than imported water, but also provide a more renewable and reliable supply for California as climate change continues. Most treated sewage — \u003ca href=\"https://www.lacsd.org/services/wastewater-sewage/facilities/wastewater-treatment-facilities#:~:text=Through%20the%20operation%20of%2011,MGD%20are%20available%20for%20reuse.\">about 400 million gallons a day in Los Angeles County alone\u003c/a> — is released into rivers, streams and the deep ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983705\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983705 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A person wearing a protective mask and gear is injecting a form of liquid into water. \" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Luis Canela, a water quality technician, injects chemicals to chlorinate water at the Pure Water Southern California Demonstration Plant in Carson. \u003ccite>(Lauren Justice/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The draft rules, \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/dpr-regs.html\">released on July 21st\u003c/a>, still face a gauntlet of public comment, a hearing and peer review by another panel of experts, before being finalized. The State Water Resources Control Board is required by law to vote on them by the end of December, though they can extend the deadline if necessary. They would likely go into effect next April and it will take many years to reach people’s taps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Heather Collins, water treatment manager for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, said the regulations will give the district more certainty about how to design a massive, multi-billion dollar water recycling project with the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts. The district imports water that is provided to 19 million Southern Californians.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The joint effort, called \u003ca href=\"https://www.mwdh2o.com/building-local-supplies/pure-water-southern-california/\">Pure Water Southern California\u003c/a>, has\u003ca href=\"https://www.mwdh2o.com/press-releases/state-presents-80-million-check-to-advance-development-of-pure-water-southern-california\"> already received $80 million\u003c/a> from the state. The first phase of the project, which could be completed by 2032, is expected to produce about 115 million gallons of recycled water a day, enough for 385,000 Southern California households.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most is planned to go toward recharging local water agencies’ groundwater stores, but about 20% could be added to drinking water supplies upstream of Metropolitan’s existing treatment plant for imported water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re excited,” Collins said. “It helps better inform us on what our project needs to include, so that we can have a climate-resistant supply for our agencies in Southern California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new rules come as endless cycles of drought leave California’s water \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/california-water-solutions/\">suppliers scrambling for new sources of water\u003c/a>, like purified sewage. In 2021, Californians used about \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/recycled_water/docs/2022/volumetric-infographic-2021.pdf\">732,000 acre feet of recycled water (PDF)\u003c/a>, equivalent to the amount used by roughly 2.6 million households, though much of it goes to non-drinking purposes, like irrigating landscapes, golf courses and crops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom called for increasing recycled water use in California, \u003ca href=\"https://resources.ca.gov/-/media/CNRA-Website/Files/Initiatives/Water-Resilience/CA-Water-Supply-Strategy.pdf\">roughly 9% by 2030 (PDF)\u003c/a> and more than doubling it by 2040.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Water recycling is about finding new water, not just accepting the scarcity mindset — being more resourceful in terms of our approach,” Newsom said last \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/live/efEvnNna6kc?feature=share\">May in front of Metropolitan’s Pure Water Southern California\u003c/a> demonstration plant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://calmatters-graphics-water-recycling.netlify.app/?initialWidth=780&childId=pym-parent&parentTitle=Not%20%E2%80%98toilet%20to%20tap%3A%E2%80%99%20CA%20will%20turn%20sewage%20into%20drinking%20water%20-%20CalMatters&parentUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fcalmatters.org%2Fenvironment%2F2023%2F08%2Fcalifornia-toilet-to-tap-water%2F\" width=\"800\" height=\"1000\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some recycled water is already used to refill underground stores that provide drinking water, a process called indirect potable reuse, employed beginning in \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/documents/direct_potable_reuse/dprframewkseced.pdf\">the 1960s in Los Angeles (PDF) \u003c/a>and Orange counties. But a water agency must have a clean and convenient place to store the expensive, highly-purified water. “You don’t want to inject this recycled wastewater that you’ve spent all this effort cleaning into a dirty, polluted aquifer just to ruin it again,” McCurry said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To expand these uses, \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=200920100SB918\">state lawmakers in 2010 tasked the water board\u003c/a> with investigating the possibility of adding recycled water either directly into a public water system or just upstream of a water treatment plant. \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB574\">In 2017, they set a deadline\u003c/a> to develop the regulations by the end of 2023.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California won’t be the first; Colorado \u003ca href=\"https://cdphe.colorado.gov/Regulation_11_Direct_Potable_Reuse\">already has regulations\u003c/a> and the nation’s first direct potable reuse plant \u003ca href=\"https://www.crmwd.org/water-sources/reuse/\">was built in Texas in 2013\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://floridadep.gov/water/domestic-wastewater/content/water-reuse-news-rulemaking-information\">Florida\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://azdeq.gov/awp-rulemaking\">Arizona\u003c/a> have rules in the works.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s statewide rules, however, are expected to be the most stringent, said Andrew Salveson, water reuse chief technologist at Carollo Engineers, an environmental engineering consulting firm that specializes in water treatment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They are more conservative than anywhere else,” he said. “And I’m not being critical. In the state of California, because we’re in the early days of (direct potable reuse) implementation, they’re taking measured and conservative steps.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Removing viruses and chemicals\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The water that flushes down toilets, whirls down sinks, runs from industrial facilities and flows off agricultural fields is teeming with viruses, parasites and other pathogens that can make people sick. Chemicals also contaminate this sewage, everything from industrial \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/projects/california-water-contaminated-forever-chemicals/#\">perfluorinated “forever chemicals”\u003c/a> to \u003ca href=\"https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.8b05592\">drugs excreted in urine\u003c/a>. Bypassing groundwater stores or reservoirs to funnel purified sewage directly into pipes means \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/documents/direct_potable_reuse/dprframewkseced.pdf\">that there’s less room for error (PDF)\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new regulations would ramp up restrictions on pathogens, calling for scrubbing away more than 99.9999% of diarrhea-causing viruses and certain parasites. Also a series of treatments are designed to break down chemical contaminants like anti-seizure drugs, pain relievers, antidepressants and other pharmaceuticals. \u003ca href=\"https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/pharmaceuticals-water\">Medications can bypass traditional sewage treatment\u003c/a> so they are found in low concentrations in recycled sewage and groundwater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983703\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983703\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"An image of three levels of big blue pipes.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Water makes its way to the first step of the water purification process, membrane bioreactors, at the Pure Water Southern California Demonstration Plant in Carson, on July 28, 2023. \u003ccite>(Lauren Justice/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The added technologies are good at washing away pharmaceuticals, McCurry said, so having them “back-to-back introduces a ton of redundancy,” he said. “Any pharmaceutical you could think of, if you tried to measure it in the product water of one of these plants, is going to be below the detection limit.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new rules call for extensive monitoring to ensure the treatment is working. Some harmful chemicals, such as lead and nitrates, which are dangerous to babies and young children, will be tested for weekly; others, monthly. And water providers must also monitor the sewage itself before it even reaches treatment for any chemical spikes that could indicate illegal dumping or spills.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We think we’ve got the chemical classes covered in the treatment processes, so that we’re removing materials that we don’t even know are there,” the water board’s Polhemus said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jennifer West, managing director of WateReuse California, a trade association for water recycling, said she was happy to finally see California’s regulations, though she hopes the state will build in more flexibility for water providers to alter the suite of treatments as technologies change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/0Pt4C/7/\" width=\"800\" height=\"300\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://publichealth.sdsu.edu/people/richard-gersberg/\">Richard Gersberg\u003c/a>, San Diego State University professor emeritus of environmental health, said he supports using highly treated waste for drinking water. But he suggests that the state fund long-term studies comparing health effects in people who drink it to those whose drinking water comes from another source, such as rivers, “which might end up being worse. Probably is,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Given the vast and changing cocktail of chemicals constantly in use, “we don’t know what we don’t know,” Gersberg said. “If this becomes huge in California, and it will, I believe … we should at least spend a little money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Who will be first?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>All this treatment and monitoring is likely to be pricey, which is why Polhemus expects to see it largely limited to large urban areas that produce a lot of wastewater, such as Los Angeles County. The Metropolitan Water District’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.mwdh2o.com/media/16859/program-brochure-2021.pdf\">$3.4 billion estimate for building the project (PDF) \u003c/a>dates back to 2018, and has likely increased since then, according to spokesperson Rebecca Kimitch.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For small and medium communities, Polhemus said, “it doesn’t pencil out in a small-scale type of arrangement.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Orange County Water District, which has long been a leader in purifying recycled water, has concluded that piping it directly to customers doesn’t pencil out for them either, because they’ve already invested so heavily in refilling their carefully tended aquifer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It would “require adding more treatment processes and increasing operating expenses,” board president Cathy Green said in a statement. “Local water agencies are currently well-equipped to continue to supply drinking water to customers in our service area at a low cost using the Orange County Groundwater Basin.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For other regions like Silicon Valley, though, the costs may be worth it as climate change continues to shrink state supplies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At this point, it’s more expensive than water we might import during a drought. But who knows what will happen in the future,” said Kirsten Struve, assistant officer in the water supply division at the Santa Clara Valley Water District, which serves approximately 2 million people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s why we need to get prepared.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983704\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983704 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-800x533.jpg\" alt='Multiple pipes are seen in a laboratory. A sign that says \"Pure Water Southern California Demonstration Plant\" is displayed. ' width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Pure Water Southern California Demonstration Plant showcases technology that may provide drinking water to Southern Californians by 2032. \u003ccite>(Lauren Justice/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Santa Clara water agency, known as Valley Water, is planning a $1.2 billion project in Palo Alto to produce about 10 million gallons a day of water for groundwater recharge, but Struve said she hopes the plant also will be used for direct potable reuse in the future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The timing of the regulations has butted up against the realities of planning for Monterey One Water on the Monterey Peninsula as well. The utility has been injecting purified wastewater into the seaside aquifer for three years, producing about a third of the local supply, said General Manager Paul Sciuto. It is working on expanding the project by 2025, Sciuto said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I get that question of, ‘This water is so pure, why do you put it in the ground? Why can’t you just serve it?’” he said. “And I always fall back on, well, there’s no regulations that allow us to do that at this point.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now that the state is closer to finalizing them, he said, “there’s a point on the horizon to shoot for.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": true,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 1992,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [
"https://calmatters-graphics-water-recycling.netlify.app/",
"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/0Pt4C/7/"
],
"paragraphCount": 46
},
"modified": 1704845937,
"excerpt": "Waste would undergo extensive treatment and testing before it's piped directly to taps, providing a new, costly but renewable water supply. The state's new draft rules are more than a decade in the making.",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "Waste would undergo extensive treatment and testing before it's piped directly to taps, providing a new, costly but renewable water supply. The state's new draft rules are more than a decade in the making.",
"title": "From Sewage to Drinking Glass: California's Plan to Recycle Water | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "From Sewage to Drinking Glass: California's Plan to Recycle Water",
"datePublished": "2023-08-03T04:30:41-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:18:57-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "from-sewage-to-drinking-glass-californias-plan-to-recycle-water",
"status": "publish",
"sourceUrl": "https://calmatters.org/",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/author/rachel-becker/\">Rachel Becker\u003c/a>",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"sticky": false,
"source": "CalMatters",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/science/1983699/from-sewage-to-drinking-glass-californias-plan-to-recycle-water",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Californians could drink highly purified sewage water that is piped directly into drinking water supplies for the first time under proposed rules unveiled by state water officials.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The drought-prone state has turned to recycled water for \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/documents/direct_potable_reuse/dprframewkseced.pdf\">more than 60 years (PDF)\u003c/a> to bolster its scarce supplies, but the current regulations require it to first make a pit stop in a reservoir or an aquifer before it can flow to taps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new rules, \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/documents/direct_potable_reuse/dprframewkseced.pdf\">mandated by state law (PDF)\u003c/a>, would require extensive treatment and monitoring before wastewater can be piped to taps or mingled with raw water upstream of a drinking water treatment plant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Toilet-to-tap” this is not.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between flush and faucet, a slew of steps are designed to remove chemicals and pathogens that remain in sewage after it has already undergone \u003ca href=\"https://www3.epa.gov/npdes/pubs/bastre.pdf\">traditional primary, secondary and sometimes tertiary treatment (PDF).\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It is bubbled with ozone, chewed by bacteria, filtered through activated carbon, pushed at high pressures through reverse osmosis membranes multiple times, cleansed with an oxidizer like hydrogen peroxide and beamed with high-intensity UV light. Valuable minerals such as calcium, that were filtered out, are restored. And then, finally, the wastewater is subjected to the regular treatment that all drinking water \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/public/water_treatment.html\">currently undergoes\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Quite honestly, it’ll be the cleanest drinking water around,” said Darrin Polhemus, deputy director of the state’s Division of Drinking Water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/docs/rulemaking/dpr_draft_reg_text.pdf\">62 pages of proposed rules (PDF)\u003c/a>, more than \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=200920100SB918\">a decade in the making\u003c/a>, are not triggering much, if any, debate among health or water experts. A panel of engineering and water quality scientists \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/docs/2022/nwri-ep-finalmemoprelimfind.pdf\">deemed an earlier version of the regulations protective of public health (PDF)\u003c/a>, although they raised concerns that the treatment process would be energy-intensive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I would have no hesitation drinking this water my whole life,” said \u003ca href=\"https://viterbi.usc.edu/directory/faculty/McCurry/Daniel\">Daniel McCurry\u003c/a>, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Southern California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This water is expected to be more expensive than imported water, but also provide a more renewable and reliable supply for California as climate change continues. Most treated sewage — \u003ca href=\"https://www.lacsd.org/services/wastewater-sewage/facilities/wastewater-treatment-facilities#:~:text=Through%20the%20operation%20of%2011,MGD%20are%20available%20for%20reuse.\">about 400 million gallons a day in Los Angeles County alone\u003c/a> — is released into rivers, streams and the deep ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983705\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983705 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A person wearing a protective mask and gear is injecting a form of liquid into water. \" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-05.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Luis Canela, a water quality technician, injects chemicals to chlorinate water at the Pure Water Southern California Demonstration Plant in Carson. \u003ccite>(Lauren Justice/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The draft rules, \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/dpr-regs.html\">released on July 21st\u003c/a>, still face a gauntlet of public comment, a hearing and peer review by another panel of experts, before being finalized. The State Water Resources Control Board is required by law to vote on them by the end of December, though they can extend the deadline if necessary. They would likely go into effect next April and it will take many years to reach people’s taps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Heather Collins, water treatment manager for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, said the regulations will give the district more certainty about how to design a massive, multi-billion dollar water recycling project with the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts. The district imports water that is provided to 19 million Southern Californians.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The joint effort, called \u003ca href=\"https://www.mwdh2o.com/building-local-supplies/pure-water-southern-california/\">Pure Water Southern California\u003c/a>, has\u003ca href=\"https://www.mwdh2o.com/press-releases/state-presents-80-million-check-to-advance-development-of-pure-water-southern-california\"> already received $80 million\u003c/a> from the state. The first phase of the project, which could be completed by 2032, is expected to produce about 115 million gallons of recycled water a day, enough for 385,000 Southern California households.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most is planned to go toward recharging local water agencies’ groundwater stores, but about 20% could be added to drinking water supplies upstream of Metropolitan’s existing treatment plant for imported water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re excited,” Collins said. “It helps better inform us on what our project needs to include, so that we can have a climate-resistant supply for our agencies in Southern California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new rules come as endless cycles of drought leave California’s water \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/california-water-solutions/\">suppliers scrambling for new sources of water\u003c/a>, like purified sewage. In 2021, Californians used about \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/recycled_water/docs/2022/volumetric-infographic-2021.pdf\">732,000 acre feet of recycled water (PDF)\u003c/a>, equivalent to the amount used by roughly 2.6 million households, though much of it goes to non-drinking purposes, like irrigating landscapes, golf courses and crops.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom called for increasing recycled water use in California, \u003ca href=\"https://resources.ca.gov/-/media/CNRA-Website/Files/Initiatives/Water-Resilience/CA-Water-Supply-Strategy.pdf\">roughly 9% by 2030 (PDF)\u003c/a> and more than doubling it by 2040.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Water recycling is about finding new water, not just accepting the scarcity mindset — being more resourceful in terms of our approach,” Newsom said last \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/live/efEvnNna6kc?feature=share\">May in front of Metropolitan’s Pure Water Southern California\u003c/a> demonstration plant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://calmatters-graphics-water-recycling.netlify.app/?initialWidth=780&childId=pym-parent&parentTitle=Not%20%E2%80%98toilet%20to%20tap%3A%E2%80%99%20CA%20will%20turn%20sewage%20into%20drinking%20water%20-%20CalMatters&parentUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fcalmatters.org%2Fenvironment%2F2023%2F08%2Fcalifornia-toilet-to-tap-water%2F\" width=\"800\" height=\"1000\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some recycled water is already used to refill underground stores that provide drinking water, a process called indirect potable reuse, employed beginning in \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/documents/direct_potable_reuse/dprframewkseced.pdf\">the 1960s in Los Angeles (PDF) \u003c/a>and Orange counties. But a water agency must have a clean and convenient place to store the expensive, highly-purified water. “You don’t want to inject this recycled wastewater that you’ve spent all this effort cleaning into a dirty, polluted aquifer just to ruin it again,” McCurry said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To expand these uses, \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=200920100SB918\">state lawmakers in 2010 tasked the water board\u003c/a> with investigating the possibility of adding recycled water either directly into a public water system or just upstream of a water treatment plant. \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201720180AB574\">In 2017, they set a deadline\u003c/a> to develop the regulations by the end of 2023.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California won’t be the first; Colorado \u003ca href=\"https://cdphe.colorado.gov/Regulation_11_Direct_Potable_Reuse\">already has regulations\u003c/a> and the nation’s first direct potable reuse plant \u003ca href=\"https://www.crmwd.org/water-sources/reuse/\">was built in Texas in 2013\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://floridadep.gov/water/domestic-wastewater/content/water-reuse-news-rulemaking-information\">Florida\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://azdeq.gov/awp-rulemaking\">Arizona\u003c/a> have rules in the works.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s statewide rules, however, are expected to be the most stringent, said Andrew Salveson, water reuse chief technologist at Carollo Engineers, an environmental engineering consulting firm that specializes in water treatment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They are more conservative than anywhere else,” he said. “And I’m not being critical. In the state of California, because we’re in the early days of (direct potable reuse) implementation, they’re taking measured and conservative steps.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Removing viruses and chemicals\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The water that flushes down toilets, whirls down sinks, runs from industrial facilities and flows off agricultural fields is teeming with viruses, parasites and other pathogens that can make people sick. Chemicals also contaminate this sewage, everything from industrial \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/projects/california-water-contaminated-forever-chemicals/#\">perfluorinated “forever chemicals”\u003c/a> to \u003ca href=\"https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.8b05592\">drugs excreted in urine\u003c/a>. Bypassing groundwater stores or reservoirs to funnel purified sewage directly into pipes means \u003ca href=\"https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/certlic/drinkingwater/documents/direct_potable_reuse/dprframewkseced.pdf\">that there’s less room for error (PDF)\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new regulations would ramp up restrictions on pathogens, calling for scrubbing away more than 99.9999% of diarrhea-causing viruses and certain parasites. Also a series of treatments are designed to break down chemical contaminants like anti-seizure drugs, pain relievers, antidepressants and other pharmaceuticals. \u003ca href=\"https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/pharmaceuticals-water\">Medications can bypass traditional sewage treatment\u003c/a> so they are found in low concentrations in recycled sewage and groundwater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983703\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983703\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"An image of three levels of big blue pipes.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823-Pure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-22.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Water makes its way to the first step of the water purification process, membrane bioreactors, at the Pure Water Southern California Demonstration Plant in Carson, on July 28, 2023. \u003ccite>(Lauren Justice/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The added technologies are good at washing away pharmaceuticals, McCurry said, so having them “back-to-back introduces a ton of redundancy,” he said. “Any pharmaceutical you could think of, if you tried to measure it in the product water of one of these plants, is going to be below the detection limit.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new rules call for extensive monitoring to ensure the treatment is working. Some harmful chemicals, such as lead and nitrates, which are dangerous to babies and young children, will be tested for weekly; others, monthly. And water providers must also monitor the sewage itself before it even reaches treatment for any chemical spikes that could indicate illegal dumping or spills.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We think we’ve got the chemical classes covered in the treatment processes, so that we’re removing materials that we don’t even know are there,” the water board’s Polhemus said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jennifer West, managing director of WateReuse California, a trade association for water recycling, said she was happy to finally see California’s regulations, though she hopes the state will build in more flexibility for water providers to alter the suite of treatments as technologies change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/0Pt4C/7/\" width=\"800\" height=\"300\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://publichealth.sdsu.edu/people/richard-gersberg/\">Richard Gersberg\u003c/a>, San Diego State University professor emeritus of environmental health, said he supports using highly treated waste for drinking water. But he suggests that the state fund long-term studies comparing health effects in people who drink it to those whose drinking water comes from another source, such as rivers, “which might end up being worse. Probably is,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Given the vast and changing cocktail of chemicals constantly in use, “we don’t know what we don’t know,” Gersberg said. “If this becomes huge in California, and it will, I believe … we should at least spend a little money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Who will be first?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>All this treatment and monitoring is likely to be pricey, which is why Polhemus expects to see it largely limited to large urban areas that produce a lot of wastewater, such as Los Angeles County. The Metropolitan Water District’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.mwdh2o.com/media/16859/program-brochure-2021.pdf\">$3.4 billion estimate for building the project (PDF) \u003c/a>dates back to 2018, and has likely increased since then, according to spokesperson Rebecca Kimitch.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For small and medium communities, Polhemus said, “it doesn’t pencil out in a small-scale type of arrangement.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Orange County Water District, which has long been a leader in purifying recycled water, has concluded that piping it directly to customers doesn’t pencil out for them either, because they’ve already invested so heavily in refilling their carefully tended aquifer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It would “require adding more treatment processes and increasing operating expenses,” board president Cathy Green said in a statement. “Local water agencies are currently well-equipped to continue to supply drinking water to customers in our service area at a low cost using the Orange County Groundwater Basin.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For other regions like Silicon Valley, though, the costs may be worth it as climate change continues to shrink state supplies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“At this point, it’s more expensive than water we might import during a drought. But who knows what will happen in the future,” said Kirsten Struve, assistant officer in the water supply division at the Santa Clara Valley Water District, which serves approximately 2 million people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s why we need to get prepared.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983704\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983704 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-800x533.jpg\" alt='Multiple pipes are seen in a laboratory. A sign that says \"Pure Water Southern California Demonstration Plant\" is displayed. ' width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/08/072823bPure-Water-Treatment-LJ-CM-23.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Pure Water Southern California Demonstration Plant showcases technology that may provide drinking water to Southern Californians by 2032. \u003ccite>(Lauren Justice/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Santa Clara water agency, known as Valley Water, is planning a $1.2 billion project in Palo Alto to produce about 10 million gallons a day of water for groundwater recharge, but Struve said she hopes the plant also will be used for direct potable reuse in the future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The timing of the regulations has butted up against the realities of planning for Monterey One Water on the Monterey Peninsula as well. The utility has been injecting purified wastewater into the seaside aquifer for three years, producing about a third of the local supply, said General Manager Paul Sciuto. It is working on expanding the project by 2025, Sciuto said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I get that question of, ‘This water is so pure, why do you put it in the ground? Why can’t you just serve it?’” he said. “And I always fall back on, well, there’s no regulations that allow us to do that at this point.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now that the state is closer to finalizing them, he said, “there’s a point on the horizon to shoot for.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1983699/from-sewage-to-drinking-glass-californias-plan-to-recycle-water",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1983699"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_39",
"science_40",
"science_4450",
"science_98"
],
"tags": [
"science_1194"
],
"featImg": "science_1983700",
"label": "source_science_1983699"
},
"science_1983664": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1983664",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983664",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1690922691000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1690922691,
"format": "standard",
"title": "Climate Change Is Creating Bigger Waves on California Coasts",
"headTitle": "Climate Change Is Creating Bigger Waves on California Coasts | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Earlier this year, California was pummeled by what local surfer’s described as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/news/shows/greater-la/homeless-hollywood-storms/rain-surf-swells\">the best swell\u003c/a> in decades: massive waves that damaged piers, crumbled sea cliffs and flooded coastlines. A new study finds that wave heights are getting bigger along the California coast as global temperatures have warmed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The study, published Tuesday in the \u003cem>Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, \u003c/em>looked at nearly a century’s worth of data, and found that the average height of winter waves have grown by about a foot since 1969. The number of storm events that produced waves greater than 13 feet in height has also increased, the study found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In that same time, the burning of fossil fuels has contributed to an increase in average global temperatures by \u003ca href=\"https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/global/time-series/globe/land_ocean/ytd/1/1970-2023\">more than 1 degree\u003c/a> Fahrenheit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is just another indication that overall average wave heights have increased significantly since 1970 — since the advent of the upward trend in global warming,” said Peter Bromirski, researcher emeritus at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the study’s author.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Global climate-warming carbon dioxide has \u003ca href=\"https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/global-greenhouse-gas-emissions-data#:~:text=Global%20carbon%20emissions%20from%20fossil,increase%20from%201970%20to%202011.\">increased by about 90%\u003c/a> since 1970, federal data show.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While bigger waves may be a boon to surfers, they can also be damaging to California’s already climate-vulnerable coast.\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='Peter Bromirski, researcher emeritus, Scripps Institution of Oceanography']‘Higher waves with higher sea levels allows more wave energy to reach vulnerable sea cliffs and also enhances coastal flooding as well as damage to coastal infrastructure.’[/pullquote]\u003c/span>Warmer ocean temperatures and inflows of freshwater from the world’s melting ice caps have caused sea levels to \u003ca href=\"https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/d0c1df224a97418bb4dad129ea4c6d17\">rise roughly 8 inches\u003c/a> along California’s 1,200 mile coastline in the last century, according to the California Coastal Commission. Without rapid cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, they could rise by feet in the coming decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the turn of this century, federal estimates warn nearly three-quarters of California’s picturesque beaches may be\u003ca href=\"https://d197for5662m48.cloudfront.net/documents/publicationstatus/129901/preprint_pdf/f3f45324f53298f515110452a3077f58.pdf\"> completely eroded (PDF)\u003c/a> by rising seas. A report by California’s nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office found that between $8 and $10 billion worth of existing property is \u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4261#:~:text=Impacts%20of%20SLR%20Could%20Be%20Both%20Extensive%20and%20Expensive.&text=Some%20key%20findings%20from%20existing,at%20risk%20during%20high%20tides.\">likely to be underwater\u003c/a> within the next few decades, with an additional $6 to $10 billion worth of property at risk during high tides.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Higher waves with higher sea levels allows more wave energy to reach vulnerable sea cliffs and also enhances coastal flooding as well as damage to coastal infrastructure,” said Bromirski.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new study adds to a growing body of research that suggests storm activity in the Northern Pacific Ocean — the main source of California’s winter swells — has increased as human activities have caused the world’s temperature to warm. A 2019 study by researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, found that\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1974937/warming-oceans-stronger-swells-big-wave-surfers-ride-more-powerful-waves\"> the energy in ocean waves\u003c/a> have increased over most of the last century because of climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another study, published by a team of international researchers in 2021, found that climate change is causing wave power — the energy transferred from winds to waves — to \u003ca href=\"https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2021GL093622\">increase globally\u003c/a>, particularly in the Southern Hemisphere.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The areas where we see the most warming in the global oceans is where we tend to see the most significant increases in wave power,” said Tom Mortlock, one of the study’s authors and an Australian-based senior analyst at the insurer Aon. “The reason for this is that as oceans warm, they intensify the circulation of winds over the ocean, and stronger winds drive higher waves.”\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">[aside label='related coverage' postID=science_1978061,science_1974937]\u003c/span>Bromirski used seismic records dating back to 1931 to get a sense of how much wave heights had changed off California’s coasts during the winter months. When waves ricochet off of the coast, they send energy back towards the sea. When that energy hits incoming waves, it pushes energy downward, creating a seismic signal that can be detected.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bromirski, who got a Ph.D. in seismology in 1993, knew that those wave to wave interactions caused seismic signals that could be detected underwater and on land, “but nobody had tried to invert the seismic signals for wave height,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Interpreting the seismic data was crucial to understanding how wave heights had changed over most of the last century, Bromirski said. Buoys that measure wave height along the West Coast had only been collecting data since 1980, after the rapid intensification of greenhouse gas emissions had already begun.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By using seismic data, Bromirski could look for patterns in a longer window of time. Two notable periods stood out. From 1939 to 1947 and 1957 to 1965 there were extended periods of “exceptionally low winter wave activity,” Bromirski said. “There’s been nothing like that since 1970.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=Surf%27s+up%21+Wave+heights+increase+on+California%27s+coasts+as+climate+warms&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 829,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 16
},
"modified": 1704845941,
"excerpt": "A new study finds that winter wave heights have increased along California's coast as human actions have warmed the world's climate. Bigger waves are a threat to the already vulnerable coast. ",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "A new study finds that winter wave heights have increased along California's coast as human actions have warmed the world's climate. Bigger waves are a threat to the already vulnerable coast. ",
"title": "Climate Change Is Creating Bigger Waves on California Coasts | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "Climate Change Is Creating Bigger Waves on California Coasts",
"datePublished": "2023-08-01T13:44:51-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:19:01-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "climate-change-is-creating-bigger-waves-on-california-coasts",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1191216362&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Tue, 01 Aug 2023 12:45:16 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Tue, 01 Aug 2023 12:45:16 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/2023/08/01/1191216362/surfs-up-wave-heights-increase-on-californias-coasts-as-climate-warms?ft=nprml&f=1191216362",
"nprImageAgency": "Getty Images",
"source": "NPR",
"nprStoryId": "1191216362",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/348779465/nathan-rott\">Nathan Rott\u003c/a>",
"sticky": false,
"nprImageCredit": "Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Tue, 01 Aug 2023 12:45:00 -0400",
"path": "/science/1983664/climate-change-is-creating-bigger-waves-on-california-coasts",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Earlier this year, California was pummeled by what local surfer’s described as \u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/news/shows/greater-la/homeless-hollywood-storms/rain-surf-swells\">the best swell\u003c/a> in decades: massive waves that damaged piers, crumbled sea cliffs and flooded coastlines. A new study finds that wave heights are getting bigger along the California coast as global temperatures have warmed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The study, published Tuesday in the \u003cem>Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, \u003c/em>looked at nearly a century’s worth of data, and found that the average height of winter waves have grown by about a foot since 1969. The number of storm events that produced waves greater than 13 feet in height has also increased, the study found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In that same time, the burning of fossil fuels has contributed to an increase in average global temperatures by \u003ca href=\"https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/monitoring/climate-at-a-glance/global/time-series/globe/land_ocean/ytd/1/1970-2023\">more than 1 degree\u003c/a> Fahrenheit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is just another indication that overall average wave heights have increased significantly since 1970 — since the advent of the upward trend in global warming,” said Peter Bromirski, researcher emeritus at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the study’s author.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Global climate-warming carbon dioxide has \u003ca href=\"https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/global-greenhouse-gas-emissions-data#:~:text=Global%20carbon%20emissions%20from%20fossil,increase%20from%201970%20to%202011.\">increased by about 90%\u003c/a> since 1970, federal data show.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While bigger waves may be a boon to surfers, they can also be damaging to California’s already climate-vulnerable coast.\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "‘Higher waves with higher sea levels allows more wave energy to reach vulnerable sea cliffs and also enhances coastal flooding as well as damage to coastal infrastructure.’",
"name": "pullquote",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"size": "medium",
"align": "right",
"citation": "Peter Bromirski, researcher emeritus, Scripps Institution of Oceanography",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/span>Warmer ocean temperatures and inflows of freshwater from the world’s melting ice caps have caused sea levels to \u003ca href=\"https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/d0c1df224a97418bb4dad129ea4c6d17\">rise roughly 8 inches\u003c/a> along California’s 1,200 mile coastline in the last century, according to the California Coastal Commission. Without rapid cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, they could rise by feet in the coming decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the turn of this century, federal estimates warn nearly three-quarters of California’s picturesque beaches may be\u003ca href=\"https://d197for5662m48.cloudfront.net/documents/publicationstatus/129901/preprint_pdf/f3f45324f53298f515110452a3077f58.pdf\"> completely eroded (PDF)\u003c/a> by rising seas. A report by California’s nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office found that between $8 and $10 billion worth of existing property is \u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4261#:~:text=Impacts%20of%20SLR%20Could%20Be%20Both%20Extensive%20and%20Expensive.&text=Some%20key%20findings%20from%20existing,at%20risk%20during%20high%20tides.\">likely to be underwater\u003c/a> within the next few decades, with an additional $6 to $10 billion worth of property at risk during high tides.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Higher waves with higher sea levels allows more wave energy to reach vulnerable sea cliffs and also enhances coastal flooding as well as damage to coastal infrastructure,” said Bromirski.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new study adds to a growing body of research that suggests storm activity in the Northern Pacific Ocean — the main source of California’s winter swells — has increased as human activities have caused the world’s temperature to warm. A 2019 study by researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, found that\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1974937/warming-oceans-stronger-swells-big-wave-surfers-ride-more-powerful-waves\"> the energy in ocean waves\u003c/a> have increased over most of the last century because of climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another study, published by a team of international researchers in 2021, found that climate change is causing wave power — the energy transferred from winds to waves — to \u003ca href=\"https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2021GL093622\">increase globally\u003c/a>, particularly in the Southern Hemisphere.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The areas where we see the most warming in the global oceans is where we tend to see the most significant increases in wave power,” said Tom Mortlock, one of the study’s authors and an Australian-based senior analyst at the insurer Aon. “The reason for this is that as oceans warm, they intensify the circulation of winds over the ocean, and stronger winds drive higher waves.”\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "related coverage ",
"postid": "science_1978061,science_1974937"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/span>Bromirski used seismic records dating back to 1931 to get a sense of how much wave heights had changed off California’s coasts during the winter months. When waves ricochet off of the coast, they send energy back towards the sea. When that energy hits incoming waves, it pushes energy downward, creating a seismic signal that can be detected.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bromirski, who got a Ph.D. in seismology in 1993, knew that those wave to wave interactions caused seismic signals that could be detected underwater and on land, “but nobody had tried to invert the seismic signals for wave height,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Interpreting the seismic data was crucial to understanding how wave heights had changed over most of the last century, Bromirski said. Buoys that measure wave height along the West Coast had only been collecting data since 1980, after the rapid intensification of greenhouse gas emissions had already begun.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By using seismic data, Bromirski could look for patterns in a longer window of time. Two notable periods stood out. From 1939 to 1947 and 1957 to 1965 there were extended periods of “exceptionally low winter wave activity,” Bromirski said. “There’s been nothing like that since 1970.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=Surf%27s+up%21+Wave+heights+increase+on+California%27s+coasts+as+climate+warms&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1983664/climate-change-is-creating-bigger-waves-on-california-coasts",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1983664"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_182",
"science_843"
],
"featImg": "science_1983665",
"label": "source_science_1983664"
},
"science_1983596": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1983596",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983596",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1690463884000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1690463884,
"format": "standard",
"title": "Why Cities Like San Francisco Get 10 Degrees Hotter Than Rural Areas",
"headTitle": "Why Cities Like San Francisco Get 10 Degrees Hotter Than Rural Areas | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Tens of millions of Americans have been living with stifling, dangerous heat this summer. A new analysis shows how much worse it is for people living in urban environments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Roughly 41 million people live in urban areas where temperatures are at least 8 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than their more rural surroundings, according to the analysis from the nonprofit research group \u003ca href=\"https://www.climatecentral.org/\">Climate Central\u003c/a>. In some neighborhoods of Washington D.C., Chicago, New York and San Francisco, temperatures are more than 10 degrees hotter, amplifying health risks and cooling costs for millions of residents.[aside label=\"Related coverage\" postID=\"news_11878134\"]Other research shows lower-income areas and communities of color are \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2019/09/03/754044732/as-rising-heat-bakes-u-s-cities-the-poor-often-feel-it-most\">often worst affected\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Climate change, supercharged by the burning of fossil fuels, is causing more intense and more frequent heatwaves. A study published earlier this week found that recent heatwaves in Europe and America would be “\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/07/25/1189837347/u-s-european-heat-waves-virtually-impossible-without-climate-change-new-study-fi\">virtually impossible\u003c/a>” without human-caused warming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In cities, the heat is amplified by something called the \u003ca href=\"https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/climate-change-impacts/urban-heat-islands\">urban heat island effect\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Urban heat islands are a byproduct of a built environment. Gas-powered cars and air conditioning units generate and radiate heat. Concrete parking lots and buildings absorb the sun’s heat and emit that heat long after the sun sets. Fewer trees mean less shade. Densely built areas essentially become islands where temperatures are hotter than their surroundings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Even if you live in the suburbs, there is some relevance when you think maybe [from] your nice shaded house, you go to the shopping plaza by the highway and you feel how much hotter it is there,” said Jen Brady, senior data analyst at Climate Central. “It’s because you have this dense built environment.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new analysis is essentially a more detailed and tighter focused version of a report Brady helped lead in 2021, which created an index to measure the intensity of urban heat islands and then ranked \u003ca href=\"https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/urban-heat-islands\">the nation’s 159 most-affected cities\u003c/a>. That index generated an intensity score based on several things including population density, building height, and whether a surface reflects sunlight or absorbs and retains heat. Climate Central’s latest examination looked at 44 of the country’s largest cities by population, zoomed in, and applied the same index to nearly 19,000 census tracts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was surprised at how far out the urban heat island effect was,” Brady said. “I was thinking once you got out of the city core, [temperature] was just going to jump off a cliff, you know, [from] eight degrees more to two.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In reality, she said, the effects extend fairly far out. “You’re maintaining four to five degrees further and further outside even the city core.”[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='Angel Hsu, a public policy professor at the University of North Carolina']‘Americans in major U.S. cities living two times below the poverty line are exposed to almost a full degree higher Celsius of this urban heat island effect compared to their wealthier counterparts. And the same thing goes with people of color.’[/pullquote]The study did not apply socioeconomic or race data to the findings, but other research shows that some neighborhoods experience even worse heat island effects than others.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Angel Hsu, a public policy professor at the University of North Carolina, published a study in 2021 looking at \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-22799-5\">disproportionate exposures\u003c/a> to heat islands between different communities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What we found is that within a city, there can be huge differences in those temperatures and the heat exposure that various residents experience depending on their socio-demographic background,” she said. “Americans in major U.S. cities living two times below the poverty line are exposed to almost a full degree higher Celsius of this urban heat island effect compared to their wealthier counterparts. And the same thing goes with people of color.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Biden administration is trying to address the discrepancy, announcing earlier this year the availability of \u003ca href=\"https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2023/04/12/biden-harris-administration-announces-historic-funding-expand\">$1 billion in grants\u003c/a> for projects aimed at expanding green space or tree coverage in disadvantaged urban communities. Some cities and states are leading efforts to do the same. In Austin, aluminum shelters are being built over bus stops, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kut.org/transportation/2023-07-19/capmetro-new-bus-shelters-heat\">providing shade\u003c/a> for waiting commuters. In Los Angeles, some streets are \u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/news/shows/greater-la/heat-latinos-la-times-oc/cool-streets#:~:text=Reflective%20gray%20paint%20absorbs%20less,takes%20a%20walk%20every%20day.\">being painted\u003c/a> a bright shade of gray to reflect sunlight.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There are smaller scale solutions,” Brady said. “It’s not going to take you from ten additional degrees to zero degrees, but they can make it more bearable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=It%27s+hot+out+there.+A+new+analysis+shows+it%27s+much+worse+if+you%27re+in+a+city&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 779,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 15
},
"modified": 1704845946,
"excerpt": "More than 40 million urban Americans are experiencing significantly hotter temperatures than their rural counterparts, new research finds. ",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "More than 40 million urban Americans are experiencing significantly hotter temperatures than their rural counterparts, new research finds. ",
"title": "Why Cities Like San Francisco Get 10 Degrees Hotter Than Rural Areas | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "Why Cities Like San Francisco Get 10 Degrees Hotter Than Rural Areas",
"datePublished": "2023-07-27T06:18:04-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:19:06-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "why-cities-like-san-francisco-get-10-degrees-hotter-than-rural-areas",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1190071137&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Wed, 26 Jul 2023 06:16:08 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Wed, 26 Jul 2023 06:16:08 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/2023/07/26/1190071137/its-hot-out-there-a-new-analysis-shows-its-much-worse-if-youre-in-a-city?ft=nprml&f=1190071137",
"nprImageAgency": "Getty Images",
"source": "NPR",
"nprStoryId": "1190071137",
"sourceUrl": "https://www.npr.org/",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/348779465/nathan-rott\">Nathan Rott\u003c/a>",
"sticky": false,
"nprImageCredit": "Mario Tama",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Wed, 26 Jul 2023 06:16:00 -0400",
"path": "/science/1983596/why-cities-like-san-francisco-get-10-degrees-hotter-than-rural-areas",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Tens of millions of Americans have been living with stifling, dangerous heat this summer. A new analysis shows how much worse it is for people living in urban environments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Roughly 41 million people live in urban areas where temperatures are at least 8 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than their more rural surroundings, according to the analysis from the nonprofit research group \u003ca href=\"https://www.climatecentral.org/\">Climate Central\u003c/a>. In some neighborhoods of Washington D.C., Chicago, New York and San Francisco, temperatures are more than 10 degrees hotter, amplifying health risks and cooling costs for millions of residents.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "Related coverage ",
"postid": "news_11878134"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Other research shows lower-income areas and communities of color are \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2019/09/03/754044732/as-rising-heat-bakes-u-s-cities-the-poor-often-feel-it-most\">often worst affected\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Climate change, supercharged by the burning of fossil fuels, is causing more intense and more frequent heatwaves. A study published earlier this week found that recent heatwaves in Europe and America would be “\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/07/25/1189837347/u-s-european-heat-waves-virtually-impossible-without-climate-change-new-study-fi\">virtually impossible\u003c/a>” without human-caused warming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In cities, the heat is amplified by something called the \u003ca href=\"https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/climate-change-impacts/urban-heat-islands\">urban heat island effect\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Urban heat islands are a byproduct of a built environment. Gas-powered cars and air conditioning units generate and radiate heat. Concrete parking lots and buildings absorb the sun’s heat and emit that heat long after the sun sets. Fewer trees mean less shade. Densely built areas essentially become islands where temperatures are hotter than their surroundings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Even if you live in the suburbs, there is some relevance when you think maybe [from] your nice shaded house, you go to the shopping plaza by the highway and you feel how much hotter it is there,” said Jen Brady, senior data analyst at Climate Central. “It’s because you have this dense built environment.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new analysis is essentially a more detailed and tighter focused version of a report Brady helped lead in 2021, which created an index to measure the intensity of urban heat islands and then ranked \u003ca href=\"https://www.climatecentral.org/climate-matters/urban-heat-islands\">the nation’s 159 most-affected cities\u003c/a>. That index generated an intensity score based on several things including population density, building height, and whether a surface reflects sunlight or absorbs and retains heat. Climate Central’s latest examination looked at 44 of the country’s largest cities by population, zoomed in, and applied the same index to nearly 19,000 census tracts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was surprised at how far out the urban heat island effect was,” Brady said. “I was thinking once you got out of the city core, [temperature] was just going to jump off a cliff, you know, [from] eight degrees more to two.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In reality, she said, the effects extend fairly far out. “You’re maintaining four to five degrees further and further outside even the city core.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "‘Americans in major U.S. cities living two times below the poverty line are exposed to almost a full degree higher Celsius of this urban heat island effect compared to their wealthier counterparts. And the same thing goes with people of color.’",
"name": "pullquote",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"size": "medium",
"align": "right",
"citation": "Angel Hsu, a public policy professor at the University of North Carolina",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The study did not apply socioeconomic or race data to the findings, but other research shows that some neighborhoods experience even worse heat island effects than others.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Angel Hsu, a public policy professor at the University of North Carolina, published a study in 2021 looking at \u003ca href=\"https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-22799-5\">disproportionate exposures\u003c/a> to heat islands between different communities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What we found is that within a city, there can be huge differences in those temperatures and the heat exposure that various residents experience depending on their socio-demographic background,” she said. “Americans in major U.S. cities living two times below the poverty line are exposed to almost a full degree higher Celsius of this urban heat island effect compared to their wealthier counterparts. And the same thing goes with people of color.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Biden administration is trying to address the discrepancy, announcing earlier this year the availability of \u003ca href=\"https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2023/04/12/biden-harris-administration-announces-historic-funding-expand\">$1 billion in grants\u003c/a> for projects aimed at expanding green space or tree coverage in disadvantaged urban communities. Some cities and states are leading efforts to do the same. In Austin, aluminum shelters are being built over bus stops, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kut.org/transportation/2023-07-19/capmetro-new-bus-shelters-heat\">providing shade\u003c/a> for waiting commuters. In Los Angeles, some streets are \u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/news/shows/greater-la/heat-latinos-la-times-oc/cool-streets#:~:text=Reflective%20gray%20paint%20absorbs%20less,takes%20a%20walk%20every%20day.\">being painted\u003c/a> a bright shade of gray to reflect sunlight.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There are smaller scale solutions,” Brady said. “It’s not going to take you from ten additional degrees to zero degrees, but they can make it more bearable.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=It%27s+hot+out+there.+A+new+analysis+shows+it%27s+much+worse+if+you%27re+in+a+city&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1983596/why-cities-like-san-francisco-get-10-degrees-hotter-than-rural-areas",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1983596"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_182",
"science_1678",
"science_2184"
],
"featImg": "science_1983597",
"label": "source_science_1983596"
},
"science_1983475": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "science_1983475",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1983475",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1689361489000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1689361489,
"format": "standard",
"title": "8 Mistakes to Avoid If You're Going Out During the California Heat Wave",
"headTitle": "8 Mistakes to Avoid If You’re Going Out During the California Heat Wave | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>It’s hot — which shouldn’t come as a surprise in July. But this summer’s heat is \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/07/05/1186003959/el-nino-plus-climate-change-means-record-breaking-heat\">breaking records\u003c/a> around the world, and in the U.S. this week, a heat dome is afflicting the Southwest with ultrahigh temperatures. The East Coast is expected to be steamy, and parts of Southern California could hit 106 degrees by Saturday in what the National Weather Service has dubbed a summer of “\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/06/21/1183486618/summer-solstice-weather-extreme-heat\">excessive\u003c/a>” weather.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label=\"Related coverage\" postID=\"news_11878134\"]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Of course, it’s summer and you have things to do outdoors, from festivals to barbecues to mowing the lawn. We get it. But the heat can take a toll on your body, and you need to plan ahead when the temperature rises to extreme heat. “Don’t overdo it,” warns \u003ca href=\"https://www.oakstreethealth.com/doctors/john-h-schumann\">John Schumann\u003c/a>, a primary care physician in Tulsa, Oklahoma. “Heat can envelop and pummel you.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And there are a lot of misconceptions about the best ways to protect yourself, warns \u003ca href=\"https://www.uclahealth.org/providers/david-eisenman\">David Eisenman\u003c/a>, a physician at UCLA who is \u003ca href=\"https://ph.ucla.edu/about/faculty-staff-directory/david-eisenman\">co-director of the UCLA Center for Healthy Climate Solutions\u003c/a>. Here are mistakes to avoid in order to ensure you stay safe in the heat.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>1. Too much, too soon: You need to acclimatize\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When a heat wave strikes, your body needs time to adjust, says \u003ca href=\"https://scholars.houstonmethodist.org/en/persons/neil-a-gandhi\">Neil Gandhi\u003c/a>, a physician at Houston Methodist Hospital: “You can’t do too much too soon.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you go from mostly spending time in air conditioning to an outdoor activity in the sweltering heat, you could be caught off guard. Your body isn’t “acclimatized to handle the stress,” Gandhi says. And \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdc.gov/pictureofamerica/pdfs/picture_of_america_heat-related_illness.pdf\">every year, about 650 people die (PDF)\u003c/a> from heat-related illness in the United States.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fortunately, once acclimatized, the body gets better at fending off heat-related illness. “Our body starts to sweat sooner at a lower body temperature and at a greater rate,” explains Eisenman. Also, blood flow to the skin improves, which has the effect of cooling us down by carrying heat out of the body’s core. And your thirst increases, so you’re less likely to get dehydrated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But this doesn’t happen immediately. “It’s going to happen over the space of several days of exposure,” Eisenman says. So if you’re planning a hiking trip, summer sightseeing or any other extended exposure to heat, plan to spend short periods in the heat each day in the days leading up to your outdoor adventure.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And note that kids acclimatize much more slowly than adults, says Eisenman, so give them extra days to prepare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983477\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983477\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A few people pictured outside holding black umbrellas. \" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4.jpg 911w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Staying out of direct sun as much as possible can help prevent heat-related illness. Look for shade or make your own with an umbrella, like these pedestrians waiting for a bus during a heat wave in Miami on June 26. \u003ccite>(Giorgio Viera/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>2. Failing to pre-hydrate (and rehydrate!)\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Hydrate in advance, says \u003ca href=\"https://www.memorialhermann.org/doctors/cardiovascular-disease-specialists/dr-wafi-momin-do-1437414778\">Wafi Momin\u003c/a>, a cardiologist at Memorial Hermann Health System in Katy, Texas. “Grab a glass of water or a sports drink before you head out to the outdoors,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And bring plenty of water with you, and don’t wait until you’re thirsty to start drinking during an outdoor activity. “The moment you begin to feel thirsty, you’re likely anywhere between 10 to 25% dehydrated already,” says Gandhi.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most people aren’t even hydrated enough on a normal day, Eisenman notes, so it’s easy to start at a deficit on a hot day. His advice is to double the amount you’d drink in a typical day. The best test of hydration is to check the color of your urine. “Make sure that you’re peeing frequently and that your urine is pale” — almost clear, says Eisenman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Water is the best way to hydrate — and it’s free! Sports drinks add electrolytes and can be helpful if you’ve gotten overheated or if you’re participating in a marathon or other endurance event — but they’re not necessary when you’re simply trying to stay hydrated throughout the day, says Schumann, who also serves as a medical director for Oak Street Health, a chain of primary care clinics. In Tulsa, he says, in recent weeks they’ve seen bouts of 100-degree weather.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In these heat-dome times, though I pooh-pooh all the millennials who carry water bottles everywhere, the kids — they’re right about this,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>3. Don’t be the frog in the boiling pot (i.e., your car)\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You may not realize how hot it’s getting inside your car.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cars heat up so fast even in moderate heat because of a “mini greenhouse effect,” Eisenman explains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The sun is coming through those windows, and then the heat is getting bounced around and getting trapped inside. It turns into a different wavelength of heat and doesn’t go back out the windows,” he says. “And on a day of moderate temperatures, say like 75 degrees outside, in 25 minutes it will become 100 degrees inside your car.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Each year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nhtsa.gov/campaign/heatstroke#:~:text=When%20a%20child%20is%20left,died%20of%20heatstroke%20in%20vehicles\">about 50 children die \u003c/a>when left in a car. So do not underestimate the dangers, especially if you’re distracted by finishing up a phone call, says Eisenman. “Even with the air conditioner running, even with the windows cracked, it can become hot in there very quickly,” he adds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983478\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983478\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A kid in an orange short and shorts with images of food on them plays in the water. The kid is holding a blue and green toy in his hand. \" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19.jpg 907w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kids can be more vulnerable to heat-related illness, and it takes them longer to acclimatize to sudden hot weather. \u003ccite>(Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>4. Heat + (certain) medications don’t mix\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Certain medications can make people more vulnerable to heat, explains Momin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some heart medications such as \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/08/01/1114821088/blood-pressure-medication-can-complicate-heat-related-illness\">blood pressure drugs\u003c/a>, which millions of people take, are diuretic, he explains. “Those medications are trying to get rid of fluid from your body because of underlying heart issues,” he says. And if you then add heat, which also causes you to lose excessive amounts of fluid, “that can cause a very dangerous situation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other types of medications can have this effect too, says Schumann. These include \u003ca href=\"https://www.goodrx.com/classes/anticholinergics/anticholinergic-drugs-medications\">anticholinergic medications\u003c/a>, anticonvulsants, bladder medications and sedatives. “Lots of medicines work by dehydrating us — excreting excess fluid. Be careful!” he warns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In general, older people are more vulnerable to heat, so if you’re older and on these medications, take extra precautions to stay cool and hydrated. Ask your doctor whether any of your medicines could be dehydrating.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>5. Don’t ignore the early signs of heat-related illness\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The first few signs that you’re getting overheated may not feel too alarming: sweating, fatigue, dizziness and headache. You might feel nauseous or lightheaded. But “those are the telltale signs of heat exhaustion creeping in,” says Momin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You may just blow it off, saying, you know, it’s hot and I’ve felt this way before, but the worst of the symptoms can come on very quickly without realizing it,” he says. “And all of a sudden, your body’s overheating to a point where you won’t really be able to drink enough fluids at that juncture to reverse what’s already gone on.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Symptoms of heat exhaustion can quickly become more serious. They can include muscle cramping, increased fatigue and accelerated heart rate. “You may start to weaken and just kind of get out of breath as you exert yourself,” Gandhi says.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>6. Know when to seek medical attention\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you’re with someone who begins to show signs of heat-related illness, move the person to a cool place, give them water or a sports drink and moisten their skin. You can also remove unnecessary clothing such as shoes, socks and jackets.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, observe them. Their symptoms should start to improve in about 30 minutes, Eisenman says. If they don’t get better in that time or if \u003cem>at any point\u003c/em> they start having more \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/safety/heat-illness#:~:text=Heat%20Stroke,Delay%20can%20be%20fatal.\">worrisome symptoms\u003c/a>, call for medical help. “I think sometimes people wait too long to call 911,” says Eisenman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If their heart rate is going fast, if they’re breathing quickly, if they seem at all confused, those are all indicators they’ve had more exposure to the heat than \u003cem>you\u003c/em> can handle,” Eisenman says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When heatstroke sets in, people can even lose consciousness or pass out — in this case, seek immediate medical attention.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You \u003cem>really \u003c/em>want to avoid heatstroke: With heatstroke, your core body temperature can rise quickly to 103 to 105 degrees or more, says Gandhi. When this happens, “you can start to experience some organ damage pretty quickly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>7. Wear loose, light clothing\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you’re spending time in the heat, what you wear matters. “I would seek lighter colors because those tend to reflect heat rather than absorb heat compared to darker colors such as blacks and dark blues,” says Momin. And stay away from tight clothing, which can block airflow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Loose-fitting clothing allows for the heat to evaporate off your body more easily,” adds Eisenman.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>8. Alcohol is a bad call\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you’re at an outdoor party, resist that ice-cold margarita. Go for mocktails instead. “Alcohol will dehydrate you much faster” in the heat, says Schumann.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re determined to have something with a little kick in it, “drink some water for every drink you have to avoid trouble,” he says. “If you wind up having to pee a lot, it’ll be worth it. If you don’t, you might be getting into trouble.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Alcohol is very problematic” if you’re outdoors in the heat, agrees Momin. Not only does it cause you to lose fluids, but “it can also impair your judgment.” And when that happens, you might miss the signs of heat-related illness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=8+mistakes+to+avoid+if+you%27re+going+out+in+the+heat&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 1742,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 37
},
"modified": 1704845956,
"excerpt": "You can still enjoy the outdoors this summer despite the scorching weather, if you're smart about it. Here's what to watch out for and how to stay safe.",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "You can still enjoy the outdoors this summer despite the scorching weather, if you're smart about it. Here's what to watch out for and how to stay safe.",
"title": "8 Mistakes to Avoid If You're Going Out During the California Heat Wave | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Article",
"headline": "8 Mistakes to Avoid If You're Going Out During the California Heat Wave",
"datePublished": "2023-07-14T12:04:49-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-01-09T16:19:16-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "8-mistakes-to-avoid-if-youre-going-out-during-the-california-heat-wave",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1187025949&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Wed, 12 Jul 2023 05:00:00 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Wed, 12 Jul 2023 05:28:52 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/07/12/1187025949/heatstroke-heat-exhaustion-symptoms-prevent?ft=nprml&f=1187025949",
"nprImageAgency": "AP",
"source": "NPR",
"nprStoryId": "1187025949",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/2100208/allison-aubrey\">Allison Aubrey\u003c/a> , \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/707478309/carmel-wroth\">Carmel Wroth\u003c/a>",
"sticky": false,
"nprImageCredit": "David J. Phillip",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Wed, 12 Jul 2023 05:28:00 -0400",
"path": "/science/1983475/8-mistakes-to-avoid-if-youre-going-out-during-the-california-heat-wave",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>It’s hot — which shouldn’t come as a surprise in July. But this summer’s heat is \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/07/05/1186003959/el-nino-plus-climate-change-means-record-breaking-heat\">breaking records\u003c/a> around the world, and in the U.S. this week, a heat dome is afflicting the Southwest with ultrahigh temperatures. The East Coast is expected to be steamy, and parts of Southern California could hit 106 degrees by Saturday in what the National Weather Service has dubbed a summer of “\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/06/21/1183486618/summer-solstice-weather-extreme-heat\">excessive\u003c/a>” weather.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "Related coverage ",
"postid": "news_11878134"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Of course, it’s summer and you have things to do outdoors, from festivals to barbecues to mowing the lawn. We get it. But the heat can take a toll on your body, and you need to plan ahead when the temperature rises to extreme heat. “Don’t overdo it,” warns \u003ca href=\"https://www.oakstreethealth.com/doctors/john-h-schumann\">John Schumann\u003c/a>, a primary care physician in Tulsa, Oklahoma. “Heat can envelop and pummel you.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And there are a lot of misconceptions about the best ways to protect yourself, warns \u003ca href=\"https://www.uclahealth.org/providers/david-eisenman\">David Eisenman\u003c/a>, a physician at UCLA who is \u003ca href=\"https://ph.ucla.edu/about/faculty-staff-directory/david-eisenman\">co-director of the UCLA Center for Healthy Climate Solutions\u003c/a>. Here are mistakes to avoid in order to ensure you stay safe in the heat.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>1. Too much, too soon: You need to acclimatize\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When a heat wave strikes, your body needs time to adjust, says \u003ca href=\"https://scholars.houstonmethodist.org/en/persons/neil-a-gandhi\">Neil Gandhi\u003c/a>, a physician at Houston Methodist Hospital: “You can’t do too much too soon.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you go from mostly spending time in air conditioning to an outdoor activity in the sweltering heat, you could be caught off guard. Your body isn’t “acclimatized to handle the stress,” Gandhi says. And \u003ca href=\"https://www.cdc.gov/pictureofamerica/pdfs/picture_of_america_heat-related_illness.pdf\">every year, about 650 people die (PDF)\u003c/a> from heat-related illness in the United States.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fortunately, once acclimatized, the body gets better at fending off heat-related illness. “Our body starts to sweat sooner at a lower body temperature and at a greater rate,” explains Eisenman. Also, blood flow to the skin improves, which has the effect of cooling us down by carrying heat out of the body’s core. And your thirst increases, so you’re less likely to get dehydrated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But this doesn’t happen immediately. “It’s going to happen over the space of several days of exposure,” Eisenman says. So if you’re planning a hiking trip, summer sightseeing or any other extended exposure to heat, plan to spend short periods in the heat each day in the days leading up to your outdoor adventure.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And note that kids acclimatize much more slowly than adults, says Eisenman, so give them extra days to prepare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983477\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983477\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A few people pictured outside holding black umbrellas. \" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259099394-72634062db48a3d4e83f773465494cc2a560a4e4.jpg 911w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Staying out of direct sun as much as possible can help prevent heat-related illness. Look for shade or make your own with an umbrella, like these pedestrians waiting for a bus during a heat wave in Miami on June 26. \u003ccite>(Giorgio Viera/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>2. Failing to pre-hydrate (and rehydrate!)\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Hydrate in advance, says \u003ca href=\"https://www.memorialhermann.org/doctors/cardiovascular-disease-specialists/dr-wafi-momin-do-1437414778\">Wafi Momin\u003c/a>, a cardiologist at Memorial Hermann Health System in Katy, Texas. “Grab a glass of water or a sports drink before you head out to the outdoors,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And bring plenty of water with you, and don’t wait until you’re thirsty to start drinking during an outdoor activity. “The moment you begin to feel thirsty, you’re likely anywhere between 10 to 25% dehydrated already,” says Gandhi.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most people aren’t even hydrated enough on a normal day, Eisenman notes, so it’s easy to start at a deficit on a hot day. His advice is to double the amount you’d drink in a typical day. The best test of hydration is to check the color of your urine. “Make sure that you’re peeing frequently and that your urine is pale” — almost clear, says Eisenman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Water is the best way to hydrate — and it’s free! Sports drinks add electrolytes and can be helpful if you’ve gotten overheated or if you’re participating in a marathon or other endurance event — but they’re not necessary when you’re simply trying to stay hydrated throughout the day, says Schumann, who also serves as a medical director for Oak Street Health, a chain of primary care clinics. In Tulsa, he says, in recent weeks they’ve seen bouts of 100-degree weather.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In these heat-dome times, though I pooh-pooh all the millennials who carry water bottles everywhere, the kids — they’re right about this,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>3. Don’t be the frog in the boiling pot (i.e., your car)\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You may not realize how hot it’s getting inside your car.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cars heat up so fast even in moderate heat because of a “mini greenhouse effect,” Eisenman explains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The sun is coming through those windows, and then the heat is getting bounced around and getting trapped inside. It turns into a different wavelength of heat and doesn’t go back out the windows,” he says. “And on a day of moderate temperatures, say like 75 degrees outside, in 25 minutes it will become 100 degrees inside your car.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Each year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nhtsa.gov/campaign/heatstroke#:~:text=When%20a%20child%20is%20left,died%20of%20heatstroke%20in%20vehicles\">about 50 children die \u003c/a>when left in a car. So do not underestimate the dangers, especially if you’re distracted by finishing up a phone call, says Eisenman. “Even with the air conditioner running, even with the windows cracked, it can become hot in there very quickly,” he adds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983478\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983478\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A kid in an orange short and shorts with images of food on them plays in the water. The kid is holding a blue and green toy in his hand. \" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/gettyimages-1259090449-8caea5a3b2d90f17440653fb95d3345c130eab19.jpg 907w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kids can be more vulnerable to heat-related illness, and it takes them longer to acclimatize to sudden hot weather. \u003ccite>(Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>4. Heat + (certain) medications don’t mix\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Certain medications can make people more vulnerable to heat, explains Momin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some heart medications such as \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/08/01/1114821088/blood-pressure-medication-can-complicate-heat-related-illness\">blood pressure drugs\u003c/a>, which millions of people take, are diuretic, he explains. “Those medications are trying to get rid of fluid from your body because of underlying heart issues,” he says. And if you then add heat, which also causes you to lose excessive amounts of fluid, “that can cause a very dangerous situation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Other types of medications can have this effect too, says Schumann. These include \u003ca href=\"https://www.goodrx.com/classes/anticholinergics/anticholinergic-drugs-medications\">anticholinergic medications\u003c/a>, anticonvulsants, bladder medications and sedatives. “Lots of medicines work by dehydrating us — excreting excess fluid. Be careful!” he warns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In general, older people are more vulnerable to heat, so if you’re older and on these medications, take extra precautions to stay cool and hydrated. Ask your doctor whether any of your medicines could be dehydrating.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>5. Don’t ignore the early signs of heat-related illness\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The first few signs that you’re getting overheated may not feel too alarming: sweating, fatigue, dizziness and headache. You might feel nauseous or lightheaded. But “those are the telltale signs of heat exhaustion creeping in,” says Momin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You may just blow it off, saying, you know, it’s hot and I’ve felt this way before, but the worst of the symptoms can come on very quickly without realizing it,” he says. “And all of a sudden, your body’s overheating to a point where you won’t really be able to drink enough fluids at that juncture to reverse what’s already gone on.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Symptoms of heat exhaustion can quickly become more serious. They can include muscle cramping, increased fatigue and accelerated heart rate. “You may start to weaken and just kind of get out of breath as you exert yourself,” Gandhi says.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>6. Know when to seek medical attention\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you’re with someone who begins to show signs of heat-related illness, move the person to a cool place, give them water or a sports drink and moisten their skin. You can also remove unnecessary clothing such as shoes, socks and jackets.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, observe them. Their symptoms should start to improve in about 30 minutes, Eisenman says. If they don’t get better in that time or if \u003cem>at any point\u003c/em> they start having more \u003ca href=\"https://www.weather.gov/safety/heat-illness#:~:text=Heat%20Stroke,Delay%20can%20be%20fatal.\">worrisome symptoms\u003c/a>, call for medical help. “I think sometimes people wait too long to call 911,” says Eisenman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If their heart rate is going fast, if they’re breathing quickly, if they seem at all confused, those are all indicators they’ve had more exposure to the heat than \u003cem>you\u003c/em> can handle,” Eisenman says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When heatstroke sets in, people can even lose consciousness or pass out — in this case, seek immediate medical attention.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You \u003cem>really \u003c/em>want to avoid heatstroke: With heatstroke, your core body temperature can rise quickly to 103 to 105 degrees or more, says Gandhi. When this happens, “you can start to experience some organ damage pretty quickly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>7. Wear loose, light clothing\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you’re spending time in the heat, what you wear matters. “I would seek lighter colors because those tend to reflect heat rather than absorb heat compared to darker colors such as blacks and dark blues,” says Momin. And stay away from tight clothing, which can block airflow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Loose-fitting clothing allows for the heat to evaporate off your body more easily,” adds Eisenman.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>8. Alcohol is a bad call\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you’re at an outdoor party, resist that ice-cold margarita. Go for mocktails instead. “Alcohol will dehydrate you much faster” in the heat, says Schumann.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re determined to have something with a little kick in it, “drink some water for every drink you have to avoid trouble,” he says. “If you wind up having to pee a lot, it’ll be worth it. If you don’t, you might be getting into trouble.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Alcohol is very problematic” if you’re outdoors in the heat, agrees Momin. Not only does it cause you to lose fluids, but “it can also impair your judgment.” And when that happens, you might miss the signs of heat-related illness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=8+mistakes+to+avoid+if+you%27re+going+out+in+the+heat&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/science/1983475/8-mistakes-to-avoid-if-youre-going-out-during-the-california-heat-wave",
"authors": [
"byline_science_1983475"
],
"categories": [
"science_31",
"science_39",
"science_40",
"science_4450"
],
"tags": [
"science_2924",
"science_182",
"science_2184",
"science_383"
],
"featImg": "science_1983476",
"label": "source_science_1983475"
}
},
"podcastsReducer": {
"isFetching": false,
"fetchFailed": false,
"hasFetched": false,
"podcasts": {}
},
"radioProgramsReducer": {
"isFetching": false,
"fetchFailed": false,
"hasFetched": false,
"radioPrograms": {}
},
"radioSearchSegmentsReducer": {},
"programsReducer": {
"all-things-considered": {
"id": "all-things-considered",
"title": "All Things Considered",
"info": "Every weekday, \u003cem>All Things Considered\u003c/em> hosts Robert Siegel, Audie Cornish, Ari Shapiro, and Kelly McEvers present the program's trademark mix of news, interviews, commentaries, reviews, and offbeat features. Michel Martin hosts on the weekends.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 1pm-2pm, 4:30pm-6:30pm\u003cbr />SAT-SUN 5pm-6pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/All-Things-Considered-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/all-things-considered/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/all-things-considered"
},
"american-suburb-podcast": {
"id": "american-suburb-podcast",
"title": "American Suburb: The Podcast",
"tagline": "The flip side of gentrification, told through one town",
"info": "Gentrification is changing cities across America, forcing people from neighborhoods they have long called home. Call them the displaced. Now those priced out of the Bay Area are looking for a better life in an unlikely place. American Suburb follows this migration to one California town along the Delta, 45 miles from San Francisco. But is this once sleepy suburb ready for them?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/American-Suburb-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/news/series/american-suburb-podcast",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 19
},
"link": "/news/series/american-suburb-podcast/",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/RBrW",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?mt=2&id=1287748328",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/American-Suburb-p1086805/",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/series/american-suburb-podcast/feed/podcast",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkMzMDExODgxNjA5"
}
},
"baycurious": {
"id": "baycurious",
"title": "Bay Curious",
"tagline": "Exploring the Bay Area, one question at a time",
"info": "KQED’s new podcast, Bay Curious, gets to the bottom of the mysteries — both profound and peculiar — that give the Bay Area its unique identity. And we’ll do it with your help! You ask the questions. You decide what Bay Curious investigates. And you join us on the journey to find the answers.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Bay-Curious-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Bay Curious",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/news/series/baycurious",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 3
},
"link": "/podcasts/baycurious",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bay-curious/id1172473406",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/500557090/bay-curious",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/category/bay-curious-podcast/feed/podcast",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9a90d476-aa04-455d-9a4c-0871ed6216d4/bay-curious",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/bay-curious",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/6O76IdmhixfijmhTZLIJ8k"
}
},
"bbc-world-service": {
"id": "bbc-world-service",
"title": "BBC World Service",
"info": "The day's top stories from BBC News compiled twice daily in the week, once at weekends.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9pm-10pm, TUE-FRI 1am-2am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/BBC-World-Service-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_world_service",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "BBC World Service"
},
"link": "/radio/program/bbc-world-service",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/global-news-podcast/id135067274?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/BBC-World-Service-p455581/",
"rss": "https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/p02nq0gn.rss"
}
},
"californiareport": {
"id": "californiareport",
"title": "The California Report",
"tagline": "California, day by day",
"info": "KQED’s statewide radio news program providing daily coverage of issues, trends and public policy decisions.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The California Report",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareport",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 8
},
"link": "/californiareport",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kqeds-the-california-report/id79681292",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/26099305-72af-4542-9dde-ac1807fe36d5/kqed-s-the-california-report",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432285393/the-california-report",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqedfm-kqeds-the-california-report-podcast-8838",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/tcram/feed/podcast"
}
},
"californiareportmagazine": {
"id": "californiareportmagazine",
"title": "The California Report Magazine",
"tagline": "Your state, your stories",
"info": "Every week, The California Report Magazine takes you on a road trip for the ears: to visit the places and meet the people who make California unique. The in-depth storytelling podcast from the California Report.",
"airtime": "FRI 4:30pm-5pm, 6:30pm-7pm, 11pm-11:30pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Magazine-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The California Report Magazine",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareportmagazine",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 10
},
"link": "/californiareportmagazine",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-california-report-magazine/id1314750545",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM3NjkwNjk1OTAz",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/564733126/the-california-report-magazine",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-california-report-magazine",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/tcrmag/feed/podcast"
}
},
"city-arts": {
"id": "city-arts",
"title": "City Arts & Lectures",
"info": "A one-hour radio program to hear celebrated writers, artists and thinkers address contemporary ideas and values, often discussing the creative process. Please note: tapes or transcripts are not available",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/cityartsandlecture-300x300.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.cityarts.net/",
"airtime": "SUN 1pm-2pm, TUE 10pm, WED 1am",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "City Arts & Lectures"
},
"link": "https://www.cityarts.net",
"subscribe": {
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/City-Arts-and-Lectures-p692/",
"rss": "https://www.cityarts.net/feed/"
}
},
"closealltabs": {
"id": "closealltabs",
"title": "Close All Tabs",
"tagline": "Your irreverent guide to the trends redefining our world",
"info": "Close All Tabs breaks down how digital culture shapes our world through thoughtful insights and irreverent humor.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/CAT_2_Tile-scaled.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Close All Tabs",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 1
},
"link": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/close-all-tabs/id214663465",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC6993880386",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/92d9d4ac-67a3-4eed-b10a-fb45d45b1ef2/close-all-tabs",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/6LAJFHnGK1pYXYzv6SIol6?si=deb0cae19813417c"
}
},
"code-switch-life-kit": {
"id": "code-switch-life-kit",
"title": "Code Switch / Life Kit",
"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
"airtime": "SUN 9pm-10pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Code-Switch-Life-Kit-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/code-switch-life-kit",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/1112190608?mt=2&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnByLm9yZy9yc3MvcG9kY2FzdC5waHA_aWQ9NTEwMzEy",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/3bExJ9JQpkwNhoHvaIIuyV",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510312/podcast.xml"
}
},
"commonwealth-club": {
"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
"airtime": "THU 10pm, FRI 1am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.commonwealthclub.org/podcasts",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/commonwealth-club-of-california-podcast/id976334034?mt=2",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Commonwealth-Club-of-California-p1060/"
}
},
"forum": {
"id": "forum",
"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9am-11am, 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/forum",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 9
},
"link": "/forum",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kqeds-forum/id73329719",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5NTU3MzgxNjMz",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432307980/forum",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqedfm-kqeds-forum-podcast",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC9557381633"
}
},
"freakonomics-radio": {
"id": "freakonomics-radio",
"title": "Freakonomics Radio",
"info": "Freakonomics Radio is a one-hour award-winning podcast and public-radio project hosted by Stephen Dubner, with co-author Steve Levitt as a regular guest. It is produced in partnership with WNYC.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/freakonomicsRadio.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://freakonomics.com/",
"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
"rss": "https://feeds.feedburner.com/freakonomicsradio"
}
},
"fresh-air": {
"id": "fresh-air",
"title": "Fresh Air",
"info": "Hosted by Terry Gross, \u003cem>Fresh Air from WHYY\u003c/em> is the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues. One of public radio's most popular programs, Fresh Air features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 7pm-8pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fresh-Air-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/fresh-air/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/fresh-air",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Fresh-Air-p17/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/381444908/podcast.xml"
}
},
"here-and-now": {
"id": "here-and-now",
"title": "Here & Now",
"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
"airtime": "MON-THU 11am-12pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Here-And-Now-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://www.wbur.org/hereandnow",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/here-and-now",
"subsdcribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?mt=2&id=426698661",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Here--Now-p211/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510051/podcast.xml"
}
},
"hidden-brain": {
"id": "hidden-brain",
"title": "Hidden Brain",
"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/hiddenbrain.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/series/423302056/hidden-brain",
"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "NPR"
},
"link": "/radio/program/hidden-brain",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hidden-brain/id1028908750?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Science-Podcasts/Hidden-Brain-p787503/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510308/podcast.xml"
}
},
"how-i-built-this": {
"id": "how-i-built-this",
"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/howIBuiltThis.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this",
"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/3zxy",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Arts--Culture-Podcasts/How-I-Built-This-p910896/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510313/podcast.xml"
}
},
"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
"title": "Hyphenación",
"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"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. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
"imageAlt": "KQED Hyphenación",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 15
},
"link": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hyphenaci%C3%B3n/id1191591838",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/2p3Fifq96nw9BPcmFdIq0o?si=39209f7b25774f38",
"youtube": "https://www.youtube.com/c/kqedarts",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/6c3dd23c-93fb-4aab-97ba-1725fa6315f1/hyphenaci%C3%B3n",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC2275451163"
}
},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 18
},
"link": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/790253322/the-political-mind-of-jerry-brown",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1492194549",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/series/jerrybrown/feed/podcast/",
"tuneIn": "http://tun.in/pjGcK",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-political-mind-of-jerry-brown",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/54C1dmuyFyKMFttY6X2j6r?si=K8SgRCoISNK6ZbjpXrX5-w",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/44420f75-3b0e-4301-ab3b-16da6b09e543/the-political-mind-of-jerry-brown"
}
},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/xtTd",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Latino-USA-p621/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"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.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=201853034&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/APM-Marketplace-p88/",
"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
}
},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Masters-of-Scale-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WaitWhat"
},
"link": "/radio/program/masters-of-scale",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "http://mastersofscale.app.link/",
"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"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>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mindshift-podcast/id1078765985",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/464615685/mind-shift-podcast",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/stories-teachers-share",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/0MxSpNYZKNprFLCl7eEtyx"
}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"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?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1567098962",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw",
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/onourwatch",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/0OLWoyizopu6tY1XiuX70x",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-Our-Watch-p1436229/",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/show/on-our-watch",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510360/podcast.xml"
}
},
"on-the-media": {
"id": "on-the-media",
"title": "On The Media",
"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm-3pm, MON 12am-1am",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/onTheMedia.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/otm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "wnyc"
},
"link": "/radio/program/on-the-media",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-media/id73330715?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-the-Media-p69/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/onthemedia"
}
},
"pbs-newshour": {
"id": "pbs-newshour",
"title": "PBS NewsHour",
"info": "Analysis, background reports and updates from the PBS NewsHour putting today's news in context.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PBS-News-Hour-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "pbs"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pbs-newshour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pbs-newshour-full-show/id394432287?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/PBS-NewsHour---Full-Show-p425698/",
"rss": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/feeds/rss/podcasts/show"
}
},
"perspectives": {
"id": "perspectives",
"title": "Perspectives",
"tagline": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991",
"info": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Perspectives_Tile_Final.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Perspectives",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/perspectives/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 14
},
"link": "/perspectives",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id73801135",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432309616/perspectives",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/perspectives/category/perspectives/feed/",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvcGVyc3BlY3RpdmVzL2NhdGVnb3J5L3BlcnNwZWN0aXZlcy9mZWVkLw"
}
},
"planet-money": {
"id": "planet-money",
"title": "Planet Money",
"info": "The economy explained. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy. Now imagine that's actually a fun evening.",
"airtime": "SUN 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/planetmoney.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/sections/money/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/planet-money",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/M4f5",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/planet-money/id290783428?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Business--Economics-Podcasts/Planet-Money-p164680/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510289/podcast.xml"
}
},
"politicalbreakdown": {
"id": "politicalbreakdown",
"title": "Political Breakdown",
"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.",
"airtime": "THU 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Political-Breakdown-2024-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Political Breakdown",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/politicalbreakdown",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 5
},
"link": "/podcasts/politicalbreakdown",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/political-breakdown/id1327641087",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/e0c2d153-ad36-4c8d-901d-f1da6a724824/political-breakdown",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/572155894/political-breakdown",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/political-breakdown",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/07RVyIjIdk2WDuVehvBMoN",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/political-breakdown/feed/podcast"
}
},
"possible": {
"id": "possible",
"title": "Possible",
"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.",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Possible-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.possible.fm/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "Possible"
},
"link": "/radio/program/possible",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/possible/id1677184070",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/730YpdUSNlMyPQwNnyjp4k"
}
},
"pri-the-world": {
"id": "pri-the-world",
"title": "PRI's The World: Latest Edition",
"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.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 2pm-3pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-World-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pri.org/programs/the-world",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "PRI"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pri-the-world",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pris-the-world-latest-edition/id278196007?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/PRIs-The-World-p24/",
"rss": "http://feeds.feedburner.com/pri/theworld"
}
},
"radiolab": {
"id": "radiolab",
"title": "Radiolab",
"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.",
"airtime": "SUN 12am-1am, SAT 2pm-3pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/radiolab1400.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/radiolab/",
"meta": {
"site": "science",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/radiolab",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radiolab/id152249110?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/RadioLab-p68032/",
"rss": "https://feeds.wnyc.org/radiolab"
}
},
"reveal": {
"id": "reveal",
"title": "Reveal",
"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.",
"airtime": "SAT 4pm-5pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/reveal300px.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.revealnews.org/episodes/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/reveal",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/reveal/id886009669",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Reveal-p679597/",
"rss": "http://feeds.revealradio.org/revealpodcast"
}
},
"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.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Rightnowish-Podcast-Tile-500x500-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Rightnowish with Pendarvis Harshaw",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/rightnowish",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 16
},
"link": "/podcasts/rightnowish",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/721590300/rightnowish",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/arts/programs/rightnowish/feed/podcast",
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rightnowish/id1482187648",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/rightnowish",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkMxMjU5MTY3NDc4",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/7kEJuafTzTVan7B78ttz1I"
}
},
"science-friday": {
"id": "science-friday",
"title": "Science Friday",
"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.",
"airtime": "FRI 11am-1pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Science-Friday-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/science-friday",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/science-friday",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=73329284&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Science-Friday-p394/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/science-friday"
}
},
"snap-judgment": {
"id": "snap-judgment",
"title": "Snap Judgment",
"tagline": "Real stories with killer beats",
"info": "The Snap Judgment radio show and podcast mixes real stories with killer beats to produce cinematic, dramatic radio. Snap's musical brand of storytelling dares listeners to see the world through the eyes of another. This is storytelling... with a BEAT!! Snap first aired on public radio stations nationwide in July 2010. Today, Snap Judgment airs on over 450 public radio stations and is brought to the airwaves by KQED & PRX.",
"airtime": "SAT 1pm-2pm, 9pm-10pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Snap-Judgment-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Snap Judgment",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://snapjudgment.org",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 4
},
"link": "https://snapjudgment.org",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/snap-judgment/id283657561",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/449018144/snap-judgment",
"stitcher": "https://www.pandora.com/podcast/snap-judgment/PC:241?source=stitcher-sunset",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/3Cct7ZWmxHNAtLgBTqjC5v",
"rss": "https://snap.feed.snapjudgment.org/"
}
},
"soldout": {
"id": "soldout",
"title": "SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America",
"tagline": "A new future for housing",
"info": "Sold Out: Rethinking Housing in America",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Sold-Out-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Sold Out: Rethinking Housing in America",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/soldout",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 13
},
"link": "/podcasts/soldout",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/911586047/s-o-l-d-o-u-t-a-new-future-for-housing",
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/introducing-sold-out-rethinking-housing-in-america/id1531354937",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/soldout",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/38dTBSk2ISFoPiyYNoKn1X",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/sold-out-rethinking-housing-in-america",
"tunein": "https://tunein.com/radio/SOLD-OUT-Rethinking-Housing-in-America-p1365871/"
}
},
"spooked": {
"id": "spooked",
"title": "Spooked",
"tagline": "True-life supernatural stories",
"info": "",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Spooked-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Spooked",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://spookedpodcast.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 7
},
"link": "https://spookedpodcast.org/",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spooked/id1279361017",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/549547848/snap-judgment-presents-spooked",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/76571Rfl3m7PLJQZKQIGCT",
"rss": "https://feeds.simplecast.com/TBotaapn"
}
},
"tech-nation": {
"id": "tech-nation",
"title": "Tech Nation Radio Podcast",
"info": "Tech Nation is a weekly public radio program, hosted by Dr. Moira Gunn. Founded in 1993, it has grown from a simple interview show to a multi-faceted production, featuring conversations with noted technology and science leaders, and a weekly science and technology-related commentary.",
"airtime": "FRI 10pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Tech-Nation-Radio-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://technation.podomatic.com/",
"meta": {
"site": "science",
"source": "Tech Nation Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/tech-nation",
"subscribe": {
"rss": "https://technation.podomatic.com/rss2.xml"
}
},
"ted-radio-hour": {
"id": "ted-radio-hour",
"title": "TED Radio Hour",
"info": "The TED Radio Hour is a journey through fascinating ideas, astonishing inventions, fresh approaches to old problems, and new ways to think and create.",
"airtime": "SUN 3pm-4pm, SAT 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/tedRadioHour.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/ted-radio-hour/?showDate=2018-06-22",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/ted-radio-hour",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/8vsS",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=523121474&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/TED-Radio-Hour-p418021/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510298/podcast.xml"
}
},
"thebay": {
"id": "thebay",
"title": "The Bay",
"tagline": "Local news to keep you rooted",
"info": "Host Devin Katayama walks you through the biggest story of the day with reporters and newsmakers.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Bay-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Bay",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/thebay",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 2
},
"link": "/podcasts/thebay",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bay/id1350043452",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/d800ea4c-7a2c-42f2-b861-edaf78a5db0b/the-bay",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/586725995/the-bay",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-bay",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/4BIKBKIujizLHlIlBNaAqQ",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC8259786327"
}
},
"thelatest": {
"id": "thelatest",
"title": "The Latest",
"tagline": "Trusted local news in real time",
"info": "",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/The-Latest-2025-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Latest",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/thelatest",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 6
},
"link": "/thelatest",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-latest-from-kqed/id1197721799",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/1257949365/the-latest-from-k-q-e-d",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/5KIIXMgM9GTi5AepwOYvIZ?si=bd3053fec7244dba",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC9137121918"
}
},
"theleap": {
"id": "theleap",
"title": "The Leap",
"tagline": "What if you closed your eyes, and jumped?",
"info": "Stories about people making dramatic, risky changes, told by award-winning public radio reporter Judy Campbell.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Leap-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Leap",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/theleap",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 17
},
"link": "/podcasts/theleap",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-leap/id1046668171",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/447248267/the-leap",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-leap",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/3sSlVHHzU0ytLwuGs1SD1U",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/programs/the-leap/feed/podcast"
}
},
"the-moth-radio-hour": {
"id": "the-moth-radio-hour",
"title": "The Moth Radio Hour",
"info": "Since its launch in 1997, The Moth has presented thousands of true stories, told live and without notes, to standing-room-only crowds worldwide. Moth storytellers stand alone, under a spotlight, with only a microphone and a roomful of strangers. The storyteller and the audience embark on a high-wire act of shared experience which is both terrifying and exhilarating. Since 2008, The Moth podcast has featured many of our favorite stories told live on Moth stages around the country. For information on all of our programs and live events, visit themoth.org.",
"airtime": "SAT 8pm-9pm and SUN 11am-12pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/theMoth.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://themoth.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "prx"
},
"link": "/radio/program/the-moth-radio-hour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-moth-podcast/id275699983?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/The-Moth-p273888/",
"rss": "http://feeds.themoth.org/themothpodcast"
}
},
"the-new-yorker-radio-hour": {
"id": "the-new-yorker-radio-hour",
"title": "The New Yorker Radio Hour",
"info": "The New Yorker Radio Hour is a weekly program presented by the magazine's editor, David Remnick, and produced by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker. Each episode features a diverse mix of interviews, profiles, storytelling, and an occasional burst of humor inspired by the magazine, and shaped by its writers, artists, and editors. This isn't a radio version of a magazine, but something all its own, reflecting the rich possibilities of audio storytelling and conversation. Theme music for the show was composed and performed by Merrill Garbus of tUnE-YArDs.",
"airtime": "SAT 10am-11am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-New-Yorker-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/tnyradiohour",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/the-new-yorker-radio-hour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1050430296",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/New-Yorker-Radio-Hour-p803804/",
"rss": "https://feeds.feedburner.com/newyorkerradiohour"
}
},
"the-sam-sanders-show": {
"id": "the-sam-sanders-show",
"title": "The Sam Sanders Show",
"info": "One of public radio's most dynamic voices, Sam Sanders helped launch The NPR Politics Podcast and hosted NPR's hit show It's Been A Minute. Now, the award-winning host returns with something brand new, The Sam Sanders Show. Every week, Sam Sanders and friends dig into the culture that shapes our lives: what's driving the biggest trends, how artists really think, and even the memes you can't stop scrolling past. Sam is beloved for his way of unpacking the world and bringing you up close to fresh currents and engaging conversations. The Sam Sanders Show is smart, funny and always a good time.",
"airtime": "FRI 12-1pm AND SAT 11am-12pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/The-Sam-Sanders-Show-Podcast-Tile-400x400-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.kcrw.com/shows/the-sam-sanders-show/latest",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "KCRW"
},
"link": "https://www.kcrw.com/shows/the-sam-sanders-show/latest",
"subscribe": {
"rss": "https://feed.cdnstream1.com/zjb/feed/download/ac/28/59/ac28594c-e1d0-4231-8728-61865cdc80e8.xml"
}
},
"the-splendid-table": {
"id": "the-splendid-table",
"title": "The Splendid Table",
"info": "\u003cem>The Splendid Table\u003c/em> hosts our nation's conversations about cooking, sustainability and food culture.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Splendid-Table-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.splendidtable.org/",
"airtime": "SUN 10-11 pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/the-splendid-table"
},
"this-american-life": {
"id": "this-american-life",
"title": "This American Life",
"info": "This American Life is a weekly public radio show, heard by 2.2 million people on more than 500 stations. Another 2.5 million people download the weekly podcast. It is hosted by Ira Glass, produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media, delivered to stations by PRX The Public Radio Exchange, and has won all of the major broadcasting awards.",
"airtime": "SAT 12pm-1pm, 7pm-8pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/thisAmericanLife.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.thisamericanlife.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "wbez"
},
"link": "/radio/program/this-american-life",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=201671138&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"rss": "https://www.thisamericanlife.org/podcast/rss.xml"
}
},
"tinydeskradio": {
"id": "tinydeskradio",
"title": "Tiny Desk Radio",
"info": "We're bringing the best of Tiny Desk to the airwaves, only on public radio.",
"airtime": "SUN 8pm and SAT 9pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/300x300-For-Member-Station-Logo-Tiny-Desk-Radio-@2x.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/series/g-s1-52030/tiny-desk-radio",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/tinydeskradio",
"subscribe": {
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/g-s1-52030/rss.xml"
}
},
"wait-wait-dont-tell-me": {
"id": "wait-wait-dont-tell-me",
"title": "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!",
"info": "Peter Sagal and Bill Kurtis host the weekly NPR News quiz show alongside some of the best and brightest news and entertainment personalities.",
"airtime": "SUN 10am-11am, SAT 11am-12pm, SAT 6pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Wait-Wait-Podcast-Tile-300x300-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/wait-wait-dont-tell-me/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/wait-wait-dont-tell-me",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/Xogv",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=121493804&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Wait-Wait-Dont-Tell-Me-p46/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/344098539/podcast.xml"
}
},
"weekend-edition-saturday": {
"id": "weekend-edition-saturday",
"title": "Weekend Edition Saturday",
"info": "Weekend Edition Saturday wraps up the week's news and offers a mix of analysis and features on a wide range of topics, including arts, sports, entertainment, and human interest stories. The two-hour program is hosted by NPR's Peabody Award-winning Scott Simon.",
"airtime": "SAT 5am-10am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Weekend-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/weekend-edition-saturday/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/weekend-edition-saturday"
},
"weekend-edition-sunday": {
"id": "weekend-edition-sunday",
"title": "Weekend Edition Sunday",
"info": "Weekend Edition Sunday features interviews with newsmakers, artists, scientists, politicians, musicians, writers, theologians and historians. The program has covered news events from Nelson Mandela's 1990 release from a South African prison to the capture of Saddam Hussein.",
"airtime": "SUN 5am-10am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Weekend-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/weekend-edition-sunday/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/weekend-edition-sunday"
}
},
"racesReducer": {},
"racesGenElectionReducer": {},
"racesGenElection2026Reducer": {},
"radioSchedulesReducer": {},
"listsReducer": {
"posts/science?category=climate": {
"isFetching": false,
"latestQuery": {
"from": 288,
"size": 12
},
"vitalsOnly": false,
"totalRequested": 12,
"isLoading": false,
"isLoadingMore": true,
"total": {
"value": 1586,
"relation": "eq"
},
"items": [
"science_1984299",
"science_1984229",
"science_1984216",
"science_1984149",
"science_1984200",
"science_1983983",
"science_1983909",
"science_1983775",
"science_1983699",
"science_1983664",
"science_1983596",
"science_1983475"
],
"complete": true
}
},
"recallGuideReducer": {
"intros": {},
"policy": {},
"candidates": {}
},
"savedArticleReducer": {
"articles": [],
"status": {}
},
"newslettersReducer": {
"isFetching": false,
"fetchFailed": false,
"hasFetched": false,
"newsletters": {},
"isSubscribing": false,
"isUnsubscribing": false,
"subscribedNewsletters": {}
},
"termsReducer": {
"about": {
"name": "About",
"type": "terms",
"id": "about",
"slug": "about",
"link": "/about",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"arts": {
"name": "Arts & Culture",
"grouping": [
"arts",
"pop",
"trulyca"
],
"description": "KQED Arts provides daily in-depth coverage of the Bay Area's music, art, film, performing arts, literature and arts news, as well as cultural commentary and criticism.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "arts",
"slug": "arts",
"link": "/arts",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"artschool": {
"name": "Art School",
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "artschool",
"slug": "artschool",
"link": "/artschool",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"bayareabites": {
"name": "KQED food",
"grouping": [
"food",
"bayareabites",
"checkplease"
],
"parent": "food",
"type": "terms",
"id": "bayareabites",
"slug": "bayareabites",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"bayareahiphop": {
"name": "Bay Area Hiphop",
"type": "terms",
"id": "bayareahiphop",
"slug": "bayareahiphop",
"link": "/bayareahiphop",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"campaign21": {
"name": "Campaign 21",
"type": "terms",
"id": "campaign21",
"slug": "campaign21",
"link": "/campaign21",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"careers": {
"name": "Careers",
"type": "terms",
"id": "careers",
"slug": "careers",
"link": "/careers",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"checkplease": {
"name": "KQED food",
"grouping": [
"food",
"bayareabites",
"checkplease"
],
"parent": "food",
"type": "terms",
"id": "checkplease",
"slug": "checkplease",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"education": {
"name": "Education",
"grouping": [
"education"
],
"type": "terms",
"id": "education",
"slug": "education",
"link": "/education",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"elections": {
"name": "Elections",
"type": "terms",
"id": "elections",
"slug": "elections",
"link": "/elections",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"events": {
"name": "Events",
"type": "terms",
"id": "events",
"slug": "events",
"link": "/events",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"event": {
"name": "Event",
"alias": "events",
"type": "terms",
"id": "event",
"slug": "event",
"link": "/event",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"filmschoolshorts": {
"name": "Film School Shorts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "filmschoolshorts",
"slug": "filmschoolshorts",
"link": "/filmschoolshorts",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"food": {
"name": "KQED food",
"grouping": [
"food",
"bayareabites",
"checkplease"
],
"type": "terms",
"id": "food",
"slug": "food",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"forum": {
"name": "Forum",
"relatedContentQuery": "posts/forum?",
"parent": "news",
"type": "terms",
"id": "forum",
"slug": "forum",
"link": "/forum",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"futureofyou": {
"name": "Future of You",
"grouping": [
"science",
"futureofyou"
],
"parent": "science",
"type": "terms",
"id": "futureofyou",
"slug": "futureofyou",
"link": "/futureofyou",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"jpepinheart": {
"name": "KQED food",
"relatedContentQuery": "posts/food,bayareabites,checkplease",
"parent": "food",
"type": "terms",
"id": "jpepinheart",
"slug": "jpepinheart",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"liveblog": {
"name": "Live Blog",
"type": "terms",
"id": "liveblog",
"slug": "liveblog",
"link": "/liveblog",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"livetv": {
"name": "Live TV",
"parent": "tv",
"type": "terms",
"id": "livetv",
"slug": "livetv",
"link": "/livetv",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"lowdown": {
"name": "The Lowdown",
"relatedContentQuery": "posts/lowdown?",
"parent": "news",
"type": "terms",
"id": "lowdown",
"slug": "lowdown",
"link": "/lowdown",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"mindshift": {
"name": "Mindshift",
"parent": "news",
"description": "MindShift explores the future of education by highlighting the innovative – and sometimes counterintuitive – ways educators and parents are helping all children succeed.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "mindshift",
"slug": "mindshift",
"link": "/mindshift",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"news": {
"name": "News",
"grouping": [
"news",
"forum"
],
"type": "terms",
"id": "news",
"slug": "news",
"link": "/news",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"newsletters": {
"name": "newsletters",
"type": "terms",
"id": "newsletters",
"slug": "newsletters",
"link": "/newsletters",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"perspectives": {
"name": "Perspectives",
"parent": "radio",
"type": "terms",
"id": "perspectives",
"slug": "perspectives",
"link": "/perspectives",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"podcasts": {
"name": "Podcasts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "podcasts",
"slug": "podcasts",
"link": "/podcasts",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"pop": {
"name": "Pop",
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "pop",
"slug": "pop",
"link": "/pop",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"pressroom": {
"name": "Pressroom",
"type": "terms",
"id": "pressroom",
"slug": "pressroom",
"link": "/pressroom",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"quest": {
"name": "Quest",
"parent": "science",
"type": "terms",
"id": "quest",
"slug": "quest",
"link": "/quest",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"radio": {
"name": "Radio",
"grouping": [
"forum",
"perspectives"
],
"description": "Listen to KQED Public Radio – home of Forum and The California Report – on 88.5 FM in San Francisco, 89.3 FM in Sacramento, 88.3 FM in Santa Rosa and 88.1 FM in Martinez.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "radio",
"slug": "radio",
"link": "/radio",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"root": {
"name": "KQED",
"image": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"imageWidth": 1200,
"imageHeight": 630,
"headData": {
"title": "KQED | News, Radio, Podcasts, TV | Public Media for Northern California",
"description": "KQED provides public radio, television, and independent reporting on issues that matter to the Bay Area. We’re the NPR and PBS member station for Northern California."
},
"type": "terms",
"id": "root",
"slug": "root",
"link": "/root",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"science": {
"name": "Science",
"grouping": [
"science",
"futureofyou"
],
"description": "KQED Science brings you award-winning science and environment coverage from the Bay Area and beyond.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "science",
"slug": "science",
"link": "/science",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"stateofhealth": {
"name": "State of Health",
"parent": "science",
"type": "terms",
"id": "stateofhealth",
"slug": "stateofhealth",
"link": "/stateofhealth",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"support": {
"name": "Support",
"type": "terms",
"id": "support",
"slug": "support",
"link": "/support",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"thedolist": {
"name": "The Do List",
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "thedolist",
"slug": "thedolist",
"link": "/thedolist",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"trulyca": {
"name": "Truly CA",
"grouping": [
"arts",
"pop",
"trulyca"
],
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "trulyca",
"slug": "trulyca",
"link": "/trulyca",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"tv": {
"name": "TV",
"type": "terms",
"id": "tv",
"slug": "tv",
"link": "/tv",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"voterguide": {
"name": "Voter Guide",
"parent": "elections",
"alias": "elections",
"type": "terms",
"id": "voterguide",
"slug": "voterguide",
"link": "/voterguide",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"guiaelectoral": {
"name": "Guia Electoral",
"parent": "elections",
"alias": "elections",
"type": "terms",
"id": "guiaelectoral",
"slug": "guiaelectoral",
"link": "/guiaelectoral",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"science_category_climate": {
"isLoading": true
},
"science_31": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_31",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "31",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Climate",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Climate Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33,
"slug": "climate",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/category/climate"
},
"source_science_1984299": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1984299",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "NPR",
"link": "https://www.kqed.org/news/affiliate/npr",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1984229": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1984229",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "NPR",
"link": "https://www.npr.org/",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1984216": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1984216",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "NPR",
"link": "https://www.npr.org/",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1984149": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1984149",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "calmatters",
"link": "https://calmatters.org/",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1984200": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1984200",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "NPR",
"link": "https://www.npr.org/",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1983983": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1983983",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "NPR",
"link": "https://www.npr.org/",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1983909": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1983909",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "NPR",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1983699": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1983699",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "CalMatters",
"link": "https://calmatters.org/",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1983664": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1983664",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "NPR",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1983596": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1983596",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "NPR",
"link": "https://www.npr.org/",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_science_1983475": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_science_1983475",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "NPR",
"isLoading": false
},
"science_40": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_40",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "40",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "News",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "News Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 42,
"slug": "news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/category/news"
},
"science_4450": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_4450",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "4450",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Science",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Science Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4450,
"slug": "science",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/category/science"
},
"science_505": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_505",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "505",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "air pollution",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "air pollution Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 511,
"slug": "air-pollution",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/air-pollution"
},
"science_524": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_524",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "524",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "air quality",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "air quality Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 530,
"slug": "air-quality",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/air-quality"
},
"science_959": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_959",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "959",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "prescribed burning",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "prescribed burning Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 966,
"slug": "prescribed-burning",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/prescribed-burning"
},
"science_3463": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_3463",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "3463",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "smoke",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "smoke Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 3463,
"slug": "smoke",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/smoke"
},
"science_113": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_113",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "113",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "wildfire",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "wildfire Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 117,
"slug": "wildfire",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/wildfire"
},
"science_35": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_35",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "35",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Environment",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Environment Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 37,
"slug": "environment",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/category/environment"
},
"science_5178": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_5178",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "5178",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "California",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "California Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 5178,
"slug": "california",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/california"
},
"science_182": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_182",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "182",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "climate",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "climate Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 186,
"slug": "climate-2",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/climate-2"
},
"science_205": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_205",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "205",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "conservation",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "conservation Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 209,
"slug": "conservation",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/conservation"
},
"science_112": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_112",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "112",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "fire",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "fire Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 116,
"slug": "fire",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/fire"
},
"science_438": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_438",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "438",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Mojave",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Mojave Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 444,
"slug": "mojave",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/mojave"
},
"science_1003": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_1003",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1003",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "coral",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "coral Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 1011,
"slug": "coral",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/coral"
},
"science_2874": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_2874",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "2874",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Animals",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Animals Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 2874,
"slug": "animals",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/category/animals"
},
"science_4414": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_4414",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "4414",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "featured-science",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "featured-science Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4414,
"slug": "featured-science",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/featured-science"
},
"science_247": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_247",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "247",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "salmon",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "salmon Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 251,
"slug": "salmon",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/salmon"
},
"science_4877": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_4877",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "4877",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "California Wildfire",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "California Wildfire Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4877,
"slug": "california-wildfire",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/california-wildfire"
},
"science_3820": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_3820",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "3820",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "camp fire",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "camp fire Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 3820,
"slug": "camp-fire",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/camp-fire"
},
"science_194": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_194",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "194",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "climate change",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "climate change Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 198,
"slug": "climate-change",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/climate-change"
},
"science_1498": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_1498",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1498",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "wildfire prevention",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "wildfire prevention Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 1507,
"slug": "wildfire-prevention",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/wildfire-prevention"
},
"science_2184": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_2184",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "2184",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "heat",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "heat Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 2196,
"slug": "heat",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/heat"
},
"science_323": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_323",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "323",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "algae",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "algae Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 329,
"slug": "algae",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/algae"
},
"science_1413": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_1413",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1413",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "algae bloom",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "algae bloom Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 1422,
"slug": "algae-bloom",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/algae-bloom"
},
"science_747": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_747",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "747",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "algal blooms",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "algal blooms Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 754,
"slug": "algal-blooms",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/algal-blooms"
},
"science_4992": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_4992",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "4992",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "audience-news",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "audience-news Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4992,
"slug": "audience-news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/audience-news"
},
"science_4417": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_4417",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "4417",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "featured-news",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "featured-news Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4417,
"slug": "featured-news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/featured-news"
},
"science_3243": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_3243",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "3243",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "toxic algae",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "toxic algae Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 3243,
"slug": "toxic-algae",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/toxic-algae"
},
"science_39": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_39",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "39",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Health",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Health Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 41,
"slug": "health",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/category/health"
},
"science_98": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_98",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "98",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Water",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Water Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 102,
"slug": "water",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/category/water"
},
"science_1194": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_1194",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1194",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "water recycling",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "water recycling Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 1203,
"slug": "water-recycling",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/water-recycling"
},
"science_843": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_843",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "843",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "ocean",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "ocean Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 849,
"slug": "ocean",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/ocean"
},
"science_1678": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_1678",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "1678",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "climate central",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "climate central Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 1687,
"slug": "climate-central",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/climate-central"
},
"science_2924": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_2924",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "2924",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Bay Area weather",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Bay Area weather Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 2924,
"slug": "bay-area-weather",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/bay-area-weather"
},
"science_383": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "science_383",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "science",
"id": "383",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "heat wave",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "heat wave Archives | KQED Science",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 389,
"slug": "heat-wave",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/science/tag/heat-wave"
}
},
"userPermissionsReducer": {
"wpLoggedIn": false
},
"eventsReducer": {},
"fssReducer": {},
"tvDailyScheduleReducer": {},
"tvWeeklyScheduleReducer": {},
"tvPrimetimeScheduleReducer": {},
"tvMonthlyScheduleReducer": {},
"userAccountReducer": {
"user": {
"email": null,
"emailStatus": "EMAIL_UNVALIDATED",
"loggedStatus": "LOGGED_OUT",
"loggingChecked": false,
"articles": [],
"firstName": null,
"lastName": null,
"phoneNumber": null,
"fetchingMembership": false,
"membershipError": false,
"memberships": [
{
"id": null,
"startDate": null,
"firstName": null,
"lastName": null,
"familyNumber": null,
"memberNumber": null,
"memberSince": null,
"expirationDate": null,
"pfsEligible": false,
"isSustaining": false,
"membershipLevel": "Prospect",
"membershipStatus": "Non Member",
"lastGiftDate": null,
"renewalDate": null,
"lastDonationAmount": null
}
]
},
"authModal": {
"isOpen": false,
"view": "LANDING_VIEW"
},
"error": null
},
"youthMediaReducer": {},
"checkPleaseReducer": {
"filterData": {
"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": []
}
}
