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"content": "\u003cp>Mayra Gudiño walked across the central schoolyard at Bridges Academy at Melrose, a public elementary school in East Oakland last fall. It’s a familiar place, where Gudiño has sent all three of her children for their education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Mayra Gudiño, parent\"]‘They don’t have green areas, they don’t have shade. Everything is cement, children get hurt very often.’[/pullquote]\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the yard didn’t look much like one, it was closer to an enormous parking lot, surrounded by blue, one-story school buildings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’ve always said Bridges is my second home and the second home of my children,” Gudiño said in Spanish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Gudiño said it looks sad. She’d like something far happier for her kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They don’t have green areas, they don’t have shade. Everything is cement, children get hurt very often,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983205\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983205\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Children wearing masks play in a schoolyard on asphalt.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Children play in the schoolyard at Bridges Academy at Melrose in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>And even on a mild morning, the blacktop beneath Gudiño’s feet was getting warm. Asphalt and other surfaces made from petroleum (asphalt is a byproduct of refining crude oil) heat up far beyond the temperature of the surrounding air, especially in the direct sun. As the world warms, schoolyards like this one are becoming a safety hazard due to extreme heat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sharon Danks is the founder and CEO of \u003ca href=\"https://www.greenschoolyards.org/\">Green Schoolyards America\u003c/a>, a nonprofit that works to transform asphalt playgrounds into ones teeming with nature. She said asphalt-based schoolyards are common: “It’s the standard way our schools have been built: Take out the trees, flatten the site, build your school.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">[ad fullwidth]\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She and her colleagues are concerned about the effect extreme heat from these schoolyards will have on the young bodies running across them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Danks has taken many schoolyard heat measurements in her years in this field. “On a 90-degree day when we’ve measured temperatures with our surface thermometers, rubber safety surfaces are 165 degrees and asphalt is a mere 140,” she said. Rubber safety surfaces are spongy materials sometimes made from recycled tires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those temperatures can overheat or burn a young body.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Grass, on the other hand, is typically just above air temperature in the sun, and below it in the shade.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983207\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983207\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.11.36-PM-800x447-1.png\" alt=\"An infographic slide showing side by side thermal imaging of a playground and a regular photo of a playground.\" width=\"800\" height=\"447\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.11.36-PM-800x447-1.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.11.36-PM-800x447-1-160x89.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.11.36-PM-800x447-1-768x429.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The nonprofit Green Schoolyards America regularly finds that asphalt and rubber surfaces in full sun greatly exceed the temperature of the air, as seen in this image taken with a thermal camera. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Green Schoolyards America)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Using geographic information system (GIS) mapping, Danks and colleagues at the mapping service \u003ca href=\"https://www.greeninfo.org/\">GreenInfo Network\u003c/a> found that the average California school has just 9% of tree cover. And those trees are typically in places where students are not, like outside the front entrance, or by a parking lot.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All this asphalt can contribute to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.epa.gov/heatislands/climate-change-and-heat-islands\">urban heat island effect\u003c/a>, in which structures like buildings and roads absorb and reemit the sun’s heat more than natural landscapes like forests or bodies of water, leading to higher-than-average temperatures in urban areas.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>California invests in greening schoolyards\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Last year, California earmarked $150 million for green schoolyards. One initiative pushing the work forward is called the “\u003ca href=\"https://www.greenschoolyards.org/ca-schoolyard-forests\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">California Schoolyard Forest System\u003c/a>,” a collaboration between the California Department of Education, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), nonprofits Green Schoolyards America and Ten Strands, school districts and county offices of education.[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Walter Passmore, CAL FIRE State Urban Forester\"]‘Our big, green audacious goal is to plant enough trees by 2035 so that when mature, they’ll provide 30% shade cover to child-accessible areas.’[/pullquote]“Our big, green audacious goal is to plant enough trees by 2035 so that when mature, they’ll provide 30% shade cover to child-accessible areas,” said Walter Passmore, a State Urban Forester with CAL FIRE.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Passmore said the money is just a drop in the bucket when you consider the state’s more than 10,000 public schools, roughly 130,000 acres of land, and nearly 6 million students. The program will prioritize schools in communities with high poverty levels, minimal tree cover and hot climates. Passmore hopes the initial funding will be a “down payment,” with more to come in the future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State legislators also sent a bill to Gov. Gavin Newsom to \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB2566\">codify a grant program for school greening projects\u003c/a>. Newsom vetoed the bill in September, stating it would put “cost pressure” on the state with an “ongoing commitment not provided for in the budget.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State lawmakers are working on various bills to accelerate the greening of schoolyards. \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB527\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">One bill\u003c/a> aims to codify a grant program for school greening projects (a \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB2566\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">similar bill\u003c/a> was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last year, in which he stated it would put cost pressure on the state with an “ongoing commitment not provided for in the budget”). \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB499\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Another\u003c/a> focuses on creating extreme heat plans for schools and includes planting shade trees and gardens. And \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB394\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a third\u003c/a> would require various state agencies to build a “master plan for healthy, sustainable, and climate resilient schools.” There are others in the works, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nationally, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico introduced the \u003ca href=\"https://www.heinrich.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/heinrich-introduces-legislation-to-help-schools-re-envision-build-outdoor-learning-spaces\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Living Schoolyards Act\u003c/a> in May, legislation that, if passed, would fund outdoor classrooms and other greening projects through the U.S. Department of Education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983208\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1238px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983208\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM.png\" alt=\"Children playing on equipment in a schoolyard.\" width=\"1238\" height=\"822\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM.png 1238w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM-800x531.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM-1020x677.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM-160x106.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM-768x510.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1238px) 100vw, 1238px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Children play on the newly renovated ‘green’ schoolyard at Oakland Unified School District’s Cesar Chavez campus in East Oakland. Fence-to-fence asphalt a few years ago, the schoolyard is now home to 64 new trees. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>An urban oasis\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Just a few miles away from the asphalt schoolyard at Bridges Academy at Melrose is an outdoor space that’s quite the opposite. Oakland Unified School District’s Cesar Chavez campus houses two elementary schools, and nature abounds outside its classrooms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kira Maritano is a senior program manager for the \u003ca href=\"https://www.tpl.org/\">Trust for Public Land\u003c/a>, a nonprofit that has partnered with the district to pilot a handful of green schoolyards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maritano points out some of the 64 new trees on this campus: Catalina ironwoods, southern live oaks, red maples and Chinese evergreen elms. She said they were chosen for a host of reasons, like how fast they grow, how much heat they can tolerate, and how much carbon they can sequester.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This schoolyard is now built to get cooler and cooler every year as we see the effects of climate change increase,” Maritano said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The trees shade the yard and building. They cool the air around them through evapotranspiration: water evaporating from their leaves.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are still sections of asphalt. Maritano explains that they’re needed for the myriad functions a schoolyard serves. But these paved surfaces make up far less of the overall outdoor footprint. A few years ago, the asphalt was fence-to-fence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983209\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983209\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A display in both English and Spanish on the schoolyard.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students play near a sign describing the living schoolyard at International Community School in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Now children swing on ropes attached to logs above wood chips, two girls wander across a “bioswale” — a curving ditch, now dry, which collects stormwater when it rains — and a group of boys play soccer on a grass field. There’s an enormous garden and a fruit tree orchard.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Giving kids the opportunity to have a tangible relationship with these natural materials is really important,” Maritano said. “A lot of these kids don’t have a chance in their day-to-day life, in their urban environment, to climb on a tree. Just knowing what that feels like starts to break down outdoor equity gaps.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A green schoolyard is also more permeable than one covered in asphalt or rubber safety tiles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is basically a stormwater sink,” Maritano said, referring to a woodchip-covered play area. “As much as possible, if we can remove asphalt and sink that water back into the earth, we’re benefiting the environment,” and avoiding putting pressure on public utilities like sewer systems, she adds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983210\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983210\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Children running after a soccer ball on a grassy school yard.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students play soccer in a grass field at International Community School in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Benefits for health, gender equality\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Proponents of green schoolyards throw around the word “co-benefits” with regularity. One of the co-benefits of such a yard, beyond cooling a school and even a neighborhood, is better human health.[aside label='More on Climate Change' tag='climate-change']“Our immune system becomes more robust and stronger against infectious agents when we spend time digging in the dirt, when we have regular exposure to vitamin D from sunlight, and when we engage in physical activity on a regular basis,” said Marcella Raney, of the Office of Well-Being at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said for many kids, their schoolyard is one of the only places to exercise and be outside — and, to combat issues like obesity, it’s important that their schoolyard be an inviting place.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Raney has also found \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016920462200281X\">differences in how boys and girls use schoolyards\u003c/a>: Kids who identify as boys are more active on asphalt schoolyards than kids who identify as girls. That’s because asphalt schoolyards are typically designed for “ball-based” games such as basketball, kickball and dodgeball — larger group sports that are competitive — and, Raney said, these games appeal most to boys.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Green schoolyards appeal to both genders, however.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Girls are going to be a lot more active on a green schoolyard than they are on an asphalt schoolyard,” Raney said. “When we compare girls versus boys in green spaces, their activity levels are the same.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983211\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983211\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A group of children play on equipment in a school yard.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students play in the schoolyard at International Community School in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Raney has observed that girls favor smaller group activities and want to challenge themselves by climbing, jumping and swinging. A green schoolyard is designed to promote more of these activities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And, better physical activity for kids tends to mean better school performance.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Barriers to change\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For many, green schoolyards are a no-brainer, but there are hurdles to overcome before they’re widely adopted. One such hurdle, according to Cal Poly Pomona landscape architecture professor Claire Latané, is that decision-makers in schools and cities often work in silos, with very specific responsibilities like curriculum design, mental health or maintenance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But “when we do get people together to have those conversations and really talk about the multiple benefits [of green schoolyards], that conversation changes dramatically, because when thinking about the big picture, everyone wants what’s best for students and the community,” Latané said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Districts are also hesitant to jump into large projects spearheaded by one “champion,” Latané said, for fear no one will maintain the work when that individual moves on. Schools are understandably risk-averse, and a schoolyard of abandoned trees can become a liability.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Latané said another challenge is that “schools have always been strained for finances in terms of maintenance. And asphalt is seen as a really low-maintenance material,” despite studies showing that over the long term,\u003ca href=\"https://www.planetizen.com/news/2022/05/117296-social-and-economic-benefits-green-schoolyards\"> green schoolyards are actually less expensive than asphalt ones\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983212\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983212\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A monarch butterfly rests on a plant outside.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A monarch butterfly lands on a plant growing in the schoolyard at International Community School in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>LaMonte Douglas was a maintenance project manager for the Los Angeles Unified School District for 35 years. He has since retired. He says that when LA started greening schools, he saw the directive as “yet another thing on the plate to do.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But when he learned of and saw the benefits of a green schoolyard, he said it became a no-brainer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He remembers a day he planted a bush at a school site and, immediately, he said, “Some exotic bird came and landed right by that bush. I’ve never seen that type of bird before. And it was almost like the bird was saying, ‘Well, finally, you give me a place to rest.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Schoolyard as community space\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At Bridges Academy at Melrose in Oakland, Mayra Gudiño lays out a vision for the transformation she wants for her kids’ asphalt schoolyard: trees, green spaces and more color.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983213\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983213\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Two women walking on a schoolyard with children playing in the background.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mayra Gudiño walks through the schoolyard with her daughter at Bridges Academy at Melrose in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>It turns out they’ll get it. Through Gudiño and other parents, teacher and administrative activism, the school has received funding to transform their schoolyard: to rip up asphalt and plant trees. They broke ground early this summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One condition of their funding is that they keep the schoolyard open for community use on nights and weekends, a boon for their neighborhood without nearby parks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gudiño said they deserve it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "With $150 million dedicated to green schoolyards over the next 2 years under the California Schoolyard Forest System, Oakland campuses are already feeling the impact.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Mayra Gudiño walked across the central schoolyard at Bridges Academy at Melrose, a public elementary school in East Oakland last fall. It’s a familiar place, where Gudiño has sent all three of her children for their education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the yard didn’t look much like one, it was closer to an enormous parking lot, surrounded by blue, one-story school buildings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’ve always said Bridges is my second home and the second home of my children,” Gudiño said in Spanish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Gudiño said it looks sad. She’d like something far happier for her kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They don’t have green areas, they don’t have shade. Everything is cement, children get hurt very often,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983205\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983205\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Children wearing masks play in a schoolyard on asphalt.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59505_036_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Children play in the schoolyard at Bridges Academy at Melrose in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>And even on a mild morning, the blacktop beneath Gudiño’s feet was getting warm. Asphalt and other surfaces made from petroleum (asphalt is a byproduct of refining crude oil) heat up far beyond the temperature of the surrounding air, especially in the direct sun. As the world warms, schoolyards like this one are becoming a safety hazard due to extreme heat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sharon Danks is the founder and CEO of \u003ca href=\"https://www.greenschoolyards.org/\">Green Schoolyards America\u003c/a>, a nonprofit that works to transform asphalt playgrounds into ones teeming with nature. She said asphalt-based schoolyards are common: “It’s the standard way our schools have been built: Take out the trees, flatten the site, build your school.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She and her colleagues are concerned about the effect extreme heat from these schoolyards will have on the young bodies running across them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Danks has taken many schoolyard heat measurements in her years in this field. “On a 90-degree day when we’ve measured temperatures with our surface thermometers, rubber safety surfaces are 165 degrees and asphalt is a mere 140,” she said. Rubber safety surfaces are spongy materials sometimes made from recycled tires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those temperatures can overheat or burn a young body.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Grass, on the other hand, is typically just above air temperature in the sun, and below it in the shade.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983207\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983207\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.11.36-PM-800x447-1.png\" alt=\"An infographic slide showing side by side thermal imaging of a playground and a regular photo of a playground.\" width=\"800\" height=\"447\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.11.36-PM-800x447-1.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.11.36-PM-800x447-1-160x89.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.11.36-PM-800x447-1-768x429.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The nonprofit Green Schoolyards America regularly finds that asphalt and rubber surfaces in full sun greatly exceed the temperature of the air, as seen in this image taken with a thermal camera. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Green Schoolyards America)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Using geographic information system (GIS) mapping, Danks and colleagues at the mapping service \u003ca href=\"https://www.greeninfo.org/\">GreenInfo Network\u003c/a> found that the average California school has just 9% of tree cover. And those trees are typically in places where students are not, like outside the front entrance, or by a parking lot.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All this asphalt can contribute to the \u003ca href=\"https://www.epa.gov/heatislands/climate-change-and-heat-islands\">urban heat island effect\u003c/a>, in which structures like buildings and roads absorb and reemit the sun’s heat more than natural landscapes like forests or bodies of water, leading to higher-than-average temperatures in urban areas.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>California invests in greening schoolyards\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Last year, California earmarked $150 million for green schoolyards. One initiative pushing the work forward is called the “\u003ca href=\"https://www.greenschoolyards.org/ca-schoolyard-forests\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">California Schoolyard Forest System\u003c/a>,” a collaboration between the California Department of Education, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), nonprofits Green Schoolyards America and Ten Strands, school districts and county offices of education.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘Our big, green audacious goal is to plant enough trees by 2035 so that when mature, they’ll provide 30% shade cover to child-accessible areas.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Our big, green audacious goal is to plant enough trees by 2035 so that when mature, they’ll provide 30% shade cover to child-accessible areas,” said Walter Passmore, a State Urban Forester with CAL FIRE.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Passmore said the money is just a drop in the bucket when you consider the state’s more than 10,000 public schools, roughly 130,000 acres of land, and nearly 6 million students. The program will prioritize schools in communities with high poverty levels, minimal tree cover and hot climates. Passmore hopes the initial funding will be a “down payment,” with more to come in the future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State legislators also sent a bill to Gov. Gavin Newsom to \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB2566\">codify a grant program for school greening projects\u003c/a>. Newsom vetoed the bill in September, stating it would put “cost pressure” on the state with an “ongoing commitment not provided for in the budget.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State lawmakers are working on various bills to accelerate the greening of schoolyards. \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB527\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">One bill\u003c/a> aims to codify a grant program for school greening projects (a \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB2566\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">similar bill\u003c/a> was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last year, in which he stated it would put cost pressure on the state with an “ongoing commitment not provided for in the budget”). \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB499\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Another\u003c/a> focuses on creating extreme heat plans for schools and includes planting shade trees and gardens. And \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB394\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a third\u003c/a> would require various state agencies to build a “master plan for healthy, sustainable, and climate resilient schools.” There are others in the works, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Nationally, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico introduced the \u003ca href=\"https://www.heinrich.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/heinrich-introduces-legislation-to-help-schools-re-envision-build-outdoor-learning-spaces\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Living Schoolyards Act\u003c/a> in May, legislation that, if passed, would fund outdoor classrooms and other greening projects through the U.S. Department of Education.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983208\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1238px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983208\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM.png\" alt=\"Children playing on equipment in a schoolyard.\" width=\"1238\" height=\"822\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM.png 1238w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM-800x531.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM-1020x677.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM-160x106.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/Screen-Shot-2022-11-30-at-2.13.19-PM-768x510.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1238px) 100vw, 1238px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Children play on the newly renovated ‘green’ schoolyard at Oakland Unified School District’s Cesar Chavez campus in East Oakland. Fence-to-fence asphalt a few years ago, the schoolyard is now home to 64 new trees. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>An urban oasis\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Just a few miles away from the asphalt schoolyard at Bridges Academy at Melrose is an outdoor space that’s quite the opposite. Oakland Unified School District’s Cesar Chavez campus houses two elementary schools, and nature abounds outside its classrooms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kira Maritano is a senior program manager for the \u003ca href=\"https://www.tpl.org/\">Trust for Public Land\u003c/a>, a nonprofit that has partnered with the district to pilot a handful of green schoolyards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maritano points out some of the 64 new trees on this campus: Catalina ironwoods, southern live oaks, red maples and Chinese evergreen elms. She said they were chosen for a host of reasons, like how fast they grow, how much heat they can tolerate, and how much carbon they can sequester.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This schoolyard is now built to get cooler and cooler every year as we see the effects of climate change increase,” Maritano said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The trees shade the yard and building. They cool the air around them through evapotranspiration: water evaporating from their leaves.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are still sections of asphalt. Maritano explains that they’re needed for the myriad functions a schoolyard serves. But these paved surfaces make up far less of the overall outdoor footprint. A few years ago, the asphalt was fence-to-fence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983209\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983209\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A display in both English and Spanish on the schoolyard.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59531_031_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students play near a sign describing the living schoolyard at International Community School in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Now children swing on ropes attached to logs above wood chips, two girls wander across a “bioswale” — a curving ditch, now dry, which collects stormwater when it rains — and a group of boys play soccer on a grass field. There’s an enormous garden and a fruit tree orchard.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Giving kids the opportunity to have a tangible relationship with these natural materials is really important,” Maritano said. “A lot of these kids don’t have a chance in their day-to-day life, in their urban environment, to climb on a tree. Just knowing what that feels like starts to break down outdoor equity gaps.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A green schoolyard is also more permeable than one covered in asphalt or rubber safety tiles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is basically a stormwater sink,” Maritano said, referring to a woodchip-covered play area. “As much as possible, if we can remove asphalt and sink that water back into the earth, we’re benefiting the environment,” and avoiding putting pressure on public utilities like sewer systems, she adds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983210\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983210\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Children running after a soccer ball on a grassy school yard.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59518_016_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students play soccer in a grass field at International Community School in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Benefits for health, gender equality\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Proponents of green schoolyards throw around the word “co-benefits” with regularity. One of the co-benefits of such a yard, beyond cooling a school and even a neighborhood, is better human health.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Our immune system becomes more robust and stronger against infectious agents when we spend time digging in the dirt, when we have regular exposure to vitamin D from sunlight, and when we engage in physical activity on a regular basis,” said Marcella Raney, of the Office of Well-Being at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She said for many kids, their schoolyard is one of the only places to exercise and be outside — and, to combat issues like obesity, it’s important that their schoolyard be an inviting place.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Raney has also found \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016920462200281X\">differences in how boys and girls use schoolyards\u003c/a>: Kids who identify as boys are more active on asphalt schoolyards than kids who identify as girls. That’s because asphalt schoolyards are typically designed for “ball-based” games such as basketball, kickball and dodgeball — larger group sports that are competitive — and, Raney said, these games appeal most to boys.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Green schoolyards appeal to both genders, however.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Girls are going to be a lot more active on a green schoolyard than they are on an asphalt schoolyard,” Raney said. “When we compare girls versus boys in green spaces, their activity levels are the same.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983211\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983211\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A group of children play on equipment in a school yard.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59515_007_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Students play in the schoolyard at International Community School in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Raney has observed that girls favor smaller group activities and want to challenge themselves by climbing, jumping and swinging. A green schoolyard is designed to promote more of these activities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And, better physical activity for kids tends to mean better school performance.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Barriers to change\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For many, green schoolyards are a no-brainer, but there are hurdles to overcome before they’re widely adopted. One such hurdle, according to Cal Poly Pomona landscape architecture professor Claire Latané, is that decision-makers in schools and cities often work in silos, with very specific responsibilities like curriculum design, mental health or maintenance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But “when we do get people together to have those conversations and really talk about the multiple benefits [of green schoolyards], that conversation changes dramatically, because when thinking about the big picture, everyone wants what’s best for students and the community,” Latané said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Districts are also hesitant to jump into large projects spearheaded by one “champion,” Latané said, for fear no one will maintain the work when that individual moves on. Schools are understandably risk-averse, and a schoolyard of abandoned trees can become a liability.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Latané said another challenge is that “schools have always been strained for finances in terms of maintenance. And asphalt is seen as a really low-maintenance material,” despite studies showing that over the long term,\u003ca href=\"https://www.planetizen.com/news/2022/05/117296-social-and-economic-benefits-green-schoolyards\"> green schoolyards are actually less expensive than asphalt ones\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983212\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983212\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A monarch butterfly rests on a plant outside.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59528_025_KQEDScience_IntCommunitySchoolOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A monarch butterfly lands on a plant growing in the schoolyard at International Community School in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>LaMonte Douglas was a maintenance project manager for the Los Angeles Unified School District for 35 years. He has since retired. He says that when LA started greening schools, he saw the directive as “yet another thing on the plate to do.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But when he learned of and saw the benefits of a green schoolyard, he said it became a no-brainer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He remembers a day he planted a bush at a school site and, immediately, he said, “Some exotic bird came and landed right by that bush. I’ve never seen that type of bird before. And it was almost like the bird was saying, ‘Well, finally, you give me a place to rest.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Schoolyard as community space\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>At Bridges Academy at Melrose in Oakland, Mayra Gudiño lays out a vision for the transformation she wants for her kids’ asphalt schoolyard: trees, green spaces and more color.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983213\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983213\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Two women walking on a schoolyard with children playing in the background.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/RS59504_033_KQEDScience_BridgesAcademyOakland_10202022-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mayra Gudiño walks through the schoolyard with her daughter at Bridges Academy at Melrose in Oakland on Oct. 20, 2022. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>It turns out they’ll get it. Through Gudiño and other parents, teacher and administrative activism, the school has received funding to transform their schoolyard: to rip up asphalt and plant trees. They broke ground early this summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One condition of their funding is that they keep the schoolyard open for community use on nights and weekends, a boon for their neighborhood without nearby parks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gudiño said they deserve it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "What California's Wet Winter Means for Fire Season",
"headTitle": "What California’s Wet Winter Means for Fire Season | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>The series of 31 atmospheric rivers that drenched California this past winter has wildfire officials and scientists breathing sighs of relief — for the most part.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to a coalition of state and federal fire directors, which puts out regular \u003ca href=\"https://gacc.nifc.gov/oncc/predictive/outlooks/Outlook_NOps.pdf\">predictions about wildfire season in Northern California (PDF)\u003c/a>, the potential for significant fires this year is normal to below normal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That Northern California Geographic Area Coordination Center’s prediction comes from a compilation of factors, chief among them weather (past, present and future) and fuel moisture (how much water trees and plants are holding onto). Given the wet, cool winter and spring months, this year’s fire season is off to a slow start. The ground is still wet and grasses, shrubs and trees are holding onto that moisture, making them less likely to burn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s the same thing as when you try to start a campfire: You don’t use wet wood. It’s very hard to get wet wood to ignite,” said Craig Clements, \u003ca href=\"https://www.sjsu.edu/wildfire/team/faculty.php\">director\u003c/a> of the Wildfire Interdisciplinary Research Center at San José State University.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"California Statewide Rainfall/Acres Burned (2000-2022) \" aria-label=\"Scatter Plot\" id=\"datawrapper-chart-61l7B\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/61l7B/4/\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border: none;\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" data-external=\"1\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>But what about all that extra vegetation?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Maybe you’ve heard that all that rain means more vegetation, and that more vegetation means more fuel for wildfires. That’s true — but only in certain ecosystems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For example, you might’ve noticed grasses are extra tall this year due to all the rain. Grassland ecosystems are certainly more dense this year and once those grasses cure, they’ll be primed for burning. Thus, if conditions are ripe for fires in August, September and October, grassy environments could be at increased risk. That risk could spill over into next year, too, depending on the weather.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This year is going to be more a function of the soil moisture content being so high,” said Clements. In other words, because grasses, shrubs and trees are holding onto their moisture longer than usual, the window for them to cure — and for severe wildfire risk — is narrower.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Plus, Clements added, grass fires are among the least concerning to firefighters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re dangerous, they spread rapidly, but aircraft suppression works really well on grass fires,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cal Fire ramped up its flight suppression last year, which the agency said helped prevent wildfires from blazing out of control.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>So where will fires be worst this year?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In short: likely in the coastal grasslands.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we do get significant heat waves or wind events in August, September and October, there could be a high level of fire activity in [the grasslands],” UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain said in a recent live YouTube \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E45I9YeO0ek\">video\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Much of the Bay Area is considered coastal grassland and, depending on the late summer weather — particularly heat waves followed by gusty, dry offshore winds — the region could see increased fire activity later this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the other hand, forest and mountain ecosystems like the Sierra Nevada are still blanketed in snow, which could mean they’ll be spared this fire season. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2023/03/30/california-snowpack-record-sierra/\">record-breaking snowpack in the mountains is lingering into the summer months\u003c/a>, thereby decreasing fire danger. Even when it all melts later this summer, the fuel moisture will likely stay high enough to ward off any severe burning.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>How will this summer’s weather factor in?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Of course all of these predictions are contingent upon the weather, which in California is notoriously fickle. June has already been cooler and wetter than usual, and with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1982822/6-common-misconceptions-about-el-nino-and-its-impact-on-california-weather\">El\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1982822/6-common-misconceptions-about-el-nino-and-its-impact-on-california-weather\">Niño\u003c/a> conditions here, that trend is likely to continue later on this year. That narrows the window for high fire danger conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But that window will still exist. Although fuel moisture is higher than normal right now, the tall grasses and shrubs will cure at some point this summer, likely in August, and will be ready to burn. August, September and October are notoriously hot, dry and windy across California, and even the dozens of atmospheric rivers from the previous winter won’t be enough to quell the fire season entirely. That’s thanks in part to climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re getting more fire weather days and worse high fire risk days because of climate change,” said Clements. “It’s day-to-day weather that really drives fire behavior on the ground.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One heatwave can drastically change the fire danger outlook. “It can happen just in a matter of days,” said Clements.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s too soon to know how those late summer months will play out weather-wise, but one thing is for sure: There will be fires in California this year. Because fire is a natural part of the state’s landscape, and many ecosystems are adapted to it and even need it to survive and thrive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "A group of fire directors say the potential for big fires this year is much less than in recent years. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The series of 31 atmospheric rivers that drenched California this past winter has wildfire officials and scientists breathing sighs of relief — for the most part.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to a coalition of state and federal fire directors, which puts out regular \u003ca href=\"https://gacc.nifc.gov/oncc/predictive/outlooks/Outlook_NOps.pdf\">predictions about wildfire season in Northern California (PDF)\u003c/a>, the potential for significant fires this year is normal to below normal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That Northern California Geographic Area Coordination Center’s prediction comes from a compilation of factors, chief among them weather (past, present and future) and fuel moisture (how much water trees and plants are holding onto). Given the wet, cool winter and spring months, this year’s fire season is off to a slow start. The ground is still wet and grasses, shrubs and trees are holding onto that moisture, making them less likely to burn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s the same thing as when you try to start a campfire: You don’t use wet wood. It’s very hard to get wet wood to ignite,” said Craig Clements, \u003ca href=\"https://www.sjsu.edu/wildfire/team/faculty.php\">director\u003c/a> of the Wildfire Interdisciplinary Research Center at San José State University.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"California Statewide Rainfall/Acres Burned (2000-2022) \" aria-label=\"Scatter Plot\" id=\"datawrapper-chart-61l7B\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/61l7B/4/\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border: none;\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" data-external=\"1\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>But what about all that extra vegetation?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Maybe you’ve heard that all that rain means more vegetation, and that more vegetation means more fuel for wildfires. That’s true — but only in certain ecosystems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For example, you might’ve noticed grasses are extra tall this year due to all the rain. Grassland ecosystems are certainly more dense this year and once those grasses cure, they’ll be primed for burning. Thus, if conditions are ripe for fires in August, September and October, grassy environments could be at increased risk. That risk could spill over into next year, too, depending on the weather.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This year is going to be more a function of the soil moisture content being so high,” said Clements. In other words, because grasses, shrubs and trees are holding onto their moisture longer than usual, the window for them to cure — and for severe wildfire risk — is narrower.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Plus, Clements added, grass fires are among the least concerning to firefighters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re dangerous, they spread rapidly, but aircraft suppression works really well on grass fires,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cal Fire ramped up its flight suppression last year, which the agency said helped prevent wildfires from blazing out of control.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>So where will fires be worst this year?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In short: likely in the coastal grasslands.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we do get significant heat waves or wind events in August, September and October, there could be a high level of fire activity in [the grasslands],” UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain said in a recent live YouTube \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E45I9YeO0ek\">video\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Much of the Bay Area is considered coastal grassland and, depending on the late summer weather — particularly heat waves followed by gusty, dry offshore winds — the region could see increased fire activity later this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the other hand, forest and mountain ecosystems like the Sierra Nevada are still blanketed in snow, which could mean they’ll be spared this fire season. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2023/03/30/california-snowpack-record-sierra/\">record-breaking snowpack in the mountains is lingering into the summer months\u003c/a>, thereby decreasing fire danger. Even when it all melts later this summer, the fuel moisture will likely stay high enough to ward off any severe burning.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>How will this summer’s weather factor in?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Of course all of these predictions are contingent upon the weather, which in California is notoriously fickle. June has already been cooler and wetter than usual, and with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1982822/6-common-misconceptions-about-el-nino-and-its-impact-on-california-weather\">El\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1982822/6-common-misconceptions-about-el-nino-and-its-impact-on-california-weather\">Niño\u003c/a> conditions here, that trend is likely to continue later on this year. That narrows the window for high fire danger conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But that window will still exist. Although fuel moisture is higher than normal right now, the tall grasses and shrubs will cure at some point this summer, likely in August, and will be ready to burn. August, September and October are notoriously hot, dry and windy across California, and even the dozens of atmospheric rivers from the previous winter won’t be enough to quell the fire season entirely. That’s thanks in part to climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re getting more fire weather days and worse high fire risk days because of climate change,” said Clements. “It’s day-to-day weather that really drives fire behavior on the ground.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One heatwave can drastically change the fire danger outlook. “It can happen just in a matter of days,” said Clements.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s too soon to know how those late summer months will play out weather-wise, but one thing is for sure: There will be fires in California this year. Because fire is a natural part of the state’s landscape, and many ecosystems are adapted to it and even need it to survive and thrive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "This Fishing Gear Can Help Save Whales. What Will It Take for Fishermen to Use It?",
"headTitle": "This Fishing Gear Can Help Save Whales. What Will It Take for Fishermen to Use It? | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Fishing boats would normally still be unloading Dungeness crabs at San Francisco’s fisherman’s wharf in May. This year, the docks were quiet, except for one berth.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re the only boat right now,” says Brand Little, standing next to a large tank of bright red crabs on the deck of his boat, the Pale Horse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State regulators closed the Dungeness season two months early this year, due to the arrival of humpback whales in the area. On both the East and West Coasts, crab and lobster fishermen are \u003ca href=\"https://www.wbur.org/news/2023/02/01/massachusetts-lobster-crab-fishing-banned-restriction-noaa-whale\">seeing their fishing seasons shrink\u003c/a> over concerns that whales are getting entangled in the long ropes attached to their gear, accidents that often end up injuring or killing the animals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983168\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983168 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A fisherman wearing a black baseball cap, black sweater, and black shorts is standing at a fishery posing for a photo. There is a large blue bin next to him on the far right of the photo. The fisherman's right hand is rested on a large white compartment that is half opened. \" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Despite the early closure of the Dungeness crab fishery, fisherman Brand Little has been able to keep fishing using pop-up gear, designed to avoid entangling whales. \u003ccite>(Lauren Summer/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But Little is still fishing, because he’s trying out a system that many hope will be a technological fix to the problem: \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/new-england-mid-atlantic/marine-mammal-protection/developing-viable-demand-gear-systems\">“pop-up” fishing gear\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Normally, crab and lobster traps sit on the bottom of the ocean and are tethered to the surface by a rope that can stretch hundreds of feet. Pop-up fishing gear, also known as on-demand or ropeless gear, keeps the rope and buoy stowed on the ocean floor, until the fisherman comes to retrieve it. This spring, a dozen lobstermen were also permitted to fish in closed areas off Massachusetts and Rhode Island with pop-up gear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983156\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983156 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a black and gray baseball cap is wearing a red t-shirt and brown pants. He wears orange gloves and is holding a circular shaped crab trap.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-1536x1151.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-1920x1439.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Deckhand Justin Middleton pulls in a crab trap off San Francisco, where new pop-up fishing gear is being piloted. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Brand Little)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The new gear has the potential to help whales and fishermen alike, but it isn’t a quick fix. There are technical issues to iron out, including ensuring the gear can be used in crowded areas. The cost for each pop-up system can also run thousands of dollars, a massive expenditure for boats that would need to buy hundreds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Within the fishing community, there’s also reluctance to even test the equipment because many fishermen fear government regulators will mandate it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the urgency to make the gear work is growing, as fishermen keep taking financial hits and whales remain at risk. On the East Coast, North Atlantic right whales are dangerously close to extinction and more than 85% show injuries from being entangled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983169\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983169 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"An orange float is seen floating in the dark ocean with clear blue and cloudy skies at the top.\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">With ropeless technology, orange markers rise to the surface of the water at the traps once they are triggered remotely. \u003ccite>(Claire Harbage/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I think this on-demand system, this ropeless fishing, is a very human way to tackle the problem because it’s technology,” says Mark Baumgartner, senior scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. “What we’re good at is coming up with technology to solve problems.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Testing pop-up gear in the water\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>On a Saturday morning, a steady stream of customers stop by Little’s boat to snag a few crabs. Little’s catch is far less than he’d get at the peak of crab season, but his goal is to test the pop-up fishing gear and look for pitfalls.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s what fishermen need to do — be part of the development of it or take what’s handed to you,” he says. “And 90% of what’s out there I would not want to be handed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The system works like this: The large round crab trap is tossed overboard along with a coiled rope, buoy and inflatable bag. After it’s collected crabs on the seafloor, Little returns, finding the trap on an app. He hits a button, sending an acoustic signal to release the rope and buoy, which rise to the surface. Other gear manufacturers have different variations of this system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Little says he was skeptical at first, but has found the gear has potential. The last few years have been tough on him and the rest of California’s crab fleet. The season opening was also delayed several times in recent years, after humpback whales returned to coastal waters on their yearly migration in the winter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983170\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983170 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A person in orange overalls is holding a large shrimp in their hands. The person is on a boat.\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lobster fishermen on the East Coast have faced closures over North Atlantic right whales. Only around 340 right whales remain in the population. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Ryan Kellman)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Lobster fishermen on the East Coast have faced similar closures over North Atlantic right whales. Only around 340 right whales remain in the population and federal officials \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-life-distress/2017-2023-north-atlantic-right-whale-unusual-mortality-event\">have documented dozens of entanglements since 2017\u003c/a>. The whales feed by swimming slowly with open mouths, making them vulnerable to long ropes hanging in the water. The injuries can be grisly. Ropes dig into the whale’s flesh, exhausting or killing whales after they drag the gear for miles. Earlier this year, rescuers worked for 3 days to \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/endangered-species-conservation/north-atlantic-right-whale-updates#entanglement-response-mounted-for-newly-entangled-right-whale,-argo-(#1218)\">remove more than 150 feet of rope\u003c/a> from a whale, equipment later linked to the Canadian fishing industry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Concerns about whales led Whole Foods to announce last spring that it would \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/11/30/1139876157/whole-foods-maine-lobster-north-atlantic-right-whale\">no longer sell live lobsters from Maine\u003c/a>. The controversy has been intense, with Maine’s lobster industry contending that no whale deaths have been linked to their fishery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s challenging for regulators to determine exactly where whales are being entangled. Many injured whales are found after the ropes have fallen off, and federal rules only recently required fishermen to put \u003ca href=\"https://www.mainepublic.org/environment-and-outdoors/2023-04-13/right-whales-arent-having-a-good-year-the-pressure-is-on-to-save-this-hard-to-track-species\">color coding on their ropes\u003c/a> to better identify where they came from. As the oceans get hotter with climate change, \u003ca href=\"https://apps.npr.org/arctic-ice-melting-climate-change/greenland-whales.html\">right whales have also been shifting their migration\u003c/a>, spending less time in Maine waters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983171\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983171\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-800x422.jpg\" alt=\"An image of a whale swimming in dark green waters.\" width=\"800\" height=\"422\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-800x422.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-1020x538.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-160x84.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-768x405.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Entangled North Atlantic right whales can drag fishing gear hundreds of miles, like this whale off of Florida. The injuries can be life-threatening. \u003ccite>(NOAA News Archive 123110)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>Some fishermen hesitant to dive in\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>On social media, Little has been posting when “whale-safe” crab is available to help customers understand what fishermen are doing about the problem.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For me, it’s adapt or die,” he says. “You gotta roll with the punches. This problem isn’t going away without changing the way we do stuff.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, his willingness to test out the new fishing gear has not made him popular at the docks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I get a lot of flack,” Little says. “There’s a lot of guys really upset with me for doing this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the East Coast, gear testing has faced a similar atmosphere of doubt. Dave Casoni, who has been lobstering off Cape Cod for five decades, said he’s tested pop-up gear, but there’s a fair amount of peer pressure to steer clear over worries it will bring more regulation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Maybe it would send a message that: See, the industry did it, therefore they were in favor of it,” Casoni says. “I was accused of that and I had not intended to do that. I intended to find the shortfalls.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center has created a \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/new-england-mid-atlantic/marine-mammal-protection/borrow-northeast-fisheries-science-center-gear\">library of ropeless gear\u003c/a>, where fishermen can test gear in the water and help provide feedback to manufacturers. But of more than 5,000 lobstermen in New England, only 50 have used the library since it was created several years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983172\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983172\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A white woman in a gray baseball cap, light blue t-shirt, blue jeans, and gray sneakers stands on a wooden surface next to a white boat. The backdrop is a lakeside with houses in front of the lake.\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Patrice McCarron of the Maine Lobsterman’s Association says the fear among fishermen is that if regulators see them using pop-up gear, they’ll mandate it year-round. \u003ccite>(Claire Harbage/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Patrice Maccarron, policy director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, says the fear among fishermen is that if regulators see them using pop-up gear, they’ll mandate it year-round, even when whales are not present. But some lobstermen are still trying to be part of the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They tend to be younger people with families who want to be in the fishery,” Maccarron says. “And they’re thinking, you know, I don’t want to do this. This is going to be really hard. But I also don’t want my livelihood to be removed and to reach a point where we don’t have options.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the fishery closures have mounted, hitting the more than $500 million lobster industry, the conversation is shifting, albeit slowly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think we’re now seeing a lot more willingness to try this, a lot more feedback, a lot more people who are understanding that we’re simply trying to provide fishermen a tool so they can access these closed areas,” says Henry Milliken, who helps run the gear library at NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983173\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983173\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A boat with a blue sail is seen on the waters during the early hours of the morning.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A boat is prepared for a day at sea. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Ryan Kellman)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>Technical issues still remain\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Pop-up gear may work well in tests, but many fishermen worry it could be a different story when hundreds of boats use it during a busy commercial fishing season.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Buoys on the surface normally mark where traps are located, so fishermen can avoid putting their traps on top of someone else’s. With pop-up gear, fishermen would need to use an app or their onboard navigation system to see where traps already are on the seafloor. And some worry there could be conflict when boats are working close together.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s very, very congested,” Casoni says. “So I think the fear is it would create more problems amongst each other just fishing. It’s a very busy, dangerous operation to begin with, and we don’t need to add that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To prevent problems, fishing gear made by different manufacturers needs to show up on the same maps, just as cell phones from different carriers can all use the same network. NOAA plans on holding a workshop this fall to develop universal technical standards for manufacturers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then there’s the question how much slower it is to use pop-up gear. Dick Ogg, a crab fisherman from Bodega Bay, California, says he’s tested the gear. He points out that fishermen work with hundreds of traps during already grueling work days, and adding any extra time with new gear would be an economic hit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The process is very fast and it’s important to understand if we alter any of this, it has to be comparable,” Ogg says. “If I do one extra minute on my pot allocation, that’s an extra 5.8 hours a day.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983174\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983174\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-800x599.jpg\" alt=\"A fisherman with gray hair is wearing a gray sweater and sunglasses poses for a photo in front of some fishing gear.\" width=\"800\" height=\"599\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-800x599.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-1020x763.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-768x575.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dick Ogg, a crab fisherman from Bodega Bay, California, says he’s tested the gear, but since fishermen work with hundreds of traps during already grueling work days, adding any extra time would be an economic hit. \u003ccite>(Lauren Sommer/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The price tag for pop-up systems can cost from hundreds to thousands of dollars per unit, which adds up for boats with hundreds of traps. To deploy the gear in a fishery equitably, boats would likely need grants or loans to defray the costs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we bring in a capital-intensive model, we know our small boats don’t have that sort of operating capital,” McCarron says. “And, you know, there’s a very, very strong concern that we’re going to lose them and there won’t be a place for them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>New resources to make pop-up gear work\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>To accelerate the process, the federal government is putting almost $68 million toward efforts to help North Atlantic right whales this year, funding that comes from the Inflation Reduction Act and the omnibus spending bill passed in December. Of that, $27 million will go to new kinds of fishing gear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a very significant investment that we haven’t seen before to address the issues that are facing North Atlantic right whales,” says Kim Damon-Randall, director of NOAA Fisheries Office of Protected Resources. “If we can develop on-demand technology for gear in the Northeast, that technology can be applied elsewhere.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fishermen on both coasts are able to use pop-up gear voluntarily now, and lobstermen on the East Coast aren’t facing imminent rules mandating the gear. While NOAA had developed new regulations that would close fishing grounds and limit the number of traps in the water, a last-minute Congressional effort in December \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/01/04/1146637583/maine-lobster-industry-wins-reprieve-but-environmentalists-say-whales-will-die\">delayed those rules for six years\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983175\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983175\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A person wearing purple gloves and an orange fishing overall carries a blue tub that is filled with large shrimp.\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Federal officials say pop-up gear technology being piloted in the lobster industry could lead the way for other fisheries around the world that risk entangling whales. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Ryan Kellman)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>No matter what side of the issue, most agree that pop-up gear will take some time, both to iron out the technical issues and to work on acceptance in the fishing industry. In the Northeast, a group of manufacturers, fishermen and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, known as the \u003ca href=\"https://ropeless.org/\">Ropeless Consortium\u003c/a>, is working together on improving the technology.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everything just needs to happen faster,” Baumgartner says. “So more focus and more resources are what’s needed. Those are coming but it’s been slow in coming.”\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=This+fishing+gear+can+help+save+whales.+What+will+it+take+for+fishermen+to+use+it%3F&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "On both the East and West coasts, whales are at risk of being entangled and injured by ropes used by fishermen. Fishing grounds are being closed, but new technology could help avoid that. ",
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"description": "On both the East and West coasts, whales are at risk of being entangled and injured by ropes used by fishermen. Fishing grounds are being closed, but new technology could help avoid that. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Fishing boats would normally still be unloading Dungeness crabs at San Francisco’s fisherman’s wharf in May. This year, the docks were quiet, except for one berth.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re the only boat right now,” says Brand Little, standing next to a large tank of bright red crabs on the deck of his boat, the Pale Horse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State regulators closed the Dungeness season two months early this year, due to the arrival of humpback whales in the area. On both the East and West Coasts, crab and lobster fishermen are \u003ca href=\"https://www.wbur.org/news/2023/02/01/massachusetts-lobster-crab-fishing-banned-restriction-noaa-whale\">seeing their fishing seasons shrink\u003c/a> over concerns that whales are getting entangled in the long ropes attached to their gear, accidents that often end up injuring or killing the animals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983168\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983168 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A fisherman wearing a black baseball cap, black sweater, and black shorts is standing at a fishery posing for a photo. There is a large blue bin next to him on the far right of the photo. The fisherman's right hand is rested on a large white compartment that is half opened. \" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc04615_custom-1696faf5fb1bdfd3e39e5bf9e6318eb2ccb805aa-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Despite the early closure of the Dungeness crab fishery, fisherman Brand Little has been able to keep fishing using pop-up gear, designed to avoid entangling whales. \u003ccite>(Lauren Summer/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But Little is still fishing, because he’s trying out a system that many hope will be a technological fix to the problem: \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/new-england-mid-atlantic/marine-mammal-protection/developing-viable-demand-gear-systems\">“pop-up” fishing gear\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Normally, crab and lobster traps sit on the bottom of the ocean and are tethered to the surface by a rope that can stretch hundreds of feet. Pop-up fishing gear, also known as on-demand or ropeless gear, keeps the rope and buoy stowed on the ocean floor, until the fisherman comes to retrieve it. This spring, a dozen lobstermen were also permitted to fish in closed areas off Massachusetts and Rhode Island with pop-up gear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983156\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983156 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a black and gray baseball cap is wearing a red t-shirt and brown pants. He wears orange gloves and is holding a circular shaped crab trap.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-1536x1151.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d-1920x1439.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/348274596_6193085530739907_7897540296190815100_n_custom-30c3cb9e5b3f2cf30b41e5dba60414747cbeb77d.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Deckhand Justin Middleton pulls in a crab trap off San Francisco, where new pop-up fishing gear is being piloted. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Brand Little)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The new gear has the potential to help whales and fishermen alike, but it isn’t a quick fix. There are technical issues to iron out, including ensuring the gear can be used in crowded areas. The cost for each pop-up system can also run thousands of dollars, a massive expenditure for boats that would need to buy hundreds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Within the fishing community, there’s also reluctance to even test the equipment because many fishermen fear government regulators will mandate it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the urgency to make the gear work is growing, as fishermen keep taking financial hits and whales remain at risk. On the East Coast, North Atlantic right whales are dangerously close to extinction and more than 85% show injuries from being entangled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983169\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983169 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"An orange float is seen floating in the dark ocean with clear blue and cloudy skies at the top.\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc2058_custom-bb7e686498dea94d5c8feb848702d71d513b0f78-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">With ropeless technology, orange markers rise to the surface of the water at the traps once they are triggered remotely. \u003ccite>(Claire Harbage/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I think this on-demand system, this ropeless fishing, is a very human way to tackle the problem because it’s technology,” says Mark Baumgartner, senior scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. “What we’re good at is coming up with technology to solve problems.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Testing pop-up gear in the water\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>On a Saturday morning, a steady stream of customers stop by Little’s boat to snag a few crabs. Little’s catch is far less than he’d get at the peak of crab season, but his goal is to test the pop-up fishing gear and look for pitfalls.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s what fishermen need to do — be part of the development of it or take what’s handed to you,” he says. “And 90% of what’s out there I would not want to be handed.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The system works like this: The large round crab trap is tossed overboard along with a coiled rope, buoy and inflatable bag. After it’s collected crabs on the seafloor, Little returns, finding the trap on an app. He hits a button, sending an acoustic signal to release the rope and buoy, which rise to the surface. Other gear manufacturers have different variations of this system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Little says he was skeptical at first, but has found the gear has potential. The last few years have been tough on him and the rest of California’s crab fleet. The season opening was also delayed several times in recent years, after humpback whales returned to coastal waters on their yearly migration in the winter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983170\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1983170 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A person in orange overalls is holding a large shrimp in their hands. The person is on a boat.\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_2944_custom-0a14d18f1ff372add0dfaf81a0bcac4ca091561c-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lobster fishermen on the East Coast have faced closures over North Atlantic right whales. Only around 340 right whales remain in the population. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Ryan Kellman)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Lobster fishermen on the East Coast have faced similar closures over North Atlantic right whales. Only around 340 right whales remain in the population and federal officials \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-life-distress/2017-2023-north-atlantic-right-whale-unusual-mortality-event\">have documented dozens of entanglements since 2017\u003c/a>. The whales feed by swimming slowly with open mouths, making them vulnerable to long ropes hanging in the water. The injuries can be grisly. Ropes dig into the whale’s flesh, exhausting or killing whales after they drag the gear for miles. Earlier this year, rescuers worked for 3 days to \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/endangered-species-conservation/north-atlantic-right-whale-updates#entanglement-response-mounted-for-newly-entangled-right-whale,-argo-(#1218)\">remove more than 150 feet of rope\u003c/a> from a whale, equipment later linked to the Canadian fishing industry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Concerns about whales led Whole Foods to announce last spring that it would \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/11/30/1139876157/whole-foods-maine-lobster-north-atlantic-right-whale\">no longer sell live lobsters from Maine\u003c/a>. The controversy has been intense, with Maine’s lobster industry contending that no whale deaths have been linked to their fishery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s challenging for regulators to determine exactly where whales are being entangled. Many injured whales are found after the ropes have fallen off, and federal rules only recently required fishermen to put \u003ca href=\"https://www.mainepublic.org/environment-and-outdoors/2023-04-13/right-whales-arent-having-a-good-year-the-pressure-is-on-to-save-this-hard-to-track-species\">color coding on their ropes\u003c/a> to better identify where they came from. As the oceans get hotter with climate change, \u003ca href=\"https://apps.npr.org/arctic-ice-melting-climate-change/greenland-whales.html\">right whales have also been shifting their migration\u003c/a>, spending less time in Maine waters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983171\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983171\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-800x422.jpg\" alt=\"An image of a whale swimming in dark green waters.\" width=\"800\" height=\"422\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-800x422.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-1020x538.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-160x84.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85-768x405.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/11468719096_f7acc916b7_k_custom-ae5d1a61371fef3c6991ec8d352ce37fd353a5d9-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Entangled North Atlantic right whales can drag fishing gear hundreds of miles, like this whale off of Florida. The injuries can be life-threatening. \u003ccite>(NOAA News Archive 123110)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>Some fishermen hesitant to dive in\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>On social media, Little has been posting when “whale-safe” crab is available to help customers understand what fishermen are doing about the problem.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For me, it’s adapt or die,” he says. “You gotta roll with the punches. This problem isn’t going away without changing the way we do stuff.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, his willingness to test out the new fishing gear has not made him popular at the docks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I get a lot of flack,” Little says. “There’s a lot of guys really upset with me for doing this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the East Coast, gear testing has faced a similar atmosphere of doubt. Dave Casoni, who has been lobstering off Cape Cod for five decades, said he’s tested pop-up gear, but there’s a fair amount of peer pressure to steer clear over worries it will bring more regulation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Maybe it would send a message that: See, the industry did it, therefore they were in favor of it,” Casoni says. “I was accused of that and I had not intended to do that. I intended to find the shortfalls.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center has created a \u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/new-england-mid-atlantic/marine-mammal-protection/borrow-northeast-fisheries-science-center-gear\">library of ropeless gear\u003c/a>, where fishermen can test gear in the water and help provide feedback to manufacturers. But of more than 5,000 lobstermen in New England, only 50 have used the library since it was created several years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983172\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983172\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A white woman in a gray baseball cap, light blue t-shirt, blue jeans, and gray sneakers stands on a wooden surface next to a white boat. The backdrop is a lakeside with houses in front of the lake.\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/dsc1970_custom-2b5f7edde43a70922a02d838f137c4d3c3f6e628-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Patrice McCarron of the Maine Lobsterman’s Association says the fear among fishermen is that if regulators see them using pop-up gear, they’ll mandate it year-round. \u003ccite>(Claire Harbage/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Patrice Maccarron, policy director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, says the fear among fishermen is that if regulators see them using pop-up gear, they’ll mandate it year-round, even when whales are not present. But some lobstermen are still trying to be part of the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They tend to be younger people with families who want to be in the fishery,” Maccarron says. “And they’re thinking, you know, I don’t want to do this. This is going to be really hard. But I also don’t want my livelihood to be removed and to reach a point where we don’t have options.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As the fishery closures have mounted, hitting the more than $500 million lobster industry, the conversation is shifting, albeit slowly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think we’re now seeing a lot more willingness to try this, a lot more feedback, a lot more people who are understanding that we’re simply trying to provide fishermen a tool so they can access these closed areas,” says Henry Milliken, who helps run the gear library at NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983173\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983173\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A boat with a blue sail is seen on the waters during the early hours of the morning.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/2014summerswans-181-4c921061ff7d5c703fd8d037747254058a049943-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A boat is prepared for a day at sea. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Ryan Kellman)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch3>Technical issues still remain\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Pop-up gear may work well in tests, but many fishermen worry it could be a different story when hundreds of boats use it during a busy commercial fishing season.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Buoys on the surface normally mark where traps are located, so fishermen can avoid putting their traps on top of someone else’s. With pop-up gear, fishermen would need to use an app or their onboard navigation system to see where traps already are on the seafloor. And some worry there could be conflict when boats are working close together.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s very, very congested,” Casoni says. “So I think the fear is it would create more problems amongst each other just fishing. It’s a very busy, dangerous operation to begin with, and we don’t need to add that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To prevent problems, fishing gear made by different manufacturers needs to show up on the same maps, just as cell phones from different carriers can all use the same network. NOAA plans on holding a workshop this fall to develop universal technical standards for manufacturers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then there’s the question how much slower it is to use pop-up gear. Dick Ogg, a crab fisherman from Bodega Bay, California, says he’s tested the gear. He points out that fishermen work with hundreds of traps during already grueling work days, and adding any extra time with new gear would be an economic hit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The process is very fast and it’s important to understand if we alter any of this, it has to be comparable,” Ogg says. “If I do one extra minute on my pot allocation, that’s an extra 5.8 hours a day.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983174\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983174\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-800x599.jpg\" alt=\"A fisherman with gray hair is wearing a gray sweater and sunglasses poses for a photo in front of some fishing gear.\" width=\"800\" height=\"599\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-800x599.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-1020x763.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85-768x575.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/ogg1_custom-394b757826fc16c16c2af78babed56b7be77eca0-s1300-c85.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dick Ogg, a crab fisherman from Bodega Bay, California, says he’s tested the gear, but since fishermen work with hundreds of traps during already grueling work days, adding any extra time would be an economic hit. \u003ccite>(Lauren Sommer/NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The price tag for pop-up systems can cost from hundreds to thousands of dollars per unit, which adds up for boats with hundreds of traps. To deploy the gear in a fishery equitably, boats would likely need grants or loans to defray the costs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we bring in a capital-intensive model, we know our small boats don’t have that sort of operating capital,” McCarron says. “And, you know, there’s a very, very strong concern that we’re going to lose them and there won’t be a place for them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>New resources to make pop-up gear work\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>To accelerate the process, the federal government is putting almost $68 million toward efforts to help North Atlantic right whales this year, funding that comes from the Inflation Reduction Act and the omnibus spending bill passed in December. Of that, $27 million will go to new kinds of fishing gear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a very significant investment that we haven’t seen before to address the issues that are facing North Atlantic right whales,” says Kim Damon-Randall, director of NOAA Fisheries Office of Protected Resources. “If we can develop on-demand technology for gear in the Northeast, that technology can be applied elsewhere.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Fishermen on both coasts are able to use pop-up gear voluntarily now, and lobstermen on the East Coast aren’t facing imminent rules mandating the gear. While NOAA had developed new regulations that would close fishing grounds and limit the number of traps in the water, a last-minute Congressional effort in December \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/01/04/1146637583/maine-lobster-industry-wins-reprieve-but-environmentalists-say-whales-will-die\">delayed those rules for six years\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983175\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1983175\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A person wearing purple gloves and an orange fishing overall carries a blue tub that is filled with large shrimp.\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/mg_3876-2_custom-5b88e265b16803d0d69913005aeed519cf012d80-s1300-c85-1.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Federal officials say pop-up gear technology being piloted in the lobster industry could lead the way for other fisheries around the world that risk entangling whales. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Ryan Kellman)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>No matter what side of the issue, most agree that pop-up gear will take some time, both to iron out the technical issues and to work on acceptance in the fishing industry. In the Northeast, a group of manufacturers, fishermen and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, known as the \u003ca href=\"https://ropeless.org/\">Ropeless Consortium\u003c/a>, is working together on improving the technology.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everything just needs to happen faster,” Baumgartner says. “So more focus and more resources are what’s needed. Those are coming but it’s been slow in coming.”\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=This+fishing+gear+can+help+save+whales.+What+will+it+take+for+fishermen+to+use+it%3F&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "MAP: More Than 5,000 Toxic Sites Along SF Bay Threatened by Rising Groundwater, New Study Finds",
"headTitle": "MAP: More Than 5,000 Toxic Sites Along SF Bay Threatened by Rising Groundwater, New Study Finds | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>More than 5,200 toxic sites buried along the lip of San Francisco Bay could be impacted by rising groundwater levels over the next century, posing potentially severe risks to human and environmental health, according to a \u003ca href=\"https://news.berkeley.edu/2023/06/20/rising-groundwater-threatens-thousands-of-toxic-sites-in-the-bay-area/\">recently released study\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s more than 10 times as many potentially at-risk Bay Area sites as had been identified in previous reports. A disproportionate number are located in lower-income communities of color, including in low-lying areas of San Francisco, Richmond, West Oakland and East Palo Alto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The higher the social vulnerability, the higher the density of contaminated sites,” said Kristina Hill, director of UC Berkeley’s Institute of Urban and Regional Development, who co-authored the study.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Unlike much lower tallies from the federal and state agencies that oversee these sites, Hill’s study includes 1,480 open sites, which are in the process of being cleaned up or have not yet been cleaned up, as well as an additional 3,817 closed sites where some level of cleanup work may have been conducted, but that may still contain residual contaminants and be vulnerable to rising groundwater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>The map below shows the more than 5,000 open (orange circle) and closed (black square) contaminated sites in the Bay Area that UC Berkeley Institute of Urban and Regional Development researchers identified as being potentially at risk of inundation by rising groundwater over the next century. Open sites include areas where cleanup has yet to begin or is still in progress. Closed sites include areas where cleanup has been completed but may still contain harmful toxins. For more information on each toxic site and the agency overseeing its cleanup, visit either of these searchable databases: \u003ca href=\"https://www.envirostor.dtsc.ca.gov/public/\">Envirostor\u003c/a> (from California’s Department of Toxics Control) or \u003ca href=\"https://geotracker.waterboards.ca.gov/\">GeoTracker\u003c/a> (from the state Water Resources Control Board).\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv style=\"width: 100%;\" align=\"center\">\n\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1000\" height=\"750\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" marginheight=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" title=\"Contaminated sites\" src=\"//www.arcgis.com/apps/Embed/index.html?webmap=35ac1447ecd04b8faa3429f3e8fa429e&extent=-123.928,37.114,-120.4481,38.5586&home=true&zoom=true&previewImage=false&scale=true&search=true&searchextent=true&details=true&legendlayers=true&active_panel=legend&disable_scroll=false&theme=light\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cdiv align=\"left\">\u003csmall>\u003ci>Map by Matthew Green/KQED\u003c/i>\u003c/small>\u003c/div>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sites are contaminated with everything from radioactive materials and small underground petroleum tanks to toxic chemicals that can vaporize into pipes leading directly to homes, Hill said. Some sites date to the 19th century.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s like a graveyard,” Hill said. “Everything we’ve done in the past is coming up with that groundwater to haunt us in the present.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1979645/see-a-map-of-hazardous-sites-at-risk-from-rising-seas\">other studies have identified toxic sites at risk of coastal flooding\u003c/a> due to climate change, this is the first to comprehensively pinpoint areas where rising groundwater is likely to come into contact with contaminants and potentially move them toward both the bay and people’s homes. Twice as much land in the Bay Area could be affected by groundwater rise compared to coastal flooding, according to the new study, which is currently in the process of peer review (a \u003ca href=\"https://essopenarchive.org/users/621729/articles/645176-rising-coastal-groundwater-as-a-result-of-sea-level-rise-will-influence-contaminated-coastal-sites-and-underground-infrastructure\">preprint\u003c/a> and preliminary data are publicly available).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hill found that in nearly all Bay Area counties, the impact from rising groundwater along the bay will be more severe than from the more than three feet of sea level that could take place by mid-century. She said additional research is needed to better understand the risks those contaminants pose to human health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the study, Hill found that in all but one Bay Area county (Santa Clara County), the impact from rising groundwater along the bay will be more severe than that from rising seas. She said additional research is needed to better understand the risks those contaminants pose to human health.[aside label=\"More on toxic sites\" postID=\"science_1979645,science_1980255,science_1979092\"]The risk of potential contamination from groundwater rise is notably higher in California as compared to most other states because of its vast coastline and sheer number of vulnerable sites, she noted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hill said that rising groundwater — potentially made worse during atmospheric river storms and rising tides — is “already moving contaminants”\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1981077/state-regulators-scrutinize-climate-plan-for-controversial-richmond-housing-development\">\u003cb> toward homes and businesses from toxic sites in places like Richmond.\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two state agencies in charge of enforcing cleanup of the sites, Hill said, need “to flip a switch” to the default goal of removing or neutralizing contaminants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a solvable problem. But it requires us to dig up the graves,” she said, emphasizing the need to consider rising groundwater levels in future climate adaptation plans.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The idea is not to run away from these places,” she added. “The idea is to make them safe and healthy again.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cleanup of toxic sites can range from digging up contaminants and trucking debris to contained locations, treating toxics directly on-site, or capping the pollutants in the ground with materials like cement to prevent them from leaking. That third option, Hill said, is likely not a good long-term solution because groundwater rise will generally circumvent barriers over time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new findings presented in the study are revelatory and underscore the urgency of the situation, said Todd Sax, deputy director of site mitigation and restoration with the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, or DTSC, one of the agencies tasked with holding polluters accountable for cleaning up at-risk contaminated areas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sax said his agency has identified about 300 particularly vulnerable toxic sites in the Bay Area and has set the goal of shoring them up to withstand 3.5 feet of sea level rise by 2050 and 6 feet by 2100. On a rolling basis, the agency is beginning to require known polluters to \u003ca href=\"https://dtsc.ca.gov/climate-change/\">assess the risks posed by sea-level and groundwater rise\u003c/a> at those sites and perform the necessary cleanups.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The bottom line is the polluter will pay for the vulnerability assessment unless the site does not have a responsible party,” Sax said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But he noted that a site cleanup doesn’t always mean polluters will be required to remove all contamination, even after a vulnerability assessment. He said that sometimes trucking contaminants out of a community can be more harmful to human health and the bay than leaving them in the ground.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There aren’t any magic bullets to help solve the environmental contamination problem,” he said. “The best we can do is remove or treat the contamination where we can and then to engineer robust solutions that protect public health and the environment into the future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board, which oversees cleanup operations in some 1,000 vulnerable toxic sites in the region, has only begun enforcing groundwater rise assessment in a tiny percentage of cleanup plans, said Alec Naugle, the agency’s toxics cleanup division manager.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to act more quickly on the most vulnerable sites,” he said, stressing the need for more caseworkers to manage the cleanups. He said the agency recently began requiring landfill operators to account for groundwater rise.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The public can understand that this isn’t going ignored,” he said. “It is a sort of a slow-moving train and, at the same time, we need to have eyes on it now because the remedy is going to be costly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Naugle and Sax note that the number of toxic sites identified in this study is substantially larger than the number their agencies oversee, due largely to Hill’s inclusion of closed sites, which could pose a lower risk to public health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, both agencies said they are assessing Hill’s data.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What Dr. Hill’s study points out, is that fundamentally, there’s going to be issues with these sites into the future,” Sax said.[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>More than 5,200 toxic sites buried along the lip of San Francisco Bay could be impacted by rising groundwater levels over the next century, posing potentially severe risks to human and environmental health, according to a \u003ca href=\"https://news.berkeley.edu/2023/06/20/rising-groundwater-threatens-thousands-of-toxic-sites-in-the-bay-area/\">recently released study\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s more than 10 times as many potentially at-risk Bay Area sites as had been identified in previous reports. A disproportionate number are located in lower-income communities of color, including in low-lying areas of San Francisco, Richmond, West Oakland and East Palo Alto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The higher the social vulnerability, the higher the density of contaminated sites,” said Kristina Hill, director of UC Berkeley’s Institute of Urban and Regional Development, who co-authored the study.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Unlike much lower tallies from the federal and state agencies that oversee these sites, Hill’s study includes 1,480 open sites, which are in the process of being cleaned up or have not yet been cleaned up, as well as an additional 3,817 closed sites where some level of cleanup work may have been conducted, but that may still contain residual contaminants and be vulnerable to rising groundwater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>The map below shows the more than 5,000 open (orange circle) and closed (black square) contaminated sites in the Bay Area that UC Berkeley Institute of Urban and Regional Development researchers identified as being potentially at risk of inundation by rising groundwater over the next century. Open sites include areas where cleanup has yet to begin or is still in progress. Closed sites include areas where cleanup has been completed but may still contain harmful toxins. For more information on each toxic site and the agency overseeing its cleanup, visit either of these searchable databases: \u003ca href=\"https://www.envirostor.dtsc.ca.gov/public/\">Envirostor\u003c/a> (from California’s Department of Toxics Control) or \u003ca href=\"https://geotracker.waterboards.ca.gov/\">GeoTracker\u003c/a> (from the state Water Resources Control Board).\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv style=\"width: 100%;\" align=\"center\">\n\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1000\" height=\"750\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" marginheight=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" title=\"Contaminated sites\" src=\"//www.arcgis.com/apps/Embed/index.html?webmap=35ac1447ecd04b8faa3429f3e8fa429e&extent=-123.928,37.114,-120.4481,38.5586&home=true&zoom=true&previewImage=false&scale=true&search=true&searchextent=true&details=true&legendlayers=true&active_panel=legend&disable_scroll=false&theme=light\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cdiv align=\"left\">\u003csmall>\u003ci>Map by Matthew Green/KQED\u003c/i>\u003c/small>\u003c/div>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sites are contaminated with everything from radioactive materials and small underground petroleum tanks to toxic chemicals that can vaporize into pipes leading directly to homes, Hill said. Some sites date to the 19th century.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s like a graveyard,” Hill said. “Everything we’ve done in the past is coming up with that groundwater to haunt us in the present.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1979645/see-a-map-of-hazardous-sites-at-risk-from-rising-seas\">other studies have identified toxic sites at risk of coastal flooding\u003c/a> due to climate change, this is the first to comprehensively pinpoint areas where rising groundwater is likely to come into contact with contaminants and potentially move them toward both the bay and people’s homes. Twice as much land in the Bay Area could be affected by groundwater rise compared to coastal flooding, according to the new study, which is currently in the process of peer review (a \u003ca href=\"https://essopenarchive.org/users/621729/articles/645176-rising-coastal-groundwater-as-a-result-of-sea-level-rise-will-influence-contaminated-coastal-sites-and-underground-infrastructure\">preprint\u003c/a> and preliminary data are publicly available).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hill found that in nearly all Bay Area counties, the impact from rising groundwater along the bay will be more severe than from the more than three feet of sea level that could take place by mid-century. She said additional research is needed to better understand the risks those contaminants pose to human health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the study, Hill found that in all but one Bay Area county (Santa Clara County), the impact from rising groundwater along the bay will be more severe than that from rising seas. She said additional research is needed to better understand the risks those contaminants pose to human health.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The risk of potential contamination from groundwater rise is notably higher in California as compared to most other states because of its vast coastline and sheer number of vulnerable sites, she noted.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hill said that rising groundwater — potentially made worse during atmospheric river storms and rising tides — is “already moving contaminants”\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1981077/state-regulators-scrutinize-climate-plan-for-controversial-richmond-housing-development\">\u003cb> toward homes and businesses from toxic sites in places like Richmond.\u003c/b>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two state agencies in charge of enforcing cleanup of the sites, Hill said, need “to flip a switch” to the default goal of removing or neutralizing contaminants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a solvable problem. But it requires us to dig up the graves,” she said, emphasizing the need to consider rising groundwater levels in future climate adaptation plans.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The idea is not to run away from these places,” she added. “The idea is to make them safe and healthy again.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cleanup of toxic sites can range from digging up contaminants and trucking debris to contained locations, treating toxics directly on-site, or capping the pollutants in the ground with materials like cement to prevent them from leaking. That third option, Hill said, is likely not a good long-term solution because groundwater rise will generally circumvent barriers over time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The new findings presented in the study are revelatory and underscore the urgency of the situation, said Todd Sax, deputy director of site mitigation and restoration with the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, or DTSC, one of the agencies tasked with holding polluters accountable for cleaning up at-risk contaminated areas.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sax said his agency has identified about 300 particularly vulnerable toxic sites in the Bay Area and has set the goal of shoring them up to withstand 3.5 feet of sea level rise by 2050 and 6 feet by 2100. On a rolling basis, the agency is beginning to require known polluters to \u003ca href=\"https://dtsc.ca.gov/climate-change/\">assess the risks posed by sea-level and groundwater rise\u003c/a> at those sites and perform the necessary cleanups.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The bottom line is the polluter will pay for the vulnerability assessment unless the site does not have a responsible party,” Sax said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But he noted that a site cleanup doesn’t always mean polluters will be required to remove all contamination, even after a vulnerability assessment. He said that sometimes trucking contaminants out of a community can be more harmful to human health and the bay than leaving them in the ground.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There aren’t any magic bullets to help solve the environmental contamination problem,” he said. “The best we can do is remove or treat the contamination where we can and then to engineer robust solutions that protect public health and the environment into the future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board, which oversees cleanup operations in some 1,000 vulnerable toxic sites in the region, has only begun enforcing groundwater rise assessment in a tiny percentage of cleanup plans, said Alec Naugle, the agency’s toxics cleanup division manager.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have to act more quickly on the most vulnerable sites,” he said, stressing the need for more caseworkers to manage the cleanups. He said the agency recently began requiring landfill operators to account for groundwater rise.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The public can understand that this isn’t going ignored,” he said. “It is a sort of a slow-moving train and, at the same time, we need to have eyes on it now because the remedy is going to be costly.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Naugle and Sax note that the number of toxic sites identified in this study is substantially larger than the number their agencies oversee, due largely to Hill’s inclusion of closed sites, which could pose a lower risk to public health.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, both agencies said they are assessing Hill’s data.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What Dr. Hill’s study points out, is that fundamentally, there’s going to be issues with these sites into the future,” Sax said.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "California Lawmakers Wage Delta Water War With Newsom",
"headTitle": "California Lawmakers Wage Delta Water War With Newsom | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Amping up their concerns as a deadline looms, key California legislators today escalated their pushback on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s efforts to streamline the Delta water tunnel and other infrastructure projects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The stalemate could become a critical lever while lawmakers haggle with Newsom over the 2023–2024 budget leading up to his \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/california-budget-2023/\">June 27 deadline for approving the spending plan\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A bipartisan group of \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/AsmVillapudua/status/1671286825888129027?s=20\">10 lawmakers from the Assembly and the Senate signed on to a letter today\u003c/a> urging Newsom and legislative leaders to stall Newsom’s package of infrastructure bills “for as long as \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/06/california-water-delta-tunnel/\">the Delta Conveyance Project\u003c/a> remains a part of the proposal.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The legislators said Newsom’s proposals — which would overhaul permitting and litigation for expansive projects like the controversial tunnel plan to replumb the Delta and send more water south — could cause environmental harm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Rather than taking up a few blocks like a stadium, the tunnel would span multiple counties and impose water and air quality concerns throughout the region. If the project is litigated under (the California Environmental Quality Act), the process should not be rushed,” said the letter, spearheaded by Assemblymember \u003ca href=\"https://a13.asmdc.org/\">Carlos Villapudua\u003c/a>, a Democrat from Stockton and a member of the Delta Caucus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In mid-May, Newsom unveiled an executive order and package of wide-ranging proposals to streamline state approval of major infrastructure projects, \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2023/05/19/governor-newsom-unveils-new-proposals-to-build-californias-clean-future-faster/\">such as bridges, reservoirs, semiconductor plants and the Delta tunnel\u003c/a>. Some of his proposals aim to keep transportation, energy and water projects from stalling under legal challenges related to the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2023/05/gavin-newsom-ceqa-reform/\">California Environmental Quality Act\u003c/a> and make the state more appealing for federal funding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fight pits Newsom against lawmakers who say they feel “jammed” by Newsom’s use of the budget process to fast-track the bills. Environmental groups and salmon fishermen are squaring off against building and labor groups. And Delta counties are once again waging \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/06/california-water-delta-tunnel/\">a decades-long battle against a massive water project\u003c/a> that would reshape their region.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Newsom administration says the changes are urgent because California needs to more rapidly build water and energy projects to prepare for climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The proposals that the governor brings forward we don’t bring forward lightly into the budget process, but because we have to take action now,” California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot said at a joint hearing of the Assembly Judiciary and Natural Resources committees in early June. “We need to be in a dead sprint implementing what we call our water supply strategy for a hotter, drier future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s Deputy Communications Director Alex Stack said the package “ensures California would still have the same nation-leading environmental protections while also cutting unnecessary red tape that has stalled key climate projects for years.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The final budget is not contingent on Newsom’s infrastructure proposals, and they could be enacted after it’s signed. But experts suspect they will be used as a political lever while negotiations hashing out the budget continue through the end of this month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Introduced as budget trailer bills less than a month before the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/california-budget-2023/\">Legislature’s June 15 budget deadline\u003c/a>, Newsom’s proposals bypass the typical legislative policy committee lineup and give lawmakers and the public less opportunity for deliberation or amendments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It feels disrespectful to the process, to all the work that we’ve done … to have something come at this late date and want to be rushed through that has had such an impact on my district, and the state and the 4 million people who reside in that area,” Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman, a Democrat from Stockton, said in a committee hearing this month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Assembly consultants warned in a report that this approach “significantly limits transparency and public input” and “increases the potential for creating unintended consequences.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They (Newsom officials) want to rewrite more than a century of California law in a backroom deal,” Doug Obegi, a senior attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council, told CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='Alex Stack, deputy communications director for Gov. Newsom']‘California would still have the same nation-leading environmental protections while also cutting unnecessary red tape that has stalled key climate projects for years.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During informational hearings held in early June, lawmakers noted that this is not the first time that the Newsom administration has \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/06/energy-deal-budget-talks/\">brought policy proposals into the budget process\u003c/a>. “It is starting to feel like we are being jammed by design,” Sen. Monique Limón, a Democrat from Santa Barbara, said at the Senate Natural Resources and Water hearing.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Overly onerous’ regulations or ‘railroading’ projects in?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Water providers, business interests and several labor unions have voiced support for Newsom’s policy package.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Major infrastructure projects are too often bogged down in overly onerous regulatory processes and a siloed approach to permitting approvals, which increases overall costs and delays critical projects,” the Association of California Water Agencies, Mojave Water Agency, and the Almond Alliance all wrote in individual letters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Much of the opposition stressed the impact on the tunnel project, including a coalition of the five counties ringing the Delta — Sacramento, Solano, San Joaquin, Contra Costa and Yolo.[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='Doug Obegi, senior attorney, Natural Resources Defense Council']‘They want to rewrite more than a century of California law in a backroom deal.’[/pullquote]“The Legislature is being asked to railroad over the objections of 4 million people and the 25 county supervisors that represent them and are trying to protect their homes and communities,” said Karen Lange on behalf of the Delta Counties Coalition at an informational hearing of the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks and Wildlife. “In the case of the tunnel, every county and city that is affected by it opposes it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Stockton community organizations, salmon fishers and environmental groups said Newsom’s plan would remove guardrails and hamper litigation against the Delta tunnel and other projects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One Newsom proposal, for instance, would exclude \u003ca href=\"https://esd.dof.ca.gov/trailer-bill/public/trailerBill/pdf/954\">certain internal communications (PDF)\u003c/a> such as emails from the administrative record prepared for litigation if they didn’t ultimately reach the final decision-making body.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Assembly \u003ca href=\"https://antr.assembly.ca.gov/sites/antr.assembly.ca.gov/files/June%207%2C%202022%20Info%20Hearing%20Documents.pdf\">analysts warned that this “allows the agency to pick and choose what documents to include in the record” (PDF)\u003c/a>. Though these records could be available under a separate California Public Records Act request, this too can lead to lawsuits and delays and “could prove very costly to public agencies.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In today’s letter, legislators criticized parts of the package that would set a time limit for lawsuits challenging the tunnel and other projects and reduce protections against killing certain wildlife species, such as sandhill cranes that winter in the Delta.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Crowfoot told CalMatters that the proposals were not developed specifically to push through the tunnel project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I haven’t been part of any internal conversation on fully protected species and our need to modernize it that discuss the Sandhill crane or its relationship to the project,” he said. “The intent is not to short circuit any environmental review or public input, but it is to ultimately get to an answer around whether this project can be supported and move forward.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/06/california-water-delta-tunnel/\">Decades in the making yet still decades from completion\u003c/a>, the proposed tunnel has been called both a water grab and a critical update to water supplies for 27 million people, mostly in Southern California, and 750,000 acres of farmland. State officials say it would protect a vital water artery from earthquakes, sea level rise and extreme swings from wet to dry, while local communities and environmental groups say it would upend the way of life and sensitive ecosystems of the Delta.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The estimated price tag, last updated in 2020, is around $16 billion, which would eventually be paid back by water agencies receiving its supplies. Last year, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/07/delta-tunnel-water-report/\">a draft state environmental report\u003c/a> warned that the tunnel project would harm endangered and threatened species, convert 2,300 acres of farmland, and disrupt cultural and historic sites.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Asked why the administration included such a fiercely contested issue in the infrastructure package as part of the budget process, Crowfoot said in an interview, “We simply can’t kick the can down the road on this question because it generates disagreements and controversy.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Amping up their concerns as a deadline looms, key California legislators today escalated their pushback on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s efforts to streamline the Delta water tunnel and other infrastructure projects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The stalemate could become a critical lever while lawmakers haggle with Newsom over the 2023–2024 budget leading up to his \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/california-budget-2023/\">June 27 deadline for approving the spending plan\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A bipartisan group of \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/AsmVillapudua/status/1671286825888129027?s=20\">10 lawmakers from the Assembly and the Senate signed on to a letter today\u003c/a> urging Newsom and legislative leaders to stall Newsom’s package of infrastructure bills “for as long as \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/06/california-water-delta-tunnel/\">the Delta Conveyance Project\u003c/a> remains a part of the proposal.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The legislators said Newsom’s proposals — which would overhaul permitting and litigation for expansive projects like the controversial tunnel plan to replumb the Delta and send more water south — could cause environmental harm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Rather than taking up a few blocks like a stadium, the tunnel would span multiple counties and impose water and air quality concerns throughout the region. If the project is litigated under (the California Environmental Quality Act), the process should not be rushed,” said the letter, spearheaded by Assemblymember \u003ca href=\"https://a13.asmdc.org/\">Carlos Villapudua\u003c/a>, a Democrat from Stockton and a member of the Delta Caucus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In mid-May, Newsom unveiled an executive order and package of wide-ranging proposals to streamline state approval of major infrastructure projects, \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2023/05/19/governor-newsom-unveils-new-proposals-to-build-californias-clean-future-faster/\">such as bridges, reservoirs, semiconductor plants and the Delta tunnel\u003c/a>. Some of his proposals aim to keep transportation, energy and water projects from stalling under legal challenges related to the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2023/05/gavin-newsom-ceqa-reform/\">California Environmental Quality Act\u003c/a> and make the state more appealing for federal funding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fight pits Newsom against lawmakers who say they feel “jammed” by Newsom’s use of the budget process to fast-track the bills. Environmental groups and salmon fishermen are squaring off against building and labor groups. And Delta counties are once again waging \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/06/california-water-delta-tunnel/\">a decades-long battle against a massive water project\u003c/a> that would reshape their region.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Newsom administration says the changes are urgent because California needs to more rapidly build water and energy projects to prepare for climate change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The proposals that the governor brings forward we don’t bring forward lightly into the budget process, but because we have to take action now,” California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot said at a joint hearing of the Assembly Judiciary and Natural Resources committees in early June. “We need to be in a dead sprint implementing what we call our water supply strategy for a hotter, drier future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s Deputy Communications Director Alex Stack said the package “ensures California would still have the same nation-leading environmental protections while also cutting unnecessary red tape that has stalled key climate projects for years.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The final budget is not contingent on Newsom’s infrastructure proposals, and they could be enacted after it’s signed. But experts suspect they will be used as a political lever while negotiations hashing out the budget continue through the end of this month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Introduced as budget trailer bills less than a month before the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/explainers/california-budget-2023/\">Legislature’s June 15 budget deadline\u003c/a>, Newsom’s proposals bypass the typical legislative policy committee lineup and give lawmakers and the public less opportunity for deliberation or amendments.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It feels disrespectful to the process, to all the work that we’ve done … to have something come at this late date and want to be rushed through that has had such an impact on my district, and the state and the 4 million people who reside in that area,” Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman, a Democrat from Stockton, said in a committee hearing this month.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Assembly consultants warned in a report that this approach “significantly limits transparency and public input” and “increases the potential for creating unintended consequences.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They (Newsom officials) want to rewrite more than a century of California law in a backroom deal,” Doug Obegi, a senior attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council, told CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During informational hearings held in early June, lawmakers noted that this is not the first time that the Newsom administration has \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/06/energy-deal-budget-talks/\">brought policy proposals into the budget process\u003c/a>. “It is starting to feel like we are being jammed by design,” Sen. Monique Limón, a Democrat from Santa Barbara, said at the Senate Natural Resources and Water hearing.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Overly onerous’ regulations or ‘railroading’ projects in?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Water providers, business interests and several labor unions have voiced support for Newsom’s policy package.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Major infrastructure projects are too often bogged down in overly onerous regulatory processes and a siloed approach to permitting approvals, which increases overall costs and delays critical projects,” the Association of California Water Agencies, Mojave Water Agency, and the Almond Alliance all wrote in individual letters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Much of the opposition stressed the impact on the tunnel project, including a coalition of the five counties ringing the Delta — Sacramento, Solano, San Joaquin, Contra Costa and Yolo.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“The Legislature is being asked to railroad over the objections of 4 million people and the 25 county supervisors that represent them and are trying to protect their homes and communities,” said Karen Lange on behalf of the Delta Counties Coalition at an informational hearing of the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks and Wildlife. “In the case of the tunnel, every county and city that is affected by it opposes it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Stockton community organizations, salmon fishers and environmental groups said Newsom’s plan would remove guardrails and hamper litigation against the Delta tunnel and other projects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One Newsom proposal, for instance, would exclude \u003ca href=\"https://esd.dof.ca.gov/trailer-bill/public/trailerBill/pdf/954\">certain internal communications (PDF)\u003c/a> such as emails from the administrative record prepared for litigation if they didn’t ultimately reach the final decision-making body.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Assembly \u003ca href=\"https://antr.assembly.ca.gov/sites/antr.assembly.ca.gov/files/June%207%2C%202022%20Info%20Hearing%20Documents.pdf\">analysts warned that this “allows the agency to pick and choose what documents to include in the record” (PDF)\u003c/a>. Though these records could be available under a separate California Public Records Act request, this too can lead to lawsuits and delays and “could prove very costly to public agencies.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In today’s letter, legislators criticized parts of the package that would set a time limit for lawsuits challenging the tunnel and other projects and reduce protections against killing certain wildlife species, such as sandhill cranes that winter in the Delta.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Crowfoot told CalMatters that the proposals were not developed specifically to push through the tunnel project.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I haven’t been part of any internal conversation on fully protected species and our need to modernize it that discuss the Sandhill crane or its relationship to the project,” he said. “The intent is not to short circuit any environmental review or public input, but it is to ultimately get to an answer around whether this project can be supported and move forward.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/06/california-water-delta-tunnel/\">Decades in the making yet still decades from completion\u003c/a>, the proposed tunnel has been called both a water grab and a critical update to water supplies for 27 million people, mostly in Southern California, and 750,000 acres of farmland. State officials say it would protect a vital water artery from earthquakes, sea level rise and extreme swings from wet to dry, while local communities and environmental groups say it would upend the way of life and sensitive ecosystems of the Delta.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The estimated price tag, last updated in 2020, is around $16 billion, which would eventually be paid back by water agencies receiving its supplies. Last year, \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2022/07/delta-tunnel-water-report/\">a draft state environmental report\u003c/a> warned that the tunnel project would harm endangered and threatened species, convert 2,300 acres of farmland, and disrupt cultural and historic sites.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Dr. Naomi Marks races between patients inside the emergency department at Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa County. She explains a diagnosis to a woman grimacing in pain, complaining of nauseousness and a belly on fire with pain. An MRI suggests pancreatitis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“From the moment we spoke, I’ve been trying to reach a GI doctor at another hospital,” Marks said, explaining that the medical center doesn’t have a gastroenterologist, a practitioner specializing in the digestive system, on staff or on call.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Marks dials every number she has at UCSF, Stanford, UC Davis and other big hospitals up and down the state, scrambling for a hospital with a specialist and an open bed.[pullquote align='right' citation='Dr. Donaldo Hernandez, president, California Medical Association']‘The system was broken before the pandemic. It’s in shards now.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s no formal or even modern process here, she explains as she prepares to send a request by fax machine. She can only hope for a response.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“So, I’ll keep you updated,” Marks says to the patient as she prepares to move on to the next. “And we have more pain medications if you need.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not uncommon for really sick patients to wait three, four or even five days for a transfer, Marks said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC Davis Medical Center \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-05-28/patients-agonizing-waits-hospital-transfers\">turned down more than 9,900 transfer requests in a little over a year\u003c/a> due to limited capacity, \u003cem>The Los Angeles Times\u003c/em> reported. And, a spokesperson for UCSF told KQED that their hospital is nearly always at or over capacity. UCSF declined 41% of the transfer requests it received in the last year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dr. Andrew Fenton, Queen of the Valley’s chief of staff, said the ER is not a good place for people to wait. “If you’re a sick patient, you’re trying to convalesce and you’re in the emergency department, the lights are on and there’s alarms beeping. It’s not the correct place,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Patients get stuck and get worse because there aren’t enough specialists available to offer the right care, he said, especially doctors willing to work on-call shifts inside hospitals. His hospital used to have an on-call specialist focused on ears, nose and throat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re gone now,” he said. “We don’t have ophthalmology, we don’t have plastic surgery or oral maxillofacial surgery.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile the emergency department is completely full. The hallway is lined with patients waiting on gurneys. One bleeds from a head injury. Another has lacerations on his face. Doctors have even transformed a small office near the waiting room into an exam room to evaluate more patients.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It looks a little bit like a MASH unit right now,” said Fenton, referring to mobile army surgical hospitals. “When you come into the ER, it’s not pretty.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Long wait times inside emergency departments are not new. And neither are staff shortages, but both have been exacerbated by the pandemic. Hospitals are flooded by patients who have delayed care in recent years, and there aren’t enough nurses to meet the demand. Burnout hit an all-time high during COVID, which inspired many health care workers to retire early.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The system was broken before the pandemic,” Fenton said. “It’s in shards now.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even Hernandez can’t get into a clinic to see a specialist for himself — he needs to see a gastroenterologist for some preventive care. 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"content": "\u003cp>The smoke from wildfires that bathed the Eastern Seaboard in recent days prompted officials to issue air quality alerts and refocused wide attention on the issue of fire pollution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s also the urgent backdrop to \u003ca href=\"https://www.padilla.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Letter-to-EPA-re_-PM2.5-Rule-Limiting-Prescribed-Fire-Opportunities1.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a letter congressional leaders from California\u003c/a> sent to the Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday, pressing regulators to amend their update of the Clean Air Act.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While specifying their support for cleaner standards, the members of Congress want the implementation of the EPA’s new rule to support, rather than hinder, the use of prescribed burns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of our colleagues from other parts of the country [are] finally getting an appreciation for a very real challenge that we’ve had in California for many years,” said Sen. Alex Padilla in an interview with KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He led the effort to draft the letter and is one of 25 leaders to co-sign, along with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Rep. Katie Porter, Rep. Adam Schiff and Rep. Zoe Lofgren.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They expressed concern that a new rule intended to improve air quality — tightening standards on a class of pollutants that include soot and smoke — could have the opposite intended effect by making it harder to conduct prescribed burns, setting the stage for the types of big fires currently raging out of control in Canada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We ask for your continued focus on developing a solution that both safeguards clean air and prevents the consistent cycle of devastating wildfires that also undermines our efforts to make progress on clean air,” the letter says. It also urges officials to collaborate with air districts, land managers and fire practitioners.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The problem is, if you don’t do these controlled burns, you’re going to have more catastrophic fires that blast way past anyone’s air quality standards. And that has become a chronic problem in Northern California year after year,” said North Bay Congressmember Jared Huffman, who co-signed the letter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While controlled burns do produce smoke, it’s more manageable and less toxic than wildfire smoke. And, crucially, prescribed fires help inoculate areas against disastrous fires — the kind that produce debilitating\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>smoke for weeks on end.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If regulators are not allowing us to use the most powerful tool we have to prevent those kind of massive air quality violations, then we need to urge them to do better. That’s what this letter is all about,” Huffman said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Increasing the pace and scale of prescribed fire is a cornerstone of plans from both the state of California and the U.S. Forest Service for addressing the wildfire crisis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the EPA’s proposed rule might hinder that approach by requiring air districts to meet newly strengthened standards for smoke and soot. Air districts, in turn, might err on the side of not approving planned burns to safeguard their compliance with air quality standards. (Consequences can be severe for air districts that are out of compliance. The EPA may take over air permitting and impose a ban on new federal highway funds.) \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1982166\">The fire science community in California has said this is wrongheaded\u003c/a> and risks ultimately leading to smokier days in this state and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“By treating prescribed fire smoke similarly to industrial pollution sources, the draft EPA rule would significantly curb the use of beneficial fire,” wrote Matt Weiner of the nonprofit Megafire Action in an email; Megafire Action gave input on the letter. “This letter shows that the issue has gone from relatively obscure to top of mind, even among those who are fiercely supportive of EPA lowering the PM 2.5 threshold.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>PM 2.5 is a class of pollutants defined by their size: 2.5 microns in length or smaller (about 3% of a hair’s width). Their small size allows them to get deep into the lungs and even pass into the bloodstream.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EPA has not said when it will publish their final rule. According to reports, they are in discussions with the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies about this issue.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The smoke from wildfires that bathed the Eastern Seaboard in recent days prompted officials to issue air quality alerts and refocused wide attention on the issue of fire pollution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s also the urgent backdrop to \u003ca href=\"https://www.padilla.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/Letter-to-EPA-re_-PM2.5-Rule-Limiting-Prescribed-Fire-Opportunities1.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">a letter congressional leaders from California\u003c/a> sent to the Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday, pressing regulators to amend their update of the Clean Air Act.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While specifying their support for cleaner standards, the members of Congress want the implementation of the EPA’s new rule to support, rather than hinder, the use of prescribed burns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of our colleagues from other parts of the country [are] finally getting an appreciation for a very real challenge that we’ve had in California for many years,” said Sen. Alex Padilla in an interview with KQED.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He led the effort to draft the letter and is one of 25 leaders to co-sign, along with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Rep. Katie Porter, Rep. Adam Schiff and Rep. Zoe Lofgren.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They expressed concern that a new rule intended to improve air quality — tightening standards on a class of pollutants that include soot and smoke — could have the opposite intended effect by making it harder to conduct prescribed burns, setting the stage for the types of big fires currently raging out of control in Canada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We ask for your continued focus on developing a solution that both safeguards clean air and prevents the consistent cycle of devastating wildfires that also undermines our efforts to make progress on clean air,” the letter says. It also urges officials to collaborate with air districts, land managers and fire practitioners.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The problem is, if you don’t do these controlled burns, you’re going to have more catastrophic fires that blast way past anyone’s air quality standards. And that has become a chronic problem in Northern California year after year,” said North Bay Congressmember Jared Huffman, who co-signed the letter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While controlled burns do produce smoke, it’s more manageable and less toxic than wildfire smoke. And, crucially, prescribed fires help inoculate areas against disastrous fires — the kind that produce debilitating\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>smoke for weeks on end.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If regulators are not allowing us to use the most powerful tool we have to prevent those kind of massive air quality violations, then we need to urge them to do better. That’s what this letter is all about,” Huffman said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Increasing the pace and scale of prescribed fire is a cornerstone of plans from both the state of California and the U.S. Forest Service for addressing the wildfire crisis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the EPA’s proposed rule might hinder that approach by requiring air districts to meet newly strengthened standards for smoke and soot. Air districts, in turn, might err on the side of not approving planned burns to safeguard their compliance with air quality standards. (Consequences can be severe for air districts that are out of compliance. The EPA may take over air permitting and impose a ban on new federal highway funds.) \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1982166\">The fire science community in California has said this is wrongheaded\u003c/a> and risks ultimately leading to smokier days in this state and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“By treating prescribed fire smoke similarly to industrial pollution sources, the draft EPA rule would significantly curb the use of beneficial fire,” wrote Matt Weiner of the nonprofit Megafire Action in an email; Megafire Action gave input on the letter. “This letter shows that the issue has gone from relatively obscure to top of mind, even among those who are fiercely supportive of EPA lowering the PM 2.5 threshold.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>PM 2.5 is a class of pollutants defined by their size: 2.5 microns in length or smaller (about 3% of a hair’s width). Their small size allows them to get deep into the lungs and even pass into the bloodstream.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The EPA has not said when it will publish their final rule. According to reports, they are in discussions with the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies about this issue.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Justine Yotti-Conrique and Michael Conrique open the front door to the cream-colored, one-story home they purchased and moved into about a month ago. Their 6-month-old puppy, Ziggy, excitedly jumps up and down.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Retreating into their light-filled home, the couple shows off new stainless-steel appliances and marvels at finally having a dishwasher after so many rentals without.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Justine and Michael are first-time homeowners in a newly constructed development called \u003ca href=\"https://www.kbhome.com/new-homes-riverside-county/durango-at-shadow-mountain\">Durango at Shadow Mountain\u003c/a> in the sunny town of Menifee, in Riverside County.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Generally when you buy a home, it’s more of a selfish decision,” Michael said. “You’re just thinking about your family’s future.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Roughly \u003ca href=\"https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/our-work/programs/building-decarbonization\">25% of California’s planet-warming pollution\u003c/a> comes from homes, industrial buildings and the energy generated off-site to power them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Michael Conrique, homeowner\"]‘But buying into this home, specifically, it felt like we were still making an impact. We like to think of ourselves as climate activists, so we just want to make sure we’re still playing our part.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But buying into this home, specifically, it felt like we were still making an impact. We like to think of ourselves as climate activists, so we just want to make sure we’re still playing our part,” Michael said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 78 single-family homes in this community, and the 141 in another development right next to it called Oak Shade at Shadow Mountain, are constructed by KB Home, a home-building company based in Los Angeles. The properties are all completely electric, and designed \u003ca href=\"https://www.energy.gov/eere/buildings/zero-energy-ready-home-program\">to create zero harmful greenhouse gas emissions\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several entities came together to get this community off the ground: utility Southern California Edison, solar company SunPower, automaker Kia, manufacturer Schneider Electric, UC Irvine and the U.S. Department of Energy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982979\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982979\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"Industrial batteries hang on a wall.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1281\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Among the many green technologies in the homes in Durango at Shadow Mountain are a 13-kilowatt-hour SunVault battery from SunPower. All homes are electric-vehicle-charger-ready. \u003ccite>(Courtesy KB Home)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>From the outside, these homes don’t sport much futuristic flair, apart from solar panels atop each roof. But the interior of the homes are tricked out with the latest energy-efficient, greenhouse-gas-free appliances. Each home has electric water and space \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1981511/how-the-unassuming-heat-pump-can-stave-off-warming\">heat pumps\u003c/a> and induction stoves, and every garage has a backup battery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Justine and Michael control many aspects of their home from apps on their smartphones, which feed them precise details about how much energy they’re using and which appliances are consuming. In many ways, living in a home like this feels like living in the house version of an iPhone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Being able to have control over your house with the touch of your fingers … air-conditioning … [is] definitely nice,” Justine said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But what’s really unique about this community is a far more expansive idea of community. Justine and Michael won’t just be sharing extra lemons with neighbors, or letting the neighbors know they left their garage door open.[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Justine Yotti-Conrique, homeowner\"]‘We’re all contributing our actual energy to this big community battery. Once ours is charged, it keeps going there to really keep us all safe.’[/pullquote]They’ll be sharing the electricity they generate from their solar-paneled roofs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re all contributing our actual energy to this big community battery,” Justine said. “Once ours is charged, it keeps going there to really keep us all safe.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All homes within the development are connected to an industrial-scale battery, roughly the size of a shipping container. They’re also connected to each other through a microgrid: a self-contained system that can run even if power from a utility shuts off.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scott Hansen, vice president of forward planning and land development at KB Home, said that when the power goes out, either due to high demand, public safety power shutoffs in cases of wildfire risk, or other factors, these homeowners will be prepared.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This community can function independently from an electricity standpoint,” Hansen said. “You don’t lose your internet, you don’t lose your lights, you don’t lose your ability to turn on anything in the home.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hansen added that homes could maintain power without interruption from two days to two weeks, depending on how much power the rooftop solar panels can generate during a specific time of year, and taking into account the amount of home energy use.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Building this way, we’re not contributing to worsening those very conditions, whether it be the drought, the deluge, just the extreme back and forth that you get with any kind of climate change,” Hansen said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982977\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982977\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED.jpg\" alt='A tan house with a long driveway and a sign in its yard that reads, \"Energy Smart Connected Community.\"' width=\"1920\" height=\"1281\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A model home in Durango at Shadow Mountain. \u003ccite>(Courtesy KB Home)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The U.S. Department of Energy has dedicated \u003ca href=\"https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-invests-61-million-smart-buildings-accelerate-renewable-energy-adoption-and-grid\">$6.65 million\u003c/a> to this project in grant funding in an effort to help develop the homes and study the microgrid’s performance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Alejandro Moreno said the department has spent the last 40 years making individual clean technologies work and making them more affordable. He said while there is still work to do on individual appliances, most are ready for the big time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The question now is how the different technologies work together.[aside label='More Stories on Clean Energy' tag='clean-energy']“How the solar generation interacts with the battery, interacts with the vehicle charging with the heating, with the appliances,” Moreno said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Moreno’s also watching how partnerships among people are playing out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Just as important is how different people and organizations work together, build trust and work across fields that previously may not have had to engage with each other,” Moreno said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A lot remains to be seen with a project like this — and how it could scale for a greener future. For one, these homes are all market rate, with a price tag from the low $500,000s to the low $600,000s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Critics contend that this kind of subdevelopment further contributes to suburban sprawl.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regardless, KB Home representatives said that properties at Durango and Oak Shade are selling faster than comparable ones in the area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Justine Yotti-Conrique said she likes the people who are moving into the neighborhood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everyone has that type of friendliness here of, ‘We’re all in this together,’” she said. “And modeling — being some of the first people that are willing to take a chance and do something different.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“But buying into this home, specifically, it felt like we were still making an impact. We like to think of ourselves as climate activists, so we just want to make sure we’re still playing our part,” Michael said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 78 single-family homes in this community, and the 141 in another development right next to it called Oak Shade at Shadow Mountain, are constructed by KB Home, a home-building company based in Los Angeles. The properties are all completely electric, and designed \u003ca href=\"https://www.energy.gov/eere/buildings/zero-energy-ready-home-program\">to create zero harmful greenhouse gas emissions\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several entities came together to get this community off the ground: utility Southern California Edison, solar company SunPower, automaker Kia, manufacturer Schneider Electric, UC Irvine and the U.S. Department of Energy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982979\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982979\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"Industrial batteries hang on a wall.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1281\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-03-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Among the many green technologies in the homes in Durango at Shadow Mountain are a 13-kilowatt-hour SunVault battery from SunPower. All homes are electric-vehicle-charger-ready. \u003ccite>(Courtesy KB Home)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>From the outside, these homes don’t sport much futuristic flair, apart from solar panels atop each roof. But the interior of the homes are tricked out with the latest energy-efficient, greenhouse-gas-free appliances. Each home has electric water and space \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/science/1981511/how-the-unassuming-heat-pump-can-stave-off-warming\">heat pumps\u003c/a> and induction stoves, and every garage has a backup battery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Justine and Michael control many aspects of their home from apps on their smartphones, which feed them precise details about how much energy they’re using and which appliances are consuming. In many ways, living in a home like this feels like living in the house version of an iPhone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Being able to have control over your house with the touch of your fingers … air-conditioning … [is] definitely nice,” Justine said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But what’s really unique about this community is a far more expansive idea of community. Justine and Michael won’t just be sharing extra lemons with neighbors, or letting the neighbors know they left their garage door open.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "‘We’re all contributing our actual energy to this big community battery. Once ours is charged, it keeps going there to really keep us all safe.’",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>They’ll be sharing the electricity they generate from their solar-paneled roofs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re all contributing our actual energy to this big community battery,” Justine said. “Once ours is charged, it keeps going there to really keep us all safe.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All homes within the development are connected to an industrial-scale battery, roughly the size of a shipping container. They’re also connected to each other through a microgrid: a self-contained system that can run even if power from a utility shuts off.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scott Hansen, vice president of forward planning and land development at KB Home, said that when the power goes out, either due to high demand, public safety power shutoffs in cases of wildfire risk, or other factors, these homeowners will be prepared.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This community can function independently from an electricity standpoint,” Hansen said. “You don’t lose your internet, you don’t lose your lights, you don’t lose your ability to turn on anything in the home.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hansen added that homes could maintain power without interruption from two days to two weeks, depending on how much power the rooftop solar panels can generate during a specific time of year, and taking into account the amount of home energy use.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Building this way, we’re not contributing to worsening those very conditions, whether it be the drought, the deluge, just the extreme back and forth that you get with any kind of climate change,” Hansen said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982977\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982977\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED.jpg\" alt='A tan house with a long driveway and a sign in its yard that reads, \"Energy Smart Connected Community.\"' width=\"1920\" height=\"1281\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-1020x681.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/060723-Menifee-01-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A model home in Durango at Shadow Mountain. \u003ccite>(Courtesy KB Home)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The U.S. Department of Energy has dedicated \u003ca href=\"https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-invests-61-million-smart-buildings-accelerate-renewable-energy-adoption-and-grid\">$6.65 million\u003c/a> to this project in grant funding in an effort to help develop the homes and study the microgrid’s performance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Alejandro Moreno said the department has spent the last 40 years making individual clean technologies work and making them more affordable. He said while there is still work to do on individual appliances, most are ready for the big time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The question now is how the different technologies work together.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“How the solar generation interacts with the battery, interacts with the vehicle charging with the heating, with the appliances,” Moreno said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Moreno’s also watching how partnerships among people are playing out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Just as important is how different people and organizations work together, build trust and work across fields that previously may not have had to engage with each other,” Moreno said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A lot remains to be seen with a project like this — and how it could scale for a greener future. For one, these homes are all market rate, with a price tag from the low $500,000s to the low $600,000s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Critics contend that this kind of subdevelopment further contributes to suburban sprawl.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regardless, KB Home representatives said that properties at Durango and Oak Shade are selling faster than comparable ones in the area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Justine Yotti-Conrique said she likes the people who are moving into the neighborhood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everyone has that type of friendliness here of, ‘We’re all in this together,’” she said. “And modeling — being some of the first people that are willing to take a chance and do something different.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "3 Lessons From the Western US for Dealing With Wildfire Smoke",
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"content": "\u003cp>When New York City’s skyline turned an eerie orange color with smoke from widespread wildfires in Canada, it was an all-too-familiar sight for residents of the Western U.S. In recent years, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/search?q=wildfires&site=all\">record-setting wildfires\u003c/a> have darkened the sky for weeks at a time with unhealthy air, upending life for Westerners.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hazardous wildfire smoke is becoming an \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11890211/dangerous%E2%80%91air%E2%80%91as%E2%80%91california%E2%80%91burns%E2%80%91america%E2%80%91breathes%E2%80%91toxic%E2%80%91smoke.\">increasing problem around the country\u003c/a>, as NPR’s California Newsroom has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11890211/dangerous%E2%80%91air%E2%80%91as%E2%80%91california%E2%80%91burns%E2%80%91america%E2%80%91breathes%E2%80%91toxic%E2%80%91smoke.\">reported\u003c/a>. The risk is only expected to rise, as a hotter climate helps create bigger and more severe fires that can take months to contain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The tiny particles in smoke can go deep in the lungs, increasing the risk of asthma, heart attack and stroke. One scientific study found wildfire smoke is \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\">even more dangerous\u003c/a> than pollution from cars and trucks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Across the West, schools districts, businesses and families have had to grapple with how to live with smoke. Here’s what they’ve learned.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>1. Everyone needs to protect themselves, even when they’re indoors\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When wildfires raged in California in the summer of 2020, the air was choked with smoke for weeks. Many residents tracked the air quality in real-time on \u003ca href=\"https://www2.purpleair.com/\">Purple Air\u003c/a>, a crowd-sourced network of sensors that shows pollution readings across a city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On those same maps, pollution also spiked inside people’s homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some households had installed sensors indoors to track air quality levels. Researchers at the University of California Berkeley studied the data from 1,400 sensors in San Francisco and Los Angeles and found that \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2021/09/07/1034895514/sheltering-inside-may-not-protect-you-from-the-dangers-of-wildfire-smoke\">even indoors, air pollution tripled during the fires\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lesson: just going inside isn’t enough. Invisible particles in smoke, known as particulate matter or PM 2.5, can seep in through doors and cracks in windows. In older homes and substandard housing, the infiltration can be even worse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, researchers found the households that took action fared much better. Those that closed their windows, had air purifiers or ran central air conditioners had lower levels of indoor pollution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Covid-19 pandemic has made portable indoor air purifiers a much more common item, but when smoke fills the skies, it can be tough to find one in a store. So, plans to build more affordable DIY air purifiers have proliferated online where \u003ca href=\"https://aghealth.ucdavis.edu/news/corsi-rosenthal-box-diy-box-fan-air-filter-covid-19-and-wildfire-smoke\">all someone needs is a box fan, some air filters and duct tape\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>2. Create a plan for what to do with kids\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A haze of gray smoke in the sky usually means one thing for families: a scramble for childcare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/live-updates/air-quality-wildfires-canada-smoke#new-york-city-schools-canceled-all-outdoor-activities-for-the-day\">Many schools close\u003c/a> when air quality reaches hazardous levels, but policies can be patchwork and haphazard. While an elementary school might close for the day, nearby preschools or aftercare programs might remain open.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For school administrators, the decision can be fraught. Many working parents have no other options for where to send their kids. And knowing when to keep kids indoors can be tough for families, based on the official \u003ca href=\"https://www.airnow.gov/aqi/aqi-basics/\">air quality index\u003c/a> or AQI. While children are considered a “sensitive” group, there’s not much guidance about whether a \u003ca href=\"https://www.airnow.gov/aqi/aqi-basics/\">yellow or orange air alert\u003c/a> is enough to keep kids under lockdown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Children are \u003ca href=\"http://childrenscolorado.org/conditions-and-advice/parenting/parenting-articles/wildfire-smoke/\">particularly vulnerable to the effects of wildfire smoke\u003c/a>. They’re more active, have developing lungs and take in more air than adults do relative to their body size. The decision to close school is up to each local district, but just a few years ago, there weren’t many health resources to inform those decisions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As wildfire smoke became more severe in California, state officials released an index with more specific \u003ca href=\"https://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ep/documents/airqualityguidance.pdf\">advice for schools about activities (PDF)\u003c/a>, like what to do about P.E., recess and sports events. (In the state’s version, it doesn’t mention exact air quality index numbers, though many school districts have consulted local air quality officials and created guidelines, \u003ca href=\"https://www.shastacounty.gov/sites/default/files/fileattachments/air_quality/page/2400/aq-levels-guidelines.pdf\">like this version (PDF)\u003c/a> from Shasta County Office of Education.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Creating smoke response plans ahead of time, with community input, is key for schools, according to Eric Wittmershaus, director of communications for the Sonoma County Office of Education. On the West Coast, “smoke days” are becoming the new “snow days.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“One of the things we tell school officials to balance is whether the students will be safer and healthier if they’re in their school building, which may have a better HVAC system than what the students have at home,” Wittmershaus says. “It’s going to be a fact of life we struggle with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>3. The most vulnerable communities of people need direct help\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Some of those most susceptible to the health impacts of wildfire smoke are the least able to protect themselves. Recent episodes of smoke on the West Coast have revealed how some populations are falling through the cracks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many people don’t realize they need to protect themselves from smoke, unlike other extreme weather events. The elderly or those with health problems might struggle to get the tools and solutions to filter the air at home. Those who lack housing have no way to escape being exposed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We see individuals with access to fewer resources, who may live in substandard housing, who may desire to reduce their exposure but who are unable to do so,” says Gabrielle Wong-Parodi, assistant professor in the department of earth system science at Stanford University, who has studied how communities responded to smoke in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Overall, \u003ca href=\"https://earth.stanford.edu/news/how-do-people-respond-wildfire-smoke\">not many people are checking the air quality index\u003c/a> on a regular basis and changing their behavior, her research found. Instead, seeing how other people react to smoke is the bigger motivator.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lesson: make sure the message is coming from those in the local community, like community groups, senior centers or faith groups. Providing masks, air filters and resources to groups on the ground can help ensure it reaches those who need it most.\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+lessons+from+the+Western+U.S.+for+dealing+with+wildfire+smoke+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>When New York City’s skyline turned an eerie orange color with smoke from widespread wildfires in Canada, it was an all-too-familiar sight for residents of the Western U.S. In recent years, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/search?q=wildfires&site=all\">record-setting wildfires\u003c/a> have darkened the sky for weeks at a time with unhealthy air, upending life for Westerners.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hazardous wildfire smoke is becoming an \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11890211/dangerous%E2%80%91air%E2%80%91as%E2%80%91california%E2%80%91burns%E2%80%91america%E2%80%91breathes%E2%80%91toxic%E2%80%91smoke.\">increasing problem around the country\u003c/a>, as NPR’s California Newsroom has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11890211/dangerous%E2%80%91air%E2%80%91as%E2%80%91california%E2%80%91burns%E2%80%91america%E2%80%91breathes%E2%80%91toxic%E2%80%91smoke.\">reported\u003c/a>. The risk is only expected to rise, as a hotter climate helps create bigger and more severe fires that can take months to contain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The tiny particles in smoke can go deep in the lungs, increasing the risk of asthma, heart attack and stroke. One scientific study found wildfire smoke is \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\">even more dangerous\u003c/a> than pollution from cars and trucks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Across the West, schools districts, businesses and families have had to grapple with how to live with smoke. Here’s what they’ve learned.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>1. Everyone needs to protect themselves, even when they’re indoors\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When wildfires raged in California in the summer of 2020, the air was choked with smoke for weeks. Many residents tracked the air quality in real-time on \u003ca href=\"https://www2.purpleair.com/\">Purple Air\u003c/a>, a crowd-sourced network of sensors that shows pollution readings across a city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On those same maps, pollution also spiked inside people’s homes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some households had installed sensors indoors to track air quality levels. Researchers at the University of California Berkeley studied the data from 1,400 sensors in San Francisco and Los Angeles and found that \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2021/09/07/1034895514/sheltering-inside-may-not-protect-you-from-the-dangers-of-wildfire-smoke\">even indoors, air pollution tripled during the fires\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lesson: just going inside isn’t enough. Invisible particles in smoke, known as particulate matter or PM 2.5, can seep in through doors and cracks in windows. In older homes and substandard housing, the infiltration can be even worse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, researchers found the households that took action fared much better. Those that closed their windows, had air purifiers or ran central air conditioners had lower levels of indoor pollution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Covid-19 pandemic has made portable indoor air purifiers a much more common item, but when smoke fills the skies, it can be tough to find one in a store. So, plans to build more affordable DIY air purifiers have proliferated online where \u003ca href=\"https://aghealth.ucdavis.edu/news/corsi-rosenthal-box-diy-box-fan-air-filter-covid-19-and-wildfire-smoke\">all someone needs is a box fan, some air filters and duct tape\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>2. Create a plan for what to do with kids\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A haze of gray smoke in the sky usually means one thing for families: a scramble for childcare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/live-updates/air-quality-wildfires-canada-smoke#new-york-city-schools-canceled-all-outdoor-activities-for-the-day\">Many schools close\u003c/a> when air quality reaches hazardous levels, but policies can be patchwork and haphazard. While an elementary school might close for the day, nearby preschools or aftercare programs might remain open.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For school administrators, the decision can be fraught. Many working parents have no other options for where to send their kids. And knowing when to keep kids indoors can be tough for families, based on the official \u003ca href=\"https://www.airnow.gov/aqi/aqi-basics/\">air quality index\u003c/a> or AQI. While children are considered a “sensitive” group, there’s not much guidance about whether a \u003ca href=\"https://www.airnow.gov/aqi/aqi-basics/\">yellow or orange air alert\u003c/a> is enough to keep kids under lockdown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Children are \u003ca href=\"http://childrenscolorado.org/conditions-and-advice/parenting/parenting-articles/wildfire-smoke/\">particularly vulnerable to the effects of wildfire smoke\u003c/a>. They’re more active, have developing lungs and take in more air than adults do relative to their body size. The decision to close school is up to each local district, but just a few years ago, there weren’t many health resources to inform those decisions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As wildfire smoke became more severe in California, state officials released an index with more specific \u003ca href=\"https://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ep/documents/airqualityguidance.pdf\">advice for schools about activities (PDF)\u003c/a>, like what to do about P.E., recess and sports events. (In the state’s version, it doesn’t mention exact air quality index numbers, though many school districts have consulted local air quality officials and created guidelines, \u003ca href=\"https://www.shastacounty.gov/sites/default/files/fileattachments/air_quality/page/2400/aq-levels-guidelines.pdf\">like this version (PDF)\u003c/a> from Shasta County Office of Education.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Creating smoke response plans ahead of time, with community input, is key for schools, according to Eric Wittmershaus, director of communications for the Sonoma County Office of Education. On the West Coast, “smoke days” are becoming the new “snow days.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“One of the things we tell school officials to balance is whether the students will be safer and healthier if they’re in their school building, which may have a better HVAC system than what the students have at home,” Wittmershaus says. “It’s going to be a fact of life we struggle with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>3. The most vulnerable communities of people need direct help\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Some of those most susceptible to the health impacts of wildfire smoke are the least able to protect themselves. Recent episodes of smoke on the West Coast have revealed how some populations are falling through the cracks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many people don’t realize they need to protect themselves from smoke, unlike other extreme weather events. The elderly or those with health problems might struggle to get the tools and solutions to filter the air at home. Those who lack housing have no way to escape being exposed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We see individuals with access to fewer resources, who may live in substandard housing, who may desire to reduce their exposure but who are unable to do so,” says Gabrielle Wong-Parodi, assistant professor in the department of earth system science at Stanford University, who has studied how communities responded to smoke in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Overall, \u003ca href=\"https://earth.stanford.edu/news/how-do-people-respond-wildfire-smoke\">not many people are checking the air quality index\u003c/a> on a regular basis and changing their behavior, her research found. Instead, seeing how other people react to smoke is the bigger motivator.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lesson: make sure the message is coming from those in the local community, like community groups, senior centers or faith groups. Providing masks, air filters and resources to groups on the ground can help ensure it reaches those who need it most.\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+lessons+from+the+Western+U.S.+for+dealing+with+wildfire+smoke+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "California Octopus Can Tweak Its RNA to Adjust to Warmer and Cooler Waters",
"headTitle": "California Octopus Can Tweak Its RNA to Adjust to Warmer and Cooler Waters | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Octopuses are curious and clever. They can solve mazes and puzzles, use tools, and are masters of camouflage. These complex abilities are powered by their sophisticated and giant brains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, in the journal \u003ca href=\"https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(23)00523-8\">\u003cem>Cell\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, researchers report that octopuses are able to edit genetic information to quickly resculpt those brains when confronted with changes in their environment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These findings cast new light on the incredible adaptability of these shape-shifting creatures and may help scientists design therapeutics for problematic mutations in our own bodies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Octopuses are considered one of the smartest invertebrate animals on the planet, with sophisticated brains and complex nervous systems. In other animals, such big brains typically need to be treated with care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just think about your own fragile brain. It’s encased in a skull, bathed in oxygen, and tuned to work at a relatively stable body temperature. “We spend a ton of energy maintaining a constant temperature,” says \u003ca href=\"https://www.mbl.edu/research/research-centers/eugene-bell-center/bell-center-faculty-and-staff/rosenthal-lab\">Josh Rosenthal\u003c/a>, a neurobiologist at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Mass. “And a lot of that is so that our nervous system can operate more efficiently.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Too hot (with a fever) or too cold (with hypothermia) and our brains sputter and begin to fail — and that’s just several degrees off the norm. So our bodies keep everything at a steady temperature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Octopuses don’t have that luxury. Their brains require just as much safekeeping as ours, but they’re in squishy bodies swimming in water whose temperature can fluctuate by some 20 degrees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s difficult to maintain a complex nervous system in the face of changing temperature,” says Rosenthal. “And that presents challenges.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Tweaking genetic recipes on the fly\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Octopuses have overcome that challenge with a unique trick hidden inside their cells. It has to do with a molecule called RNA, which is used to help translate DNA into the proteins that make up our bodies. To use an analogy, let’s say you want to make a loaf of bread and you walk into a library filled with cookbooks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That cookbook itself, it’s already printed and I can’t change the book,” says \u003ca href=\"https://matthewabirk.weebly.com/\">Matthew Birk\u003c/a>, a biologist at Saint Francis University. “But what I can do is make a copy, take it home to my kitchen,” and bake the bread there.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here, the cookbooks are the DNA, which is hard-coded and doesn’t change, the bread is the protein your body wants to make, and the RNA is the copy of the recipe that explains how to do it. RNA doesn’t tend to change all that much. It’s just the messenger.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But what if you’re missing an ingredient — like butter?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If those are the instructions you have, you’re kinda sunk,” says Rosenthal. “But if you know that oil would work just as well — if you could edit that recipe and put that in, then that gives you flexibility.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the brains of most animals — from fish to birds to bees to people — only a few percent of the RNAs get edited. But inside the brains of octopuses and their relatives, it’s happening on a massive scale, affecting more than 60%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The researchers wondered if something in these animals’ environment might be driving all this tweaking, like temperature. Birk decided to run an experiment with help from the California two-spot octopus, which, when scrunched up, is about the size of a football.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They look very much like your typical octopus,” says Birk, “although it does have two iridescent blue spots to try and scare a predator away.” He says they’re mischievous and good at camouflaging. And their coastal habitat in southern California and northern Mexico swings between warm summers and cool winters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the lab, Birk placed half his octopuses in cooler water and half in warmer water. After a few weeks, he collected RNA from their brains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We found that there were over 20,000 different locations on various different proteins that were edited,” says Birk, with more tweaking in the cooler conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That is, in response to changing temperatures, the octopuses remodeled their brains, presumably to keep them functioning properly. The same thing was true in the wild, where Birk collected individuals in the summer and winter by flushing them from their underwater dens with squirts of vinegar.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The octopuses are capable of making these edits in less than a day. Compare that to DNA, which takes generations to change. RNA provides a more flexible alternative.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tweaking RNAs — editing the temporary copies of the recipes — leads to alterations in the proteins that they instruct the cell to make. For octopuses, there’s no single, preferred version of a protein. Rather, there are multiple versions of numerous proteins in the animal’s brain, each one suited to a different scenario.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This study shows for the first time that in the same organism, under different conditions, it expresses different proteins from the same gene,” says \u003ca href=\"https://english.tau.ac.il/profile/elieis\">Eli Eisenberg\u003c/a>, a physicist at Tel Aviv University. “And they have different functional behavior that is presumably suited to the external temperature.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The inner life of an octopus\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It’s still not clear how these changes might impact an octopus in its daily life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What would be nice to see in future is what types of behaviors are affected by these different types of changes — their reaction speeds, their ability to camouflage,” says \u003ca href=\"https://crooklab.org/\">Robyn Crook\u003c/a>, a neurobiologist at San Francisco State University who wasn’t involved in the research.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because the octopuses do more editing in cooler temperatures, Crook also points out the strategy may not help them in the face of a changing climate and warming oceans. Though these octopuses can operate across a range of temperatures, she says it may not be “a viable mechanism for escaping environmental change as a result of human activity.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite octopuses living such different lives than we do, their unique brains may one day prove useful to us.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re trying to figure out how to capture this ability to use it towards therapeutics,” explains Birk, like pain reduction or repairing harmful mutations that cause disease.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Octopuses, he says, have a lot to teach us.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They are fascinating and interesting, not just on the outside, where we can all see,” Birk says. “But also on the inside.”\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=Octopuses+tweak+the+RNA+in+their+brains+to+adjust+to+warmer+and+cooler+waters&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Octopuses are curious and clever. They can solve mazes and puzzles, use tools, and are masters of camouflage. These complex abilities are powered by their sophisticated and giant brains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, in the journal \u003ca href=\"https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(23)00523-8\">\u003cem>Cell\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, researchers report that octopuses are able to edit genetic information to quickly resculpt those brains when confronted with changes in their environment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These findings cast new light on the incredible adaptability of these shape-shifting creatures and may help scientists design therapeutics for problematic mutations in our own bodies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Octopuses are considered one of the smartest invertebrate animals on the planet, with sophisticated brains and complex nervous systems. In other animals, such big brains typically need to be treated with care.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just think about your own fragile brain. It’s encased in a skull, bathed in oxygen, and tuned to work at a relatively stable body temperature. “We spend a ton of energy maintaining a constant temperature,” says \u003ca href=\"https://www.mbl.edu/research/research-centers/eugene-bell-center/bell-center-faculty-and-staff/rosenthal-lab\">Josh Rosenthal\u003c/a>, a neurobiologist at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Mass. “And a lot of that is so that our nervous system can operate more efficiently.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Too hot (with a fever) or too cold (with hypothermia) and our brains sputter and begin to fail — and that’s just several degrees off the norm. So our bodies keep everything at a steady temperature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Octopuses don’t have that luxury. Their brains require just as much safekeeping as ours, but they’re in squishy bodies swimming in water whose temperature can fluctuate by some 20 degrees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s difficult to maintain a complex nervous system in the face of changing temperature,” says Rosenthal. “And that presents challenges.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Tweaking genetic recipes on the fly\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Octopuses have overcome that challenge with a unique trick hidden inside their cells. It has to do with a molecule called RNA, which is used to help translate DNA into the proteins that make up our bodies. To use an analogy, let’s say you want to make a loaf of bread and you walk into a library filled with cookbooks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That cookbook itself, it’s already printed and I can’t change the book,” says \u003ca href=\"https://matthewabirk.weebly.com/\">Matthew Birk\u003c/a>, a biologist at Saint Francis University. “But what I can do is make a copy, take it home to my kitchen,” and bake the bread there.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here, the cookbooks are the DNA, which is hard-coded and doesn’t change, the bread is the protein your body wants to make, and the RNA is the copy of the recipe that explains how to do it. RNA doesn’t tend to change all that much. It’s just the messenger.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But what if you’re missing an ingredient — like butter?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If those are the instructions you have, you’re kinda sunk,” says Rosenthal. “But if you know that oil would work just as well — if you could edit that recipe and put that in, then that gives you flexibility.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the brains of most animals — from fish to birds to bees to people — only a few percent of the RNAs get edited. But inside the brains of octopuses and their relatives, it’s happening on a massive scale, affecting more than 60%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The researchers wondered if something in these animals’ environment might be driving all this tweaking, like temperature. Birk decided to run an experiment with help from the California two-spot octopus, which, when scrunched up, is about the size of a football.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They look very much like your typical octopus,” says Birk, “although it does have two iridescent blue spots to try and scare a predator away.” He says they’re mischievous and good at camouflaging. And their coastal habitat in southern California and northern Mexico swings between warm summers and cool winters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the lab, Birk placed half his octopuses in cooler water and half in warmer water. After a few weeks, he collected RNA from their brains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We found that there were over 20,000 different locations on various different proteins that were edited,” says Birk, with more tweaking in the cooler conditions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That is, in response to changing temperatures, the octopuses remodeled their brains, presumably to keep them functioning properly. The same thing was true in the wild, where Birk collected individuals in the summer and winter by flushing them from their underwater dens with squirts of vinegar.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The octopuses are capable of making these edits in less than a day. Compare that to DNA, which takes generations to change. RNA provides a more flexible alternative.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tweaking RNAs — editing the temporary copies of the recipes — leads to alterations in the proteins that they instruct the cell to make. For octopuses, there’s no single, preferred version of a protein. Rather, there are multiple versions of numerous proteins in the animal’s brain, each one suited to a different scenario.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This study shows for the first time that in the same organism, under different conditions, it expresses different proteins from the same gene,” says \u003ca href=\"https://english.tau.ac.il/profile/elieis\">Eli Eisenberg\u003c/a>, a physicist at Tel Aviv University. “And they have different functional behavior that is presumably suited to the external temperature.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The inner life of an octopus\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It’s still not clear how these changes might impact an octopus in its daily life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What would be nice to see in future is what types of behaviors are affected by these different types of changes — their reaction speeds, their ability to camouflage,” says \u003ca href=\"https://crooklab.org/\">Robyn Crook\u003c/a>, a neurobiologist at San Francisco State University who wasn’t involved in the research.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because the octopuses do more editing in cooler temperatures, Crook also points out the strategy may not help them in the face of a changing climate and warming oceans. Though these octopuses can operate across a range of temperatures, she says it may not be “a viable mechanism for escaping environmental change as a result of human activity.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite octopuses living such different lives than we do, their unique brains may one day prove useful to us.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re trying to figure out how to capture this ability to use it towards therapeutics,” explains Birk, like pain reduction or repairing harmful mutations that cause disease.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Octopuses, he says, have a lot to teach us.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They are fascinating and interesting, not just on the outside, where we can all see,” Birk says. “But also on the inside.”\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=Octopuses+tweak+the+RNA+in+their+brains+to+adjust+to+warmer+and+cooler+waters&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Magic Mushrooms May Treat Depression. But Hurdles to Psilocybin Access Abound",
"headTitle": "Magic Mushrooms May Treat Depression. But Hurdles to Psilocybin Access Abound | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Diamond was tripping on an August morning in Baltimore.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The mom and entrepreneur sat cozily under a weighted blanket at Sheppard Pratt Hospital. Little mushroom people jumped across imaginary flower petals behind her eye mask. A therapist monitored Diamond from close by, ready to serve her food and measure her \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/search?q=depression&site=all\">depression\u003c/a> symptoms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the weeks leading up to today, clinicians had asked Diamond, “Can you remember a time when you were happy for more than a month?” No, she thought.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Diamond told them she’d been having what psychologists call “passive” suicidal thoughts, like, “If this car ran into me and I died, things would be OK.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Such thoughts weren’t new for Diamond; growing up, she had been hospitalized for wanting to kill herself. Over the years, she tried many medications for her depression, including Seroquel, Prozac, Trazodone and Risperidone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of ‘dones,’ a lot of ‘ols,’” she said. Some of them helped her sleep, but left her feeling numb. She recalled thinking, “I still feel sad, so what are we doing here, antidepressants?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Diamond was curious whether a clinically guided mushroom trip would help, and she enrolled in this clinical trial testing the safety and efficacy of psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient in “magic mushrooms,” for her type of bipolar depression. KQED is only using Diamond’s first name because she uses psilocybin, which is illegal federally.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982859\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-1982859\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-1020x678.jpg\" alt=\"A woman stands with her back to the camera and a shirt that says "Don't Trip Drip" and has psychedelic colored mushrooms. \" width=\"640\" height=\"425\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Diamond wants to be an advocate for psilocybin treatments for depression. \u003ccite>(Anna Marie Yanny/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Diamond met with a therapist before and after a daylong psilocybin session, as part of the months-long trial. On her “dosing day” she grounded herself with an intention she set with her therapist earlier: self-grace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While she was hallucinating, Diamond remembers feeling like someone buried her. She felt like she was losing air, light, everything.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was panicking,” Diamond said. “I was fearful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But then she remembered that “they tell you to, if anything comes up, just go with it. I settled in and I was like, OK, so this is death.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The “go-with-the-flow” mantra Diamond adopted during the trial has stuck with her to this day.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Psilocybin faces numerous barriers moving from trial to treatment\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Like Diamond, about \u003ca href=\"https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/depression\">280 million people worldwide have depression\u003c/a>. For some, traditional medications don’t work. Researchers are studying whether psilocybin could help, and many of the \u003ca href=\"https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?cond=Depression&term=&type=Intr&rslt=&age_v=&gndr=&intr=Psilocybin&titles=&outc=&spons=&lead=&id=&cntry=&state=&city=&dist=&locn=&rsub=&strd_s=&strd_e=&prcd_s=&prcd_e=&sfpd_s=&sfpd_e=&rfpd_s=&rfpd_e=&lupd_s=&lupd_e=&sort=\">dozens of trials have had promising results\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neuroscientist Dennis Parker Kelley helps run \u003ca href=\"https://psychedelics.ucsf.edu/#Studies\">psilocybin trials at UCSF\u003c/a>, and thinks the drug has incredible potential.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“More potential than we have really seen with any other pharmacological treatments in the past several decades,” Kelley said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s so promising that psilocybin treatment could get Food and Drug Administration approval for stubborn forms of depression within the year. Meanwhile, San Francisco state Sen. Scott Wiener’s \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB58\">bill decriminalizing drugs like these is pressing ahead in the state Legislature\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it could be tricky for clinicians to move psilocybin into mainstream treatment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>First, psychedelic-assisted therapy can be prohibitively expensive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People who don’t have health insurance, this could prevent them from being able to meaningfully experience these therapies” Kelley said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Psilocybin sessions typically last six to eight hours and are accompanied by a handful of therapy meetings before and after. Many people might not have time for these treatments. Plus, most studies require participants to wean off their current antidepressants before trying the treatment. This might not be necessary for all medications, and researchers like Kelley are trying to understand whether some drugs may be safe to mix with psilocybin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All told, “I don’t think people will be able to go home with psilocybin from their doctor anytime soon,” Kelley said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Indigenous groups in Mexico were using psilocybin long before these trials, and advocates have raised concerns about appropriation with the mushrooms. Critics have also raised concerns about power dynamics in the treatment room with psychedelics like psilocybin, and point to a documented history of sexual violation within psychedelic therapy.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘With great hype needs to come great responsibility’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Clinicians discourage people from taking psilocybin without a therapist or trained guide. Diamond heard author Michael Pollan, who has written extensively about psychedelic research, talk about the treatments. She went looking for a trial after learning there was a lack of Black guides and clinical trial participants in psilocybin research.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We don’t see a lot of people who look like us talking about what [psilocybin has] done for us,” said Diamond, who is Black.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before the trial, she tried to control her life by planning every minute of her day. She felt weak if she couldn’t accomplish everything.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, she gives herself grace if she doesn’t complete her to-do lists. Diamond wants to be an advocate for psilocybin, especially for Black people, through \u003ca href=\"https://www.diamonddripconsulting.com/about-faq\">her consulting and wellness business\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Research psychologist Philip Corlett of Yale University says psychiatrists are desperate for new treatments, but the psilocybin data isn’t as miraculous as it sounds. After all, the trials have been small, and participants could be feeling a placebo effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think these are extremely promising new treatments. But I think with great hype needs to come great responsibility,” Corlett said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Psilocybin may not help everyone whom antidepressants have failed. Trials generally don’t include patients who are actively suicidal or experiencing psychosis, for fear of making it worse. In a large, phase 2 clinical trial for treatment-resistant depression conducted by the company Compass Pathways and published in \u003cem>The New England Journal of Medicine\u003c/em>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2206443\">some participants had worsening suicidal states — marked by suicidal ideation and self-injury — after taking psilocybin\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The American Psychiatric Association states that there is not enough evidence to support the use of psychedelics outside of clinical trials.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Clinical psychologist Rosalind Watts was a lead for such trials at Imperial College London. After guiding patients through psilocybin treatment for years, she thinks of the drug as a catalyst for healing. But, she said, the treatment needs a “therapeutic container,” such as integration therapy or an Indigenous ceremony, to be effective.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If it was just the drug, every time somebody went to Burning Man, they’d have their depression fixed. And that doesn’t happen,” Watts said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People need community care to move through sometimes harrowing drug experiences, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My real feeling is that psilocybin is calling us to change our models of care,” Watts said. “Because if we fit it into the existing profit-making, private health care models of clinics, it’s going to be really, really ineffective.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For Diamond, psilocybin was effective. After the trial, she woke up one morning, energized. She knocked out her to-do list, worked out and left early to pick up her daughter from school. Music drifted through her car speakers as she sat in the sunny school parking lot, waiting for the “school’s out” announcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I thought to myself for the first time in forever that it would really suck to die today,” Diamond recalled, tearing up. “And that was so profound because I had never felt that way in my whole entire life.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Diamond was tripping on an August morning in Baltimore.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The mom and entrepreneur sat cozily under a weighted blanket at Sheppard Pratt Hospital. Little mushroom people jumped across imaginary flower petals behind her eye mask. A therapist monitored Diamond from close by, ready to serve her food and measure her \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/search?q=depression&site=all\">depression\u003c/a> symptoms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the weeks leading up to today, clinicians had asked Diamond, “Can you remember a time when you were happy for more than a month?” No, she thought.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Diamond told them she’d been having what psychologists call “passive” suicidal thoughts, like, “If this car ran into me and I died, things would be OK.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Such thoughts weren’t new for Diamond; growing up, she had been hospitalized for wanting to kill herself. Over the years, she tried many medications for her depression, including Seroquel, Prozac, Trazodone and Risperidone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A lot of ‘dones,’ a lot of ‘ols,’” she said. Some of them helped her sleep, but left her feeling numb. She recalled thinking, “I still feel sad, so what are we doing here, antidepressants?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Diamond was curious whether a clinically guided mushroom trip would help, and she enrolled in this clinical trial testing the safety and efficacy of psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient in “magic mushrooms,” for her type of bipolar depression. KQED is only using Diamond’s first name because she uses psilocybin, which is illegal federally.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982859\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-1982859\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-1020x678.jpg\" alt=\"A woman stands with her back to the camera and a shirt that says "Don't Trip Drip" and has psychedelic colored mushrooms. \" width=\"640\" height=\"425\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/06/005_KQEDScience_Edits_DSC_0033-1.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Diamond wants to be an advocate for psilocybin treatments for depression. \u003ccite>(Anna Marie Yanny/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Diamond met with a therapist before and after a daylong psilocybin session, as part of the months-long trial. On her “dosing day” she grounded herself with an intention she set with her therapist earlier: self-grace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While she was hallucinating, Diamond remembers feeling like someone buried her. She felt like she was losing air, light, everything.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was panicking,” Diamond said. “I was fearful.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But then she remembered that “they tell you to, if anything comes up, just go with it. I settled in and I was like, OK, so this is death.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The “go-with-the-flow” mantra Diamond adopted during the trial has stuck with her to this day.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Psilocybin faces numerous barriers moving from trial to treatment\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Like Diamond, about \u003ca href=\"https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/depression\">280 million people worldwide have depression\u003c/a>. For some, traditional medications don’t work. Researchers are studying whether psilocybin could help, and many of the \u003ca href=\"https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?cond=Depression&term=&type=Intr&rslt=&age_v=&gndr=&intr=Psilocybin&titles=&outc=&spons=&lead=&id=&cntry=&state=&city=&dist=&locn=&rsub=&strd_s=&strd_e=&prcd_s=&prcd_e=&sfpd_s=&sfpd_e=&rfpd_s=&rfpd_e=&lupd_s=&lupd_e=&sort=\">dozens of trials have had promising results\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neuroscientist Dennis Parker Kelley helps run \u003ca href=\"https://psychedelics.ucsf.edu/#Studies\">psilocybin trials at UCSF\u003c/a>, and thinks the drug has incredible potential.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“More potential than we have really seen with any other pharmacological treatments in the past several decades,” Kelley said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s so promising that psilocybin treatment could get Food and Drug Administration approval for stubborn forms of depression within the year. Meanwhile, San Francisco state Sen. Scott Wiener’s \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB58\">bill decriminalizing drugs like these is pressing ahead in the state Legislature\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it could be tricky for clinicians to move psilocybin into mainstream treatment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>First, psychedelic-assisted therapy can be prohibitively expensive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“People who don’t have health insurance, this could prevent them from being able to meaningfully experience these therapies” Kelley said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Psilocybin sessions typically last six to eight hours and are accompanied by a handful of therapy meetings before and after. Many people might not have time for these treatments. Plus, most studies require participants to wean off their current antidepressants before trying the treatment. This might not be necessary for all medications, and researchers like Kelley are trying to understand whether some drugs may be safe to mix with psilocybin.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All told, “I don’t think people will be able to go home with psilocybin from their doctor anytime soon,” Kelley said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Indigenous groups in Mexico were using psilocybin long before these trials, and advocates have raised concerns about appropriation with the mushrooms. Critics have also raised concerns about power dynamics in the treatment room with psychedelics like psilocybin, and point to a documented history of sexual violation within psychedelic therapy.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘With great hype needs to come great responsibility’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Clinicians discourage people from taking psilocybin without a therapist or trained guide. Diamond heard author Michael Pollan, who has written extensively about psychedelic research, talk about the treatments. She went looking for a trial after learning there was a lack of Black guides and clinical trial participants in psilocybin research.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We don’t see a lot of people who look like us talking about what [psilocybin has] done for us,” said Diamond, who is Black.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before the trial, she tried to control her life by planning every minute of her day. She felt weak if she couldn’t accomplish everything.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, she gives herself grace if she doesn’t complete her to-do lists. Diamond wants to be an advocate for psilocybin, especially for Black people, through \u003ca href=\"https://www.diamonddripconsulting.com/about-faq\">her consulting and wellness business\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Research psychologist Philip Corlett of Yale University says psychiatrists are desperate for new treatments, but the psilocybin data isn’t as miraculous as it sounds. After all, the trials have been small, and participants could be feeling a placebo effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think these are extremely promising new treatments. But I think with great hype needs to come great responsibility,” Corlett said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Psilocybin may not help everyone whom antidepressants have failed. Trials generally don’t include patients who are actively suicidal or experiencing psychosis, for fear of making it worse. In a large, phase 2 clinical trial for treatment-resistant depression conducted by the company Compass Pathways and published in \u003cem>The New England Journal of Medicine\u003c/em>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2206443\">some participants had worsening suicidal states — marked by suicidal ideation and self-injury — after taking psilocybin\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The American Psychiatric Association states that there is not enough evidence to support the use of psychedelics outside of clinical trials.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Clinical psychologist Rosalind Watts was a lead for such trials at Imperial College London. After guiding patients through psilocybin treatment for years, she thinks of the drug as a catalyst for healing. But, she said, the treatment needs a “therapeutic container,” such as integration therapy or an Indigenous ceremony, to be effective.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If it was just the drug, every time somebody went to Burning Man, they’d have their depression fixed. And that doesn’t happen,” Watts said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People need community care to move through sometimes harrowing drug experiences, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My real feeling is that psilocybin is calling us to change our models of care,” Watts said. “Because if we fit it into the existing profit-making, private health care models of clinics, it’s going to be really, really ineffective.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For Diamond, psilocybin was effective. After the trial, she woke up one morning, energized. She knocked out her to-do list, worked out and left early to pick up her daughter from school. Music drifted through her car speakers as she sat in the sunny school parking lot, waiting for the “school’s out” announcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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},
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"info": "KQED’s statewide radio news program providing daily coverage of issues, trends and public policy decisions.",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareport",
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"order": 8
},
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},
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"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.",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM3NjkwNjk1OTAz",
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"meta": {
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"source": "City Arts & Lectures"
},
"link": "https://www.cityarts.net",
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"order": 1
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"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 />",
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"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.",
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"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
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"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
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"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"order": 9
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"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
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"id": "fresh-air",
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"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.",
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"hidden-brain": {
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"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
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"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "NPR"
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"how-i-built-this": {
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"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.",
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"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
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"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
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"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. ",
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"order": 15
},
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},
"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. ",
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"order": 18
},
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},
"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/",
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},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
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},
"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": {
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"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
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},
"masters-of-scale": {
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"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)",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
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"source": "WaitWhat"
},
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"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": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
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}
},
"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/",
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"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",
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