Today: October 06, 2024
Today: October 06, 2024

Latest From The Los Angeles Post

Environment

Hawaii's climate future: Dry regions get drier with global warming, increasing fire risk

Hawaii has very dry landscapes, such as parts of the west coast of Oahu. Maria Ermolova/iStock/Getty Images Plus The islands of Hawaii are world renowned for their generally pleasant and tranquil weather. However, the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfire tragedy on Maui was a stark reminder that Hawaii also can experience drought and hot, dry, windy weather, providing the conditions for destructive fires. Hawaii has seen a generally rising trend in the amount of land that burns each year as the local climate warms. Climate change was one of several contributors to Maui’s wildfire catastrophe, and rising temperatures and associated rainfall

Hawaii's climate future: Dry regions get drier with global warming, increasing fire risk
Environment

Secrets of an octopus's garden: Moms nest at thermal springs to give their young the best chance for survival

Two miles below the ocean surface off Monterey, California, warm water percolates from the seafloor at the base of an underwater mountain. It’s a magical place, especially if you’re an octopus. In 2018, one of us, Amanda Kahn, was aboard the research vessel E/V Nautilus when scientists discovered the “Octopus Garden.” Thousands of pearl octopuses (Muusoctopus robustus) were curled up into individual balls in lines and clumps. As Nautilus Live streamed the expedition online, the world got to share the excitement of the discovery. We now know why these amazing creatures gather at this and other underwater warm springs. Scientists

Secrets of an octopus's garden: Moms nest at thermal springs to give their young the best chance for survival
Environment

Looking for a US 'climate haven' away from heat and disaster risks? Good luck finding one

Burlington, Vt., is often named as a ‘climate haven,’ but surrounding areas flooded during extreme storms in July 2023. Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Southeast Michigan seemed like the perfect “climate haven.” “My family has owned my home since the ‘60s. … Even when my dad was a kid and lived there, no floods, no floods, no floods, no floods. Until [2021],” one southeast Michigan resident told us. That June, a storm dumped more than 6 inches of rain on the region, overloading stormwater systems and flooding homes. That sense of living through unexpected and unprecedented disasters resonates

Looking for a US 'climate haven' away from heat and disaster risks? Good luck finding one
Environment

Looking for a US 'climate haven' away from disaster risks? Good luck finding one

Burlington, Vt., is often named as a ‘climate haven,’ but surrounding areas flooded during extreme storms in July 2023. Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Southeast Michigan seemed like the perfect “climate haven.” “My family has owned my home since the ‘60s. … Even when my dad was a kid and lived there, no floods, no floods, no floods, no floods. Until [2021],” one southeast Michigan resident told us. That June, a storm dumped more than 6 inches of rain on the region, overloading stormwater systems and flooding homes. That sense of living through unexpected and unprecedented disasters resonates

Looking for a US 'climate haven' away from disaster risks? Good luck finding one
Environment

Living with wildfire: How to protect more homes as fire risk rises in a warming climate

Homeowners and local governments can take steps to help protect homes from fires. AP Photo/Keith D. Cullom Humans have learned to fear wildfire. It can destroy communities, torch pristine forests and choke even faraway cities with toxic smoke. Wildfire is scary for good reason, and over a century of fire suppression efforts has conditioned people to expect wildland firefighters to snuff it out. But as journalist Nick Mott and I explore our new book, “This Is Wildfire: How to Protect Your Home, Yourself, and Your Community in the Age of Heat,” and in our podcast “Fireline,” this expectation and the

Living with wildfire: How to protect more homes as fire risk rises in a warming climate
Environment

Want to help Maui's animals after the wildfires? Send cash, not kibble

Thousands of Maui’s cats, dogs and other companion animals went missing or were injured. Maui Humane Society, CC BY-ND An estimated 3,000 pets were still missing more than a week after deadly wildfires ripped through Maui in August 2023 and left thousands of people – many of whom had companion animals – homeless. The Conversation asked Sarah DeYoung, who has conducted research in Hawaii and studies what happens to pets after disasters, to explain why rescuing companion animals is a high priority following wildfires and how donors can help animals and pet owners recover from this disaster. What happens to

Want to help Maui's animals after the wildfires? Send cash, not kibble
Environment

Want to help Maui's animals after the wildfires? Send cash, not kibble

Thousands of Maui’s cats, dogs and other companion animals went missing or were injured. Maui Humane Society, CC BY-ND An estimated 3,000 pets were still missing more than a week after deadly wildfires ripped through Maui in August 2023 and left thousands of people – many of whom had companion animals – homeless. The Conversation asked Sarah DeYoung, who has conducted research in Hawaii and studies what happens to pets after disasters, to explain why rescuing companion animals is a high priority following wildfires and how donors can help animals and pet owners recover from this disaster. What happens to

Want to help Maui's animals after the wildfires? Send cash, not kibble
Environment

Geoengineering sounds like a quick climate fix, but without more research and guardrails, it's a costly gamble − with potentially harmful results

Geoengineering includes techniques to reflect solar energy. Elvis Tam/500px via Getty Images When soaring temperatures, extreme weather and catastrophic wildfires hit the headlines, people start asking for quick fixes to climate change. The U.S. government just announced the first awards from a US$3.5 billion fund for projects that promise to pull carbon dioxide out of the air. Policymakers are also exploring more invasive types of geoengineering − the deliberate, large-scale manipulation of Earth’s natural systems. The underlying problem has been known for decades: Fossil-fuel vehicles and power plants, deforestation and unsustainable agricultural practices have been putting more carbon dioxide into

Geoengineering sounds like a quick climate fix, but without more research and guardrails, it's a costly gamble − with potentially harmful results
Environment

Geoengineering sounds like a quick climate fix, but without more research and guardrails, it's a costly gamble − with potentially harmful results

Geoengineering includes techniques to reflect solar energy. Elvis Tam/500px via Getty Images When soaring temperatures, extreme weather and catastrophic wildfires hit the headlines, people start asking for quick fixes to climate change. The U.S. government just announced the first awards from a US$3.5 billion fund for projects that promise to pull carbon dioxide out of the air. Policymakers are also exploring more invasive types of geoengineering − the deliberate, large-scale manipulation of Earth’s natural systems. The underlying problem has been known for decades: Fossil-fuel vehicles and power plants, deforestation and unsustainable agricultural practices have been putting more carbon dioxide into

Geoengineering sounds like a quick climate fix, but without more research and guardrails, it's a costly gamble − with potentially harmful results
Environment

Tropical Storm Hilary pounds Southern California with heavy rain, flash flooding

Hurricane Hilary was a powerful Category 4 storm as it headed for Baja California on Aug. 18, 2023. NOAA NESDIS Tropical Storm Hilary made landfall on Mexico’s Baja peninsula and moved into Southern California with damaging wind and heavy rainfall on Sunday, Aug. 20, 2023. Forecasters warned of a “potentially historic amount of rainfall” and dangerous flooding. California’s governor declared a state of emergency on Saturday, and officials had urged people on Catalina Island and in other high-risk areas to evacuate. Nevada’s governor declared a state of emergency on Sunday. Hurricane scientist Nick Grondin explained ahead of landfall how the

Tropical Storm Hilary pounds Southern California with heavy rain, flash flooding
Environment

Hurricane Hilary triggers Southern California's first tropical storm warning ever, with heavy rain and flash flooding forecast

Hurricane Hilary was a powerful Category 4 storm as it headed for Baja California on Aug. 18, 2023. NOAA NESDIS Hurricane Hilary headed for Mexico’s Baja peninsula as a powerful Category 4 storm on Aug. 18, 2023, and was forecast to speed into Southern California at or near tropical storm strength as early as Aug. 20. For the first time ever, the National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm warning for large parts of Southern California. Hurricane scientist Nick Grondin explains how Hurricane Hilary, with help from El Niño and a heat dome over much of the country, could bring

Hurricane Hilary triggers Southern California's first tropical storm warning ever, with heavy rain and flash flooding forecast
Environment

The heroic effort to save Florida’s coral reef from extreme ocean heat as corals bleach across the Caribbean

Elkhorn coral fragments rescued from overheating ocean nurseries sit in cooler water at Keys Marine Laboratory. NOAA Armed with scrub brushes, young scuba divers took to the waters of Florida’s Alligator Reef in late July to try to help corals struggling to survive 2023’s extraordinary marine heat wave. They carefully scraped away harmful algae and predators impinging on staghorn fragments, under the supervision and training of interns from Islamorada Conservation and Restoration Education, or I.CARE. Normally, I.CARE’s volunteer divers would be transplanting corals to waters off the Florida Keys this time of year, as part of a national effort to

The heroic effort to save Florida’s coral reef from extreme ocean heat as corals bleach across the Caribbean
Environment

Hurricane Hilary triggers California's first tropical storm watch ever, with heavy rain and flash flooding forecast

Hurricane Hilary was a powerful Category 4 storm as it headed for Baja California on Aug. 18, 2023. NOAA NESDIS Hurricane Hilary headed for Mexico’s Baja peninsula as a powerful Category 4 storm, and was on track to speed into Southern California at or near tropical storm strength as early as Aug. 20, 2023. The storm is so unusual that for the first time ever, the National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm watch for both San Diego County and Orange County, as well as Catalina Island. Hurricane scientist Nick Grondin explains how Hurricane Hilary, with help from El Niño

Hurricane Hilary triggers California's first tropical storm watch ever, with heavy rain and flash flooding forecast
Environment

A heroic effort to save Florida’s coral reef from extreme ocean heat is underway as corals bleach across the Caribbean

Elkhorn coral fragments rescued from overheating ocean nurseries sit in cooler water at Keys Marine Laboratory. NOAA Armed with scrub brushes, young scuba divers took to the waters of Florida’s Alligator Reef in late July to try to help corals struggling to survive 2023’s extraordinary marine heat wave. They carefully scraped away harmful algae and predators impinging on staghorn fragments, under the supervision and training of interns from Islamorada Conservation and Restoration Education, or I.CARE. Normally, I.CARE’s volunteer divers would be transplanting corals to waters off the Florida Keys this time of year, as part of a national effort to

A heroic effort to save Florida’s coral reef from extreme ocean heat is underway as corals bleach across the Caribbean
Environment

A carbon tax on investment income could be more fair and make it less profitable to pollute – a new analysis shows why

Investor pressure could drive down greenhouse gas emissions. Tippapatt/iStock/Getty Images Plus About 10 years ago, a very thick book written by a French economist became a surprising bestseller. It was called “Capital in the 21st Century.” In it, Thomas Piketty traces the history of income and wealth inequality over the past couple of hundred years. The book’s insights struck a chord with people who felt a growing sense of economic inequality but didn’t have the data to back it up. I was one of them. It made me wonder, how much carbon pollution is being generated to create wealth for

A carbon tax on investment income could be more fair and make it less profitable to pollute – a new analysis shows why
Environment

A carbon tax on investment income could be more fair and quickly make it less profitable to pollute − here's why

Investor pressure could drive down greenhouse gas emissions. Tippapatt/iStock/Getty Images Plus About 10 years ago, a very thick book written by a French economist became a surprising bestseller. It was called “Capital in the 21st Century.” In it, Thomas Piketty traces the history of income and wealth inequality over the past couple of hundred years. The book’s insights struck a chord with people who felt a growing sense of economic inequality but didn’t have the data to back it up. I was one of them. It made me wonder, how much carbon pollution is being generated to create wealth for

A carbon tax on investment income could be more fair and quickly make it less profitable to pollute − here's why
Environment

Hawaii's climate future: dry regions get drier with global warming, increasing fire risk − while wet areas get wetter

Hawaii has very dry landscapes, such as parts of the west coast of Oahu. Maria Ermolova/iStock/Getty Images Plus The islands of Hawaii are world renowned for their generally pleasant and tranquil weather. However, the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfire tragedy on Maui was a stark reminder that Hawaii also can experience drought and hot, dry, windy weather, providing the conditions for destructive fires. Hawaii has seen a generally rising trend in the amount of land that burns each year as the local climate warms. Climate change was one of several contributors to Maui’s wildfire catastrophe, and rising temperatures and associated rainfall

Hawaii's climate future: dry regions get drier with global warming, increasing fire risk − while wet areas get wetter
Environment

Hawaii's climate future: dry regions get drier with global warming, increasing fire risk − while wet areas get wetter

Hawaii has very dry landscapes, such as parts of the west coast of Oahu. Maria Ermolova/iStock/Getty Images Plus The islands of Hawaii are world renowned for their generally pleasant and tranquil weather. However, the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfire tragedy on Maui was a stark reminder that Hawaii also can experience drought and hot, dry, windy weather, providing the conditions for destructive fires. Hawaii has seen a generally rising trend in the amount of land that burns each year as the local climate warms. Climate change was one of several contributors to Maui’s wildfire catastrophe, and rising temperatures and associated rainfall

Hawaii's climate future: dry regions get drier with global warming, increasing fire risk − while wet areas get wetter
Environment

Michigan pipeline standoff could affect water protection and Indigenous rights across the US

A ferry arrives at Mackinac Island in the Straits of Mackinac, Michigan’s largest tourist draw. AP Photo/Anick Jesdanun Should states and Indigenous nations be able to influence energy projects they view as harmful or contrary to their laws and values? This question lies at the center of a heated debate over Enbridge Energy’s Line 5 pipeline, which carries oil and natural gas across Wisconsin and Michigan. Courts, regulatory agencies and political leaders are deciding whether Enbridge should be allowed to keep its pipeline in place for another 99 years, with upgrades. The state of Michigan and the Bad River Tribe

Michigan pipeline standoff could affect water protection and Indigenous rights across the US
Environment

Michigan pipeline standoff could affect water protection and Indigenous rights across the US

A ferry arrives at Mackinac Island in the Straits of Mackinac, Michigan’s largest tourist draw. AP Photo/Anick Jesdanun Should states and Indigenous nations be able to influence energy projects they view as harmful or contrary to their laws and values? This question lies at the center of a heated debate over Enbridge Energy’s Line 5 pipeline, which carries oil and natural gas across Wisconsin and Michigan. Courts, regulatory agencies and political leaders are deciding whether Enbridge should be allowed to keep its pipeline in place for another 99 years, with upgrades. The state of Michigan and the Bad River Tribe

Michigan pipeline standoff could affect water protection and Indigenous rights across the US
Environment

Montana kids win historic climate lawsuit – here's why it could set a powerful precedent

The young plaintiffs in Held v. State of Montana, ages 5 to 22, walk to the courthouse with their lawyer. William Campbell/Getty Images Sixteen young Montanans who sued their state over climate change emerged victorious on Aug. 14, 2023, as a judge ruled in a first-of-its-kind climate trial. The case, Held v. State of Montana, was based on allegations that state energy policies violate the young plaintiffs’ constitutional right to “a clean and healthful environment” – a right that has been enshrined in the Montana Constitution since the 1970s. The plaintiffs claimed that state laws promoting fossil fuel extraction and

Montana kids win historic climate lawsuit – here's why it could set a powerful precedent
Environment

After Maui fires, human health risks linger in the air, water and even surviving buildings

Fire sites like Lahaina, where residents were allowed in on Aug. 11, 2023, are filled with hazards, both obvious and unseen. AP Photo/Rick Bowmer People returning to what remains of the beachside town of Lahaina, Hawaii, and other Maui communities after one of the nation’s deadliest wildfire disasters face more dangers, beyond the 1,700 buildings and dozens of lives already lost. The fires also left lingering health risks for humans and wildlife. When fires spread through communities, as we’ve seen more often in recent years, they burn structures that contain treated wood, plastics, paints and hazardous household wastes. They burn

After Maui fires, human health risks linger in the air, water and even surviving buildings
Environment

Wildfires are a severe blow to Maui's tourism-based economy, but other iconic destinations have come back from similar disasters

Destroyed homes and buildings in Lahaina on Aug. 10, 2023, in the aftermath of wildfires on western Maui, Hawaii. Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images Major wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui have killed dozens of people and caused heavy damage, particularly in the historic town of Lahaina, as of Aug. 10, 2023. The state has asked all visitors to leave Maui and those planning to travel there to reschedule their trips – a harsh blow to a destination whose economy relies heavily on tourism. University of South Carolina research professor Rich Harrill, an expert on hospitality

Wildfires are a severe blow to Maui's tourism-based economy, but other iconic destinations have come back from similar disasters
Environment

Maui wildfires: Extra logistical challenges hinder government's initial response when disasters strike islands

A wildfire burns in Kihei, Hawaii, on Aug. 9, 2023. AP Photo/Ty O’Neil Wildfires destroyed the Hawaiian tourist town of Lahaina on Aug. 8 and 9, 2023, leaving many of its roughly 13,000 residents homeless and causing at least 36 deaths, local officials said. Fires also burned in other areas on Maui, Hawaii’s second-largest island, and its Big Island. President Joe Biden issued a disaster declaration on Aug. 10 that authorizes federal aid to communities in harm’s way. The Conversation asked Ivis García, an urban planner who has researched disaster recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, to explain how the U.S.

Maui wildfires: Extra logistical challenges hinder government's initial response when disasters strike islands
Environment

Maui's deadly wildfires burn through Lahaina – it's a reminder of the growing risk to communities that once seemed safe

Fires burn in Lahaina, Hawaii, on Aug. 8, 2023. Zeke Kalua/County of Maui via AP Wildfires, pushed by powerful winds, raced through Lahaina, Hawaii, on Aug. 8 and 9, 2023, leaving a charred and smoldering landscape across the tourist town of about 13,000 residents that was once the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii. At least 36 people died, Maui County officials said. Others were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard after going into the ocean to escape the flames. Fires were still burning on Aug. 10, both in Maui’s tourist-filled west coast and farther inland, as well as on

Maui's deadly wildfires burn through Lahaina – it's a reminder of the growing risk to communities that once seemed safe

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