California lawmakers introduced legislation this week to phase out single-use plastic food containers and other packaging that can’t demonstrate it’s recyclable or compostable. Proponents of the legislation say it could help reduce the problem of plastic littering beaches and oceans. Last year the Golden State became the first in the nation to restrict the use […]

When it floods in California, the culprit is usually what’s known as an atmospheric river—a narrow ribbon of ultra-moist air moving in from over the Pacific Ocean. Atmospheric rivers are also essential sources of moisture for western reservoirs and mountain snowpack, but in 1861, a series of particularly intense and prolonged ones led to the […]

You can use tapestry thread to sew together strings of fresh flowers to hang from a branch — this delicate wall hanging requires fewer blooms than you’d need to create a fuller, ropier garland. Supplies For 1 Wall Hanging Twine (no wider than 1mm) 1 pair of scissors 1 large twig or branch (about 4 […]

The horrific Camp Fire — which killed at least 85 people, destroyed 14,000 residences and charred an area the size of Chicago as it raged across Northern California — has finally been fully contained, authorities announced Sunday. Cal Fire, the state’s forestry and fire protection agency, made the announcement after spending 17 days beating back […]

The deadliest blaze in California history is nearly contained after firefighters got a little help from the rain. While more rain Friday could mean an end to the two-week fire, it also brings the risks of flooding and mudslides. Northern California’s Camp Fire, which has killed 84 people, was 95% contained as of Friday morning, […]

“The radical environmental groups … would rather burn down the entire forest than cut a single tree,” Zinke said. nterior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Tuesday in part blamed “radical environmental groups” for contributing to wildfire conditions. Zinke, in a conference call on Tuesday, said “every time there is a thinning project out, who’s suing?” when […]

If you lived anywhere near the California wildfires that took at least 81 lives this month and destroyed more than 12,000 structures, a look out the window or a breath of air provided an immediate sense of the scale of the disaster. But if you turned on 24-hour cable news, before getting an update on […]

The worst vision for our future is on full display in California as wildfires burn While residents of Paradise, California fled down freeways choked with ash and hollowed-out cars, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West rested easy this week. Like many wealthy Californians, the ultrarich couple hired a private firefighting force to protect their $60 million mansion from […]

While hundreds of families wait in agony to learn the fate of missing loved ones, officials gave a gut-wrenching forecast on the fate of California’s Camp Fire: It’s not even halfway done burning yet. Since the Camp Fire erupted 10 days ago, it has killed 76 people, destroyed more than 9,700 homes and torched an […]

Two utility companies in California told state regulators they each sustained outages just minutes before a pair of destructive wildfires erupted last week at either end of the state, killing at least 31 people. Southern California Edison said in an initial electric safety incident report to the California Public Utilities Commission that there was an outage on […]