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Aerial view of the National Petroleum Reserve in northwestern Alaska

The Biden Administration Protects Millions of Acres of Arctic Alaska

Latest NewsAlaskaJenny Shalant
The new Special Areas Rule in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska could boost biodiversity and empower Indigenous Peoples to defend the lands they’ve relied on for generations.
Two adults and a child walk along a sandy shoreline

“Forever Chemicals” Called PFAS Show Up in Your Food, Clothes, and Home

ExplainerUnited StatesMolly M. Ginty, Courtney Lindwall
These toxic chemicals are so common in consumer products and manufacturing that they’re everywhere—including inside our bodies.
A river with green trees on either side, with yellow hills in the background

In Planning for Climate Change, Native Americans Draw on the Past

ExplainerUnited States, CanadaTim Vanderpool
Across North America, Indigenous tribes and nations are consulting their traditional ecological knowledge to help prepare for a warming world.

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California Lessons for Federal & State Workplace Heat Rules

Expert BlogCaliforniaJuanita Constible
California’s workplace heat standard is a good starting point for other state and federal officials to follow, but improvements are needed to fully protect workers from high temperatures.

Delta Voluntary Agreements Are a “Plan to Fail” in Droughts

Expert BlogCaliforniaDoug Obegi
Rather than planning for droughts and ensuring that minimum water quality objectives are achieved in critically dry years, the proposed voluntary agreement appears to be a “plan to fail” to protect the Delta in future droughts.

Running on Empty: Is California Doing Enough on Drought?

Expert BlogCaliforniaTracy Quinn
Pacific Institute’s report, Untapped Potential, shows communities are using less water, even with an increase in population. The report also shows that we still have significant opportunities to continue to improve water efficiency and develop cost-effective supplies.

Honey, the VAs Shrunk the Delta Flows

Expert BlogCaliforniaDoug Obegi
Since the State Water Resources Control Board began its public process to update the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan in 2008, the amount of water proposed for the Bay-Delta environment has continuously shrunk.

Drought Shows that CA’s Water Rights System Is Bankrupt

Expert BlogCaliforniaDoug Obegi
The only way out of this cycle of destruction—other than praying for rain, which is not a strategy—is to reduce water deliveries and diversions in order to maintain adequate carryover storage in Shasta and upstream reservoirs this year.

Get Ready for Climate Whiplash from DWR’s February Forecast

Expert BlogCaliforniaDoug Obegi
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation hasn’t and DWR need to reconsider the water supply allocations announced to date and limit water allocations to human health and safety until there is more certainty about how much water there will be this…

Western Climate Initiative: OR & WA Add Caps to CA's AB32

Expert BlogCalifornia, Oregon, Washington, WestRalph Cavanagh
In 2021, fifteen years after California made climate history by becoming the first US state to adopt an economy-wide carbon emissions cap, Oregon and Washington completed a West Coast hat trick by becoming the second and third. Well, almost.

California Drought: Deja Vu All Over Again

Expert BlogCaliforniaKate Poole

It’s time for California's State Water Resources Control Board and other decisionmakers to take the reins of drought management away from Department of Water Resources.

NRDC Sets Region Specific Water Targets for Each Office

Expert BlogUnited States, New York City, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Bozeman, Beijing, San Francisco, Santa MonicaMaria McCain

NRDC has seen a steady decline in total water usage institution-wide and has taken steps to advance water stewardship.

Los Angeles Regional Board: Fix Our Stormwater Problem!

Expert BlogLos Angeles, CaliforniaCorinne Bell

This Friday, the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board will decide whether to clean up Los Angeles’s urban runoff problem, or to continue to let polluters use our waterways as their dumping grounds.

CA Must Act Now to Adapt to Hotter, Drier Climate

Expert BlogCaliforniaTracy Quinn

We shouldn't wait until our rivers and reservoirs run dry before we start to conserve; we need to save every drop possible now so it will be available to us later.