Weekly Green: July 15, 2013

In the news in the past week:

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Water, water everywhere

Stakes are high in state, federal water contract negotiations
Gov. Jerry Brown's plan to build two massive water diversion tunnels in the Delta has hogged the spotlight in the crowded theater of California water issues. But contract negotiations going on backstage could prove just as significant.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/07/15/5566555/stakes-are-high-in-state-federal.html

Editorial: Can Steinberg head off a Delta train wreck?
Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg is in a unique position to influence at least a partial resolution of the brewing battle over the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The question is: Can he use his leverage in a way that benefits both the district he represents and the state of California he serves?
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/07/15/5566388/can-steinberg-head-off-a-delta.html

Birth defects linked to bad Valley water
An extensive new study confirms a long-suspected link between crippling birth defects and the nitrate contamination that threatens drinking water for 250,000 people in the San Joaquin Valley.
http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/07/13/3386677/birth-defects-linked-to-bad-valley.html

California Coastal Commission: Bill could give commission teeth to fine violators
The California Coastal Commission, which brokered the settlement with Parker, has no authority to issue fines when people block access to public beaches, destroy wetlands or build coastal homes without permits. Now, a bill moving through the state Legislature would change that by giving the commission the ability to impose fines.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_23653228/california-coastal-commission-bill-could-give-commission-teeth?source=rss
> Related: Statement by CLCV CEO Sarah Rose on Coastal Commission Chairwoman Mary Shallenberger
http://www.ecovote.org/page/statement-clcv-ceo-sarah-rose-coastal-commission

Robots to revolutionize farming
On a windy morning in California's Salinas Valley, a tractor pulled a wheeled, metal contraption over rows of budding iceberg lettuce plants. Engineers from Silicon Valley tinkered with the software on a laptop to ensure the machine was eliminating the right leafy buds.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/business/ci_23664408/robots-revolutionize-farming-ease-labor-woes

Sacramento Bee announces one-week furloughs for employees
The furloughs were announced to employees in a memo from Bee Publisher and President Cheryl Dell and will run from Aug. 15 to Nov. 24. The Bee has imposed a series of staff cuts in recent years but until now has avoided furloughs, which have been used widely by media companies to cut expenses.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/07/15/5568025/sacramento-bee-announces-one-week.html

California's vast oilfields seen from the air
The BBC's science editor David Shukman took a helicopter flight over the vast oilfields of California.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23284506

Scientists study massive krill die-off on Northern California coast
Scientists are trying to determine what caused millions of shrimp-like critters known as krill to die and wash ashore along 250 miles of coast from northern California to southern Oregon last month.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_23662914/scientists-study-massive-krill-die-off-northern-california

Preventing another Richmond refinery fire
The Aug. 6, 2012 fire at Chevron's Richmond oil refinery exposed a host of problems - and not just at the facility itself. Now a state panel has issued a long-awaited list of ways to fix those issues.
http://blog.sfgate.com/energy/2013/07/12/preventing-another-richmond-refinery-fire/

Campaign to roll back state renewable programs is a flop so far
State laws requiring utilities to sell a certain percentage of clean energy have been attacked across the nation over the past year. But these renewable portfolio standards have been holding their own just fine.
http://grist.org/news/campaign-to-roll-back-state-renewable-programs-is-a-flop-so-far/

Fracking near Shafter raises questions about drilling practices
One afternoon last fall, Tom Frantz cradled a video camera in his hand and pointed it at an oil well on the edge of this San Joaquin Valley farm town.
http://www.sacbee.com/2013/06/30/5534452/fracking-near-shafter-raises-questions.html

Pumping water underground could trigger major earthquake, say scientists
Prof Emily Brodsky, who led a study of earthquakes at a geothermal power plant in California, said: "For scientists to make themselves useful in this field we need to be able to tell operators how many gallons of water they can pump into the ground in a particular location and how many earthquakes that will produce."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2013/jul/11/fracking-water-injection-major-earthquakes

Senators scramble to cut deal on nominees, avoid showdown
Senators neared a deal on Tuesday to avert a showdown over threats by Democrats to strip Republicans of their power to block executive-branch nominees with procedural roadblocks known as filibusters, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/16/us-usa-congress-senate-idUSBRE96D08M20130716

Who killed the Mexican gray wolf? Feds investigate
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is investigating the killing of a female Mexican gray wolf that had been denning with pups in New Mexico. The animal, known as F1108, was found in late June shot to death, authorities said. Her pups were assumed to be dead.
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-wolf-shooting-20130715,0,5436168.story