News
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Proposed Bottle Ban Fails to Address Underlying Cause of Water Quality Challenges for People of Color
The Los Angeles Sentinel | Earl “Skip” Cooper
The Los Angeles City Council’s review of a proposal to ban water bottle retail sales at city agencies and large entertainment venues is the first step towards a city-wide bottle ban. For many Angelenos, a total ban on water bottles is a minor inconvenience.
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Rethinking Irvine's proposed bottled water ban
The Orange County Register | Patricia Wenskunas
The proposed ban on bottled water in Irvine has sparked a meaningful conversation about the delicate balance between environmental responsibility and community well-being in pursuit of a more sustainable future.
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Op-Ed: Taking a Stand Against Proposed Water Bottle Ban
California Business Journal | M.C. Townsend
The Los Angeles City Council has a city-wide ban on plastic bottles in its sights as it pursues an impractical sustainability agenda. But before taking any definitive action, council members should keep community interests in mind, especially those of us who own or support small businesses in low-income and minority communities. Overly broad product bans could harm not only our business, but also our ability to support our community, who we value as much more than just customers.
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California’s Small Business Regulations Hurt Skid Row Community Efforts
LA Examiner | Chris Gallagher
Our City and State’s Most Vulnerable Communities and Small Businesses are Being Hurt by a Lack of Sensible, Balanced Regulations – Our Elected Leaders Need to Do More to Fix the Problem
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Our City and State’s Most Vulnerable Communities and Small Businesses are Being Hurt by a Lack of Sensible, Balanced Regulations – Our Elected Leaders Need to Do More to Fix the Problem
Los Angeles Tribune | Pastor Stephen “Cue” Jn-Marie
Creating Justice LA's efforts to serve their community through the Skid Row People’s Market are hindered by burdensome state regulations that, while well-intentioned, often fail to support small businesses and the vulnerable populations they aim to help.
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California cracks down on another Central Valley farm area for groundwater depletion
The Los Angeles Times | Ian James
California water regulators are cracking down on a second farming area in the San Joaquin Valley for failing to take adequate steps to curb overpumping that is depleting groundwater, causing the land to sink and damaging a canal that transports water for 1 million acres of farmland and more than 250,000 people.
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A decade after signing of California groundwater law, major challenges remain
The Los Angeles Times | Ian James
In 2014, Gov. Jerry Brown signed historic legislation establishing a framework for California to begin managing groundwater in an effort to curb widespread overpumping, which had sent aquifer levels into rapid decline, left hundreds of wells dry, and caused the ground to sink in parts of the Central Valley.
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L.A. mayor demands more testing after lead is found in Watts drinking water
The Los Angeles Times | Tony Briscoe
On the heels of an environmental study that found lead-tainted water in public housing developments in Watts, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has called on the city’s housing authority and largest water utility to conduct further testing for the potent neurotoxin.
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Study finds lead in tap water of Watts homes, including public housing units
LAist | Julia Barajas
Over the course of four months, volunteers with the Better Watts Initiative, the environmental justice branch of the Watts Labor Community Action Committee, fanned out across the neighborhood and gathered more than 500 water samples. The volunteers included residents from the majority Black and Latino neighborhood, as well as students from UCLA and USC.
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Elevated lead levels found in drinking water at Oakland, California, public schools
USA TODAY | Thao Nguyen
A Northern California school district is under fire after it disclosed Monday that nearly 200 drinking fountains and water faucets across multiple schools had elevated levels of lead that tested above the district's standards.
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Toxic levels of lead discovered in tap water of Watts in South LA, study says
CBS News | Marissa Wenzke
Researchers have discovered toxic levels of lead in the tap water of Watts in South Los Angeles, leaving local residents to potentially face serious health risks due to a problem researchers say was caused by the neglect of city infrastructure.
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California Water Managers Advise Multipronged Approach in Face of Climate Change
Courthouse News Service | Natalie Hanson
A region as massive and diverse as the Golden State requires many hands and smart planning to manage its water system and prepare for climate change-driven disasters.
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World Cup, Olympics, Climate Change Drive California Infrastructure Efforts
Engineering News-Record California | Aileen Cho
The effects of climate change and impending global sporting events are keeping California agencies busy with multiple major infrastructure projects. Officials are aiming to build “legacy” infrastructure in the state…
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Statewide Water Supply Target Supports California’s Manufacturers
Capitol Weekly | Lance Hastings
Water use in California is typically thought of in three parts: water for the environment (50%), water for agriculture (40%), and water for communities (10%) per the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC). As a result, “ag” is the sector of the economy that comes to mind first when we talk about the state’s water supply. But the rest of California’s economy also requires water.
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ACWA Spring Conference Explores Top California Water Issues
The Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) Spring Conference & Expo May 8-9 will draw local water agency leaders from throughout California to Sacramento for updates, analyses and perspectives on multiple issues affecting the state’s water community.
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California's 2023 Snow: A temporary Fix, Not a Lasting Solution
earth.com | Sanjana Gajbhiye
The record snows of 2023 dramatically transformed California‘s landscape, erasing a persistent megadrought in a matter of months. However, a new study emphasizes that this reprieve is fleeting – climate change models point towards a future where those snow-capped peaks become increasingly rare.
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Drinking water of almost a million Californians failed to meet state requirements
CalMatters | Rachel Becker
Almost 400 water systems serving nearly a million Californians don’t meet state requirements for safe and reliable drinking water supplies — and fixing them would cost billions of dollars. More than two-thirds of these failing water systems serve communities of color, and more than half are in places struggling with poverty and pollution, according to an annual assessment released today by the State Water Resources Control Board.