The Compost: At solar car race, future looks bright ☀️
Welcome to The Compost, a weekly newsletter on key environmental news impacting Southern California. Subscribe now to get it in your inbox! In today’s edition…
Kai Herman’s afro won this battle.
The 18-year-old is on a team of students from Polytechnic School in Pasadena who are racing across the country this week in the solar-powered cars they built as part of the annual Solar Car Challenge.
Each team member is required to wear a bucket hat emblazoned with their team name, to identify them and to protect them from the same scorching sun they’re depending on to get them from Texas back home to Southern California. If they’re caught without the hats, the team gets a penalty and loses a mile off that day ‘s driving log. Herman has had a hard time keeping the bucket hat on top of his glorious ‘do, which cost his team a few points over the first two days of racing. But as of Tuesday morning, teammate Julian Harrison said with a laugh, “The judges have decided that in fact, for Kai, the hat reduces the amount of shade his afro provides.” And they’ve cleared a hatless Harrison to continue racing penalty-free miles with his team.
Afrogate is one of many memorable moments two teams of students from Southern California, and a baker’s dozen more from the rest of the country, have had in the first few days of racing. The team from Pasadena and one from Palmdale High are providing me with regular updates on their progress, as they roll into El Paso this evening. They’ll rest there Wednesday, showing off their cars at a local secondary school. Then they’ll set out Thursday morning for four more full days of racing before they all finish in Palmdale on Sunday. Whichever team has made it the most miles on solar power, without resorting to trailering their cars, wins the top prize in each division.
The heat has been one of the biggest challenges students have faced so far, with the entire globe logging record-setting temperatures over the past few days.
Unless we quickly scale back on burning fossil fuels to power our cars and buildings and everything else, scientists are warning this is just the beginning. (Check out this sneak peek of Jeff Goodell’s new book “The Heat Will Kill You First” for a frightening look at where we’re headed.) But, with heat-fueled wildfires burning in Riverside County, a vast majority of Californians say climate change is already impacting their communities, according to an annual survey on the environment from the Public Policy Institute of California.
The survey shows that, in the wake of a historically wet winter, Californians are a bit less concerned about water supply issues and drought than they were when I reported on the annual poll last year. However, the whiplash of weather extremes in recent years has left residents worried about a spike in related events, such as wildfires, floods and heat waves. As a result, more than six in 10 residents told the PPIC that they believe the state’s stricter environmental laws and regulations are worth the cost — even if the rules put jobs or economic growth at risk.
Our Steve Scauzillo looked at one way extreme weather is impacting local residents by limiting access to nature. Facing damage from years of wildfires, this winter’s heavy storms and funding gaps, he reports about 40% of campgrounds in Angeles National Forest are closed and popular Chantry Flat will stay closed four years or more.
Worker safety during extreme heat is a major issue at the heart of a UPS strike that could disrupt goods movement around the world, Grist’s Tushar Khurana writes.
The impacts just keep piling up.
The irony isn’t lost on our high school students, who are battling that heat to promote the future of fossil-free travel. They’re also getting a first-hand look at why solar-powered vehicles haven’t yet taken off. But Hannah Valdez, 16, of Pasadena High is optimistic.
“I think it will become a big thing eventually.”
— By Brooke Staggs, environment reporter
ENERGIZE
Solar war rages on: “Have you looked at your electric bill lately? Have you wept?” Columnist Teri Sforza digs in on the latest in the ongoing war over the Public Utility Commission’s wildly controversial new rules for rooftop solar in California. …READ MORE…
More money to plug old wells: States can apply for more funding to help plug abandoned oil wells, Grist’s Lylla Younes reports, after the Biden administration just made another $660 million available from the 2021 infrastructure act. …READ MORE…
- Local context: I wrote earlier this year about what the orphan well situation looks like across Southern California, how we got here, why it matters and the hurdles ahead to cleaning up these hazards.
PROTECT
Mighty oak could become landmark: A 400-year-old oak tree near Santa Clarita has already been saved from bulldozers and become the largest tree in the country to survive being moved. Now our Steve Scauzillo reports it could be designated a Los Angeles County Historic Landmark. …READ MORE…
Build that wildlife border crossing!: Lawsuits alleged the Trump administration misappropriated funds to pay for the border wall. Per a new settlement, the Los Angeles Times’ Jeremy Childs reports most of that money will now go to environmental remediation, including monitoring endangered species and wildlife passages along the border. …READ MORE…
Coastal algae bloom continues: The Marine Mammal Care Center Los Angeles has taken in six times as many sick animals as usual this summer, as the largest toxic algae bloom ever recorded off Southern California continues. Our Linh Tat reports they’re asking for donations and volunteers. …READ MORE…
Debate over zoo expansion: Los Angeles city officials have proposed a makeover at the LA Zoo, developing 13 acres of its open land in Griffith Park to expand. But contributor Delilah Brumer reports some residents and environmental organizations worry the project will pave over habitat and harm wildlife. …READ MORE…
Beach sand bummer: A new report shows beaches on the north and south ends of San Clemente have already lost a lot of sand. Laylan Connelly reports the study also offers a way for planners to decide what to fix next. …READ MORE…
- Startling figure: The report shows the city’s hardest-hit beach has lost about 5.5 feet of sand a year since 2001.
Calls for national monument get louder: The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted to back calls for Congress or President Joe Biden to expand a national monument in the rugged San Gabriel Mountains. Steve Scauzillo is following this one. …READ MORE…
Orphaned bear cubs find home: Two California black bear cubs have taken up residency with the San Diego Humane Society’s Ramona Wildlife Center, after their mother was found dead near Forest Falls. Madison Hart has the tale and photos. …READ MORE…
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HYDRATE
Bad news about forever chemicals: Nearly half of the United States’ water supply is contaminated with “forever chemicals” known as PFAS, according to a new study from the U.S. Geological Survey. And Grist’s Lyric Aquino reports that Southern California is one of the regions where PFAS are thought to be more common. …READ MORE…
REGULATE
Huntington project delayed: Amid concerns about rising seas levels, our Michael Slaten reports the Coastal Commission has delayed voting on whether to rezone a 29-acre site in southeast Huntington Beach so a developer could build 250 homes and a hotel there. …READ MORE…
Cities battle over warehouse: The city of Perris is suing Menifee, alleging its neighbor’s approval of a warehouse project overlooked health risk assessments and traffic issues and that it conflicts with Perris’ planned commercial and residential development. Monserrat Solis has the tale. …READ MORE…
TRANSPORT
Truce over trucks: Truck manufacturers won’t file legal challenges over California’s controversial zero-emissions mandate that will phase out diesel big rigs and other trucks, Rachel Becker with Calmatters reports. In return, the state air board will relax some near-term smog-fighting requirements. …READ MORE…
Cleaner port transport coming: The ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles recently received a combined $600 million in state infrastructure grants. Our Donna Littlejohn reports most of the Long Beach funds will go toward clean-air technology projects, such as zero-emissions cargo-moving equipment. …READ MORE…
CELEBRATE
Decade of coastal protections pays off: After California’s first 10 years with a network of 124 separately designated Marine Protected Areas along its coast, our Erika Ritchie reports good news. Data shows sea life, including kelp, has rebounded and the protected areas are seeing fewer of the negative impacts of climate change. Other states and nations are now looking to California to copy this model. …READ MORE…
Growing nonprofit honored: A San Fernando Valley-based nonprofit, The Climate Reality Project, received the Nonprofit of the Year award at a recent luncheon in Sacramento, after exploding in size from just nine to 1,000 volunteers. Our Olga Grigoryants has the tale. …READ MORE…
Money for trees: The Bezos Earth Fund is donating $12 million to Pacoima Beautiful, TreePeople and other organizations in the Los Angeles area to create greening projects and parks for communities in need, our Olga Grigoryants reports. …READ MORE…
Close encounter ends well: Check out the photos and video from a man’s close encounter with the mountain lion dubbed Uno in Trabuco Canyon. Laylan Connelly has the play-by-play. …READ MORE…
EXPLORE
Adventuring with dogs: That’s rescue my dog, Bruce Hornsby. I love taking him on adventures. But it’s always a careful decision, since I know dogs can harm, or get harmed in, wild places. Thankfully, sticking to a simple set of rules can minimize risks to both. I talked to experts about how to protect your pooch and the environment they’ll encounter if you’re taking them on hikes or otherwise into nature — particularly this summer, with a wet winter upping the odds they’ll encounter rattlesnakes, ticks and other hazards. …READ MORE…
PITCH IN
Campers, listen up: For this week’s tip on how Southern Californians can help the environment… Those trademark forest green Coleman fuel canisters that so many campers use to cook their meals are hard on the environment. But efforts to reduce hazardous waste from those single-use cylinders, through legislation and reuse programs, have so far been a mixed bag. That leaves it to campers to find sustainable solutions, which I learned can be tricky in many pockets of Southern California. Read my story to learn what options are available where and how to make your next camping trip a bit more sustainable.
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