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Good morning. It’s Wednesday, Aug. 30.
- California firefighters are being poisoned by smoke.
- Local leaders fume over Solano County land purchases.
- And 11 beautiful revamped motels across the state.
Statewide
1.
“From an objective standpoint, this is a crisis.”
A data investigation of the aquifers that supply the vast majority of the nation’s water found that nearly half have fallen significantly as more water has been pumped out than nature can replenish. In the past decade, four of every 10 sites hit all-time lows. In California’s Central Valley, so much water has been pumped up that it’s caused roads to buckle and foundations to crack. The New York Times published an alarming account of “a crisis that threatens American prosperity.”
2.
“It’s just smoke — it’s what we’re paid to do.”
California’s wildland firefighters are being poisoned by smoke. When the skies turn orange and the rest of us don masks and hunker indoors, firefighters are dispatched to battle the flames with bandanas over their faces — if that. In a six-month investigation, reporter Julie Johnson found that untold numbers of firefighters have contracted diseases like cancer as government agencies remained largely complacent about the problem. S.F. Chronicle
3.
Pacific Gas and Electric said it was “likely” to begin power shut-offs Wednesday for the first time since 2021 after federal meteorologists issued a fire danger warning across much of the Sacramento Valley. The forecast called for strong winds, warm temperatures, and low humidity. A.P. | Sacramento Bee
- Wildfires sparked by lightning have been burning for weeks now in California’s remote far north, covering more than 200 square miles. See a live fire map. 👉 BLM
4.
California invented the motel in 1925, catering to a new demand for single-night stays that coincided with the rise of the automobile. As the romance of the road trip became embedded in the culture, the motel business thrived in the 1950s and 1960s. Tacky to some, the often flamboyant roadside architecture has lately been enjoying renewed interest. AFAR curated a list of 11 revamped motels across the state, including the Skyview Los Alamos, pictured above.
Northern California
5.
Locals leaders reacted angrily to news that a group of Silicon Valley billionaires had secretly bought up vast amounts of land in Solano County to build a new city. The mayor of Rio Vista, which sits in the midst of the proposed development, said Flannery Associates never contacted any city official: “Not a word.” Rep. John Garamendi, who represents the county, said the group sued to force farmers off their land. “Flannery Associates have proven themselves to be terrible bad actors, using strong-arm techniques that you might find in the mafia,” he said. KQED
- “At the time, land out here was selling for under $2,000 acre, and they offered $10,000 an acre.” Flannery spent nearly $900 million buying land to build a dream city. N.Y. Times
6.
Dispatches from San Francisco’s street crisis:
- Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday denounced the court order preventing San Francisco from clearing homeless encampments. “It’s preposterous and it’s inhumane,” he said. S.F. Chronicle
- Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff said he may pull his massive annual Dreamforce conference out of San Francisco if this year’s event is disrupted by homelessness and drug use. S.F. Chronicle | Marketwatch
- Also this week: a storied Mexican restaurant said “adios” to the city; a cafe owner said she was taking a break from the “sea of lawlessness”; and a shopkeeper died after being beaten with a bat during a robbery. Mission Local | NBC Bay Area | KTVU
7.
State lawmakers approved a bill that would carve out the requirement that developers consider noise a form of pollution under the California environmental law known as CEQA. The legislative move was designed to allow UC Berkeley to build student housing at People’s Park, which it owns, after neighborhood groups blocked the project. Newsom, who has portrayed opponents of the development as NIMBYs, is expected to sign the bill — enthusiastically. SFGATE | Berkeleyside
8.
On Saturday, an equity and inclusion committee at Chabot Elementary School in Oakland held a “playdate social,” which was promoted in a flyer addressed to “Black, Brown, and API Families.”
On Sunday, someone identifying as a parent complained about it on Reddit, calling it an example of segregation.
On Monday, Libs of TikTok, the conservative social media account, blasted the controversy out to its 2.4 million followers.
And on Tuesday, police said, someone sent a bomb threat with “a racial undertone” to the school, forcing it to close. Oaklandside | KRON
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9.
“From them comes silence and awe. It’s not only their unbelievable stature, nor the color which seems to shift and vary under your eyes, no they are not like any trees we know, they are ambassadors from another time.”
The Bay Area photographer Nathan Wirth cited the John Steinbeck passage above as an introduction to his ethereal infrared series, “Among Giants,” captured in Redwood National Park. Behance | Moss and Fog
Southern California
10.
Last winter’s bountiful atmospheric rivers wiped nearly all drought off the California map. But they neglected the Mojave Desert. Now Hilary, the tropical storm that flew directly over the arid region two weekends ago, has finished the job, removing drought from the Mojave for the first time since August 2020. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, just 1.4% of California remains in the “moderate drought” category. L.A. Times
11.
Elliot, 24, says he began using heroin at 12. Now he’s addicted to fentanyl. “I thought kicking heroin was bad, uh-uh, no,” he said. “I could kick heroin; kicking this, not going to happen.” To fund his habit, Elliot said, he makes four or five trips a day to steal from shops around the city, selling the pilfered merchandise to street vendors. Reporter Clara Harter revealed the inner workings of an underground shoplifting economy in Los Angeles and the fentanyl crisis that fuels it. L.A. Daily News
12.
“A warrior for social justice.”
“A good and honorable man.”
“A hero.”
A bewildering number of prominent figures have continued to defend Mark Ridley-Thomas, the once powerful Los Angeles politician sentenced to prison on Monday for corruption. Columnist Erika D. Smith attributed the support in part to an erosion of trust in the criminal justice system. “Chances are,” she wrote, “Ridley-Thomas will go to prison continuing to believe he committed no crimes. And many of his supporters will continue to believe the same.” L.A. Times
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The California Sun is written by Mike McPhate, a former California correspondent for the New York Times.
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