Spouting Off

Life Imitates Art at L.A. Water Board

Dear Governor Brown: I understand that you are facing California’s budget crisis head on and I agree with your priority setting for the state: digging us out of the budget crisis is priority one through 100. However, on behalf of all of those that …

At Last, a Bag Ban in Santa Monica

The Santa Monica City Council unanimously approved an ordinance Tuesday night that bans single use plastic and paper bags, but allows retailers to sell “green” paper bags for at least a dime.  Due to the passage of Proposition 26 with its ch…
Plastic Bags

MPAs: Blood, Sweat & Tears

Guest blogger Sarah Sikich, Heal the Bay’s director of coastal resources, offers some advice on navigating the backroom battles of environmental policy-making. She served on a stakeholder panel that helped negotiate a highly contentious networ…
Exploring boundaries off Point Dume

Regime Change and the Coastline

This past December may go down as the most productive month for regional  water quality and coastal ecosystem protection since September 2003.

Dream Schools

Today a guest post from Susie Santilena, a member of Heal the Bay’s Science and Policy department: I graduated from Middle College High School in Los Angeles Unified School District nearly a decade ago, and I’ve had nightmares about returning…
Water Fountain

Let It Rain!

What a surprising way to end a two-year journey.  As rain fell outside City Hall on Friday morning, the Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved the proposed Low Impact Development ordinance . . . on consent.  For more than a year, the…
Raining on sidewalk

A Well-Earned MPA Victory!

After two years of marathon stakeholder negotiation sessions, endless contentious public hearings and reams of studies and environmental documents, the California Department of Fish and Game today finally established a network of Marine Protected Are…
Point Dume, Malibu

Cooling Off

In a nail biter, the State Water Resources Control Board got the three votes it needed Tuesday to turn down a broad amendment that would have gutted California’s new Once-Through Cooling policy for power plants. Board members Tam Doduc, Fran Spivy-…
Scattergood power plant

A Holiday Gift to Big Oil

No surprises. Today, the State Lands Commission provided an early Christmas present to Chevron. As if they needed it. The Commission voted 2-1 (controller Chiang was the no vote) to approve a 30 year lease for the offshore marine terminal used by oi…
Oil Tanker in Santa Monica Bay

A Good Start for December's Agenda

So far, so good. Yesterday was the first critical date for the coast this month and Long Beach and L.A. got the ball rolling. Last night, the Long Beach City Council voted 6-2 to approve a single-use plastic bag ban ordinance identical to the L.A.…
Long Beach Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal
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