Climate disasters are killing the largest subset of California farms. Government programs are too.
Sarah Trent
Sarah Trent is a freelance journalist who covers people and ecosystems affected by climate change and environmental degradation, especially in California and the Pacific Northwest. She lives in Vancouver, Washington. @sftrent
Posted inMarch 2024: Fertile Ground
The dangers of PFAS — and of downplaying their ubiquity
Even well-meaning officials often provide inadequate or misleading information, putting communities at higher risk.
Posted inOctober 2, 2023: The Dark Side of the Sheepherding Industry
To protect wild bumblebees, people have to find them first
For six years, hundreds of volunteers have counted bumblebees across the Northwest. Their data is shaping pollinator conservation nationwide.
Posted inAugust 1, 2023: In the Line of Fire
Finding a fix for ‘forever chemicals’
Tests found PFAS in nearly all the public drinking water in Vancouver, Washington. The city is testing a solution that could take years — and more than $170 million — to build.
Posted inArticles
A quarter of rural water systems likely contain ‘forever chemicals’
USGS research confirms widespread PFAS contamination in drinking water — including in rural communities and private wells that are almost never tested.
Posted inArticles
It’s summer. But in the Northwest, spring never showed
As spring gets weirder, warmer and less stable, water supplies, ecosystems and agriculture are getting out of whack.
Posted inArticles
Yes, 90 degrees can be dangerous
From a jump in ER visits and gun violence to fears for maternal health, the Northwest’s May heat wave shows the dangers of more moderate, early heat waves.
Posted inArticles
Will the new U.N. High Seas Treaty help protect Pacific salmon?
In March, conservationists worldwide celebrated the historic agreement, which governs the ocean waters where salmon spend most of their lives.
Posted inApril 1, 2023: The Path Forward
How do you keep migrating birds off a giant toxic lake?
Engineers struggled to keep snow geese away from Montana’s deadly Superfund site, but ecologists have a new plan.
Posted inArticles
Most drinking water in the U.S. is contaminated by PFAS; here’s what you can do about it
The EPA just proposed new rules on toxic ‘forever chemicals.’
Posted inArticles
‘There is a whole hell of a lot of water up there right now’
A parade of atmospheric rivers dumped historic rain and snow on California and beyond. What happens next?
Posted inArticles
In the once-cool forests of the Pacific Northwest, heat poses a new threat
Drought can stress trees to death, but heat’s effects are less known. New research could hold the keys to protecting conifer forests.
Posted inFebruary 1, 2023: The Reveal
This Washington experiment could rebuild eroding coastlines
In 2016, David Cottrell dropped $400 worth of rock on Washaway Beach to see what would happen. Now engineers are watching, too.
Posted inArticles
The power of atmospheric rivers, explained
Back-to-back storms in California threaten lives, homes, and infrastructure — but will also bolster the West’s water supply.
Posted inArticles
When dams come down, fish come home
As dam removal nationwide accelerates, experts are learning just how quickly rivers and fish respond.
Posted inNovember 1, 2022: The Futures of Conservation
How to prevent an anti-government revolution
In eastern Oregon, one strategy has proven effective at inoculating communities against extremist ideology.
Posted inDecember 1, 2022: Beyond Illusion
The West is losing 1.3 million acres of sagebrush steppe each year
A new report aims to advance transforming rangeland conservation across 13 states and 115 million acres.
Posted inArticles
New bird flu strain threatens North American wildlife
Thousands of seabirds, geese, eagles and vultures are dead, as wildlife health experts recommend a revolution in disease management.
Posted inArticles
Hotter summer nights affect everything from death rates to crop yields to firefighting
What happens when the Earth can’t cool off overnight?
Posted inArticles
Returning sea otters to Oregon could revive kelp forests
Reintroduction of the marine mammals may restore coastal ecosystems but also threatens shellfish industries and tribal self-governance.