Would Aliso Canyon gas wells survive a massive earthquake? Here's what regulators and experts say
Daily News' SUSAN ABRAM: "This week’s deadly 7.1 magnitude earthquake in Mexico might have San Fernando Valley residents asking: how secure are the natural gas wells in nearby Aliso Canyon?"
"Experts say it’s not a matter of if the Santa Susana fault line shifts under the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility, but when. Though the nearly 24-mile fault line has sat dormant for eons, except for some rupturing during the 1971 Sylmar earthquake, it’s probable magnitude is 6.5 to 7.3, according to the Southern California Earthquake Data Center."
"State regulators and operators say they believe the wells, just above the community of Porter Ranch, can withstand the shaking of a massive earthquake but the issue is worth studying, they conclude. Last month, the Southern California Gas Company submitted a work plan outlining a seismic risk study."
READ MORE related to Environment: Here's what earthquake magnitudes mean -- and why an 8 can be so much scarier than a 6 -- LA Times' RONG-GONG LIN II; Scientists debunk claim that the world will end Saturday -- East Bay Times' GEORGE KELLY; End-of-world prediction interrupts TV broadcasts in SoCal -- Mercury News' SCOTT SCHWEBKE
Republicans see political necessity in health care effort
AP's ALAN FRAM: "It's divisive and difficult, but the Republican drive to erase the Obama health care overhaul has gotten a huge boost from one of Washington's perennial incentives: Political necessity."
"In the two months since Senate Republicans lost their initial attempt to scuttle President Barack Obama's statute, there's fresh evidence GOP voters are adamant that the party achieve its long-promised goal of dismantling that law. This includes conservative firebrand Roy Moore forcing a GOP primary runoff against Sen. Luther Strange, R-Ala., who's backed by President Donald Trump, and lots of money, plus credible primary challenges facing Republican Sens. Jeff Flake of Arizona and Nevada's Dean Heller."
""Republicans campaigned on this so often that we have a responsibility to carry out what you said in the campaign. And that's as pretty much as much of a reason as the substance of the bill" to support it, Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, told Iowa reporters in a conference call Wednesday."
READ MORE related to Healthcare: Will Bernie Sanders' push for 'Medicare for All' help or hinder the California effort for single-payer? -- LA Times' MELANIE MASON; Two top candidates for California governor have been touting their healthcare wins. Here's what they really did -- LA Times' PHIL WILLON; OP-ED: GOP health bill writers to California: Drop dead -- Mercury News Editorial Board
California is at full employment. That's slowing down the state's economy.
Daily News' KEVIN SMITH: "California has been one of the fastest growing states in the nation for most of the post-recession era, but its momentum has slowed in recent months due to the high cost of housing and a lack of available homes, as well as a workforce that’s effectively at full employment."
"That’s the conclusion of a new report from Beacon Economics."
How California puts high school student athletes at risk
The Chronicle's AL SARACEVIC: " As the sun sets and the Friday night lights go on at football fields across California this week, thousands of high school players will prepare to clash."
"In the stands, proud parents will look down on the field nervously, outwardly willing their sons to succeed while inwardly praying for their safety."
"Missing from the equation, in many of those games, will be certified athletic trainers to watch over the proceedings, ready to address anything from common injuries to life-threatening situations. That’s because California is the only state that does not require its high school athletic trainers to be certified in any way. The state doesn’t even require schools to have trainers at games. So many do not."
READ MORE related to Education: Cal in tough spot over Free Speech Week -- The Chronicle's PETER FIMRITE; As Oakland public students flee, enticing new middle school aims to reduce exodus -- East Bay Times' TAMMERLIN DRUMMOND; Expanded rating system helps Claifornia parents udnerstand how schools are doing -- EdSource's THERESA HARRINGTON
AP: "South Korean media report North Korean foreign minister has said country may test hydrogen bomb in Pacific."
READ MORE related to WW3 Crisis: Amid new sanctions, Trump calls North Korea's leader 'madman' whose regime will face new tests -- WaPo's DAVID NAKAMURA/ANNE GEARAN; Kim Jong Un says 'mentally deranged' Trump will 'pay dearly' for threat against North Korea -- LA Times' JONATHAN KAIMAN; China issues North Korean threat -- USA MUST remove anti-missile system -- Express' IDA AKERSTEDT; China warns Pyongyang's nuclear testing 'more serious by the day' -- Independent
Helping young Latinos jump through hoops to stay home, in America, where they belong
LA Times' ROBIN ABCARIAN: "It was 7 a.m. Tuesday when I pulled up to the two-story stucco building on a nondescript stretch of 3rd Street between Koreatown and Westlake."
"Already, a line of sleepy-looking people stretched down the block and around the corner. Some had brought chairs, others were sitting on the sidewalk, trying to nap."
"A woman who had claimed the first spot in line told me she’d arrived at 3 a.m. She was hellbent on seeing a reliable immigration attorney that day. She had come to the right place; CHIRLA, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles."
'Total destruction' in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, and more rain is on the way
LA Times' MOLLY HENNESSY-FISKE/KURTIS LEE: "Gregmarys Garcia stood atop the home she shares with her two sons, ages 5 and 3, and five other relatives. The house was surrounded by thigh-high water."
"The family had stockpiled bottled water and food, packing their freezer with ice. But when Hurricane Maria hit, they lost water and, like the rest of Puerto Rico, power."
"Now, in their neighborhood of Las Palmeras in San Juan, whole blocks had been turned into islands. Garcia’s block was inundated, including the family’s three cars. They relied on a neighbor’s battery-powered radio for news."
East Bay real estate: Lots more million-dollar homes, but pockets of affordability
East Bay Times' RICHARD SCHEININ: "Operating in the shadows of its flashy neighbor, the East Bay housing market is playing a steady game of catch-up with Silicon Valley."
"The median price of a single-family home now exceeds $1 million in a dozen East Bay cities and sales took dramatic, local leaps this summer — the number of single-family homes sold in Walnut Creek in August was up 49 percent from a year earlier."
"Even so, pockets of affordability still can be found, particularly in Contra Costa County. In August, the median price of a single-family home was $390,000 in San Pablo. To the east in suburban Brentwood, the median was $561,000, up 16 percent year-over-year, yet affordable by Bay Area standards."
READ MORE related to Development: Asian investors scoop up empty north San Jose cmapus for $58.5 million -- East Bay Times' GEORGE AVALOS