Following fires, NorCal air quality still suffers
Capitol Weekly's LISA RENNER: "After more than two weeks straight of heavy smoke blanketing Northern California from multiple wildfires, some residents got a bit of a break this week."
"Blue skies began to reappear from Sacramento to the Sierra and “good” to “moderate” air quality ratings returned, replacing the previous alarming “unhealthy” ratings."
"But Michelle Mead, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Sacramento, said residents shouldn’t let their guard down just yet."
READ MORE related to Fire Season: Blaze near Yosemite fully contained -- The Chronicle's STEVE RUBENSTEIN
How ranchers are getting by with less water across the west
Water Deeply's CASSIDY JOHNSTON: "IN THE SUMMER, all we talk about is rain. Walk into a diner or a barn, or just run into someone at the store, and the first question anyone asks – even before, “How are you?” – is, “Did you get any rain?” It’s the same in New Mexico as in Montana, Colorado, Wyoming, Arizona and California. Everyone is concerned because, as ranchers, we know the health of our cattle depends on the amount of water that falls out of the sky. And this year, it hasn’t been a lot."
"Much of the American West is classified as either semi-arid or desert, so water is our most precious resource. We need to use water efficiently to protect what little we have in this climate, especially in drought years. Most grazing pastures are not irrigated, so we rely heavily upon rainwater to replenish the grasses our cattle eat and the springs, streams, ponds and wells where they drink."
"Ranchers continually have to ask themselves: Do we have enough water? What is the best way to bring water to our cattle? How can we improve our water systems to preserve more natural resources?"
READ MORE related to Energy & Environment: Plan to lessen PG&E's liability for wildfires is dead for the year, lawmaker says -- Sacramento Bee's TARYN LUNA; Toxic blue-green algae blooms found in many East Bay lakes -- Daily Californian's KELLY YANG; Why the environment is a big winner in California's groundwater law -- Water Deeply's TARA LOHAN; Why SF is joining Valley farmers in a fight over precious California water -- Sacramento Bee's DALE KASLER/RYAN SABALOW; Why a woman from Santa Clarita wants the world to know about an LA water disaster -- the St. Francis Dam collapse of 1928 -- SGV Tribune's STEVE SCAUZILLO; State plans to cut SF's Sierra supply to save delta -- The Chronicle's KURTIS ALEXANDER; Big winter for rain, snow could fill state's reservoirs -- The Chronicle's TOM STIENSTRA
Gavin Newsom criticized for flip-flopping on critical issues
LA Times's PHIL WILLON: "While mayor of San Francisco, Democrat Gavin Newsom supported high-speed rail in California so strongly that he partnered with Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2008 to push for a $10-billion state bond measure to help build it."
"Six years later, Newsom pulled his support, citing exploding cost overruns and delays. Two years after that, he was back on board."
"Newsom has made several about-faces during his two decades in politics. Early in the 2018 governor’s race, his shifting stances were targeted by Democratic rivals, who accused the lieutenant governor of flip-flopping or equivocating on high-speed rail and other pivotal issues facing California, including a single-payer healthcare system and sanctuary policies. Newsom’s rival in the November election, Republican John Cox, is sure to continue that criticism as he highlights his opposition to the front-runner on several issues."
'Killed me little by little.' Family detention left lasting scars for one mother and son
LA Times's ANDREA CASTILLO/MEG BERNHARD: "For a long time, Lilian Oliva Bardales worried about how her young son, Cristhian, was adjusting to their new life in Barcelona."
"He squeezed her every time he saw a police officer. He got scared when people he didn’t know talked to him. Teachers told her he played violently at school, making dolls fight and pretending to be an officer placing other children in handcuffs."
US reverses course, says oil conservation is no longer an economic imperative
AP: "Conserving oil is no longer an economic imperative for the U.S., the Trump administration declares in a major new policy statement that threatens to undermine decades of government campaigns for gas-thrifty cars and other conservation programs."
"The position was outlined in a memo released last month in support of the administration’s proposal to relax fuel mileage standards. The government released the memo online this month without fanfare."
"Growth of natural gas and other alternatives to petroleum has reduced the need for imported oil, which “in turn affects the need of the nation to conserve energy,” the Energy Department said. It also cites the now decade-old fracking revolution that has unlocked U.S. shale oil reserves, giving “the United States more flexibility than in the past to use our oil resources with less concern.”
READ MORE related to Development & Economy: Animal rights activists protest Amazon, sale of animal products -- Daily Californian's DANIELLE KAYE; Californians are rich with home equity after market surge. Are you? Here's how to tell -- Sacramento Bee's TONY BIZJAK/MICHAEL FINCH II; FEMA agrees to shrink Newport Beach coastal flood zone by more than half, saving property owners millions in insurance costs -- LA Times's HILLARY DAVIS
Could this be the Catholic church's #MeToo moment?
BANG's JULIA PRODIS SULEK: "Like many Catholics, Michelle Marks hoped the church’s sex abuse scandal that exploded in the early 2000s was over."
"Then, boom, another shocker,” she said Friday, stepping inside the Santa Clara Mission on a tour with her sixth-grade daughter."
"As Catholics return to Mass on Sunday — or don’t — many are questioning the atonement of the church hierarchy after a disturbing grand jury report in Pennsylvania revealed that, over seven decades, some 300 priests molested more than 1,000 children and few were held accountable. Now, many parishioners are wondering whether — like the movement that toppled the powerful of Hollywood and beyond — the Catholic Church could finally face its own “#MeToo” moment?"
California measles cases already top last year's total; what health providers can do
Sacramento Bee's CATHIE ANDERSON: "With a little more than four months to go in 2018, California residents already have contracted more cases of the measles this year than they did in all of 2017, according to the California Department of Public Health."
"There have been 18 cases in California as of Aug. 10, one of them a child in Sacramento County whom officials say came down with the illness after visiting a foreign country. Last year, there were 15 cases statewide, none of them in the four-county capital region."
"Dr. Kenneth Hempstead, a pediatrician at Kaiser Permanente’s Roseville Medical Center, said the increase in cases is an important reminder to the public that measles still exist. In fact, he said, the European Union has been dealing with a measles outbreak. EU data show that 12,921 cases were reported between June 2017 and May 2018, and at least 31 people have died."
READ MORE related to Health: Stem cell therapy: Immense promise, hard-won progress -- The Chronicle's ERIN ALLDAY; With an epidemic of mental illness on the streets, counties struggle to spend huge cash reserves -- LA Times's THOMAS CURWEN
Family members identify body as missing LA County fire captain
Daily News: "A body found in a Santa Barbara County canyon was confirmed by family members on Sunday to be that of a missing Los Angeles County Fire Department captain."
"An approximate time or location of when the confirmation was made was not immediately known, Battalion Chief Jason Roberston said."
"Robertson said the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department is conducting an investigation into the circumstances surrounding Wayne Stuart Habell’s death. The body was discovered at 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 18 at Hot Springs Canyon Trail in Montecito, said Lt. Kevin Huddle of the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office."
READ MORE related to Prisons & Public Safety: 15-story mural of Johnny Cash aims to bring attention to prison reform -- Sacramento Bee's CLAIRE MORGAN
SF LGBTQ Heritage Guide
The Chronicle: "From the bawdy dancehalls of the Barbary Coast and bohemian-era hangouts to the rallies for equal rights and memorials to a lost generation, there is a reason that San Francisco is often considered the capital of gay culture and home to many of its important historical sites. This map is not meant to be an exhaustive survey of those sites but a sampler that you can use for exploring the culture and heritage through the most relevant or interesting places — some obvious, some overlooked."
In new outburst over Mueller probe, Trump insists that White House Counsel McGahn is no 'rat'
LA Times's LAURA KING: "President Trump insisted Sunday that he’s unconcerned by reports that White House Counsel Don McGahn has cooperated extensively with special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s probe into possible Russian collusion and obstruction of justice."
