The past and future of regulating oil
Today marks one year since an oil pipeline ruptured near Refugio Beach in Santa Barbara County, spilling 143,000 gallons of crude oil along the coast. This week, KCRW is checking…
Why one researcher calls Refugio spill response ‘outdated’
What has changed in spill response technology in the past decades? According to Sean Anderson, an environmental researcher at California State University-Channel Islands, not a lot. He’s spent years studying oil spills, from…
Pipeline company Plains faces criminal charges
The Texas oil pipeline company behind last year’s 142,000 gallon oil spill along the Gaviota Coast in Santa Barbara County has been indicted on 46 criminal charges. Plains All American Pipeline faces…
Who’s dealing with the wildlife data?
Ever since the corroded pipe operated by Plains All-American burst, releasing a river of crude into the ocean at Refugio State Beach, biologists have been out studying the effects on wildlife. Jenny Marek…
Counting Grunion a year after the spill
Last year’s Refugio Oil Spill came at a time when grunion were spawning on the oil-covered sand. Now, scientists are looking at this year’s fish to see if there’s been any…
A year later, what we know about the Refugio oil spill
One year ago, a corroded pipe operated by Plains All-American burst. It released a river of crude into a creek that empties into the ocean at Refugio State Beach, a pristine coastline…
How artists helped create the National Park Service
The National Park Service is celebrating its 100th birthday this year. However, the concept of the parks dates back far earlier than that. In 1864, Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite…
It’s not so easy to clean up Exide’s lead pollution
Cleanup is now underway to remove the toxins left behind by the now-shuttered Exide battery recycling plant in Vernon, just south of downtown Los Angeles. For decades, the plant pumped dangerous levels…
What it will take to earthquake-proof L.A.’s most vulnerable apartment buildings
The recent earthquakes in Ecuador and Japan underscore just how vulnerable many parts of the world are to big earthquakes, including Los Angeles. As the old saying goes, it’s not…
108 years since the Model T, the car of the future is just about here
We’re at the precipice of a new age of automotive options, as the car of the future is just about here. Tesla’s top of the line Model S 90d, while…
Why are VW’s diesel issues still unresolved?
It’s been six months since news broke that VW rigged hundreds of thousands of its diesel vehicles to cheat on pollution tests. Government officials are still wrestling with what to do…
Mass layoffs hit undocumented farmworkers in Santa Maria
(Photo by Paul Wellman, the Santa Barbara Independent) Last week, hundreds of undocumented farmworkers in Santa Maria were laid off. After a Homeland Security investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE agents ordered Bonita…
Building a home for good bugs
Designing a garden to attract beneficial insects may seem simple, but the process is much more intricate than many think. When done right, however, what’s known as an insectary garden can…
Do we have the foresight to protect local wilderness?
A couple of weeks ago, the National Park Service came out with a report recommending that the Santa Monica Mountains Recreation Area basically be doubled in size–by adding another 170…
Safe crossings for L.A.’s big cats
When photographer Steve Winter set out to photograph California’s elusive mountain lions, he didn’t know he’d spark a movement. He spent 15 months trying to get the shot of a cougar,…
Inside Santa Barbara’s fight to save citrus trees
There’s a pest attacking California’s citrus. The Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) is a tiny, flying insect that transmits a bacterial disease called huanglongbing, or HLB. It’s also known as citrus…
Exide battery recycling plant leaves a toxic legacy
March 1, 2016: This post has been updated below to include a response from the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC). Months of public attention and focused government action recently ended…
Growing wheat on the Central Coast
Each week we meet up with Katie Hershfelt of Cultivate Events as she chats with farmers, chefs and shoppers at the Santa Barbara Certified Farmers’ Market. This week, she spoke with Melissa Sorongon, a baker from…
Tracking the Aliso Canyon gas leak by air
For 119 days gas spewed from a leaking well in the hills above the community of Porter Ranch. The well was permanently sealed on Feb. 18, according to the California…
Mixer: Corruption that stinks
Former L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca pleaded guilty this week to lying to federal investigators about their ongoing probe of corruption at the department. Did the buck stop there?