our weather can be unpredictable, ranging from decades of drought to month-long storms that dump dozens of inches of rain. earlier this winter, california was recovering from a multi-week storm surge. we had trillions of gallons of rain and hundreds of inches of snow in only a few weeks’ time.

it was clear to anyone living here that we were and are not prepared for this amount of rainfall. here are four key issues that california is continuing to grapple with.

1. runoff pollution

as someone who lives on the coast, a common issue we face is the impact of runoff pollution. this runoff accumulates along the coast after storms, when contaminants from city streets, farms, and other urban areas are washed away and into the rivers, estuaries, and beaches. a common effect of runoff pollution is harmful algal blooms, these blooms are a consequence of increased nitrogen and phosphate in the water. in these conditions, toxic and nontoxic algae grow unchecked. eventually, they die and can suffocate the gills of fish and invertebrates.

helping to address this problem is the california cooperative oceanic fisheries investigations (calcofi), an affiliate of the california department of fish & wildlife, noaa fisheries service, and scripps institution of oceanography. i spoke with erin satterthwaite, who coordinates their program, and makes sure their research is accurately used, and accessible. satterthwaite said that calcofi values being inclusive and its data publicly accessible, using a holistic approach to solve questions we were once unable to answer, she called these “time machine questions.” we are now able to go back in time and answer questions from the past with the technology and information we now have access to. the goal is to be able to answer future questions, today.

satterthwaite and i spoke about how calcofi uses a holistic ecosystem approach, examining how elements of an ecosystem are impacted by changes in the surrounding area. they collect data up to 500 meters below sea level, testing the water for salinity, oxygen, phosphate, silicate, nitrate and nitrite, chlorophyll, phytoplankton biodiversity, zooplankton biomass, and zooplankton biodiversity. this data helps to paint a picture of what is happening to the ecosystem as a whole, and what may be changing within it.

2. flood management

researching for this article proved to be quite a feat, there are so many challenges facing water management in dense urban areas. currently, many of la’s rivers are paved entirely in concrete, an example is the los angeles river. the goal is to quickly move flood waters to long beach, and out of neighborhoods. while effective, this method ensures that no water is collected or recycled and flows directly into long beach.

this water is a mix of stormwater, street runoff, and trash. therefore, without filtration, it pours into the bay polluting the beaches and harbor. according to heal the bay’s beach report card, long beach is la county’s most polluted beach. long beach receives an ‘f’ rating after storms. to put it into perspective, the tijuana river slough receives the same score. this method of flood management is effective; however, it leads to water waste and pollution. 

3. drought preparedness

california is notoriously dry, with decade-long droughts that increase wildfire risks and damage, destroy crops, and turn the state a lovely shade of dusty brown. my family’s wild rice farm is in northern california, near mt. shasta. despite the numerous lakes, rivers, and dams in the area, we experience seasonal wildfires, some decimating thousands of acres of land. in fact, the largest reservoir in california is in shasta county, its water capacity is 4,552,000 acre⋅ft (5.615 km3). and while dams and reservoirs have their own ecological impacts, they are vital for collecting and storing rainwater. 

as for residential rainwater collection, it is not considered illegal in california to collect your own rainwater. some places even have rainwater harvesting incentive programs, but regulations may vary. when in doubt, collection of rainwater is best for plants and gardens, not for consumption. 

another form of water sequestration is infiltration basins, areas that allow water to naturally permeate the soil, filtering pollution, and refilling aquifers. cities like los angeles are far too dense and populated to have infiltration basins, but there are other methods of managing runoff and flood water that do not include water highways of cement and concrete. 

4. lack of gray infrastructure

last fall, i spoke to one of the researchers at tijuana river national estuarine research reserve, jeff crooks, ph.d. at the time, i did not realize that our conversation would be so relevant to my continued thoughts and research into statewide water issues.

we spoke about the importance of building gray infrastructure, and investing in better methods of collecting, treating, and diverting stormwater. i learned about the projects and goals of the estuary, and what we can do to solve the issues that the estuary is facing. crooks mentioned how the estuary can only filter so much stormwater before it flows directly into the ocean. therefore, it is vital that we build enough gray infrastructure to alleviate the pressures on the estuary. examples of gray infrastructure that would be beneficial are infiltration basins, stormwater storage, and water treatment plants. 

in 2014, california voted yes to passing the water quality, supply, and infrastructure improvement act of 2014, also known as proposition 1: water bond. a vote “yes” for this proposition supported issuing $7.12 billion in bonds for water supply infrastructure projects and allocating bond revenue. the goal of prop 1 was to allocate money to increasing gray infrastructure to better collect stormwater, protect drinking water, protect watersheds, drought preparedness, and flood management. but it’s 2023, and we’re seeing that a lot of work still needs to be done. 

there is a $19b-$24b dollar plan to transform the la river into a public open space and natural urban habitat over the next 25 years. it would help mitigate stormwater pollution, reduce drought impacts, increase public green spaces, and help to reduce the impacts of damaging and dangerous floods. amigos de los rios is one organization that is working to make this green infrastructure a reality.

they call these connected spaces of parks, gardens, and river paths the emerald necklace greenway. the goal is to connect the mountains and the ocean with public spaces that provide both public services and water sequestration via soil and plants. these areas are one of the best methods of flood reduction and are far more beautiful than entirely cemented washes and rivers

sustainable solutions for california

california is known as a dry place, with seasonal wildfires and never-ending droughts. however, storms like the ones we experienced last month are indicators that our weather is unpredictable. i believe that combining different methods and sciences to solve problems such as water management is key to finding sustainable solutions, preparing for droughts, and not polluting the ocean.

as erin satterthwaite said, look at a problem and see how the ecosystem interacts instead of looking at just one element. or as writer cj hauser says in the crane wife, “if you want to save a species, you don’t spend your time staring at the bird you want to save. you look at the things it relies on to live instead. you ask if there is enough to eat and drink. you ask if there is a safe place to sleep. is there enough here to survive?”

this is the takeaway: we must look at issues as whole entities, how we influence our environment, how their parts interact, and how they change, flow, and migrate. water is a vital resource that a state like california cannot afford to under-appreciate.

this story was featured in our series, slipping through our fingers: the future of water.

after a century of hard-fought controversy over invasive varieties such as toxic and flammable eucalyptus trees, shoreline-enveloping ice plants, and the unstoppable pampas grass dominating everything else, it seems residents of america’s most biodiverse state have had enough. but for indigenous cultures, this latest trend in gardening is old news. 

native societies have lived in california for thousands of years, gathering and propagating native plants for food, medicine, crafting material, and cultural practices. as the environmentally destructive side of western agricultural practices becomes increasingly impossible to ignore, even state legislators have turned to traditional ecological knowledge for best sustainability practices in environmental planning.

“native peoples are able to now tell their own stories,” says nicholas hummingbird, whose popular classes on indigenous knowledge are offered through his native plant-focused instagram. “not be seen as victims of a genocidal past, but show what we have always been capable of.” 

in lecture halls, in the greenhouse, and on zoom, the students of hummingbird and other indigenous teachers not only learn how to care for native plants, but how to build a reciprocal relationship with nature.

diego cordero: a native plants nursery for the tribe, by the tribe

before the curtain fully closes on the california summer, heatwaves turn the valley of santa ynez into a frying pan, toasting the landscape and residents with temperatures over 105 degrees fahrenheit. several times a week, diego cordero turns his back on the santa barbara ocean breeze and makes an hour-long commute to the santa ynez band of chumash indians reservation to check on the native plant nursery where he works.

“i can’t miss a day of watering with brutal heat like that,” says cordero, “i’ll lose a bunch of plants.” cordero is the lead environmental technician for syceo, the santa ynez chumash environmental office, where he works with a small team to monitor, manage, adapt, and restore the natural ecosystem on the reservation. 

while many native plant nurseries exist across california, cordero says the nursery on the santa ynez reservation is “a little bit different.” instead of focusing on plants with ornamental value, aka pretty enough to put in your lawn, he often works in collaboration with the tribe’s cultural office, focusing on plants that the tribe would historically use in every-day life. plants are provided to members of the tribe on a suggested donation basis.

“even if the plants aren’t endangered, they’re hard for people to get to,” says cordero, who says that many of the most sought-after native plants are native to wetland habitats, which are often now the sites of california’s major cities. according to the california water quality monitoring council, 90% of california’s wetlands are now lost. other popular plants are grown in grassland habitats, where according to the 2016 textbook, “ecosystems of california,” 90% of the native plants have been replaced by non-native or invasive varieties. 

as climate change continues to alter the natural landscape on the reservation, members of the tribe can look to the nursery on the santa ynez reservation for a healthy, well-managed stock of their most culturally significant plants. medicinal plants, such as the cold-remedying yerba mansa, are available for those with experience using medicinal plants. juncus, also known as black rush, can be dried and woven by basketweavers. blue dick, which cordero describes as a slow-to-propagate, but “pretty little plant,” grows a garlic-like bulb, known as a corm, which is delicious when roasted and served as a historically significant source of starch.

to keep the wealth of knowledge of native plants flowing to the next generation, the santa ynez chumash environmental office runs several educational programs throughout the year. for the homework club, a youth education program in collaboration with the tribal learning center, cordero and other team members teach kids about the native plants and ecosystem on the reservation through scavenger hunts, art projects, and hands-on workshops. the environmental office coordinates with the culture department for activities at camp kalawashaq, a children’s environmental summer program, and hosts chumash earth day celebrations, and reservation clean-up events. 

cordero sees the resiliency of the tribe mirrored in his favorite class of plants, native grasses. he says the secret to these plants’ survival is in the depth of their roots, which can go up to 12 feet deep to seek out any traces of moisture in the soil, allowing them to survive long periods of drought. 

“it’s literally a deep-rooted existence,” cordero says. despite hardships, “eventually the rains do come.”
 

gerald clarke jr.: an artist living between two calendars

the fruit of the prickly pear ripens in spring, peppering the desert landscape of southern california with its magenta flesh. in the summer, the plump green pods of the honey mesquite tree are ready for picking. in the fall, rich, starchy california black oak acorns tumble from their canopy. 

gerald clarke jr., a member of the cahuilla band of mission indians and two-time elected tribal official, has fond memories of gathering edible plants throughout the year with his two daughters and making traditional dishes. “it’s really a plant calendar,” he says, explaining that the cahuilla tribe would follow the annual growing cycles of edible plants across the diverse landscape of southern california, gathering plants intentionally to ensure a plentiful supply year after year. 

but as a professor of ethnic studies at uc riverside, clarke says he follows the plant calendar in addition to an academic one. this balancing act is one he has long practiced: before teaching indigenous culture and history, he shared his sculptural and conceptual art practice with college students as head of the art department at northeast texas community college and assistant professor at east central university. 

clarke’s art focuses on indigenous themes, blending multimedia methods of weaving, sculpture, and painting. but due to the scarcity of native plants in natural environments, clarke says he doesn’t employ traditionally-used native plants in his art. “if i’m going to go out and gather plants, i want it to be for something vital to my subsistence, you know?” he says. “i don’t want to use the forest to make art. i don’t like to cross those boundaries.”

into his classes at uc riverside and art studio alike, he carries the weight of indigenous history. “native plants and native history are inherently interlinked. the organized genocide of the environment and our people are one and the same,” says clarke. his students not only learn a comprehensive curriculum on tek, a popular shorthand for traditional knowledge, but the importance of applying this knowledge correctly. clarke and other scholars say well-intentioned policies often ignore the diversity of california’s ecosystems: what works in one environment could harm another. 

“fire is a great example i always share with my students,” clarke says. studies have shown that before colonial settlement in the 1800s, indigenous tribes regularly practiced cultural burning as a method of forest management, contributing to an estimated 4.5 million acres of california that would naturally burn each year. but after colonization, a zero-tolerance fire suppression policy took over, leaving the forest underbrush to become the kindling fueling the deadly megafires of recent decades. 

only since the spring of 2022 has state legislation begun to clear the way for prescribed burns to manage this crisis, but historical cultural burning practices are not necessarily the same thing. indigenous activists say that seasonal timing, methodology, and post-fire management derived from tek are more effective at restoring biodiversity and ecological health. 

clarke’s students are angry, and he loves it. “they’re like, ‘why didn’t we know that?’ there’s a hunger for the truth, not the romanticized history we’ve been taught since kindergarten,” he says. in the classroom, he strives to uplift his students to action. 

“if i just focused on the things that we’ve lost, i think that’s a depression we’d never recover from. instead, i focus on the miracle that we’re even still here,” he says. 

nicholas hummingbird: activism in the garden and on zoom

in a zoom class in early december, a powerpoint slide shows a young boy gently smiling at the just-gathered acorns cupped in his palms. his father and instructor of the class, nicholas hummingbird, named him tuhui, which means a drop of rain in the samala language, historically spoken by indigenous tribes in southern california. 

“it only takes a drop of rain to germinate a seed, for a seed to seek out more water,” hummingbird says. “but the promise of that seed is a new beginning, a new future.” 

in his popular online classes on native plants, hummingbird’s students can pay on an affordable sliding scale to take two-hour online classes on a broad range of topics, spanning from the minutiae of tending to native plants in your own backyard, to indigenous uses for california native plants. through his instagram @california_native_plants and @_native_hummingbird, hummingbird sells and ships seeds to students who live in the state and occasionally offers in-person cooking classes with the native plants that he gathers with his son.

“my job as an educator is to take what i’ve learned, and make it accessible to anybody and everybody so that we are on equal footing,” says hummingbird, whose lessons are not only drawn from his lived experience as an indigenous person but also his background in native plant management in both national park service and private native plant nurseries. while building hahamongna native plant nursery in pasadena, california, hummingbird grew his reputation as a teacher and horticulturist, leading a team of volunteers to sustainably and responsibly propagate native plants with habitat restoration in mind.

even with these successes, hummingbird found these experiences bittersweet, opening his eyes to the widespread mismanagement of native plants. in his classes, hummingbird pulls no punches: his students not only learn how to grow seeds, but how to spot ignorance and manipulation. “money is the incentive, not a better environment,” he says. “people with good intentions can cause catastrophes when they’re not given context or the right information.”

to offer his students a deeper understanding of his culturally-driven techniques for responsible plant propagation, hummingbird’s lessons weave the complex relationship between the historical genocide of indigenous people, habitat loss, and climate change. “when you have a concept of the past, you know what has been lost,” he says, referencing the widespread biodiversity loss in california due to single-crop agricultural practices, or landscaping with invasive plants that decimate native plant populations. “do we double down on the arrogance of settler colonialism and try to make failed practices work?”

while there is some knowledge he won’t share out of respect for his community, he hopes his work informing the greater non-native public can contribute to a “better, more livable” future.

“at the end of the day, i’ll take what i’ve learned, and give it to the next generation,” says hummingbird. he compares teaching to walking down a path together, with no experts and only mutual learning. “even if my footsteps only go so far, yours can then continue on that journey.”

this past september, in slack-calm waters, captain steven melz and his deckhand performed an experiment. fathom by fathom, five different styles of crab traps dropped beneath the surf, delivering lunch to dungeness crabs waiting on the ocean floor. despite a century of unchanged crab trapping techniques, melz hopes to find alternative gear that can sustain the future of the beleaguered bay area dungeness crab fishery, and solve its biggest — and perhaps surprising — problem: whales.

whales are a big problem for crab fishers, or depending on who you’re asking, crab fishing is a big problem for whales, which can become entangled in the ropes attached to crab fishing traps. 

after whale entanglements in the ropes attached to crab fishing gear spiked, a 2017 lawsuit resulted in new whale-safe restrictions on california crab fisheries. although crab fishing season historically opens in november, for the last several years, lingering whale populations in the area have delayed the start of the season until after the valuable holiday market. experts and fishers predict these truncated seasons will become the new normal.

“i would love it to be the way that it was,” said melz, a commercial crab fisher who began crab fishing on his late father’s boat over 30 years ago. “but that’s not going to happen.”

in dedicated working groups, state regulators, game wardens, ecologists, and fishers collaborate to innovate viable whale-safe gear. as numerous other strategies to make conventional gear safer have been implemented, finding a mutually-agreeable alternative crab fishing gear has become a central sticking point. with their livelihoods at stake, some fishers have taken innovation into their own hands.

a tangled history
 

“crab pots,” the conventional gear for trapping crabs, hold bait inside four-sided closed woven cages. crabs enter through tunnels in the netting, while escape rings allow for smaller crabs that don’t meet regulated size requirements to exit. crab pots rest on the ocean floor and are attached to floating buoys that mark their location through a vertical line of rope, which whales can become entangled in.

depending on their permit, fishers set out hundreds of pots a day, which often remain in the water for multiple days. but the longer that ropes remain in the water, the higher the chance of entanglement with a whale, which can result in injuries or death. the whales, snagging their fins and bus-sized bodies on the ropes, can drag gear for thousands of miles, embedding the ropes into their flesh and creating challenges around identifying the origin of the fishing gear.

entanglements happen as whales migrate down to their winter breeding grounds in mexico, and pass through the bay area’s dungeness crab fishing zones. as climate change warms ocean waters, this migratory timing has shifted, overlapping with crab fishing season along the west coast.

prior to 2013, the national oceanic and atmospheric association (noaa) reports an average of 10 whales per year confirmed to be entangled in fishing gear along the u.s. west coast.

but in 2015, a warm water event known to ecologists as “the blob” resulted in a drastic increase of whales in the bay area during crab season. the number of entanglements almost doubled from the previous year. by the end of the season, 50 whales, primarily humpbacks, had been recorded to be entangled along the west coast. 

in 2017, the center for biological diversity, an environmental activism nonprofit organization, sued the california department of fish and wildlife (cdfw), stating that these entanglements were violations of the endangered species act, which protects humpback and blue whales. 

“it’s really clear that lawsuits by private citizens and environmental groups are absolutely crucial to making sure that laws work,” said patrick sullivan, media director for the center for biological diversity. “we just see it as part of the democratic process.”

in response to the lawsuit, fishers in both the recreational and commercial sector say they feel disproportionately targeted as the “low-hanging fruit” compared to other industries, such as cargo ships that collide with whales. data shows that these are a leading cause of whale deaths and have a high fatality rate. but on the west coast, these events are difficult to document as many whales sink before they are found; experts say as few as one in 10 whale strikes are recorded. 

after negotiations and an intervention by the pacific coast federation of fishermen’s associations, which represented crab fisherfolk, the lawsuit reached a settlement, and cdfw developed programs to regulate crab fisheries, based on a yearly risk-to-whales assessment.

“they want a program where they can shorten seasons, pull gear in, reduce the number of [ropes in the water],” said ryan bartling, a senior environmental scientist on the whale safe fisheries project. as part of the settlement, the dungeness crab fishing gear working group was formed to brainstorm whale-safe gear alternatives with input from all stakeholders.

1,000 cuts: the impact of regulations

“[the crab fishery] is a shell of its former self because of the regulations,” said captain larry collins, who is president of the san francisco fisherman’s association and member of the dungeness crab fishing gear working group. “we call it death by 1,000 cuts.”

as part of risk assessments formulated by the group, noaa scientists now conduct an aerial survey of whale populations before the start of each crab fishing season. if too many whales are detected, the season remains closed until the next survey. if entanglements are detected, the season closes early.

fishers face many challenges from both the delayed season starts and early closures. for several years, crab fishers have missed the lucrative thanksgiving market for crab, which is a traditional holiday food in the bay area. fishers also say that starting as late as january means more dangerous weather, competition from northern fleets and large wholesale companies, and that the unpredictable timing adds high costs to retain crews.

“we call it death by 1,000 cuts.”

“i like whales,” said collins. “but now whales are costing me $50,000 to $70,000 a year.”

whale populations are increasing and have continued to remain in high numbers through the start of dungeness crab fishing season in november. “the season is not going to look like it once was, just based on the data we’re seeing,” said bartling. “there’s still going to be a crab fishery, it’s just going to look a little bit different.”

pop-up gear: can technology provide a solution?

as part of the working groups, stakeholders modify existing gear to be more whale-safe, and review proposals for alternative gear that could allow fishing during season closures with lowered whale entanglement risk.

one of these proposals is a new gear technology in development, known as pop-up gear or by the misnomer, “ropeless” gear. pop-up gear reduces the amount of time ropes spend in the water by storing the buoy and rope on the ocean floor with the crab pot, rather than connecting the crab pot to a buoy on the surface through a suspended vertical rope. when triggered by a remote control or a preset timer, the popup gear releases the buoy and rope, which float to the surface to be retrieved by a fisher.

 

fishers remain unconvinced that pop-up gear is viable, citing the difficulties in operating as a fleet around unseen gear, unfeasible costs, and high rates of failure during tests.

without a surface buoy design marking its location, fishers are concerned with overlapping as each boat lays hundreds of crab traps in the same zone, which can lead to tangling, lower catches, and gear failure.

“they think we lose gear now?” said collins, who participates in a lost-gear retrieval program. “you gotta be able to see the buoys [on the surface of the water] so you don’t tangle with everybody and their brother.” 

at over $1,000 a pot, pop-up gear could be over three times more expensive than conventional crab fishing gear. if the buoy fails to pop-up, the gear becomes irretrievable; lost pop-up gear may pose a larger risk to whales and boat engines, as fishers unwittingly lay gear on top of the unseen ropes below, and ropes from multiple sets of gear tangle with each other.

“it’s a huge capital investment,” said captain shane wehr, a commercial dungeness crab fisher with family roots in the san francisco fishing community. “it would probably weed out half of the fishermen, and guys would sell out of the industry completely.”

regulators and scientists see potential in pop-up gear. “i love the idea of ropeless gear,” said dr. elliott l. hazen, a research ecologist at noaa in monterey, california, who sees pop-up gear as a promising technology that requires further testing. “how do you help fishermen avoid each others’ gear? if you can solve that problem, along with the sheer cost of ropeless gear, i think it’s an amazing solution. i really do.”

although a $500,000 grant currently exists for pop-up gear testing, bartling says few fishers have signed up to participate in gear trials. fishers say they are wary of regulations that would force them to reinvest in the expensive pop-up gear if the trials are successful. 

“it’s a fear from decades and decades of having their way of life stripped away,” said captain brand little, a commercial fisherman. “if something gets taken away, its never coming back”

hoops, scoops and loopholes

captain brand “hoop net” little, received his nickname for his advocacy of another, less experimental type of alternative crab fishing gear as a solution to whale entanglements. 

traditionally used in spiny lobster fishing, hoop nets are shaped like volcanoes, with a circular opening at the top of a wider, circular base. unlike crab pots, hoop nets have no other openings. because of their open top which allows for crabs to escape once they have finished eating the bait, hoop nets cannot be left out for longer than two hours.

due to this incentive to check hoop nets every two hours, the window for entanglement is much smaller. as two hours is too brief to leave the hoops unattended, any entangled whale would be quickly found, allowing time for the whale to be reported and potentially helped.

hoop nets were first seized upon by the recreational crab fishery, which is also impacted by whale risk-assessment closures, but has separate regulations. shortly after the delayed season started in november 2021, captain james smith, a former commercial crab fisher turned recreational charter boat captain, noticed that the text of the recreational regulations allowed for hoop net use during the closure.

“everybody was trying to get their hands on hoops as fast as they could,” said smith. despite initial doubts from his peers on the efficacy of hoop nets, smith was able to tweak his hoop net process to consistently make his catch limit of 10 crabs per net, per day. once the word got out, charter boat businesses were able to salvage their crab fishing season by using hoop nets.

on the commercial side, little, a participant in the dungeness crab fishing gear working group, then noticed that recreational fishers began fishing for crab with hoop nets, despite the whale-risk-related closures. “and we’re all just sitting here waiting,” said little. “why can’t i try these?” 

but while they recognize the success of hoop nets for the recreational fisheries, some commercial fishers say hoop nets are a non-option for commercial fleets. “the guys that run my boats say, ‘f*ck hoops. f*ck ‘em from here and back,” said wehr. 

compared to crab pots, hoop nets catch less crab and require more work. due to the two hour window for operating each hoop net, fishers are concerned of the potential of retrieving gear during storms, which can form quickly on the water. although the costs and set-up of hoop nets and crab pots are similar, many fishers feel reinvesting in new gear is too costly in both price and labor.

“all i can do is go out, use my boat, and try to come up with my ideas,” said melz, who participated in pop-up gear trials, and decided to test hoop nets against crab pots for himself. he tested five variations of gear; three versions of a hoop net, and two versions of a crab pot. 

the winner? a crab pot without a top, like a hoop net, but with the other design features of crab pots that add efficiency.

“i lovingly call them scoops,” said melz, nicknaming the modified crab pot. with an open top, his scoops require the same short use-times that make hoop nets safer for whales. but unlike hoop nets, scoops are modified crab pots and would require fishers to simply modify their existing inventory.
 

 

the process for securing hoop net or scoop use commercially would require little and melz to go through the lengthy process of applying for an experimental fishing permit, which would give a limited number of fishers an opportunity to fish with experimental gear.

little said industry competition, alongside the fear of traditional crab pots being banned if hoop nets are successful enough, could put a “huge target” on his back.

“there’s $10 bills on the bottom of the ocean. there’s millions of them and it’s a race to pick them up the fastest,” said little.  “and now you’re sending 50 guys out there to get a head start? it’s not going to be popular.”

some fishers say it’s time to revisit a reduced-gear solution they initially rejected and test the efficacy of the other numerous whale-safe improvements they’ve made to their conventional gear by setting only a portion of their gear out in the water. but due to the initial pushback, regulators are no longer considering this option.

moving forward, together

crab fishing season was slated to open this past weekend. but with over 100 whales detected off the coast, commercial fishermen have been benched for a fourth year in a row; only recreational fishermen using hoop nets were permitted to begin their season.

“we’re stewards of the resource,” said captain richard powers, president of the golden gate fishermen’s association, which represents northern california charter boat fleets. “we’re doing everything in our power to be sustainable. we want this to remain exactly what it’s been: part of our heritage.”

even though a solution won’t come in time for this year’s season, the commercial fleet, charter boat captains, regulators, and scientists say they are committed to collaboration and share the same goals.

“we’re working to solve this, not just because it’s the right thing to do, but because we want a viable fishery,” said commissioner eric sklar of the california department of fish and game commission. he said that the stakes are clear: if whale entanglements continue to remain unsolved, it may mean the end of the dungeness crab fisheries.

“there is not one fisherman who wants [entanglements] to happen,” said captain dick ogg, a commercial fisher who assisted during noaa sponsored disentanglement first responder courses, and participated during the aerial surveys of whale populations during entanglement risk assessments. “this is where we make our living. why would we do something detrimental to the environment?”

after the working groups and regulations fulfill the conditions of the settlement, the california department of fish and wildlife says the fishery could file for an incidental take permit, which grants an industry with a permitted amount of yearly “take”. take is defined as an unintentional, but expected, disruption or harm to a species of animal protected by the endangered species act.

while incidental take permits have been called a “necessary evil,” many are in agreement that this would represent a last-ditch solution.

“fishermen are the ones who are gonna want to protect [whales],” said melz, who took the level 1 disentanglement responder training. “because if they fail, we’ll fail.”

conservation has become a part of our daily lives in the golden state, to the point where there are laws, daily habits, and lifestyle changes that californians overwhelmingly abide by to cope with this drought. i still remember when i was five or six years old being told “don’t shower for more than five minutes” and definitely “don’t leave the water on when you brush your teeth.”

i have heard about low-flow appliances and filling the dishwater all the way before you run it since before i could talk. all of my life i had known nothing but living in a drought, and only until traveling across the country for college, did i realize how abnormal that lifestyle is. 

the issue of grass

a big concern that has always come up surrounding droughts has been the issue of grass, and more specifically, people’s yards. having a green grass-filled front yard has long been considered wasteful in california. for example, a lawn needs about 1 to 1.5 inches of water per week, which for even a small lawn, is thousands of gallons of water per year. only recently have people started to acknowledge this waste and make a change.

alternatives include drought-resistant plants, stones or a hard surface, or simply choosing not to water your lawn at all. although some people are reluctant to leave their green grasses behind, many californians are now fond of the phrase “brown is the new green” when it comes to their front yards. 

in my household, we finally decided to make the transition a few years ago, as shown in the pictures below. 

we went from the wasteful green grass to a mulch-covered area with drought-resistant plants. in addition, we also got rid of our sprinklers (another big water waster) and added drip irrigation. although there was a small cost to changing our sprinkler systems to perforated hoses, we ended up saving money in the long run with a lower monthly water bill. importantly, drip irrigation only works when you have plants or trees and is less efficient on grass. this is just an example of one of the many ways californians have had to adapt their everyday lives and homes to the worsening water crisis. 

the time for action in california is now

for as much progress that is being made now, drought conditions are a long-standing problem in my state — longer than i have been alive. it’s only recently that people have started to make changes as, in the past, the responsibility was thought to have fallen on the agriculture industry, which uses 70% of the world’s freshwater on average. 

indeed, it is true that agriculture and other sectors must also apply changes and adapt to the water crisis in california and elsewhere, but studies have shown that every single person has a role to play. for example, a government plan that would help to reduce 25% of personal water use over three years would save 1.5 million acre-feet of water. this is substantial when compared to the 8 million acre-feet of water total that goes to the residential sector or the 30 million acre-feet of water that goes to the agricultural sector in california every year.

despite the discussion of this issue for decades, many californians didn’t consider the issue of water waste really personal until more recently, as the effects of climate change are likely to worsen water supply in the coming years.  

a lot of progress has been made by individual californians to conserve water in their own homes, however, there are still major concerns over water use in the state. there are still massive golf courses, places like resorts in palm springs (which are built literally in the middle of a desert), and snowmaking — all critical areas of vast amounts of water waste. the most reasonable next step is to spread sustainable water ideas to businesses and cities in california, and even to individuals around the country.

from the examples embodied by many californians, we have learned that it is vital for people to take responsibility for their water and to acknowledge that lifestyle changes for the sake of conservation are not only reasonable, but can be beautiful too. 

the similarities don’t end there either. both are being increasingly affected by climate change.

up in flames

in california, wildfires are one of the biggest problems plaguing sierra nevada. heat and dryness resulting from drought and increased temperatures have caused wildfires to increase in intensity, quantity and frequency. according to california’s department of forestry and fire protection (cal fire), nine out of ten of the state’s largest wildfires have occurred in the last decade. the trend is likely to continue, as one study suggests the number of fires could increase by about 20 percent or more by 2040.

jessica morse, deputy secretary for forest and wildland resilience within california’s natural resource agency and board member of sierra nevada conservancy, put it simply.

 “you’re seeing drought plus heat precipitate catastrophic fire,” she said. “you have like 200 days without rain and in some of these areas you’re getting no moisture and it’s causing the fire season to get longer and longer and longer to the point that now it’s basically become year round.”

wildfires actually play a crucial role in sierra nevada’s ecosystem and have done so naturally for centuries. fires can clear out dead organic material. allowing nutrients to return to the soil and new plants to grow. yet, more recent fires have gotten out of hand –– in large part due to human interference. 

there are a number of factors here, from the forced removal of indigenous people who practiced vital cultural burnings, to the clear-cutting during the gold-rush era that wiped out many fire-resilient trees. this was further compounded by a policy of fire suppression by the forest service for most of the 20th century. now, a strand of overly dense and weak trees that burn easily and fast is all that remains.

spain’s sierra nevada has a similar history of human interference, with mass deforestation resulting from factors such as mining activities and privatization of forest land, which was then converted to pastures or arable land once sold.

in the late 1930’s, a major reforestation plan was formulated during the final years of the spanish civil war. while it was recognized that forest regeneration was urgently needed, the plan also provided much needed jobs in a time where hunger and unemployment were rampant in the face of the dictatorial regime that emerged in the post-war era.

the program proved successful on a number of levels –– nearly 275,000 hectares were planted in the first decade of the program and in total 2.9 million hectares of trees were planted between 1940-1983. rainfall was higher than average during this time and the wide scale planting helped deal with ongoing issues of soil erosion. as intended, many jobs were created in the process, as the work did not require much specialization.

yet, there was a problem; nearly 85% of the trees planted were pine species. though not known at the time, the lack of diversity in plant life and thick density of the forests would make for increased risk of fire as the years progressed.  

as blanca ramos, member of sierra nevada’s global change observatory put it, “it is a totally homogenous territory with no diversity in terms of age or structure or species. these systems are extremely vulnerable, for instance to fire.”

this has proved overwhelmingly true. from 1961 to 2005, almost 2.75 million hectares were burned, which represents 93% of the area reforested between 1940 and 1983, meaning a majority of the work has been undone. 

it might seem obvious in hindsight that a lack of biodiversity could lead to issues down the road. yet, as jorge castro, a professor of ecology at the university of granada pointed out, these trees were planted far before science or forest studies found the flaws in planting a monoculture.

“these pines were selected according to the dramatic conditions that were prevalent 60 or 70 years ago and, at that moment nobody talked about climate change,” castro said. “these trees are adults now and they are very dense, so there are not enough resources for them. these plantations are debilitated; it is not a very healthy situation.  

spain’s wildfires occur on a much smaller scale than in the united states. for instance, spain’s biggest wildfire in 2021 scorched around 10,000 hectares of land while california’s 2021 dixie fire burned through over 350,000 hectares. 

as castro explained, the forests in spain are much smaller so there is less to burn –– but, on a relative scale, wildfires are still ravaging ecosystems.

“if you have 1 million kilometers of forest and half is burnt, you still lose half of the forest, so it’s a big issue.” he said.

in the face of increasing wildfires, both california and spain are now trying to reverse these effects. 

fighting fire with fire

in september 2021, california’s governor gavin newsom signed a $15 billion package to tackle the climate crisis, $1.5 billion dollars of which will go toward wildlife and forest resilience efforts. the effort marks the largest investment in the climate crisis in the state’s history. 

according to morse, the $1.5 billion investment package will largely be distributed to the california natural resources agency and will be spread across 21 different departments, including the california department of forestry and fire protection and the sierra nevada conservancy.

morse said the cnra plans to implement the funds on three fronts: putting in defensible space and home hardening so communities and their homes can potentially withstand fires; strategic fuel break around these communities so firefighters have a place to steer the fires away from homes; and finally working to return fire to it’s natural ecological role through forest restoration.

the last part is crucial and will be done through a process known as prescribed, or controlled, burning in which parts of a forest are intentionally burned in order to maintain forest health and protect against more extreme fires. 

as morse explained, controlled burning helps safely reduce excessive amounts of brush and trees, ensuring future fires will not spread as far out of control. she added these fires are planned well in advance and at times when weather conditions are such that the fire will not spread out of control. 

”when a fire does strike, it burns at a low intensity level and plays an ecological role germinating seeds, improving diversity,  and improving the watershed as opposed to the catastrophic role of wiping everything out,” morse said.

prescribed burning is becoming an increasingly popular solution around the country as a way to mitigate fires and it has proven effective in a number of wildfires. as one example, when the 2021 caldor fire ravaged parts of california, south lake tahoe managed to avoid much of the damage in part due to prior prescribed burning.

while more people are coming around to the idea, there is often pushback against the idea of controlled burns, especially among people who are new to the concept. as jamie ervin, a fire restoration advocate and former member of sierra forest legacy, a non-profit dedicated to the protection, restoration and management of sierra nevada, explained, it can be difficult for people to fathom how starting more fires could actually help prevent fires in the future.

“i think people get it to a large part, but, when it actually comes to lighting something near where people are, that can be challenging. you could run into a lot of resistance from folks, especially if it’s a private landowner doing burning instead of a federal agency or something like that,” he said.

cut for time

in spain, prescribed burning is barely considered an option due to negative public sentiment, according to castro.

“not in sierra nevada, not in spain, i will say not in the mediterranean basin … this is taboo,” he said. “it could be a good option to manage the environment but, there is such a concept of fires being something really bad, that society cannot accept that you burn the forest to control the future fires.

it’s not necessarily ignorance or a lack of education driving this sentiment. as castro explained, many people have spent all their lives hearing about or working firsthand on reforestation efforts. proposing to burn the very pine trees that were the long-time focus of the reforestation efforts can seem completely backwards.

“for decades people, the forest service, and the citizens, and the villages have been putting in huge effort to cultivate these trees to have a non-natural forest but a forest nonetheless,” he said. “imagine you’ve spent your life like that and your son has spent his life like that and now you go and say, ‘don’t worry guys, we are going to solve all the problems here. we are going to burn the forest.’ they cannot understand that.”

castro said instead much focus is put into thinning the forest by cutting the lower branches of the pine trees and removing shrubs and brush along the sides of busy roads. this helps prevent fires from starting on the ground and can ease the spread of fires if they do occur.

planting native and diverse plants alongside the pines to naturalize the existing pine forests is another solution. ramos said this a primary focus of the sierra nevada global change observatory (obsnev), an organization that studies the long term effects of climate change in the mountains. still, ramos said even though scientists and workers at the observatory know how to implement this plan, the process is time-consuming and expensive and could take decades to reach fruition.

“it is very expensive to transform an artificial forest covered by pines into an area with brush, meadows and rivers,” she said. “you have to introduce diversity and you cannot do it in one single project. you have to do it in different phases and it takes a lot of money.”

climate change versus global change

unlike the california natural resources agency, the sierra nevada global change observatory doesn’t have a $1.5 billion investment package on their hands. still, obsnev is a unique organization in and of itself and proof that the spanish government is aware and dedicated to solving this issue.

as part of a larger network of global observatories formed under unesco, obsnev emphasizes global change rather than climate change. ramos said at times it is difficult to separate issues of climate change from human involvement in the change of landscapes over time.

“we speak about global change, not only climate change, because we found out that one of the most important drivers of change in sierra nevada has been the use of the land,” she said.  “of course climate change is also very important, but we’d prefer to refer to the changes that occur as a more global group of factors that also includes invasive species and contamination and other global phenomena.”

this proves true in spain, california and elsewhere. as erwin described california’s wildfire problem, “the biggest threat to the forest in sierra nevada, other than climate change, is fire exclusion. and the fact that we’ve excluded fire from these forests that would have burned every five to twenty years prior to european settlement and removal of indigenous californians. there’s also been so much development over the last 50 years of people putting houses in fire prone areas, so there’s way more buildings and human infrastructure for fires to burn up.”

so yes, climate change is a huge driver of wildfires but it’s easy to forget that behind this big idea of global warming are humans who for centuries have drastically modified landscapes. we can successfully combat wildfires with reforestation techniques, but at the same time we should also be aware of other ways in which we shape our surroundings, such as how we manage our forests and where and how we build homes in these fire-prone regions.

if the two sierra nevadas teach us anything, climate change is a global issue that everyone plays a part in. 

every year, the santa ana winds bring chapped lips, dry hands, and wildfires. the hot wind fuels the flames, spreading fires up and over mountains, close to towns, and threatening homes and businesses. it was typical that the fire would be out within about a week, leaving scorched, blackened earth behind. it’s not until recently that fires rage on for weeks at a time, causing extended evacuations, widespread structure damage, and threatening the lives of many.

in the fall of my first year at college in d.c., my hometown saw some of the worst fires to date: the woolsey fire of november 2018. i had recently moved across the country and i was worried for my family. as the fires got closer to our home, i got the call that they would have to evacuate. 

for two weeks, my mother, father, sister, and two dogs were living in the cabin of a small boat that my family keeps. it was two weeks of worry and anxiety. there was a vacuum of information in our area, as no one was there to report on what was happening. we truly did not know if we would have a home to go back to. 

fortunately, firefighters quelled the flames and were able to stabilize the area. my family was able to return home, though they had no running water, electricity, or cell reception, as the infrastructure had been damaged in the fire. our neighbor, however, was not as fortunate, and their home burned, leaving only the chimney behind. even now, almost two years later, that empty lot is a constant reminder of the damage that can be done. 

the week after my family returned home was thanksgiving, when i flew home to smokey skies and a neighborhood that looked extraterrestrial. trees were blackened and barely standing. fences melted and scorched. hills white with ash. 

the woolsey fire ravaged my community for 56 days, destroyed 1,643 structures, including homes and businesses, and damaged another 341. wildfires create a horribly unique refugee situation within these communities, as many are rendered homeless and must choose to rebuild or relocate.

the 2020 fires are the state’s 2nd, 3rd, and 4th largest fires and have burned over 3 million acres in california and killed at least 24 people as the fires spread along the west coast. this summer, california set record-breaking high temperatures, reaching up to 130 degrees f in death valley, according to noaa. year after year, california’s fires grow in size and bring even more extensive damage to buildings, homes, families, and communities. 

california, as well as oregon and washington, are experiencing the direct impacts of climate change. in the words of california gov. gavin newsom at this summer’s democratic national convention, “if you are in denial about climate change, come to california.” 

as reported by the new york times, newsom said, “california is america in fast forward. what we’re experiencing right now is coming to communities all across the country.”

nationwide, states have experienced record-breaking temperatures. summer 2020 is ranked as the fourth hottest for the u.s. — the second hottest for the entire northern hemisphere — and is the driest one-third of summers on record for the u.s., according to data from noaa. 

california should be viewed as an example to the rest of the country as to what will happen nationwide if we continue on our current course. change is needed, and it is not an individual effort, as we see in the california fires, but rather a collective one.

“kashia culture and identity is strongly rooted in the natural world. managing our natural resources and lands in a way that increases their resiliency and productivity ensures our traditional practices and cultural values are passed to future generations.”

—abby gomes, kashia band of pomo indians tribe member

before colonization, the kashia band of pomo indians lived along california’s vast sonoma county coast. by 1915 the kashia only owned .007% of their original territory on a reservation called stewarts point rancheria, or as the tribe calls it “su nu nu shinal” (meaning “huckleberry heights”). this drastic decrease in territory caused equally drastic changes for the kashia’s livelihood, diet, and culture forcing many tribe members to live off-reservation. today, with the help of numerous organizations, the kashia’s reservation and territories span around 1,230 acres, including the kashia coastal reserve. with this increase in territory, kashia land management and cultural practices also resurged.

i had the opportunity to learn about the reintroduction of such practices from kashia tribe members abby gomes, hannah banuelos, and otis parrish. kashia traditional practices teach invaluable lessons on living in harmony with the environment for ourselves and our local ecosystems.

sustainable land and resource management

the dense pine forests we see today did not exist prior to european settlement. in fact, many of the trees and shrubs that now litter the coast are invasive species which have taken over without indigenous land management. the kashia previously managed such species through burning the brush, maintaining the iconic california “golden hills” landscape. “periodic cultural burnings maintained these coastal grasslands and openings from encroachment by bishop pine forest and coastal scrub,” kashia member gomes said. the cultural burnings also encouraged seed germination of native plant species as well as the presence of large populations of deer and elk through maintaining their natural grazing areas. “the land and natural resources were managed in a way that ensured their continuance and productivity into the future.”

this cultural burning is being reintroduced to the area by the kashia to manage invasive species, reduce forest fires, encourage native species growth, and restore natural habitat.

beyond periodic burning, the kashia are also taking a traditional-turned-modern approach to maintaining their ecosystems through formally surveying and monitoring their reserve with their planned kashia coastal reserve tribal citizen science monitoring program.

according to gomes, the program “includes kashia values and is modeled after the greater farallones association’s beach watch program.” the kashia program plans to engage tribe members in monitoring human use activities and resources important to the tribe including marine mammals and bird species.

one large problem the tribe faces is the lack of marine resources upon which they depend. private land ownership of the tribe’s former territory, restrictions made by government, and overharvesting by those outside the tribe cause this scarcity.

maintaining the ability to gather these coastal resources ensures the continuance of cultural traditions and practices,” gomes said. “returning back to the coast, (the) kashia (tribe) now has an opportunity to reconnect its tribe membership with the ocean and revitalize its cultural traditions, practices, and land management values.”

despite hindrances that have developed post-colonization, the tribe manages its coastal reserve through these practices as a gateway for educating the public about kashia history and practices.

seasonal and native diet

kashia people were migratory in the sonoma region. in the summer they gathered food from the ocean focusing mainly on seaweed but also mussels, “abalone, fish, sea anemone and kelp” according to tribe member banuelos. during the spring, the tribe fished the river for salmon and trout. during the colder seasons, the tribe harvested indian potatoes, clovers, and acorns. however, according to fellow tribe member parrish, european settlement introduced non-native foods including “flour, coffee, pigs…sheep…melons, cabbage, carrots, and apples.”

as a result of adding non-native foods to their diets, and given the reduction in harvesting territory, tribe members have since suffered from assorted illnesses including diabetes.

but, banuelos says, “a lot of elders really rely on their traditional foods…it makes them feel better. they believe in it. it makes their body and their health a bit stronger.” that is to say, tribe members believe in maintaining their health and ecosystems through consuming native food.

there are specific traditions the tribe follows before, during, and after harvesting, processing, and preparing native food.

according to banuelos, “there’s preparation…they do a little ceremony…they pray with clapper sticks…sing songs for thanking the ocean for providing food for us. we only take what we need for our family.” this spiritual connection with indigenous food affirms how the kashia are grateful for their sustenance and take only what is needed — an important concept given the amount of food waste occurring throughout the united states.

continuing kashia practices

to perpetuate kashia sustainable practices through their culture, the tribe also emphasizes financial security for tribal members, and the importance of preserving kashia language.

it is difficult to keep tribe members engaged if they cannot afford to live on or near the reservation, especially with california’s rising housing prices. banuelos emphasizes “more homes on the land for our tribe would be good. (we) try to make sure our people are taken care of first… otherwise, i think our tribe is doing pretty good.”

according to parrish, the loss of language is the largest problem given it is a vehicle for passing on traditional practices. he highlights that when one learns their culture’s stories, “the story becomes a part of them.”

for banuelos and parrish, the key to ensuring financial security and preserving their culture is to focus on kashia youth. parrish said, “to our young people, get an education and come back to our people and do something constructive for everybody. that’s the message my generation has given to the next generation coming up.”

by improving financial security, teaching the kashia language, and focusing on the next generation, kashia could flourish and continue to be an example of a society living in harmony with the environment through sustainable land, resource, and food management practices.

he isn’t alone—one in eight californians struggles with food insecurity, estimates the california association of food banks. traditional solutions to food insecurity include food banks and pantries, but these short-term, superficial fixes often don’t address the root causes of educational and resource asymmetry.

developing a longer-term solution entails an understanding of why so many californians — and americans — are food insecure. the reasons vary, from living in a food desert to the expense of fresh and healthy food. it’s important to understand that the history, culture, and circumstance of every community varies, and thus, the solution will too. a genuine understanding of the particular challenges community members face will lead to an effective and empowering solution rather than one that exclusively provides resources.

one bay area nonprofit does just that. fresh approach empowers people to make healthy food choices through active community involvement. the organization aims to build sustainable solutions to food insecurity, from the ground up. fresh approach has three programs: the freshest cargo mobile farmer’s market truck, the collective roots project, and veggie rx. fresh approach has clear, long-term goals for the communities it serves, rather than providing short term aid. i spoke to danielle hamilton, fresh approach’s educational program manager, about the organization.

“i think many people take a limited view on food insecurity,” hamilton says, maintaining that most superficial solutions ignore the interrelated sociocultural factors that lead to and perpetuate the problem. “addressing food insecurity requires providing access to affordable, culturally appropriate foods, and empowering the community with the knowledge and skills needed to prepare and cook with healthy foods.”

fresh approach views the problem as an issue of education rather than exclusively resource access, illustrating the importance of meeting people where they are at in terms of their long-term health goals. framing easy access to healthy foods changes the way people view food as a means to live to a way people can take ownership of their health. this paradigm shift is key to building a demand for healthy food across communities where it is not readily available.

hamilton is one of the educators for the nutrition class series. the lesson starts with discussion of a relevant health topic facilitated by a nutrition educator. the discussion functions as a baseline to hear the ideas and questions of those in the class, so the educator can see how the health issue actually manifests itself in the community. this is followed by a recipe demonstration and taste test.

one of the main problems fresh approach is tackling right now is tracking the long-term effects of its curriculum. they’re starting to see how program participants implement the strategies they learn after the classes have ended.

“we are working on strategies to create and measure behavior change in our shorter-series workshops,” hamilton explains, with the end goal being creating community advocates for healthy, local foods. food advocacy is an incredibly important aspect of food insecurity: fostering a demand for local, fresh produce where it isn’t already available is the first step to actually meeting this goal.

food insecurity involves many environmentally-related fields as well as socioeconomic factors. when addressing a problem this large, such as healthcare or food insecurity, it is important that an organization looks at the bigger picture to create a model that can feasibly be implemented in long term and minimize consequences across the board. it may be a more difficult solution, but a solution that leads to less downstream problems and a greater understanding of the situation. for example, fresh approach focuses on local food and supporting california farmers, a focus that other organizations do not have.

“we take a broader view of food security that acknowledges climate change, and the need for our globalized industrial food system to change to a more sustainable model,” hamilton says. “smaller-scale, biodiverse farming helps preserve the health of the soil and entire ecosystem so the land remains healthy and productive.”

fresh approach operates under a paradigm that those trying to make a difference should all consider: anything we do has spillover effects, and trying to create a long-term impact entails lifelong consequences on both the environment and the people living in it. hamilton hopes that in five years, the organization can both partner with health advocates and develop deeper relationships with the communities it serves to provide more of a holistic approach to food insecurity.

understanding of community and environmental health are key to solutions that move our society forward, for creating initiatives that take root in the communities they are there to serve.

hamilton says the basis for all policy or program development should be in the leaders of the community you are attempting to serve: “learn from the community experiencing barriers to healthy food access, and listen to their suggestions and inputs on what is needed.”

indeed, assistance should come through understanding, and that begins with learning before you teach.

washington — solar power is now the third most popular renewable energy source, behind water and wind, according to a new report by the u.s. energy information administration.

the latest example of its continued growth came on may 9, when the california energy commission voted unanimously to require builders to install solar power systems on all new homes. as the american power grid grapples with aging infrastructure, cybersecurity threats and a reliance on fossil fuels, solar offers homeowners a cheaper and cleaner option, according to supporters of the law.

commissioner andrew mcallister said the “modestly sized” solar systems will be designed based on the needs at each home to reduce the possibility of creating wasted energy. homeowners will be less reliant on the traditional grid, he said, and could further reduce their need by investing in panels with storage capability.

“the emergence of super-smart photovoltaic systems is expected to enable owners to participate in” the renewable energy markets “that will strengthen the ability of the grid to help achieve climate change goals,” mcallister said in an email.

if the homes do produce extra solar energy, it could also be transferred directly to the grid, mcallister explained.

however, john twitty, executive director of the transmission access policy study group, told a house subcommittee on may 10 that merging existing and alternative energy sources is a worthy idea, but difficult to implement.

“making sure it works as it relates to the total grid is one of the challenges today of intermittent resources,” twitty said at the hearing. “wind and solar are wonderful and we’re all trying to figure out ways to harness them properly, but when the wind doesn’t blow or the sun doesn’t shine, it’s a real challenge.”

rep. kathy castor, d-fla., took it one step further, stressing the importance of non-transmission alternatives, such as solar-powered microgrids that run completely independently of a larger grid.

like california, florida is increasing its commitment to renewables, completing eight solar projects already this year, according to a separate eia report released this week.

“non-transmission alternatives not only have significant environmental benefits but they can help prevent long-term, area-wide blackouts after natural disasters like we saw in texas and florida and puerto rico this summer,” castor said.

the california law – the first in the u.s. to mandate solar power in building construction – will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by the same amount as eliminating 115,000 gas-powered cars, according to the california energy commission.

homeowners will also save money in the long run, mcallister said. the commission estimates that, based on a 30-year mortgage, residents will pay $40 more each month for the panels, but save $80 each month on heating, cooling, and lighting bills.

“these standards help to deliver the clean energy and air that californians want,” mcallister said. “nationwide, renewable energy is on the rise. we expect that trend to continue.”

in 2017, solar power generated 77 million megawatt hours, exceeding biomass power — which involves burning wood, solid waste, and landfill gas — for the first time. hydropower, the most popular renewable, generated 300 million megawatt hours — about four times as much as solar.