California

"Urban populations in Southern Californian are facing chronic exposure to toxic airborne “plasticizer” compounds — two of which have already been banned from children’s products, a new study has found."

"Climate change is exacerbating the risk of potentially dangerous mosquito-borne diseases in California. Dengue, the world’s most common mosquito-borne illness, is not transmitted directly from insect to insect."

"Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bipartisan bill Friday making it a crime to farm octopuses for human consumption in California."

“Paper or plastic” will no longer be a choice at grocery store checkout lines in California under a new law signed Sunday by Gov. Gavin Newsom that bans all plastic shopping bags."

"The landmark lawsuit is the first time a state has targeted an oil company over claims that recycling could solve the plastic pollution crisis."

"Under a new state program, property insurers must provide discounts for home wildfire mitigation. But some discounts are miniscule."

"In the San Bernardino Mountains, another wildfire has forced residents to flee, the latest reminder that they must accept the risks of climate change if they want to remain."

"Yorba Linda is a small, sunny city southeast of Los Angeles. It’s perhaps best known for being the birthplace of President Richard Nixon. But in the past few years, Yorba Linda has picked up another distinction: It’s home to the nation’s largest per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) water treatment plant of its kind, according to the city."

"The Vaux's Swift is a tiny bird – some people call it “a cigar with wings.” But every fall these little birds make a big trip, from summer breeding grounds in the Pacific Northwest down to their winter home in Central and South America. Along the way, many of them roost as a big flock in chimneys up and down the west coast. And their murmurations in the air – and simultaneously dive together into chimneys – are so spectacular that they draw crowds."