Environment
Early Sunday morning in the drizzling rain, a small group of people is standing on the shore of Lake Merritt peering out onto the lake through binoculars. They are birdwatchers participating in the Audubon Society’s annual Christmas Bird Count— the group’s annual tally of different species of birds.
Despite the gloomy weather, Bay Area skywatchers will be eagerly awaiting tonight’s total lunar eclipse, which falls on the northern winter solstice—the moment at which the Earth’s axis is tilted farthest from the sun, giving us our shortest day and longest night of the year, and heralding the first day of winter. According to NASA Science News, there’s only been one other lunar eclipse on the northern winter solstice in the last 2,000 years … and that one was back in 1638.
Javier Amaro is one of hundreds of people in Oakland who have started reusing “greywater”—or run-off water—in their homes. California’s laws recently changed to allow certain kinds of greywater reuse systems to be installed without requiring permits, so residents are increasingly conserving water from their showers, bathroom sinks, washing machines and more.
One of the City of Oakland’s goals is to become a model green city, according to its sustainability program. For the past year and a half, the city has been hashing out an Energy and Climate Action Plan (ECAP) to identify and prioritize what it can do to lower Oakland’s greenhouse gas emissions and reduce energy use.
During the morning rush hour, commuters in cities across the East Bay climb into a stranger’s car. It’s part of casual carpooling, an informal ride-share system to save time and money while crossing the Bay Bridge. But a recent toll increase is causing turmoil in the casual carpool community.
After meeting resistance three years ago to a proposal for converting a lakeside parking garage into a 37-story apartment building, a local real estate developer is back with what he says is a greener, more innovative plan for the project.
With its daytime temperatures peaking in the 60s, San Francisco seemed like an unlikely place for outdoor ice skating last Wednesday. Yet there they were, almost a hundred visitors from all over California—skating in a circle around a frozen swath of Union Square.
What would you expect to find in a farmers market? Fruits, vegetables or fresh local produce? How about a goat that poops and pees at will? Well, you got one on Saturday morning, at the North Oakland Farmers Market. Oakland resident Crow, brought along his Oberhasli goat named Prema — which is often mistaken for a giant dog — to show the neighborhood how to milk a goat.
Over the past year, Alameda County residents have called in a rising number of complaints about opossums, skunks, raccoons and other small animals invading their backyards—all signs that human clashes with wildlife might be on the rise.