Environment
With Oakland’s fire season expected to begin within the next few weeks, Oakland North reporter Dara Kerr spoke with Fire Chief Gerald A. Simon about what it means to be the head of Oakland’s Fire Department, what led him to the job, and about Oakland’s unique fire and safety needs.
Oakland is a port city. That means commerce, trucks, trains and boats. It also means dredging. Because the channels and ports need to be deep for boats to be able to get in and out, 3 to 6 million cubic yards of sediment have to be dredged every year in the San Francisco Bay. But while dredging is necessary for trade, it also poses a risk for animals that live in the bay
It’s rose season — and to celebrate this perennial, on Sunday the East Bay Rose Society held its 63rd rose show at Oakland’s Lakeside Garden Center at Lake Merritt.
Some were in spandex, others in dresses or suits and they rolled into downtown Oakland for Oakland’s 16th Annual Bike to Work Day.
While the Port of Oakland’s activities may not be able to show whether the recession is over, or when it will end, it reveals a lot about the nature of the local and regional economies. Inside each shipping container lies a story about Northern California and its relationship with the rest of the world. Take the story of the almonds.
Can you farm in a city like Oakland? Some local urban farmers, community groups and university researchers think so. Working with the City of Oakland, they are re-envisioning the city’s food supply
Appropriately enough for Earth Day, Oakland’s Public Works Agency has posted the draft version of the Energy and Climate Action Plan. You can download a PDF of the plan on the Sustainable Oakland website. On May 6, the agency will hold two community workshops to solicit community input. But why wait until then? Let us know in comments what you think are the most interesting proposals in the plan. And be sure to check out Oakland North’s previous coverage here,…
On Thursday, more than fifty people celebrated the 40th anniversary of Earth Day by protesting the so-called “Dirty Energy Proposition,” or the signature-gathering effort in support of a ballot measure that will delay implementation of AB 32, California’s clean energy and air law.
The “official” Earth Day 2010 is Thursday, April 22, but Oaklanders have been at it for days now. Browse through their pictures to see what folks have been up to. And remember, it’s not to late to add your own!