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rdifalco

Chico News & Review - The big squeeze - Feature Story - Local Stories - February 13, 2014 - 0 views

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BEC water drought BDCP transfers groundwater

shared by rdifalco on 20 Feb 14 - No Cached
  • North State water supplies under pressure as drought parches California
  • This article was published on 02.13.14.
  • A thousand feet beneath the city of Chico, in the pitch-black waters of the Tuscan Aquifer, time has proceeded for ages without sound or sunlight, mostly unaffected by the world above. But in recent years, an increasing tug of upward force has been moving the Tuscan Aquifer’s water toward the surface of the Earth—drawn, ultimately, by the thirst of fruit trees and vegetable fields hundreds of miles away.
  • ...2 more annotations...
  • However, the government has bypassed this potentially costly step by edging through a legal loophole, according to critics.
  • “They’re calling it a one-year water transfer, instead of a long-term project, and that allows them to skip the CEQA guidelines,” explained Robyn DiFalco, executive director of the Butte Environmental Council. “Now, we’re seeing multiple one-year transfers, year after year, without environmental review.” Brobeck at AquAlliance confirms the same—that the federal and state applicants are skirting environmental laws and essentially stealing Northern California’s water. “They just keep delaying the environmental review, which allows them to operate on a year-by-year basis,” Brobeck said.
rdifalco

Chico News & Review - Another historic tree on the chopping block - The GreenHouse - Gr... - 0 views

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BEC chico tree

shared by rdifalco on 15 Nov 13 - No Cached
  • Butte Environmental Council appealing anti-tree decision by Architectural Review & Historic Preservation Board
  • This article was published on 11.14.13.
  • Tearing down another beautiful historic tree CN&R photo contributor Karen Laslo first gave me the heads-up on this one, followed by Butte Environmental Council board president Mark Stemen. It seems that the very huge—what some would term “heritage”—valley oak tree that lives in the vacant lot on the corner of Salem and West Eighth streets is slated for removal so that a couple of single-story duplexes can be built there.
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  • “We believe that the project has not had adequate review by the public to date,” wrote BEC Executive Director Robyn DiFalco in the appeal, before pointing out that the Oct. 30 meeting was scheduled outside of the normal ARHPB meeting schedule: the first and third Wednesdays of the month. “The approval in question was made at a special meeting of the ARHPB held to suit the schedule of the applicant,” wrote DiFalco.
rdifalco

Chico News & Review - An ill-conceived legacy project - Guest Comment - Opinions - July... - 0 views

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BEC water peripheral canal Twin Tunnels BDCP

shared by rdifalco on 14 Jul 14 - No Cached
  • The northern Sacramento Valley faces a serious threat. Gov. Jerry Brown continues to push his twin tunnels project, under the guise of the Bay Delta Conservation Plan. The plan proposes a pair of massive tunnels with design capacity sufficient to drain the Sacramento River in a dry year.
  • As Butte Environmental Council’s (BEC) water policy analyst representing North State communities, I reviewed and analyzed more than 40,000 pages of the plan’s description and environmental review documents. An increased, uncompromised water supply for south of Delta interests is the desire. Big Ag and Big Oil will get more water, you get the bill.
  • Proponents failed to disclose the true source of water (the Sacramento Valley), but water transfers are written all over this plan. In fact, 34 separate documents reference water transfers. Proponents failed to acknowledge the potential for environmental and social impacts to the areas of origin, but removing up to 1 million acre-feet of water surely would have significant impacts. And, proponents failed to disclose the amount of groundwater that will increase water flow through the tunnels.
rdifalco

Chico News & Review - Hormonal disruption - Sustainability - Green - March 13, 2014 - 0 views

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BEC Dioxin environmental health

shared by rdifalco on 19 Mar 14 - No Cached
  • This article was published on 03.13.14.
  • Of all the toxins confronting people daily, endocrine disruptors rank among the most insidious. These chemicals can have stealth effects—not only impacting the hormones of those exposed, but also creating a genetic legacy that can continue for generations.
  • Lane refers to endocrine disruptors as “legacy constituents,” and Julia Murphy, a dioxin expert at the Butte Environmental Council, adds that they are “persistent through generations.” Murphy says these chemicals act as “a system disruptor rather than a body disruptor,” meaning they trigger wide-ranging changes that can be heritable—passed on genetically to children, grandchildren, and on down. In addition, the compounds are relatively stable, so they can remain potent for decades.
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  • “It’s one of those Pandora’s Box situations,” said Chico geologist John Lane, of Chico Environmental Science and Planning.
  • In that vein, Lane and Murphy reviewed the EWG list and highlighted some endocrine disruptors of particular concern in the North State.
rdifalco

Chico News & Review - Thanksgiving giving - The GreenHouse - Green - November 21, 2013 - 1 views

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BEC chico trees forest

shared by rdifalco on 22 Nov 13 - No Cached
  • DiFalco weighs in In last week’s column, I devoted a considerable amount of space to the plight of the huge historic valley oak tree
  • growing in the vacant lot at the corner of Salem and West Eighth streets. Thanks to the recent actions of the city’s Architectural Review & Historic Preservation Board, the grand, towering tree is slated to be axed to make way for a couple of duplexes. However, the Butte Environmental Council has (thankfully) filed an appeal, scheduled to be heard next month. Robyn DiFalco, BEC’s executive director (who penned the appeal), sent me a few words by email recently, expressing her thoughts about the situation of this valley oak, as well as that of other heritage trees still standing in Chico. “The mature street trees of Chico are one of the things I love most about this city—and I’m concerned that they’re vulnerable these days,” DiFalco said. “At present, the city has no urban forester or tree crew on staff, the Tree Committee isn’t meeting for lack of city staff, and consequently, the Urban Forest Management Plan is still just a draft. “This is not just about one small project and a few trees—it’s partly a concern about the future of Chico’s urban forest.”
rdifalco

Crowd rallies against new wells planned for Glenn County ag land - 0 views

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BEC water wells Glenn County GCID drought

shared by rdifalco on 29 Jul 15 - No Cached
  • he crowd at the Ord Community Hall Wednesday night was decidedly against the idea of five new wells for Glenn-Colusa Irrigation District. The agency provides water to about 1,000 farmers in four counties, and plans the new wells for use when surface water supplies are tight.
  • Ord Bend >> The consistent and clear message Wednesday night was that people do not like Glenn-Colusa Irrigation District’s plans to drill five new wells. Members of the crowd were also not fans of five existing wells the district drilled previously and is including in the current environmental review.Speakers at a public comment meeting called the plans greedy, unnecessary and potentially harmful to groundwater levels in the area.
  • Some citizens in Glenn County have started a petition calling for a moratorium on new production wells. Sharron Ellis, who passed a clipboard through the crowds, said a moratorium could stop new wells including those being discussed Wednesday night. So many wells are currently being drilled in the county that a moratorium would only slow down drilling, she said.
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  • One of the predictions in the environmental review is that once the drought is over, groundwater levels will recover. However, Robyn DiFalco, director of the Butte Environmental Council said this is not likely.
  • Groundwater has not recovered in recent years, and is in a decline, she said.
rdifalco

Row on the creek - 0 views

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BEC Chico Glenn County Butte County water Stony Creek creeks waste recycling landfill toxics

shared by rdifalco on 28 Jan 16 - No Cached
  • rdifalco on 28 Jan 16
     
    Critics blast environmental review of proposed waste conversion facility along Glenn County waterway The watchdogs at Butte Environmental Council usually keep guard close to home, but occasionally they'll look beyond Chico's backyard. "Environmental issues don't stop at the county line," said Executive Director Robyn DiFalco. "We tend to look beyond our borders at least a little bit to see if our community will be affected." She believes that's the case with the proposed Glenn County Solid Waste Conversion Facility about 3 miles west of Hamilton City, which would sort and recycle up to 200 tons of material a day and convert biodegradable substances into biogas. According to the project's Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR), the goal is to divert and recycle up to 70 percent of the county's municipal solid waste from the landfill. And that's been a problem; the county's landfill near Artois has been pushing capacity for years and is set to close in December. What's caught BEC's attention? It's mostly a matter of location. The facility would be constructed along the northern bank of Stony Creek, which feeds into the Sacramento River and the Tuscan Aquifer, the vast underground reservoir that provides drinking water for residents in Glenn County and nearby communities-including Chico.
dkeeley1

Chico News & Review - BEC's new boss - 0 views

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chico news review Butte County BEC local

shared by dkeeley1 on 21 Mar 16 - No Cached
  • dkeeley1 on 21 Mar 16
     
    Stemen said the board values the connections Carter has made in the community and local government, particularly during the farmers' market's fight to retain its Saturday morning location at the city-owned parking lot at Second and Wall streets. While she may not have expertise on every issue or contacts in every jurisdiction BEC works, board members do-and the board doesn't expect Carter to chart BEC's course alone. "We're right where we want to be as an organization," Stemen said. "We want to do what we're doing better, and we want to do what we're doing more, but I don't think we really need to change anything-and I think Natalie fits right into that." "I was excessively fortunate that I got my first two weeks [overlapping] with Robyn," Carter said. "That was the perfect introduction to this."
rdifalco

Chico News & Review - Tunnel visions - Feature Story - Local Stories - April 18, 2013 - 0 views

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BEC water peripheral canal California

shared by rdifalco on 18 Apr 13 - No Cached
  • The Bay Delta Conservation Plan backed by Gov. Jerry Brown’s office is almost too enormous to comprehend. But it’s far and away the most significant infrastructure project going, so we have to try.
  • Robyn DiFalco, executive director of the Butte Environmental Council, expressed a sentiment echoed by many water-conscious North State organizations and residents—that diverting water south through the proposed tunnels for mostly agricultural purposes in the San Joaquin Valley is in the best interest of that area’s farmers, but not for the rest of California.
  • “It’s just not good policy for the state to invest so much money on behalf of watering farms in a desert,” she said.
rdifalco

Letters for October 11, 2012 - Letters - Opinions - October 11, 2012 - Chico News & Review - 2 views

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BEC chico plastic bag

shared by rdifalco on 11 Oct 12 - No Cached
  • Regulate plastic bags As a student and Butte Environmental Council intern interested in a sustainable future, I am submitting this letter in support of the Chico City Council’s voting to restrict plastic-bag use. California uses an estimated 400 plastic bags per second, requiring an estimated 12 million barrels of oil annually. Only 3 percent of plastic bags are recycled, and the thermosetting process used to mold plastic bags is irreversible, creating a product that is not biodegradable. These bags end up in the streams, creeks, rivers and eventually the ocean. On the bags’ journey to the sea, the plastic breaks down into smaller pieces, absorbing toxic chemicals along the way. These contaminated bits of plastic contribute to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which is twice the size of Texas. At least 267 marine species have been documented to be adversely affected by plastic debris. California spends $25 million annually to manage plastic-bag pollution and $303 million in litter reduction. If consumers were to utilize reusable bags instead, we could reduce waste and water pollution and contribute to the local economy by allowing wonderful companies such as ChicoBag to further their commitment to consumer safety. Lindsay McDonnell Chico
rdifalco

Final draft of Climate Action Plan gets Chico council's vote of approval - Chico Enterp... - 0 views

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climate action plan CAP Chico sustainability emissions GHG BEC community

shared by rdifalco on 08 Nov 12 - No Cached
  • councilors voted 5-2 to approve a final draft of the Climate Action Plan
  • Sustainability Task Force and the Chico State University Institute of Sustainable Development
  • goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 25 percent below 2005 levels in the next eight years.
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  • One of those clapping was Mark Stemen, representing the Butte Environmental Council. In public comment, he told the board the plan is well-written and has all the components to be successful.
  • the plan has been updated by staff, it has gone before the Sustainability Task Force, and been reviewed by the Planning Commission.
ndcarter

Chico News & Review - Asking for influence - News - Local Stories - September 15, 2016 - 1 views

www.newsreview.com/...content

shared by ndcarter on 15 Sep 16 - No Cached
  • Carter, executive director of the Butte Environmental Council, and Cecil, executive director of the Butte County Farm Bureau, had asked the commission to allow their respective constituents a greater voice in governing local water resources.
  • BEC took the lead in a coalition of 15 groups and individuals seeking a water advisory committee representing environmentalists and private pumpers.
  • “I think we’re coming closer to having common ground on this issue and coming together as a county to defend groundwater users that aren’t represented by [an agency] and also those environmental concerns, those beneficial uses of our water in our county,” Carter said after the meeting.
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  • Tweet Asking for influence Environmental and ag groups offer input on forthcoming state water regulations
ndcarter

Chico News & Review - A green year - Sustainability - Green - December 29, 2016 - 0 views

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shared by ndcarter on 29 Dec 16 - No Cached
  • In January, dogged tree activist Charles Withuhn continued his effort to replenish the urban forest by offering free trees to the public through his organization, Chico Tree Advocates. “What makes me grateful to live here is not the bushes. It’s these towering giants that have been here since Annie Bidwell, and they’re not being replaced,” he told CN&R.
  • On March 1, Natalie Carter stepped down from her post as general manager at the Chico Certified Farmers’ Market to take the reins as executive director of Butte Environmental Council.
  • In the June primary, Butte County voters showed their overwhelming support for banning hydraulic fracturing locally: Measure E, sponsored by local group Frack-Free Butte County, won by 71.5 percent of the vote.
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  • The November election also resulted in California voting to uphold the plastic bag ban, meaning grocers in other areas of Butte County (Chico had its own bag ban in place already) will have to follow suit.
ndcarter

Chico News & Review - Whom to watch in 2017 - Feature Story - Local Stories - January 5... - 0 views

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shared by ndcarter on 05 Jan 17 - No Cached
  • In Chico, that means Goldstein is working with nonprofits like Butte Environmental Council and GRID Alternatives as well as city staff and the Sustainability Task Force to implement the city’s Climate Action Plan. That plan calls for a 25 percent reduction in greenhouse gases over 2005 levels by the year 2020.
  • ndcarter on 05 Jan 17
     
    We are excited to be working with Bryce Goldstein, one of 2017's people to watch! Together we are striving for local climate change awareness and real positive change!
ndcarter

Chico News & Review - Slow go: Stakeholders call for more time on countywide conservati... - 0 views

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Butte County Community BRCP chico news BEC

shared by ndcarter on 02 Jun 16 - No Cached
  • Natalie Carter, executive director of the Butte Environmental Council, also sees benefit from deliberation. Noting that the BRCP’s 50-year term exceeds the general plans of both Butte County and Chico, she says, “it’s smart to be cautious about these kinds of things—thoughtful and evaluative.”
  • On the BRCP overall, Carter said, “the concept and the core of it is a really strong thing, and wonderful. It’s a remarkable effort that should be appreciated by our community.”
becnews

Chico News & Review - On top of trash - Downstroke - Local Stories - September 24, 2015 - 1 views

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BEC Chico Butte County Bidwell Chico Creeks Cleanup volunteers trash

shared by becnews on 29 Oct 15 - No Cached
  • About 500 volunteers—a record number—helped pull trash out of waterways during Butte Environmental Council's annual Bidwell Park & Chico Creeks Cleanup on Saturday (Sept. 19). The volunteers collected an estimated 21,547 pounds of trash and recycling, said BEC Executive Director Robyn DiFalco. That figure is down from last year's record total of about 30 tons of material, but DiFalco said that's likely because “the community has been chipping away at this leading up to the big event” with smaller cleanups. “We also didn't get everything that's out there,” she added. “We never do.” BEC's cleanup also kicked off six weeks of smaller, neighborhood-based stewardship events called Block Parties With a Purpose. Go to becnet.org/events for updates.
ndcarter

Chico News & Review - Gathering momentum - Sustainability - Green - March 31, 2016 - 0 views

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shared by ndcarter on 01 Apr 16 - No Cached
  • Environmental groups get together to gain support for local efforts following sustainability conference
  • “It’s not just what we need to do, but ‘this is what we’ve done,’” Stemen said. “The amount of activity that’s happening around these types of issues—sustainability, environmental justice, basic peace with the planet—is really vibrant in this community so having a night like this allows people to find out what’s going on and be re-energized. When you’re just one group, sometimes it’s a little lonely, then you realize, ‘No, I’m just one of many.’”
rdifalco

BEC tackles general plan - News - Local Stories - June 28, 2012 - Chico News & Review - 0 views

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BEC chico General Plan habitat

shared by rdifalco on 28 Jun 12 - No Cached
  • advocacy consultant Nani Teves
  • Butte County General Plan, new zoning ordinances and their environmental impacts.
  • county representatives: Tim Snellings, director of development services, and Dan Breedon, principal planner.
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  • Butte Habitat Conservation Plan
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