Environment

The publicly traded company that provides Los Gatos with water recently got the go-ahead to fire up two solar power generating stations—one in Los Gatos and one in Saratoga. Together they’ll help keep about 21 tons of greenhouse gasses out of the atmosphere each year,...

A few months back, neighbors Maggie Contro, an 8-year-old third-grader at Daves Avenue Elementary, and Arlo Britz, a 7-year-old boy a grade below, were sweeping her home’s porch, when they realized they were doing something worth scaling. Contro had been wanting to start some kind...

Home gardens and landscapes should be compatible with their respective climates. For local chaparral climates, plants that do not need much watering through the long and dry summers are appropriate. Aquatic plants are the extreme opposite. They require regular replenishment of the ponds that...

A homeowner who sought an exception to new fire-safe rules recently rolled out by the State won over Planning Commissioners and was granted development approval. Despite Santa Clara County Fire Department representatives appearing in the special Zoom meeting on Nov. 21 to argue against allowing...

Over the last decade, Valley Water has continued to spend more money on cleaning up homeless encampments around Silicon Valley. In fiscal year 2013-14, the regional water wholesaler put $786,085 into the initiative. That grew to $1.5 million just a few years later, then...

You'll be able to say "Hello," to a California King Snake named Morticia and dig into Earth's history as part of a special event organized by the Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation Department. That's because the Wildlife Education & Rehabilitation Center and the Santa...

Updated June 27, 2022 at 5:22pm: 90% containment. A fire burning along Highway 17 was 90% contained at 5:20pm after burning two acres Monday, authorities said. Cal Fire learned of the blaze near the summit—on the Santa Cruz County side in the Alta Vista Lane area—at...

California State Parks and the Sempervirens Fund announced permanent additions to expand Castle Rock State Park in Los Gatos on Aug. 15.  The $4.21 million in acquisitions for six properties by State Parks are the first for the agency in the Santa Cruz Park District...

The Bay Area Congressional delegation—Rep. Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), Rep. Zoe Lofgren (CA-18), Rep. Anna Eshoo (CA-16) and Rep. Ro Khanna (CA-17)—wrote to President Joe Biden on Jan. 19 to request that relief for Santa Clara County be included in the Presidential Major Declaration for...

California State Parks has released its recovery plan for Big Basin Redwoods State Park, the oldest one in California. Nearly five years on from the CZU Lightning Complex Fire, which torched over 90% of the park and destroyed more than 900 homes in the area,...