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4 days ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
Tucked into Carlsbad’s budget approved last week is funding to replace synthetic turf fields. Yet another goal for next year is ramping up the city’s sustainability efforts. And those two things are at odds. Fake grass, once lauded as a drought fix, is increasingly scrutinized for its environmental and health impacts.
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1 week ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
San Diego’s coastal resiliency master plan, a major pilot project that favors nature over armor to protect beaches from flooding and erosion, is entering phase two, with many details still to work out. But one thing is clear. As sea level rises, retreat is seeping into local coastal planning. A bathroom here, a staircase there. In Encinitas, for example, Beacon's Beach parking lot is being moved back from the bluff edge.
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2 weeks ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
Environmental groups argued that it would actually increase risk of disastrous wildfires For decades, a debate has raged over how best to balance the desire to preserve California's threatened chaparral and coastal sage scrub plants while at the same time mitigating the risk of deadly fires fueled by dry vegetation. In the latest development, a Cal Fire plan to clear thousands of acres of native habitat each year in order to reduce wildfire risk is now facing a setback.
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3 weeks ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
Right now, late-night shoppers either leave town or leapfrog the law To make up for revenue lost to declining cannabis sales, the city raised taxes on the businesses starting in May. Now, in an effort to help dispensaries increase revenue, and also help close the city's $258 million budget shortfall, the Planning Commission has voted unanimously in favor of a proposal to extend operating hours for licensed cannabis retailers.
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1 month ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
Almost every community in San Diego has seen an increase in tree canopy over the last decade, officials say. The latest analysis of the city’s urban forest has found that as of fall 2021, overall coverage is 15 percent — up two percent compared to 2014. It's still a long way away from the city's goal of 35 percent canopy by 2035, but the trend is going in the right direction.
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1 month ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
It was not the average “big bang” squid run off La Jolla last fall, as scientists sometimes call it when the normally large spawning groups turn up in extra large numbers. And while breeding typically lasts only a few days, this run lasted three weeks. Squid runs don't happen every year. One likely reason for the surge was the shift from El Nino to La Nina weather patterns that brought cooler, nutrient-rich waters to the West Coast.
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1 month ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
Escondido’s moratorium on new battery storage sites will stay in place. What began as a temporary pause after a fire last October was extended in November for up to 10 months and 15 days. At a meeting last week, the city council could have ended the urgency ordinance but instead voted 5-0 to maintain the ban on new sites while continuing to study land-use and safety regulations, including a citywide cap on the number of commercial battery energy storage sites.
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1 month ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
A new report by University of California researchers warns that it’s time to get serious about dust storms. Historical records suggest the state’s dust emissions are now higher than ever, while the forecast points to increasing dustiness and a rising toll on public health, the environment and farming. Windblown soil is a feature of the state’s desert lands, and it can wind up in oceans, mountains and valleys thousands of miles away, scientists say.
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2 months ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
Carlsbad residents pay less for water than other cities around the county, but rates are about to jump. A 20 percent increase in July will add $25.30 to the average customer bill, with more to come. The Carlsbad City Council voted 4-1 last week to raise rates for water, sewer and recycled water that will bring additional increases in Jan. 2026 and 2027, for a total of $61.75, or 49% over the current rate.
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2 months ago | 
sandiegoreader.com | Sheila Pell
Too many bus drivers are taking the off ramp to easier jobs, transit officials say. San Diego Metropolitan Transit System's hardest job to fill currently has 24 vacancies. The majority say they're leaving for less demanding work like delivering packages for Amazon or collecting trash for Republic Services. "It's not an easy job," said Thuy Nguyen, who oversees recruitment for the agency. "They're having to give up their weekends, their nights, working holidays, working split shifts.
