ESPM professor George Roderick and ERG professor Dan Kammen are featured in this Daily Califonian article on the recent partnership between Mexican institutions and UC campuses. Roderick noted that this initiative, which will direct $10 million towards energy efficiency research, is "a demonstration of our commitment to work on scientific issues across the border." The Energy and Resources Group, or ERG, currently partners with Tecnológico de Monterrey to look at clean energy planning at the scale of the entire nation of Mexico. Kammen commented that "it’s really exciting to see the federal government of Mexico and the California state government moving ahead because we know this is beneficial to both our economies."
IEEE Spectrum | April 04, 2017
ERG Ph.D. candidate Grace Wu is featured in this IEEE Spectrum article on a tool called Multicriteria Analysis for Planning Renewabale Energy (MapRE), developed by ERG and Berkeley Lab Researchers and the International Renewable Energy Agency. MapRE starts with a large spatial database that includes wind speeds and timing, solar insolation, and other physical factors, but also factors in the impact of both the project and the transmission infrastructure it will need. In a recently published article, the authors apply the MapRE tool and show that potential for renewable energy generation is several times greater than demand in many countries.
Bay Nature magazine | March 28, 2017
ESPM adjunct professor and CE Specialist Matteo Garbelotto is featured in this Bay Nature magazine article on Sudden Oak Death, a disease caused by P. ramorum, a pathogen that has felled millions of tanoaks. Garbelotto believes he’s closer to identifying a set of genetic markers that confer some degree of tolerance to the disease and could become a powerful tool in managing tanoak stands.
The Davis Enterprise | March 22, 2017
EEP undergrad Tyler Jacobson is quoted in this Davis Enterprise article on the University of California's recent announcement that UC has shed $150 million in fossil-fuel investments. Jacobsen is a member of Fossil Free UC, a UC-wide, student-led campaign that demands UC divest its endowment from the top 200 fossil-fuel companies with the largest carbon reserves. Jacobsen commented, "It was energizing to see just how direct of an effect student organizing, along with strong faculty support, can have on altering UC’s investment decisions."
NewsDeeply | March 22, 2017
ESPM assistant adjunct professor and assistant CE specialist Van Butsic is featured in this News Deeply article on California's cannabis-growing industry and the impacts of legalization and new regulations. Butsic reckons the jury is still out on just how harmful the marijuana industry is to the environment – an area of research he says he is closely studying. Butsic coauthored a paper published in 2016 in Environmental Research Letters in which he concluded that the legal marijuana industry poses a considerable potential threat to Chinook salmon and steelhead in the emerald triangle region.
Researchers ramp up releases of tiny wasp to improve biological control of the Virginia creeper leafhopper
Western Farm Press | March 22, 2017
ESPM CE specialist Kent Daane and postdoc Houston Wilson are featured in this Western FarmPress article on the parasitic wasp as a option for organic growers with the best potential for controlling the Virginia creeper leafhopper. Wilson notes that, with the release of a specfiic strain of parasitoid this April, the "goal is to get the wasp established at a site and be able to control the Virginia creeper leafhopper on its own for the long-term as the population increases and covers a larger area without us having to come back in the meantime to make more releases.”
Santa Cruz Sentinel | March 17, 2017
ESPM assistant CE specialist Jodi Axelson is featured in this Santa Cruz Sentinel article on a newly developed technique of combating bark beetles via bioacoustics. “These kinds of technologies are interesting and great for the private landowner, or parks and rec agencies that have high value trees they want to protect,” said Axelson. But for large-scale protection, she stressed that forest management techniques such as thinning trees are still most important.
Political Insight | March 17, 2017
ESPM professor Wayne Getz and grad students Colin Carlson, Eric Dougherty, and Oliver Muellerklein authored this article for Political Insight on new approaches and improved technologies for neutral redistricting of state and federal districts, verifying results, and ensuring cyber security. Donald Trump’s presidential victory has focused attention once again on disparities within the US electoral system. The authors look to community-based conservation (CBC) for lessons in how to build a fairer election process.
Snopes | March 17, 2017
ESPM professors Gordon Frankie and Claire Kremen are featured in this Snopes article on General Mills Inc's new promotion aimed at fighting declining bee populations in N America.
Mercury News | March 14, 2017
ESPM professors Gordon Frankie and Claire Kremen are featured in this Mercury News article on the decline of bee populations countrywide. Kremen noted that exposure to neonicotinoid-based pesticide can make bees more susceptible to contracting parasites and disease. Frankie leads the Urban Bee Lab, which has collaborated with the USDA on over 60 educational workshops last year to teach the general public about bees.