Environment

Agriculture

Could National Water Pipeline Be the Solution to State’s Water Scarcity?

With nearly 40 million people and more than 70,000 farms taking up nearly 25 million acres, California is always thirsty. It is, as well, mostly dry. Deserts make up one-fourth of the state and semi-arid land occupies up at least that much, if not more. Consequently, water is an ever-unfolding ...
Agriculture

Enacting UBI Would Bust Federal Budget, Rob Americans of More Prosperous Future

I have written before on the benefits and drawbacks of the various universal basic income (UBI) proposals bubbling up the last few years in the American political scene, specifically the economic, political, and moral dimensions of these policies.  All share the same essential structure: cash payments sent to all American ...
Agriculture

A Bold Fix For The West’s Water Woes

The nation’s Western states are facing severe, and worsening, water shortages. There are both consumption and supply problems, and neither will be easy to fix. However, we have a remedy for the latter. More water is used in America per capita than almost anywhere else in the world — more ...
Agriculture

Is It Immoral To Oppose The Use Of Pesticides?

If you were to ask a group of medical professionals to name the most significant public health achievements of the past century, antibiotics and widespread vaccination against infectious diseases would almost certainly top the list. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention2 (CDC) would add motor vehicle safety, fluoridated water, workplace ...
Blackouts

Enjoy 2019’s Best of “Next Round” and “Right by the Bay”

The last week of December is naturally a time to look back on the year that was.  Here at PRI, we are particularly proud of the growing popularity of our weekly “Next Round with PRI” podcast and our daily “Right by the Bay” blog.  Thanks to you, our podcast had ...
Agriculture

What We’re Watching – “Full House” San Francisco Real Estate Parody

Kerry Jackson – “Full House” San Francisco Real Estate Parody Remy is world-class clever. In a 90-second video he can say what most writers can’t get across using hundreds of words. Tim Anaya – How USMCA is Good for California Agriculture .mcclatchy-embed{position:relative;padding:40px 0 56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;max-width:100%}.mcclatchy-embed iframe{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%} On a recent trip to ...
Agriculture

What’s missing from claims that neonicotinoids are killing bees, birds and fish?

Pesticides continually get a bad rap, much of it undeserved, some of it bizarre. A recently published study from Japan seems to show that neonicotinoid insecticides (“neonics”), used around the world to protect crops from insect infestations, are so destructive that even before they were on the market or ever used ...
Blog

California Politics in 2019: Not Much To Be Happy About

December is about half gone, and, as the Counting Crows’ Adam Duritz once sang, “it’s getting cold in California.” In another song from the same 1996 album Duritz also sang that it’s been “a long December and there’s reason to believe maybe this year will be better than the last.” ...
Agriculture

A Fishy Study Posits That Pesticides Can Travel Back In Time

It’s not surprising that many people are skeptical about “scientific” findings. A new study from Japan seems to show that neonicotinoid insecticides (“neonics”), used around the world to protect crops from insect infestations, are so destructive that even before they were on the market or ever used in farmers’ fields, ...
Blog

State Leaders Admit California Is Subsidizing the Rich at the Expense of the Poor

You won’t read this headline anytime soon, but it is consistent with the recent changes to California’s electric-car rebate program enacted by the state’s Air Resources Board. Both California and the federal government offer generous tax credits to purchasers of electric vehicles. Until the recent changes, California offered purchasers of ...
Agriculture

Could National Water Pipeline Be the Solution to State’s Water Scarcity?

With nearly 40 million people and more than 70,000 farms taking up nearly 25 million acres, California is always thirsty. It is, as well, mostly dry. Deserts make up one-fourth of the state and semi-arid land occupies up at least that much, if not more. Consequently, water is an ever-unfolding ...
Agriculture

Enacting UBI Would Bust Federal Budget, Rob Americans of More Prosperous Future

I have written before on the benefits and drawbacks of the various universal basic income (UBI) proposals bubbling up the last few years in the American political scene, specifically the economic, political, and moral dimensions of these policies.  All share the same essential structure: cash payments sent to all American ...
Agriculture

A Bold Fix For The West’s Water Woes

The nation’s Western states are facing severe, and worsening, water shortages. There are both consumption and supply problems, and neither will be easy to fix. However, we have a remedy for the latter. More water is used in America per capita than almost anywhere else in the world — more ...
Agriculture

Is It Immoral To Oppose The Use Of Pesticides?

If you were to ask a group of medical professionals to name the most significant public health achievements of the past century, antibiotics and widespread vaccination against infectious diseases would almost certainly top the list. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention2 (CDC) would add motor vehicle safety, fluoridated water, workplace ...
Blackouts

Enjoy 2019’s Best of “Next Round” and “Right by the Bay”

The last week of December is naturally a time to look back on the year that was.  Here at PRI, we are particularly proud of the growing popularity of our weekly “Next Round with PRI” podcast and our daily “Right by the Bay” blog.  Thanks to you, our podcast had ...
Agriculture

What We’re Watching – “Full House” San Francisco Real Estate Parody

Kerry Jackson – “Full House” San Francisco Real Estate Parody Remy is world-class clever. In a 90-second video he can say what most writers can’t get across using hundreds of words. Tim Anaya – How USMCA is Good for California Agriculture .mcclatchy-embed{position:relative;padding:40px 0 56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;max-width:100%}.mcclatchy-embed iframe{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%} On a recent trip to ...
Agriculture

What’s missing from claims that neonicotinoids are killing bees, birds and fish?

Pesticides continually get a bad rap, much of it undeserved, some of it bizarre. A recently published study from Japan seems to show that neonicotinoid insecticides (“neonics”), used around the world to protect crops from insect infestations, are so destructive that even before they were on the market or ever used ...
Blog

California Politics in 2019: Not Much To Be Happy About

December is about half gone, and, as the Counting Crows’ Adam Duritz once sang, “it’s getting cold in California.” In another song from the same 1996 album Duritz also sang that it’s been “a long December and there’s reason to believe maybe this year will be better than the last.” ...
Agriculture

A Fishy Study Posits That Pesticides Can Travel Back In Time

It’s not surprising that many people are skeptical about “scientific” findings. A new study from Japan seems to show that neonicotinoid insecticides (“neonics”), used around the world to protect crops from insect infestations, are so destructive that even before they were on the market or ever used in farmers’ fields, ...
Blog

State Leaders Admit California Is Subsidizing the Rich at the Expense of the Poor

You won’t read this headline anytime soon, but it is consistent with the recent changes to California’s electric-car rebate program enacted by the state’s Air Resources Board. Both California and the federal government offer generous tax credits to purchasers of electric vehicles. Until the recent changes, California offered purchasers of ...
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