Archinect - News

What California's 30 million dead trees mean for its future landscape

2016-06-15T15:23:00-04:00

CALIFORNIA WON’T BE throwing much shade this summer. It would need trees to do that. Last year almost 30 million trees died in the Golden State—and that number is expected to double or triple by the end of 2016. The high mortality rates come at a time when the state needs healthy forests most, with climate change looming always and a La Niña—El Niño’s dry hermana—on the way.

"The likely outcome? California’s landscape will radically transform, starting with a surge of wildfires that will trigger mudslides, diminished water quality, and the rise of new vegetation."

For more news from the dried out Golden State, check out these links:

Cliff-side apartments on the brink of collapse following El Niño storms in California

2016-01-29T13:24:00-05:00

California apartments with commanding views of the Pacific are now in danger of collapsing into the ocean. Erosion blamed on El Niño rains is tearing away at the cliffs of Pacifica, just outside San Francisco. Drone footage shows how volatile the situation is, and how close to the literal edge some apartments are

Have these heavy rains alleviated the California drought?

2016-01-19T20:45:00-05:00

...this week's higher temperatures and sunny skies serve as a reminder that one watery week doesn't erase the years of hardcore drought that have dragged on in SoCal and all of California. The record-breaking rains are a reason to be excited, certainly, but "Although this is a favorable start to the year, there are still 3-4 more critical months that will determine how much rain/snow will fall and accumulate during the wet season," [says] David Miskus, a meteorologist ...

Relevant:

To better predict sea level rise, scientists resort to crowdsourcing and ask drone owners to help create data

2016-01-19T14:24:00-05:00

Using drones for aerial photography has been a source of controversy for several years now. But amid increasing concerns over privacy and safety, some conservation scientists are hoping drone owners will help them to document sea level rise. With an expected increase in storm activity in the Pacific Ocean this winter, scientists believe they are getting a glimpse of the impacts of climate change on coastlines.

To see an interactive example of a DroneDeploy-stitched high-resolution map, click here.

Fatal shores? Sea snakes wash up on Southern California beaches

2015-11-10T18:38:00-05:00

For the first time since the early 1970s, a highly venomous sea snake has turned up on a southern California beach—the latest in a string of unusual wildlife sightings, including hammerhead sharks and red-footed boobies. Though a bite from this yellow-bellied snake can theoretically be lethal, shutting down all nerve signals to the respiratory system, “Jaws” this is not: the snake attacks only when provoked, and no one has ever documented a human fatality from Pelamis platura.

According to the Economist, the sea snakes and other unusual sea creatures popping up along the coast of Southern California are a symptom of the emergence of a mass of warm water, which may likely lead up to one of the most intense El Niño's in memory.

"This snake, which typically lives in tropical waters, has never before turned up so far north (in this hemisphere at least). While it is not clear what has brought it to Ventura County, experts say its arrival is a symptom of the record high ocean temperatures along the west coast. The phenomenon, climate scientists say, appeared in 2013 with the emergence of “the blob”, a large mass of warm water (four or five degrees Fahrenheit hotter than average) in the Pacific Ocean."