COVID-19 crisis in Los Angeles: Why activating 'crisis standards of care' is crucial for overwhelmed hospitals

States and hospitals are starting to declare 'crisis standards of care' as the pandemic floods their ERs. The orders have consequences – both good and bad, as a medical ethicist explains.

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health public-health covid-19 coronavirus ethics pandemic disaster crisis california los-angeles medical-ethics

How curators transferred Sequoia and King's Canyon National Parks' archives to escape wildfires

The curator at UC Merced describes the evacuation and shows a selection of photographs from the 110-year history of the park.

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We’ll see more fire seasons like 2020 - here’s a strategy for managing our nation’s flammable landscapes

A fire scientists offers a six-point strategy for preventing wildfires and living safely in flammable landscapes.

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Oil field operations likely triggered earthquakes in California a few miles from the San Andreas Fault

California was thought to be an exception, a place where oil field operations and tectonic faults apparently coexisted without much problem. Not any more.

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earthquakes seismology oil natural-disasters california natural-gas fossil-fuel-industry seismic-activity drilling

Wildfires can leave toxic drinking water behind – here's how to protect the public

Two environmental engineers say governments need to do more to protect people from possible water contamination after wildfires.

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Climate change and forest management have both fueled today's epic Western wildfires

Debating whether climate change or forest management has caused the devastating wildfires in California, Washington and Oregon is a false choice.

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Coping with Western wildfires: 5 essential reads

How climate change and other human actions have combined to create conditions for explosive wildfires in California, Oregon and Washington state.

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Wildfires can poison drinking water – here's how communities can be better prepared

Buildings aren't the only things at risk in wildfires. Recent disasters in California have left local water system contaminated with toxic chemicals afterward, slowing return and recovery.

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How California’s COVID-19 surge widens health inequalities for Black, Latino and low-income residents

California’s COVID-19 disparities are sobering. Everyone is at risk, but low-income, Black and Latino residents are dying at higher rates.

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health covid-19 coronavirus pandemic health-disparities california ethnicity state

National parks – even Mount Rushmore – show that there's more than one kind of patriotism

President Trump is scheduled to appear at an Independence Day celebration at Mount Rushmore on July 3. For some, this event will symbolize love of country. Others will see it very differently.

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