California

Wonder Stump Road passes beneath a canopy of needled redwood boughs that scatter sunbeams and cast an otherworldy green hue.A drive along the narrow one-lane road is quiet. Tranquil.But these days, terse hand-painted signs poke out from driveways of homes tucked in the woods.We like our trees right where they ARE Advertisement LEAVE OUR TREES ALONE!!In this sparsely populated, economically depressed northwest corner of California, people don’t have the tourist attractions that urbanites brag about. There are no five-star restaurants, no world-famous museums or amusement parks, no nightlife scene.What people do have to boast about are trees — California’s iconic coast redwoods, the tallest trees on Earth. Wonder Stump Road is lined on both sides by them.In a region transformed by logging over the last century, residents have long worried that someone was going to come along and chop down the so-called tree tunnel of Wonder Stump Road. Those fears were heightened last … [Read more...] about In Northern California logging country, residents brace for a fight over their ‘magical’ redwood-lined road

About 100 people gathered closely under dozens of towering redwoods one recent morning to witness the removal of a California mission bell from the UC Santa Cruz campus. Getting to that point took more than a year of discussions between the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band and the university, and it may have been the first removal of one of hundreds of iconic cast-iron bell markers dotting the landscape from San Diego to Sonoma County. “I passed by this bell a lot,” said Julisa Lopez, 22, a 2018 UC Santa Cruz graduate and member of the Amah Mutsun. She traveled from Seattle to attend the ceremony. “Just walking by and knowing that this is what’s valued in society was really tough.” The removal was the latest in an ongoing reassessment of how Californians commemorate the important but tainted role that the missions — 21 Catholic outposts built by the Spanish during the 18th and 19th centuries — played in the state’s history. Universities are … [Read more...] about As tensions flare over monuments, universities target California’s mission past

SACRAMENTO — Even in an eco-conscious city like San Francisco, more than 9,000 tons of recyclables are dumped in landfills every year largely due to one culprit: flimsy plastics. Low-grade plastics, such as shopping bags, padded online shipping envelopes and food packaging, are piling up in recycling centers. Part of the reason is that overseas markets such as China and the Philippines — which used to buy America’s trash by the shipload — are turning most plastics away. California lawmakers say the state must act to stop plastics from crowding landfills and polluting the ocean. They’ve proposed sweeping legislation to require manufacturers to reduce the reliance on single-use plastics. Supporters say the legislation reflects a game-changing realization: Supposedly recyclable plastic shipped overseas for decades often was never easily recycled. Instead, it polluted other countries. That’s because the low-grade material has little value — … [Read more...] about California takes on an ocean of plastic waste, considers crackdown on industry

For years, I’ve told children, newspaper editors, and other credulous people that I’m the Joe of Trader Joe’s. That’s a lie. But it’s true that the store and I grew up in the very same neighborhood. As a Pasadena child, I would ride my bike two blocks from my house to the Trader Joe’s on Arroyo Parkway — the original store, opened by San Diego native and Stanford alum Joe Coulombe in 1967. Back then, it seemed like a cluttered and unremarkable place, mostly good for snacks. So I’ve watched its growth — to 480-plus stores across 41 states — with the wonder with which you might follow a neighborhood boy’s transformation into a movie star. In its success, Trader Joe’s has offered a rebuttal to the conventional wisdom about our state’s greatness. While our leaders say California is great because of its size, diversity, technology and limitless choices, Trader Joe’s has achieved greatness with a narrow … [Read more...] about How Trader Joe’s exploits two California fantasies

Cannabis at an Oakland cannabis business, on Monday, Sept. 19, 2016 in Oakland, Calif. The business is seeking city permits, so it can operate legally under California's new marijuana laws. Cannabis at an Oakland cannabis business, on Monday, Sept. 19, 2016 in Oakland, Calif. The business is seeking city permits, so it can operate legally under California's new marijuana laws. Photo: Santiago Mejia, Special To The Chronicle Photo: Santiago Mejia, Special To The Chronicle Image 1 of / 85 Caption Close Image 1 of 85 Cannabis at an Oakland cannabis business, on Monday, Sept. 19, 2016 in Oakland, Calif. The business is seeking city permits, so it can operate legally under California's new marijuana laws. Cannabis at an Oakland cannabis business, on Monday, Sept. 19, 2016 in Oakland, Calif. The … [Read more...] about California votes to legalize marijuana