Opinions
Editorial: Another paradise burning
Butte County can relate to the devastation wrought by the wildfire in Maui better than arguably any other community in the world. For anyone who lived here during the 2018 Camp Fire, the videos shared […]
drought
News
Higher fines for water scofflaws?
By Rachel Becker (for Cal Matters) CalMatters is an independent public journalism venture covering California state politics and government. For more info, visit calmatters.org. When ranchers violated an emergency order to stop pumping water from the […]
News
Crash course in water
Jim Brobeck is a long-time Butte County water advocate, water policy analyst for AquAlliance, and the environmental community representative on the Stakeholders Advisory Committee for the Vina Groundwater Sustainability Agency. The mature urban forest of […]
Arts & Culture
Hot tomato
It’s May, and the initial tomato frenzy has died down. The nurseries have sold the bulk of their tomato starts, and most are likely in the ground, already showing several blossoms. Your tomato plants no […]
News
No California salmon
This story was produced by CalMatters, an independent public journalism venture covering California state politics and government. For more info, visit calmatters.org. Most summer mornings at first light, Jared Davis is a few miles west of […]
News
California storms create water paradox
This story was produced by CalMatters, an independent public journalism venture covering California state politics and government. For more info, visit calmatters.org. Two winters’ worth of snow has already fallen in the Sierra Nevada since Christmas, […]
News
Governor waives water rules
This story was produced by CalMatters, an independent public journalism venture covering California state politics and government. For more info, visit calmatters.org. Facing an onslaught of criticism that water was “wasted” during January storms, Gov. Gavin […]
News
Still dry in California
This story was produced by CalMatters, an independent public journalism venture covering California state politics and government. For more info, visit calmatters.org. The powerful storms that clobbered California for weeks in December and January dropped trillions […]
Opinions
Letters to the editor: Feb. 2, 2023
Voices against Valley’s Edge Except for the four years I spent attending UC Santa Cruz, I have spent my entire life in Chico. I was born at Enloe Medical Center. As anyone who’s been here […]
Opinions
Editorial: Being wise with our water
Fire season came early this year. As Howard Hardee details in this issue’s feature story (“The watcher”), North State smoke spotter Ken Jordan took his post in early May—month of the region’s biggest blaze so […]
News
‘Everyone loses’
by Rachel Becker for CalMatters CalMatters is an independent public journalism venture covering California state politics and government. For more info, visit calmatters.org. Standing on the grassy plateau where water is piped onto his property, Josh […]
News
Snow falling
By Rachel Becker for CalMatters CalMatters is an independent public journalism venture covering California state politics and government. For more info, visit calmatters.org. Packed onto the slopes of the Sierra Nevada is a precious source of […]
Opinions
‘Hour of reckoning’ for small farms
Sometimes when I’m selling at the farmers market, people ask if our tomatoes are dry farmed. No, they aren’t. Dry farming is a method of growing crops so that they develop deep roots that can […]
News
A dry state
A drought-stricken Lake Oroville was barely visible through smoky skies on Thursday (Aug. 19) from a vantage point off Oro Quincy Highway. Air quality reached unhealthy levels in Butte County due to smoke from multiple wildfires, […]
News