Environment

A person with gray hair wearing a dark jacket and white shirt looks slightly past the camera with their mouth slightly open, set against a blurred background.

Environment

Newsom signs climate overhaul, extending cap and trade while boosting oil drilling

A set of laws Gov. Gavin Newsom signed today extends California clean-energy programs while taking steps to shore up oil and gas production. It also opens the door to a Western energy grid.

By

Jeanne Kuang

and

Cayla Mihalovich

• September 19, 2025

The California Air Resources Board meets at the California Environmental Protection Agency building in Sacramento on June 23, 2022. Photo by Rahul Lal, CalMatters

Climate Change

Newsom taps climate ‘architect’ to lead California air board as Trump fights heat up

At the state’s top air regulator, Lauren Sanchez will replace Liane Randolph, taking the helm as California battles Trump, rising costs, and the future of its climate agenda.

By

Alejandro Lazo

• September 19, 2025

An industrial geothermal plant emits thick white steam into the air at sunset, with a vast, arid landscape stretching into the distance. The facility consists of metal pipes, large storage tanks, and temporary structures, with scattered equipment on the dirt ground. A mountain range and a body of water are visible on the horizon, bathed in soft golden light.

Environment

When lithium mining starts, who benefits, and who’s at risk? Inside this Salton Sea case.

Two non-profits filed arguments with the Fourth District Court of Appeal last week, asking the court to reconsider a claim they filed in 2024 that the environmental impact report for the Hell’s Kitchen lithium mine near the Salton Sea neglects potential problems with air quality, water use, hazardous materials and tribal cultural resources.

By

Deborah Brennan

• September 18, 2025

A small airplane flying over the skyline of Los Angeles during a warm-looking sunset, depicting oranges and yellows on a smoggy-looking day.

Environment

Lawmakers send Newsom a high-stakes energy overhaul tied to wildfires, utilities and oil

California lawmakers passed a six-bill climate and energy package extending cap and trade to 2045, expanding the state's wildfire fund, approving new oil drilling, and opening the door to a regional power market.

By

Alejandro Lazo

and

Jeanne Kuang

• September 13, 2025

A construction worker in an orange hoodie and reflective vest bends forward while digging with a shovel at a dirt worksite, wearing a hard hat with stickers. Another worker is visible in the background near equipment and green construction materials.

Politics

In last-minute scramble, California lawmakers fail to deliver promised environmental reform

Despite a last-minute scramble, California Senate leaders failed to fix an environmental law rollback for advanced manufacturing, leaving pollution concerns untouched as session ends.

By

Yue Stella Yu

and

Alejandra Reyes-Velarde

• September 12, 2025

An aerial view of a solar farm amongst farmland with a mountain range spread out on the horizon in the distance.

Water

California may help solar bloom where water runs dry

The state's farmers are divided over a bill that would loosen rules protecting agricultural land. The goal of a bill proposed by Assembly Democrat Buffy Wicks is to seed solar farms on fallowed fields.

By

Rachel Becker

• September 11, 2025

The Chevron refinery in Richmond is located behind a neighborhood on Feb. 21, 2024. Photo by Loren Elliott for CalMatters

Politics

Newsom strikes climate deal extending California cap and trade, boosting oil production

After weeks of tense and messy negotiations, California’s legislative leaders finally released several proposals that range from expanding domestic crude oil production to lowering electricity rates. But the biggest barrier was the reauthorization of the state’s cap and trade program.

By

Maya C. Miller

,

Alejandro Lazo

and

Jeanne Kuang

• September 10, 2025

A blue and white sign reading "No Tunnel – One Tunnel is One Too Many!" is posted on a wooden stake in a grassy field. The sign also features the phrase "Save Our Delta" in red text at the top and a website address at the bottom. The background consists of a lush green field with a wire fence, a distant road, and a few vehicles visible under a bright blue sky. Sunlight casts shadows on the sign and the grass.

Environment

Newsom’s bid to fast-track Delta tunnel stalls again

Water wonks say the proposal to speed the multibillion Delta tunnel project could rise again. ‘This is the zombie offspring of the zombie project,’ one opponent said.

By

Rachel Becker

• September 10, 2025

Students, some sitting and some standing, write on individual pieces of paper while they work on an assignment inside a classroom. The room is decorates with hand-drawn paper butterflies and multi-colored round laterns.

K-12 Education

Seven years after California’s deadliest fire, schools — and kids — are still recovering

One of the deadliest wildfires in U.S. history, the Camp Fire is among the many natural disasters that have upended student learning over the past decade.

By

Carolyn Jones

,

Megan Tagami

and

Sharon Lurye

• September 10, 2025

The Salton Sea at Bombay Beach on Feb. 4, 2023. Photo by Ariana Drehsler for CalMatters

Health

The rotten egg smell at the Salton Sea isn’t just a nuisance. It can make people sick.

UCLA researchers have found that hydrogen sulfide emissions at the Salton Sea are at elevated levels and can cause serious health effects to those that live near the lake.

By

Deborah Brennan

• September 10, 2025