Here are the morning’s top stories on Friday, October 25, 2024…
- The U.S. Forest Service this week directed its employees in California to stop prescribed burning “for the foreseeable future,” a directive that officials said is meant to preserve staff and equipment to fight wildfires if needed.
- Californians will vote on ten statewide ballot propositions this fall. Among them is Proposition 3, which would enshrine the right to same-sex marriage in the California constitution.
- Voter support appears to be waning for a ballot measure that would increase the state’s minimum wage.
- The McDonald’s Corporation says a Salinas-based company, Taylor Farms, is the source of onions linked to an E. Coli food poisoning outbreak at its restaurants.
Forest Service Halts Prescribed Burns In California. Is It Worth The Risk?
This week, the U.S. Forest Service directed its employees in California to stop prescribed burning “for the foreseeable future,” a directive that officials said is meant to preserve staff and equipment to fight wildfires if needed.
The pause comes amid the crucial fall window for planned, controlled burns, which remove fuel and can protect homes from future wildfires — raising concerns that the move will increase long-term fire risks.
“There are two times in the year when it’s safe to do prescribed fire: in the fall right before the rains come, and in the spring when things are dry enough to burn but not dry enough to burn it in a dangerous way,” said Michael Wara, energy and climate expert at Stanford University. He worries half of the prescribed fire season on federal lands will be sacrificed because of this decision. “There is a risk aversion here that’s really damaging. The reality is, if there are mistakes on prescribed fires, people are likely to face consequences, even when those mistakes turn out to be positive,” Wara said.
Californians To Vote On Same-Sex Marriage Proposition
Among the statewide measures on the November ballot is Proposition 3. It would enshrine the right to same-sex marriage into the California constitution, repealing Proposition 8 — a measure approved by voters in 2008 that defined marriage as between a man and a woman. In practice, the ballot measure would not change who can marry.