Category: Policy Update

Read this Bay Story in English → Desde la protección contra el calor extremo hasta la promoción del tránsito activo el enverdecimiento urbano puede proporcionar muchos beneficios de resiliencia climática. Mientras Save The Bay aboga por que se dé prioridad a el enverdecimiento urbano en San José, queremos asegurarnos de que estamos avanzando en soluciones respaldadas por la comunidad. La comunidad Latinx es uno de los grupos demográficos más grandes de San José [1],  y queremos que nuestro trabajo se base en sus comentarios. Recientemente, le dimos prioridad a los comentarios de los residentes del este de San José, donde …

Read More

Lea este “Bay Story” en Español → From protecting against extreme heat to promoting active transit, urban greening can provide many climate resilience benefits. As Save The Bay advocates for urban greening to be prioritized in San Jose, we want to ensure that we’re advancing community-supported solutions. The Latinx community is one of San Jose’s largest demographics [1], and we want our work to be informed by their feedback. Recently, we prioritized obtaining feedback from residents of East San Jose, where a lack of tree cover and historic underinvestment in infrastructure leave residents more exposed to flooding, extreme heat, and …

Read More

King Tides dramatically arrived in early December causing widespread flooding across the Bay Area region [1]. These exceptionally high tides provide us with an important glimpse into our future. You may have encountered flooded sidewalks as you walked along the Embarcadero in San Francisco, or had to drive through an inundated North San Pedro Road in China Camp State Park, or even seen water rising up to seating areas along Jack London Square in Oakland. All of this flooding was caused by King Tides, which occur twice each year when the moon, sun, and Earth align to create the strongest …

Read More

Read this Bay Story in English → En los últimos años, las señales del cambio climático se han manifestado de maneras imposibles de ignorar para cualquiera. Los residentes del Área de la Bahía han estado sujetos a semanas de cielos con humo, mala calidad de aire y calor intenso. Pronto el aumento de las inundaciones por tormentas y el aumento del nivel del mar se convertirán también en la nueva norma. Algunas ciudades locales han demostrado un gran liderazgo reduciendo la contribución de nuestra región al problema climático. San José en particular ha adoptado un plan ambicioso llamado “Climate Smart …

Read More

Fall has arrived and it is a great time of year to get out and explore the Bay. But with days shortening, Halloween looming just around the corner, and rain finally returning after a long dry spell, something particularly scary happens during this time of year – at least for those of us who worry about water quality in the Bay. The first storms of the season create a phenomenon called the “first flush”. That is the flushing out of all the trash and other pollution that has built up on our city streets over the dry season. Think of …

Read More

Lea este “Bay Story” en Español → Over the past few years, the signs of our rapidly warming climate have manifested in ways impossible for anyone to ignore. Bay Area residents have been subjected to weeks of smoky skies, poor air quality, and intense heat, and soon increased flooding from storms and sea level rise will become the new norm. Some local cities have shown great leadership in reducing our region’s contribution to the climate problem. San Jose in particular has adopted an ambitious plan called Climate Smart San Jose that makes the city a trailblazer in cutting carbon emissions. While plans …

Read More

We knew this was coming. This month, Governor Newsom announced the extension of a drought emergency declaration to 50 of California’s 58 counties and asked residents statewide to reduce water usage by at least 15%. That means that every Bay Area county except one (San Francisco) is now under the state’s drought emergency declaration. Local water agencies have gone even further by seeking greater reductions and imposing limitations on outdoor water use. Drought is not unfamiliar to Californians. Our state’s climate has historically been characterized by extended dry periods broken up by rainy years. But it is now clear that …

Read More

This week the House of Representatives took a big step toward providing urgently needed funding to restore San Francisco Bay and prepare the Bay Area for the threats of climate change and sea level rise. The House passed the San Francisco Bay Restoration Act (HR610), sponsored by Rep. Jackie Speier. HR610 authorizes $125 million over five years for wetland restoration, water quality improvement, and climate adaptation. It also creates a new permanent San Francisco Bay program office within the Environmental Protection Agency. We are grateful to Rep. Speier for leading this effort in Congress, and for the support of Speaker …

Read More

Housing may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Save The Bay, but how we plan and build housing in the Bay Area is critically important to how we protect and restore the Bay and prepare our region for the growing impacts of climate change. The San Francisco Bay has long attracted people looking to enjoy its beautiful setting and economic opportunities. Unfortunately, the way that our communities have developed has been inconsistent, inequitable, and unsustainable largely due to exclusionary zoning practices that have contributed to the current housing crises. The effects of these …

Read More

Thanks to you, Save The Bay accomplished some incredible things this year and made strides towards building a healthy, equitable San Francisco Bay.  This work is only possible with your support. Make a year-end gift today to continue and accelerate our work protecting and restoring our region. Donate Now → Take a walk along the Bay Trail and it’s easy to marvel at the beauty of the San Francisco Bay. But it’s also obvious how human development has shaped the area. Where there was once a flourishing expanse of tidal wetlands and mudflats, the Bay shoreline today is dominated by …

Read More