Stories by Anne C. Mulkern

With wildfires turning forests into “massive carbon emitters,” planting trees in some places could inadvertently increase carbon emissions, a new report says

President Donald Trump’s sudden move to freeze federal grants is hitting states where people are struggling to recover from wildfires and hurricanes

The Small Business Association has announced that loans to those affected by hurricanes and other disasters have been halted to wait for more money from Congress. But the House speaker says nothing will happen until after the presidential election

Without more funding, FEMA may be forced to restrict spending and suspend rebuilding projects

Stanford University researchers found high levels of the carcinogen benzene in California and Colorado homes that used gas stoves

A new analysis finds that dry air and record-breaking temperatures linked to climate change have led to more frequent severe fires in California

A new bill in California proposes making electric vehicles a backup power source for the electric grid—an idea that has promise but has to overcome several technological hurdles, experts say

California state regulators are expected to approve regulations imposing stricter climate rules on trains and trucks, but the charging infrastructure to power them is lacking

A near-record amount of snow in California could ease some water restrictions after years of climate-change-fueled drought

Officials say climate change is driving an increase in dry wells in drought-stricken California

The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously on Friday to ban new oil and gas wells in the city and eventually close existing ones

Though California has seen millions of acres burn from wildfires in recent years as a changing climate brings high temperatures and persistent drought, several factors led to a quiet 2022 fire season

California is experiencing more wildfires, illness and drought as the impacts of climate change accelerate

Record-breaking wildfires released twice the amount of emissions that California cut between 2003 and 2019, though unlike fossil-fuel emissions, they can eventually be reabsorbed by vegetation

The record-smashing temperatures in the Pacific Northwest last year were an extraordinarily rare occurrence even in the age of climate change

Officials are urging California residents to curtail their energy use as the state faces this summer’s highest chance of outages during record-breaking temperatures

Scientists say the current drought in the West is the region’s driest 22-year stretch in more than 1,200 years

Energy planners are working to increase the grid’s reliability to keep the power on during droughts, wildfires and heat waves

As of April 1, statewide snowpack stood at just 38 percent of the average for that date

Blazes burned more than three million acres last year—nearly the size of Connecticut

Without enough capacity to meet demand, energy utilities may have to stage rolling blackouts during heat waves

The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to end drilling in the city for public health reasons

The report follows a heat wave that killed hundreds across the western U.S. this summer

The program will be the nation’s largest attempt to reduce methane emissions from rotting food in landfills