Greg Pierce

Our Nature Water comment “Redefining expectations for urban water supply systems to fight wildfire” is out ⬇️. I started working on this w/ @edithdeguzman.bsky.social and @mullinmeg.bsky.social 10 days after the fires started. We lay out 3 major implications from the fires for water supply systems

the legal implications of the split incentive are an impediment to renters' environmental and affordability transitions, part 862 www.latimes.com/environment/...

Good story on lithium, water, and communities in the American West.

apnews.com/article/yeme...

More extreme heat, drought and beach erosion could hit SoCal within two decades, a new state report finds. 🔗 vist.ly/5pjeb ✍️ Kevin Tidmarsh 📸 Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

So much going on in this story, but TL;DR Lake County doing and considering some fascinating things at the water-energy-wildfire fighting nexus www.pressdemocrat.com/2026/10/21/l...

"Going beyond recent warnings by the International Energy Agency, our results suggest that staying below 1.5°C may require governments & companies not only to cease licensing & development of new fields & mines, but also to prematurely decommission a significant portion of those already developed"

What happens when your water institutions are weak, infrastructure is inadequate, regulations ignored, and managers fail? People get sick: apnews.com/article/sout...

www.circleofblue.org/2026/supply/...

thelalocal.org/los-angeles-...

www.yahoo.com/news/us/arti...

So far, we’re drier than Las Vegas, which has seen 15 times our rainfall this month, San Diego with 13 times as much, and Phoenix with five.

www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2026/...

Grid batteries are safer than ever, but high-profile fires at Moss Landing and other California sites have sparked fears. Here's how clean energy groups are building trust and support for projects vital to getting cleaner, more reliable energy: californiawire.substack.com/p/what-to-sa... #energysky

El Niño, extreme high tides and sea level rise: "This is what it’s going to look like every winter, in less than a generation." @rosannaxia.bsky.social www.latimes.com/environment/...

I was in a room with billionaires today. In a discussion of #cawater, two of them complained about their household water bills

Another danger of climate change just dropped.

apnews.com/article/iowa...

Gasoline-only cars now make up just 49% of global new vehicle sales, down from 73% in 2021: electrek.co/2026/10/05/g...

Black communities in the South are also disproportionately withheld the human right to sanitation access.

This is mostly due to groundwater extraction btw.

State auditor often comes in off the top rope without context but still a major concern calmatters.org/environment/...

Cutting the diesel tax doesn't make the cost disappear. Who's gonna pay for road repairs? https://newsletter.platypuseconomics.com/p/the-kim-kardashian-problem-in-welfare

www.bbc.com/news/article...

This willl work out well, if passed! subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2026...

Nine Long Beach Peninsula buildings are red-tagged after Tropical Storm Rachel. 🔗 What’s next: vist.ly/5n3r9 ✍️ John Donegan | Long Beach Post 📸 Thomas R. Cordova / Long Beach Post

Looking forward to living in America City on the shores of Lake America with a view of many Mounts America in the America Range, & the America Rivers that will flow across the America Plains, dividing toward the America Oceans to the east and west and north and south www.nytimes.com/2026/09/07/u...

FACULTY JOB ALERT: @bloustein.rutgers.edu assistant professor position in climate change + planning law jobs.rutgers.edu/postings/282...

voiceofsandiego.org/2026/10/07/h...

As winter approaches, rising energy costs could put even greater pressure on American families. In a TIME op-ed, Faculty Director Sanya Carley examines how the war in Iran is driving up heating costs—and why households already struggling are likely to feel the effects most acutely.

Hurricanes, wildfires, and flooding pose growing risks to Latino homeowners, who often face greater exposure and barriers to recovery. This Urban report explores the impacts and offers policy solutions to enhance resilience and long-term housing stability. #Climate #Housing #Communities

The Northeast’s reliance on heating oil is turning into a crisis

Meanwhile in France: "More than 83,000 residents are relying on emergency measures – a 30% increase since the start of the month. These measures primarily include deliveries by tanker trucks or the provision of bottled water." www.lemonde.fr/en/environme...

Don’t have a cute name for this water – climate -child safety nexus www.bbc.co.uk/news/resourc...

My hot take on this is that it certainly contains some interesting details, but: 1. Didn’t actually move the needle vs exhaustive, blow by blow reporting by @latimes.com et al 2. The recommendations are a laundry list with no prioritization 3. would have been much more useful 6 to 12 months ago.

On September 29, Governor Newsom signed SB1093 - "Mobilehome Parks: Disaster Assistance." This bill is the result of hard work from MH leaders in Los Angeles, Ben Allen's office, nphs, and (most especially) Ryan Sears! Many congratulations! Read more here: www.gov.ca.gov/2026/09/29/g...

not helping, @theonion.com

This is a big deal for building decarbonization! AB 2313 has the potential to both speed up appliance replacement and help shift the incentives that keep gas utilities from coming to the table to confront long-term decline. Congratulations to all the advocates!

www.bbc.com/news/article...

If you're in LA or at UCLA, a reminder that this event is tonight! Would love to see you there. I'm also meeting informally with Scripps colleagues tomorrow morning + packing in another big talk and two more meetings.

My former colleagues, Mark Cane and Stephen Zebiak, were the first to successfully predict El Niño more than a year in advance in the late 1980s. Now we’re really good at it, and know the consequences. It’d be irresponsible for governments not to take action. Read this from my buddy Jeff Shaman.