Amid all the heartbreaking news about the Los Angeles wildfires, you might have also seen some online chatter about Stewart and Lynda Resnick of the Wonderful Company and the influence they have on California’s water system.
Most of these posts and videos are loosely citing several articles that I’ve written over the past decade for Forbes. And while the Resnicks do have an outsized amount of power within the world of California water politics, they are not responsible for fire hydrants in the Pacific Palisades running out of water.
I explain it all—along with what’s really been malfunctioning and how LA’s emergency water network could better adapt to climate change—in my latest story.
And since it was published on Monday, the Wonderful Company has committed $10 million to Los Angeles fire relief efforts, including $1 million to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation and $500,000 to the Los Angeles Police Foundation.
My story focused on whether the fires spread due to a water shortage, and it turns out that was a major misconception going viral. The reservoirs in LA are actually full, but there are major infrastructure problems when it comes to fighting a fire of this size.
Yet what several experts told me is startling: In America, there’s been too much of a focus on mitigating climate change, such as by cutting greenhouse gas emissions. But there hasn’t been nearly enough focus on adapting to the impacts of climate change, whether that’s through water security, wildfire fighting or coastal resilience amid sea level rise.
As Dr. Mark Gold, director of Water Scarcity Solutions for the Natural Resources Defense Council told me this week: “We are seeing the climate whiplash more and more.”
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— Chloe Sorvino, Staff Writer
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The Feed
As The Fires Rage, California’s Governor And A Billionaire Couple Get The Blame
There are misconceptions circulating about who’s at fault for the fires burning tens of thousands of acres across Los Angeles.
How The Los Angeles Wildfires Threaten Food Safety
The United States Department of Agriculture warns that wildfires, such as those raging in the Los Angeles area, can render food in homes unsafe to eat.
FDA Bans Red No. 3, Leaving 8 Synthetic Dyes In America’s Food
With Wednesday’s ban of Red No. 3, there are now eight artificial dyes in America’s food supply. Discover what dyes remain, the health risk to humans and the companies involved.
This Is The Human Face Of Acute Food Insecurity In Gaza
A first-person account of what it feels like to be a survivor of famine and ongoing acute food insecurity, by 20-year-old Islam Maher Abu Sakran, a resident of Gaza.
Alcohol Causes Cancer: U.S. Surgeon General’s Warning, Explained
The U.S. Surgeon General has found a link between alcohol to cancer risks. As Americans drink less, what’s replacing booze, and how are generational shifts shaping drinking culture?
FIELD NOTES
I love Seattle, and it was a dream come true to do a talk for my paperback at Book Larder there. After the event, some close friends and I ate dinner down the street at Le Coin, and we loved this crispy octopus atop creamy white beans.
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Chloe Sorvino leads coverage of food and agriculture as a staff writer on the enterprise team at Forbes. Her book, Raw Deal: Hidden Corruption, Corporate Greed and the Fight for the Future of Meat, published on December 6, 2022, with Simon & Schuster’s Atria Books. Her nearly nine years of reporting at Forbes has brought her to In-N-Out Burger’s secret test kitchen, drought-ridden farms in California’s Central Valley, burnt-out national forests logged by a timber billionaire, a century-old slaughterhouse in Omaha and even a chocolate croissant factory designed like a medieval castle in northern France.
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