Yosemite Blog

Category: Environment

  • Schwarzenegger Calls for More Dams Like Hetch Hetchy

    Hetch Hetchy was once a beautiful valley much like Yosemite until the City of San Francisco decided to damn the Tuolumne River and create a resevoir after the 1906 earthquake destroyed much of the city. Photo by Steve Ryan. Governor Schwarzenegger says he’ll block any proposal to overhaul the state’s water supply if it doesn’t…

  • Geology Nuts Go Nuts Over Latest Yosemite Rock Fall

    There are only 3 things that’ll really excite a geologist: 1) volcanic activity (muahahahha), 2) massive earthquakes, 3) massive rock falls. Needless to say last weeks Ahwiyah Point rock fall has geology nuts pouring in from all over. One nut in particular, my former Geology Professor Garry Hayes, posted some great photos and narratives from…

  • Give a Little Green, Get a Little Greener

    Times are tough for everyone that’s why every penny counts. So how would you feel about being able to save some money AND give back to our national parks? Macy’s has teamed up with the National Park Foundation and other local charities which do work in our national parks as part of their Turn Over…

  • Snow – You Have to See to Believe

    I really love the work Steven Bumgardner (@YosemiteSteve if you’re on Twitter) is doing on the Yosemite Nature Notes videos. The most recent title, Snow, is a BEAUTIFUL look at snow in Yosemite. Take a few minutes and watch. It’s GREAT video and it makes you wish you could have been there. By the way,…

  • SF Drops Plan to Drain Tuolumne

    In a shallow victory for environmentalists and those of us who live along the Tuolumne, San Francisco’s Public Utilities Commission has dropped plans to siphon off an additional 25 million gallons of water a day from the already flagging river. East Bay Express: “San Francisco’s plan to take an additional 25 million gallons of water…

  • SF Approves $4.4 Billion For Hetch Hetchy Project

    The San Francisco planning and public utilities commissions approved a $4.4 billion dollar plan to upgrade the Hetch Hetchy water system, rebuild the dam on the Calaveras River and allow the city to draw more water from the already endangered Tuolumne during drought years. San Jose Mercury News: “The city’s planning and public utilities commissions…

  • Toyota Donates More Than $600,000 and 5 Hybrid Vehicles to Yosemite

    The Yosemite Fund was presented with a check totaling more than $600,000 and five Toyota Prius vehicles this morning at a press conference held at the University of California at Merced. In addition, Yosemite National Park and UC Merced unveiled plans for the grant which will support a number of environmental leadership and education programs…

  • What Do You Want to Do About the Tuolumne

    After a long delay due to the setbacks with the Merced River Plan the Tuolumne River Plan is opening for comment with a host of workshops being held up in Tuolumne Meadows and the Planning Workbook being released in July. TUOLUMNE RIVER PLAN NEWS Yosemite’s Division of Planning is pleased to announce the summer public…

  • NPS Looking For Feedback on High Elevation Aquatic Resources Plan

    Yosemite National Park is preparing a High-Elevation Aquatic Resources Management Plan and Environmental Assessment (EA) to guide management actions by the National Park Service to protect Yosemite’s diverse high-elevation aquatic ecosystems and to restore natural composition, structure and function to systems that have been disturbed by past or ongoing human activities. The plan will include…

  • Tuolumne River Planning Session Canceled

    If you were planning on participating in the Tuolumne Public Planning Workshop scheduled for Saturday, April 12 from 9 am to 4 pm in the Yosemite Valley Visitor Center Auditorium go ahead and make other plans. The workshop has been canceled. Tuolumne Planning Blog (U.S. National Park Service): “As a result last week’s ruling from…