East County Magazine

MASS FIRINGS NEGATIVELY IMPACT NATIONAL PARKS, FORESTS, OTHER PUBLIC LANDS
Printer-friendly versionBy Miriam Raftery Photo via Alt National Park Service: upside down flag hung by employees at Yosemite National Park signals dire distress February 25, 2025 (Washington D.C.) – In what’s been dubbed a Valentine’s Day massacre, Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has fired 1,000 National Park Service employees from the nation’s 63 national parks, plus another 2,000

READER’S EDITORIAL: MUSK POSES THREAT TO CRITICAL CLIMATE DATA
Printer-friendly version By Roger Coppock Image: measurements in Hawaii from 1960 to present show exponential rise in CO2 levels fueling climate change. February 13, 2025 (La Mesa) — NOAA staffers report that Musk’s minions have arrived with orders to wreck everything. This apparently includes climate data gathering. Should they succeed in shutting data collection down, attempts to fix the climate

COMMUNITY CLEAN ENERGY GRANTS CREATE MORE SUSTAINABLE SAN DIEGO THROUGH GREEN JOBS, ENERGY EDUCATION
Printer-friendly version Community Power and SDF will host a webinar for prospective applicants on Feb. 13 at 12 p.m. to provide an overview of the grant guidelines and application questions. Please register here. February 12, 2025 (San Diego) — San Diego Community Power, San Diego Foundation (SDF) and Calpine Community Energy announced today that they anticipate awarding $600,000 in grants

ISSA BILL WOULD CUT ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS TO ALLOW FOREST, BRUSH CLEARING ON FEDERAL LANDS
Printer-friendly versionEast County News Service Photo, right: Cleveland National Forest in San Diego County February 11, 2025 (San Diego) – Congressman Darrell Issa, a San Diego Republican, has introduced the “Green Tape Elimination Act” that seeks to prevent wildfires by exempting all fuel reduction activities on federal lands from these environmental regulations for 10 years. The National Environmental Policy Act
COMMUNITY INPUT SOUGHT ON PROPOSED PARK IN JAMUL
Printer-friendly versionEast County News Service February 9, 2025 (Jamul) — The Jamul-Dulzura Planning Group is seeking funds from San Diego County’s Department of Public Works to develop a community park in Jamul. While exploring potential locations for the park, the Planning Group has launched a survey asking community members what features they would like to see in the new community

EL CAJON ADDS BAGS AND RECEPTACLES FOR DOG WALKERS TO HELP KEEP CITY CLEAN
Printer-friendly version By Miriam Raftery Photos by Robert Gehr January 31, 2025 (El Cajon) – After voting to repeal a long-unenforced ban on dog walking downtown, the city of El Cajon has installed “doggie pots” and poop disposal bags to help dog owners cleanup after their pets. Photos show receptacle near the waterscape outside the Magnolia performing

TRUMP ORDERS MORE CENTRAL VALLEY WATER DELIVERIES–CLAIMING IT WOULD HELP LA FIRES
Printer-friendly versionBy Alastair Bland, CalMatters CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters Photo via Calif. Dept. of Water Resources: A drone provides a view of a section of the California Aqueduct within the California State Water Project, located near John R. Teerink Pumping Plant. January 27, 2025 (Central Valley,

WATER CONSERVATION GARDEN OFFERS FREE HAVEN FOR BORDER FIRE EVACUEES AND PETS
Printer-friendly version East County News Service January 25, 2025 (Rancho San Diego, CA) — In light of the ongoing evacuations at the Border Fire, the Water Conservation Garden on the campus of Cuyamaca College is opening its grounds with free admission to evacuees and their pets. Free Wifi is available. “We hope The Garden can provide a peaceful escape, a

U.S. WITHDRAWS FROM PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT AND REMOVES ALL CLIMATE CHANGE REFERENCES FROM FEDERAL WEBSITES
Printer-friendly version By Henri Migala Photo: cc via Bing January 22, 2025 (Washington D.C.) — On Monday, January 20, President Donald Trump ordered the U.S. to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement for the second time, once again placing the world’s top historic emitter of greenhouse gases outside the global pact aimed at pushing nations to tackle climate change. The

50TH ANNIVERSARY OF PURCHASE OF COWLES MOUNTAIN AT MISSION TRAILS REGIONAL PARK
Printer-friendly versionEast County News Service Photo: Cowles Mountain by Gerry Tietje December 31, 2024 (San Diego) — Today, December 31, 2024, marks the 50th anniversary of Cowles Mountain at Mission Trails Regional Park (MTRP). Its purchase and preservation in 1974 was a pivotal moment in the park’s history, and was the result of community members and local leaders uniting to save
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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting — not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine’s local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.

Padre Dam’s Ray Stoyer Water Recycling Facility decommissioned after more than a half-century of use
Printer-friendly versionRay Stoyer Water Recycling Facility at Padre Dam Municipal Water District, Santee Lakes Community event makes way for the East County Advanced Water Purification Program Story and photos by Paul Levikow April 13, 2026 (Santee) — After more than a half-century of water reuse in East County, the Ray Stoyer Water Recycling Facility has been decommissioned, marking the end

Boulevard residents battle proposed Starlight Solar battery storage facility; urge community to attend town hall meeting April 15
By Miriam Raftery Photo: proposed Starlight Solar site, via County of San Diego April 4, 2026 (Boulevard) – Should a 588-acre solar project with one…

Power struggle ends — no Seguro BESS in North County
East County News Service April 4, 2026 (Escondido) — The developer of the Seguro Battery Energy Storage System has formally withdrawn its application to build…

Helix Water District electrifies East County
Helix Water District Board Member Joel Scalzitti tells the crowd at the Helix Operations Center on Vernon Way on Friday that the district’s new electrification…

$33M water facility expansion buffers growth in Temescal Valley
East County News Service March 12, 2026 (Temescal Valley) — The Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District marked a significant infrastructure milestone earlier this month with…

Spring Into El Cajon on April 18 celebrates Arbor Day and arrival of spring
East County New Service Image by Satheesh Sankaran from Pixabay March 6, 2026 (El Cajon) – The City of El Cajon invites community members and…

Nature Day on Mt. Helix March 14: Butterflies, plants galore and more
East County News Service March 6, 2026 (Mt. Helix) – You’re invited to celebrate Nature Day at the Mt. Helix Park, where Earth Day is…

Spring Into El Cajon on April 18 celebrates Arbor Day and arrival of spring
East County New Service Image by Satheesh Sankaran from Pixabay March 6, 2026 (El Cajon) – The City of El Cajon invites community members and…

Nature Day on Mt. Helix March 14: Butterflies, plants galore and more
East County News Service March 6, 2026 (Mt. Helix) – You’re invited to celebrate Nature Day at the Mt. Helix Park, where Earth Day is…

California opens $2.5M in grants to reimagining State Parks through art and culture
East County News Service Feb. 10, 2026 (Sacramento) – Looking to literally bridge the gap between nature and the diverse communities of the state, California…
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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting — not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine’s local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.