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Marine protected areas
will preserve oceans
California’s oceans are extremely important to the people of California on both an environmental and cultural basis.
Our oceans still account for a majority of the oxygen that we breathe, our literal source of life. Our oceans also serve as a major food source for many people. They have sustained human life along its coasts for thousands of years, and while the state’s original inhabitants have been limited in their ability to continue their traditional ways of life, many indigenous communities continue to rely on the oceans for sustenance.
The oil and fishing industries’ destructive practices are causing great harm to our oceans. Fortunately, a solution lies ahead in marine protected areas, which provide marine life with areas where they can live undisturbed by humans. If you support protecting our oceans, take action now and tell Gov. Newsom to triple marine protected areas in our state.
Derick Lietzow
Berkeley
EBMUD should consider
quarry site alternatives
EBMUD’s plans for the quarry site on Lake Chabot Road would run 60-80 dump trucks per weekday through San Leandro for 40-80 years to store trench soils from pipeline replacement. Neither the roads nor the site can withstand the weight or vibration, not to mention the noise, pollution or traffic.
The project is currently on hold, spurred by the Save Lake Chabot Road Coalition, with 1,600 signatures and counting, plus a unanimous resolution by the San Leandro City Council.
Viable alternatives include trenchless technologies that reduce the volume of soils at the source, and reaching out to other local governments and land brokers.
Please encourage EBMUD to pursue these alternatives. Let’s help ratepayers, reduce public spending and preserve union jobs.
Tim Ballas
San Leandro
Make the ban of cruel
rodeo event permanent
The Livermore Rodeo’s Board of Directors recently confirmed that the nonsanctioned, brutal and blatantly sexist “wild cow milking contest” has been removed from the June 10-11 rodeo program. Hallelujah. Make it permanent policy.
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors banned this cruelty in 2022 in unincorporated areas of the county, efforts led by late Supervisors Wilma Chan and Richard Valle. Other jurisdictions should follow suit.
Again, these are beef cattle, not dairy, and unused to being handled at all, much less this roughly. The cows are further stressed by being separated from their still-nursing babies. One of these frantic cows jumped the fence at the 2014 Rowell Ranch Rodeo, suffered a broken neck and prolapsed eyeball, requiring euthanasia and leaving an orphaned calf. Another suffered a broken leg at the 2004 Livermore Rodeo, with similar results.
State legislation is in order.
Eric Mills
Oakland
Agriculture adds $1B
to county economy
This week’s National Ag Day provided reason to note that the cattle industry is the second largest agricultural commodity in Alameda County, based on the county Crop Report. Ranching is agriculture, and ranching is the largest land use. There are nearly 250,000 acres of rangeland in the county, per Bay Area Green Print.
UC Berkeley’s recent peer-reviewed study for California Rangeland Trust quantified the ecosystem services or nature’s benefits provided by rangelands conserved with conservation easements by CRT and managed by ranching. Some 306,781 acres provide $1.44 billion in ecosystem services every year.
Alameda County rangelands, therefore, provide nearly $1 billion in benefits to our region — every year. You’re welcome.
Karen Sweet
Rancher
Livermore
SVB collapse another
reason to avoid Trump
The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has caused significant turmoil across global financial markets. Why and how did this happen?
A look back to pre-pandemic 2018 will provide the answer. At that time, Donald Trump occupied the White House in what will surely be noted as one of America’s greatest electoral failures. He and his greed-driven minions reduced regulatory oversight for banks with holdings of less than $250 billion. Deregulation allowed for avarice and fiscal manipulation to run roughshod over the guidelines designed to alert and protect against such blatant dishonesty.
Please remember that Trump and his credulous lemmings have but one goal: unmitigated authoritarian power. They are a lawless, contemptible lot who must never again preside over the American socio-political landscape.
Jon James
Pleasanton
Source: www.mercurynews.com