"CUPERTINO -- The Lehigh Hanson cement plant, a longtime producer of Silicon Valley building materials but also a significant polluter, will pay $7.5 million as part of an agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to settle charges it dumped millions of gallons of toxic wastewater into a nearby creek."

"The West Coast could see power brownouts in coming months as hydro power stations struggle with the four-year drought, and in the longer term climate change could cause additional problems for power plants, the U.S. energy secretary said on Monday."

"If the circus is coming to town, that town won’t be San Francisco under a new regulation that would ban all performances by wild and exotic animals in the city."

"In a settlement with a coalition of animal advocacy groups, Mendocino County has agreed to suspend renewal of its contract with a federal wildlife management agency pending completion of an environmental impact report that will consider nonlethal methods of predator control."

"California's 3-year-old drought has thrust seawater desalination into the spotlight as San Diego County, Santa Barbara and other cities push ahead with treatment plants that will soon turn the Pacific Ocean into a source of drinking water."

The news media became part of the story when a mountain lion took refuge under a Los Angeles-area house.

"Cities and water districts serving 19 million people in Southern California face smaller water deliveries this summer under a plan approved by the region's water wholesaler in response to ongoing dry conditions."

"HINKLEY, Calif. -- Maneuvering his pickup through this Mojave Desert town, resident Daron Banks pointed at empty lot after empty lot."

"In drought-era California, does 'fire season' mean anything?"

"When Gov. Jerry Brown issued the first statewide water use reduction order in California history on Wednesday, he put his emphasis squarely on cities and towns."