California Awaits Excessive Heat and Potential Blackouts Governor Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency for California as a heat wave takes hold of the state. Elliot Mainzer, president of the state’s power grid operator, says Californians need to reduce electricity use throughout the holiday weekend, especially during late afternoon and early evening. New Test Project in a Central Valley Town Could Bring Partially Solution to Shortages The idea behind solar canals is to build canopies over miles of aqueducts and place solar panels on top of those canopies. The shade from the canopies limits water evaporation and the solar panels produce renewable energy. Research out of U.C. Merced found that canopies lower evaporation in aqueducts by as much as 82%. Amanda Stupi, The California Report Kaiser Nurses Join Mental Health Workers Nearing 3rd Week of Strike 22,000 Kaiser nurses are protesting, calling for improved safety conditions and increased staffing. Lesley McClurg, KQED health correspondent On Overdose Awareness Day, Advocates for People Who Use Drugs Remain Defiant More than a week after Governor Newsom vetoed a bill that would provide safe consumption sites for people who use drugs, advocates used Overdose Awareness Day on Wednesday to reaffirm their commitment to continue the fight. Reporter: Holly J. McDede, KQED How Nonprofits Use a Legal Loophole to Flip California Homes — for a Profit The state legislature approved dozens of bills this week. If history is any guide, some of those laws will have unintended consequences. That’s the story of a law passed in 2020, which was meant to keep foreclosed homes out of the hands of corporate investors, and increase the chance they would be used for affordable housing. Reporter: Erin Baldassari, KQED  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices