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Largest ever treasure under the California desert: 50 tons per day for centuries

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Largest ever treasure under the California desert: 50 tons per day for centuries


A vast and sun-drenched area of California’s Mojave Desert is about to deliver a renewable energy breakthrough. Spanish solar developer RIC Energy has announced plans for the state’s largest green hydrogen facility, which would generate a staggering 50 tons of green hydrogen a day. This over-sized endeavor was conceived as a key to unlocking the desert’s potential for California’s transition to renewable energy and revolutionizing the future of electricity generation in the state.

How the Mojave Desert will produce 50 tons of green hydrogen daily

The Mojave Desert has ideal conditions for renewable energy deployment because of its abundant sunlight and wide-open areas. At the core of this ambitious project is the manufacturing of green hydrogen through electrolysis, which uses solar-powered electricity to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen.

Unlike conventional fossil fuel-based hydrogen production methods, which produce significant CO2, this method is carbon-free. Producing 50 tons of energy daily, this facility will change the energy business. This output will fuel vehicles, heat industrial processes, and balance out the electricity grid.

The project imagines a future illuminated by renewable energy lighting up the globe and transforming fossil fuels from the cornerstone of globe’s energy systems to a relic of the past. It also provides a reliable source of constant and stable energy by capitalizing on the sun-soaked desert land of the Mojave.

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This breakthrough demonstrates how we can make the most of eco-friendly design, solar power technology, and modern water management. When combined, they create a very low environmental impact while increasing energy production.

Decarbonizing the desert: Mojave’s 50 tons of green hydrogen with no environmental harm

The Mojave project isn’t just a renewable energy facility; it liberates an immense, sustainable resource. Referred to as “the biggest treasure underneath the California desert,” these 50 tons of green hydrogen output have long-term benefits that could span centuries.

All project partners, including Cadiz Ranch, a privately owned water company, have committed to using innovative water conservation techniques to provide the facility’s water needs sustainably. This allows for green hydrogen production without endangering the fragile desert ecosystem.

What is unique about this project is its scale and sustainability. Hydro-producing 50 tons of green hydrogen daily for decades (just like this Nevada desert, which has liquid hydrogen flowing underground) will make the Mojave installation a key pillar of California’s renewable energy plan. It also highlights large-scale green hydrogen production as a viable, long-term solution to increasing energy demand that does not aggravate climate change.

Energy independence: Mojave hydrogen is the key to California’s future

The Mojave Green Hydrogen project has significant benefits and serves as a model for replication for the rest of the world seeking the same energy transition. This project demonstrates that merging cutting-edge technology with the natural world can create sustainable energy systems.

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This project will also benefit California economically. By reducing dependence on foreign energy sources and locally producing hydrogen, California would not only have energy, but the state would also create jobs in construction and operation, putting California at the forefront of the green hydrogen economy.

Green hydrogen has also been strongly criticized for the costs involved in its production and for replacing existing infrastructure with new installations. The Mojave project, however, tackles these challenges head-on. Developers can now optimize this by hosting the installation in a location with substantial solar resources.

The project also aligns with California’s climate goals, which calls for the state to become carbon-neutral by 2045. The Mojave installation demonstrates that renewable energy infrastructure can be an asset in building a cleaner and more comprehensive energy future by providing reliable, emission-free electricity generation.

The 50 tons of green hydrogen produced daily will be a monumental leap for global sustainable energy, using the Mojave Desert’s vast energy potential. It establishes a gold international standard for renewable energy, serving as a model of innovation and collaboration in the fight against climate change (like this pink hydrogen, which was produced for the first time in history). Aside from being an energy source, it shall also be a long-term legacy of sustainability and progress for future generations.

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Amid angry backlash, serial child molester is rearrested the same day he was set to be paroled

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Amid angry backlash, serial child molester is rearrested the same day he was set to be paroled


Following major backlash about the scheduled release of a serial child molester through California’s elderly parole program, the 64-year-old is now facing new charges that could keep him behind bars.

News that David Allen Funston was set to be freed was met by outrage among victims, politicians and others. The former Sacramento County district attorney who prosecuted Funston said she was strongly opposed to his release: “This is one I’m screaming about.”

Funston, granted parole earlier this month, was set to be released on Thursday from state prison — but was rearrested that same day on new charges from a decades-old, untried case. The charges he’s facing are from a 1996 case in which he is accused of sexually assaulting a child in Roseville, according to the Placer County district attorney’s office.

In 1999, he was convicted of 16 counts of kidnapping and child molestation and had been serving three consecutive sentences of 25 years to life and one sentence of 20 years and eight months at the California Institution for Men in Chino. The sentences followed a string of cases out of Sacramento County in which prosecutors said Funston lured children under the age of 7 with candy and, in at least one case, a Barbie doll to kidnap and sexually assault them, often under the threat of violence.

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He was described by a judge at his sentencing hearing as “the monster parents fear the most.”

Prosecutors in Placer County, at the time, decided not to pursue the case against Funston in Roseville given the severity of the sentences he received in Sacramento County.

But given his scheduled release from state prison, prosecutors decided to file new charges against him. Placer County Dist. Atty. Morgan Gire said “changes in state law and recent parole board failures” led to his improper release.

“This individual was previously sentenced to multiple life terms for extremely heinous crimes,” Gire said in a statement. “When changes in the law put our communities at risk, it is our duty to re-evaluate those cases and act accordingly. David Allen Funston committed very real crimes against a Placer County child, and the statute of limitations allows us to hold him accountable for those crimes.”

He is now being held without bail in the Placer County jail, booked on suspicion of lewd and lascivious acts against a child, according to prosecutors. Funston’s attorney, Maya Emig, said she had only recently learned about his arrest and hadn’t yet had time to fully review the matter.

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But she noted that she believes “in the justice system and the rule of law.”

Emig called the Board of Parole Hearings’ decision to grant Funston elderly parole “lawful and just.”

California’s elderly parole program generally considers the release of prisoners who are older than 50 and have been incarcerated for at least 20 continuous years, considering whether someone poses an unreasonable risk to public safety.

In Funston’s case, commissioners said they did not believe Funston posed a significant danger because of the extensive self-help, therapy work and sex offender treatment classes he completed, as well as his detailed plan to avoid repeating his crimes, the remorse he expressed and his track record of good behavior in prison, according to a transcript from the Sept. 24 hearing.

At the hearing, Funston called himself a “selfish coward” for victimizing young children, and said he was “disgusted and ashamed of my behavior and have great remorse for the harm I caused my victims, their families in the community of Sacramento.”

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“I’m truly sorry,” he said.

But victims of his crimes, as well as prosecutors and elected leaders have questioned the parole decision and called for its reversal.

“He’s one sick individual,” a victim of Funston’s violence told The Times. “What if he gets out and and tries to find his old victims and wants to kill us?”

A spokesperson for Gov. Gavin Newsom said the governor also did not agree with Funston’s release and had asked the board to review the case. However, Newsom has no authority to overturn the parole decision.

Some state lawmakers also cited Funston’s case as evidence that California’s elderly parole program needs reform, recently introducing a bill that would exclude people convicted of sexual crimes from being considered by the process.

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Video shows skier dangling from chairlift at California ski resort

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Video shows skier dangling from chairlift at California ski resort


Thursday, February 26, 2026 7:21PM

Skier dangles from ski lift in Big Bear, video shows

BIG BEAR, Calif. — Stunning video shows a skier in Southern California hanging off a ski lift in Big Bear as two others held her by her arms.

The incident happened Tuesday. Additional details about the incident were not available.

At last check, the video had been viewed more than 13 million times on Instagram.

It appears the skier made it to the unloading area unscathed, thanks to her ski lift buddies.

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PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Their Government

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PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Their Government


Key findings of the survey include: Five candidates for governor are in a virtual tie heading into the June primary, with affordability emerging as a key issue. Amid concerns about the state budget, solid majorities of likely voters support raising taxes on the wealthiest Californians. Democrats are more enthusiastic than other partisan groups when it comes to voting in congressional elections this year.



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