Molly Peterson
KQED Public Media
Los Angeles, CA, United States
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Past articles by Molly:
See How Wildfires Endanger Older Californians — and it’s Getting Worse
Climate change and COVID-19 are disasters. Long-term care homes and seniors may not be ready. → Read More
Even After Care Homes Abandoned Residents, California Still Isn’t Ready for Wildfires
Chaotic evacuations at long-term care facilities have brought into stark relief just how unprepared nursing homes and assisted living centers are for wildfires. Now, a KQED investigation has found thousands of these care homes are still at risk. → Read More
PPE Is Still a Huge Issue. Here's How Each County is Handling It
Alameda County has aggressively stockpiled protective gear to support all types of health care facilities, but no two counties have handled the challenge of obtaining PPE the same way. Santa Clara County has distributed around 4 million pieces of equipment so far, according to Dr. Jennifer Tong, who directs the health care surge branch for → Read More
'This Virus Is Horrible': A Son's Warning to Heed Public Health Authorities After Losing Dad to COVID-19
Kermit Holderman's family hopes the story of his death will motivate people to 'Do what the people who know tell you.' → Read More
Overheated and Underpaid: An Inland Empire Climate Change Story
As part of KQED Science’s ongoing coverage of the health impacts of extreme heat, Molly Peterson checks in with 'Brandon,' an Inland Empire warehouse employee who frequently works in 90-degree heat indoors. → Read More
What the Science Says About Monsanto's Beleaguered Weedkiller 'Roundup'
When it comes to allegations that the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer, the law is making up its mind faster than science. → Read More
In the Bay Area, Deadly Heat Waves Are For Real
It’s cold in the Bay Area now. But in 2017, two heat waves killed 14 people in the Bay Area. KQED reporting has found that most of those people who died started getting sick from the heat while inside some place, instead of outside in the sun. State regulators are now in the process of coming up with rules to regulate how hot workplaces can be in order to protect people from heat-related… → Read More
Rising Heat Is Making Workers Sick, Even Indoors
KQED placed heat sensors on employees engaged in manual labor in Sacramento, the Inland Empire and Los Angeles to find out how hot it gets in their workplaces. The answer: dangerously so. → Read More
Investigation Finds Home Can Be the Most Dangerous Place in a Heat Wave
It doesn't have to be that way. Every heat death is preventable. It's just going to take time, money, and a strong standard for warning people of danger. → Read More
Extreme Heat Killed 14 People in the Bay Area Last Year. 11 Takeaways From Our Investigation
Heat kills more people each year than any other disaster. But heat deaths are preventable. Unlike earthquakes or fast-moving fires, heat is something we can predict. → Read More
In Poor Neighborhoods, Add Rising Seas to List of Housing Woes
Sea level rise is changing Bay Area shorelines, and for the region's most economically vulnerable residents, it's just one more thing to worry about when it comes to housing. → Read More
As Heat Rises, So Do Suicides, a Stanford Study Finds
It's not that hot weather causes people to harm themselves. But a massive study of deaths in the U.S. and Mexico shows a link between rising temperatures and suicide rates. → Read More
Nature Does Flood Control Better Than Concrete: One Idea in South San Francisco
Near Colma Creek, new ideas imagine embracing the bay waters as the sea level rises, allowing water to move onto land, and people to move onto water. → Read More
MAP: See Whether Your Home Is at Risk From Rising Seas
Scientists say climate change will cause San Francisco Bay to rise by up to 5 feet by 2100, when many of today's children will still be living. Click on th → Read More
Measure P: Foster City's $90 Million Tax to Defend Against Rising Seas
Just one thing stands between Foster City and the bay: an earthen levee. Voters in the San Mateo County city will decide whether to tax themselves to raise it, or run a higher risk of flooding. → Read More
EPA's Pruitt Still Mulling Whether to Overturn California Fuel Emissions Waiver
EPA Chief Scott Pruitt says he has not decided yet whether to allow California to continue to set its own tailpipe emission standards for cars and light trucks. → Read More
Southern California Water Agencies Vote to Spend Big on 'WaterFix' Tunnels
Twin tunnels that would carry water from the Sacramento Delta south are one step closer to happening. The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California has voted to spend nearly 11 billion dollars on the California WaterFix, over the objection of the region’s two largest cities. → Read More
Water Contamination Could Cost Santa Rosa an Unexpected $43 Million
In the searing heat of October's fires, plastic components in the water system absorbed toxic chemicals. → Read More
Climate Goes to Court: Oil Attorneys Play Up Uncertainty in Science
It's hard to say who the winners were in this much ballyhooed science showdown in federal court. → Read More
What Exxon Knew and When They Knew It: Climate Science in S.F. Federal Court
San Francisco and Oakland sued oil companies, demanding they pay the costs of sea level rise. A federal judge hears the science Wednesday. → Read More