Central Valley Daily

April 8: Why Human Composting Took Fresno County Leaders For A Tailspin

By Elizabeth Arakelian,

Published April 8, 2026 at 4:45 AM PDT

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In early March, Fresno County Supervisors spoke out against soil being used along the San Joaquin River that had been produced through a process sometimes called human composting. KVPR’s Samantha Rangel breaks down what happened and also explores the growing practice of human composting and the science behind it.

Plus, the latest news headlines: an ICE-involved shooting in the city of Patterson, and Clovis police have charged a man with a misdemeanor after student walkouts protesting immigration actions.

Central Valley Daily

Elizabeth Arakelian

A Valley native, Elizabeth earned her bachelor's degree in English Language Literatures from the University of California, Santa Cruz and her master's degree in journalism from New York University. She has covered a range of beats. Her agriculture reporting for the Turlock Journal earned her a first place award from the California Newspaper Publishers Association.

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Samantha Rangel

Samantha Rangel reports on stories for KVPR in the Fresno and Clovis areas. After growing up in the town of Firebaugh, Samantha is now enrolled at California State University, Fresno. There, she is studying to earn her B.A. in Media, Communications, and Journalism. Before joining the KVPR news team, she was a reporter for The Westside Express, where she covered education and other local news in Firebaugh.

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Jonathan Linden

Jonathan Linden is a podcast producer at KVPR. Born and raised in Riverside, he's a Southern California native. Jonathan's passion for public radio began at a young age when his brother would play NPR while driving him home from middle school. He earned his B.A. in journalism from Biola University in 2019.

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