Podcasts about Eel River

President's often set a "first 100 days" agenda, when fresh from their inauguration, they have the most political power and influence in their term. The first 100 days is not only a benchmark to measure success but a preview for how they hope to govern for the rest of their four years.We are at day 95, close enough to measure Trump's impact on the environment. Instead of a long list of all the rollbacks and deregulation, guests Scott Grecean of Friends of the Eel River and Matt Simmons of EPIC discuss what the first 100 days reveal about the President's agenda and what it foretells moving forward.Want more?Jared Huffman on Project 2025Supreme Court overturns ChevronSupport the show

This week on the EcoNews Report our host Alicia Hamann from Friends of the Eel River talks about the flurry of recent developments on Eel River dam removal. On January 31 PG&E released their final draft license surrender application, a document that outlines some of the logistics of how they plan to remove the two Eel River dams. PG&E is accepting comments on this document until March 3, you can find more information at eelriver.org.On a separate but parallel track is the publication just last week of a deal for wet-season diversions from the Eel to the Russian post-dam removal in exchange for a number of benefits for the Eel. This includes agreement from all parties to support timely dam removal, $1-million-dollar annual payments to Round Valley Indian Tribes for lease of the water right they will take ownership of, and between $750,000 - $1 million dollar annual payments into an Eel restoration fund. Our guests include Hank Seeman, Humboldt County Public Works Deputy Director; Darren Mireau North Coast Director for California Trout; Charlie Schneider, Senior Project Manager for California Trout, and Scott Greacen, Conservation Director for Friends of the Eel River.Learn more:Eelriver.orgFreetheeel.orgEel River restoration and conservation plan: https://caltrout.org/eel-river-watershed-program/reportEel River Expo: https://caltrout.org/eel-river-watershed-program/eel-river-expoSupport the show

PG&E's announcement in 2019 that it would decommission the Potter Valley Project led to years of uncertainty. Stakeholders in the Eel River and the Russian River Basin struggled to agree on a common vision for what would happen after the dams were removed. A new memorandum of understanding, announced this week, between the Mendocino County Inland Water and Power Commission, Humboldt County,  Sonoma County, the Sonoma County Water Agency, CalTrout, Trout Unlimited, the Round Valley Indian Tribes, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife represents a big step forward.

Environmentalists have a reputation for being a bit too doom-and-gloom. But what gives us hope? Jen Kalt of Humboldt Waterkeeper, Alicia Hamann of Friends of the Eel River, Colin Fiske of the Coalition for Responsible Transportation Priorities, and Tom Wheeler of the Environmental Protection Information Center join the show to discuss the things that give them hope. Need a dose of hope?Public Transit Wins Big in Local ElectionsCalifornia's Pace of Emissions Cuts Is Accelerating, Report FindsEel River Fish CountsDigawututklh ReturnedSupport the show

Congressman Jarred Huffman address facts and fallacies around the Two-Basin solution — a response to the removal of the Scott Dam and Cape Horn Dam — that addresses the desire for a free-flowing Eel River and Mendocino County's dependence on continued diversion.

Mr. and Mrs. Truffles are back with Postcards From The Road, a whimsical miniseries about their summer travels

Eureka cops revealed the suspected ‘whip-its' user in a vehicular killing, Cal Poly Humboldt's president is stepping down after his Arcata campus received national attention during pro-Palestinian protests, Arcata approved 139 acres for high-density housing in its southwestern Creamery District, two people were arrested after a horrible 4th of July fireworks fiasco in Crescent City, the LA Times covered the local Eel River swimmer who found likely human remains, a popular tattoo artist received an over 10-year prison sentence for killing a former intimate partner, a local Facebook group targeting male cheaters and abusers is receiving attention, Humboldt County's top reps denounced political violence after a bullet missed Trump's head at a rally, U.S. Congressman Jared Huffman formed a task force to raise awareness about Project 2025, Eureka's Tasty Hub is set to host food trucks and vendors along with a commissary kitchen, Cal Poly Humboldt soccer is offering free entry to regular season home games this season, summers are big for Cal Poly Humboldt export Duke Manyweather who trains some of the NFL's best offensive linemen, and a reminder that Eureka High grad Mike Patton is considered one of rock music's most talented vocalists. TLDR Humboldt features episode transcripts. Check humboldtlastweek.com/tldr. HumAlong Alternative Radio plays rock with energy, passion, and distorted guitars. Take it with you at humalt.com. Humboldt Last Week would like to thank its local partners for keeping the lights on. Please support Belle Starr Clothing, North Coast Co-op, Bongo Boy Studio, Beck's Bakery, Photography by Shi, North Coast Journal, RHBB, and KJNY.

Cops want to arrest the suspect who admitted to stealing a pride flag from the courthouse in Eureka, a new 10-bed mental health facility is set to open in Eureka in August, a woman says she was injured while protecting a teen from a group of bullies in Arcata, Fortuna cops are investigating the attempted kidnapping of two girls walking near the hospital, a senior citizen survived a solo plane crash in the Loleta area, Eureka's parking-versus-housing saga, a veteran wounded in the Iraq war learned he was getting a free house in Fortuna on Mike Huckabee's TV show, undamming the Eel River for fish is sparking criticism over water diversion plans, Ferndale export Guy Fieri shared about his first Father's Day without his dad, Cal Poly Humboldt men's basketball added a 6'6” D1 transfer, Cal Poly Humboldt export Alex Cappa is the current king of offensive NFL snaps, the horror ‘Trim Season' has local nods and a fresh rating from critics, and more. TLDR Humboldt features episode transcripts. Check humboldtlastweek.com/tldr throughout the week for updates even before episodes are released. HumAlong Alternative Radio plays alternative rock favorites and new discoveries. Take it with you at humalt.com. Humboldt Last Week would like to thank its local partners for keeping the lights on. Please support Belle Starr Clothing, North Coast Co-op, Bongo Boy Studio, Beck's Bakery, Photography by Shi, North Coast Journal, RHBB, and KJNY.

This week on the EcoNews Report, our host Alicia Hamann from Friends of the Eel River discusses the opportunities and challenges presented by the Great Redwood Trail. The project, proposed to be the longest rail-trail in the nation, is the state's opportunity to fulfill its responsibility to remediate the environmental harms caused by the old railroad. These harms include fish passage barriers, toxic waste, and hazardous debris left in the river. The trail will also provide opportunities for safe active transportation, enhanced public access to the Wild and Scenic Eel River, and a boost to the tourism economy. But of course a grand vision like this has significant challenges too. Top of the list are protecting cultural sites abused by the railroad, navigating fragile geology, and of course, funding this whole thing.Join us to hear from guests Ross Taylor, fisheries biologist and principle at Ross Taylor and Associates; Colin Fiske, Executive Director for the Coalition for Responsible Transportation Priorities; and Scott Greacen, Conservation Director for Friends of the Eel River.Ross Taylor's Fish Passage Report: https://eelriver.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/NWPRR_FINAL-REPORT_FINAL_-DEC-2011.pdfGreat Redwood Trail Master Plan: https://greatredwoodtrailplan.org/Friends of the Eel River info about the railroad: https://eelriver.org/projects/protecting-the-eel-river-canyon/Support the Show.

Dr. Power is a food web ecologist at UC Berkeley, where she leads the Power lab which has compiled careful, long term data sets in the Angelo Reserve in Northern CA.In addition to her early work, in Panama and the Ozarks - which we touch on briefly - Dr. Power's  multi-decadal data sets on the Eel River, have yielded remarkable findings about how food webs function in gravel bed rivers…and spoiler alert, it sometimes involves the sorts of things we tend to talk about here…like the gravel - and how it transports.While this is a physical science podcast, I hoped to include interviews with river Ecologists from the beginning particularly ecologists who make careful observations at that interface of physical and biological processes. And I always hoped I could kick that emphasis off with Dr. Power.I teach an Ecogeomorphology module in one of our classes here at HEC and I always lead that with the Eel river story she shares About 20 minutes into this episode.That Eel river story was one of the early influences that got me interested in the ecological interactions with river mechanics processes.I also asked Mary about a couple of Ecological models and categories, that have corollaries in geomorphology.  So we talked about disturbance, alternative stable states as well as the Box model and the Ideal Free Distribution, which are just really helpful ideas for anyone who is interested in rivers.Dr. Power was induced into the National Academy of Sciences in 2012.Links: Serengeti Rules:     https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/serengeti-rules-dhbtnm/19906/Disturbance and Recover of Algal Assemblage on OK Stream         https://www.jstor.org/stable/2425975Resource Enhancement: Armored Catfish, Algae, and Sediment     https://www.jstor.org/stable/1937361Episode Photo: Eel RiverThis series was funded by the Regional Sediment Management (RSM) program.Stanford Gibson (HEC Sediment Specialist) hosts.Mike Loretto edited the episode and wrote and performed the music.Video shorts and other bonus content are available at the podcast website:https://www.hec.usace.army.mil/confluence/rasdocs/rastraining/latest/the-rsm-river-mechanics-podcast...but most of the supplementary videos are available on the HEC Sediment YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/user/stanfordgibsonIf you have guest recommendations or feedback you can reach out to me on LinkedIn or ResearchGate or fill out this recommendation and feedback form: https://forms.gle/wWJLVSEYe7S8Cd248

This week on the EcoNews Report, we discuss how fish are monitored and counted. Our host Alicia Hamann from Friends of the Eel River is joined by Dave Kajtaniak from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and Samantha Kannry from TRIB Research. Tune in to learn about the hopeful returns salmon returns on the Eel and why preserving genetic diversity is so important to giving species the adaptability they need to survive our changing climate.Click here to learn more about TRIB Research.Support the show

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is pledging to fast-track more than half a dozen projects by the end of his term to remove or bypass dams that have blocked salmon from returning to the state's chilly mountain streams and acting as the keystone of a complex ecosystem that sustains both economies and spiritual beliefs for tribes. Newsom — now in his second term and seen as a potential Democratic presidential candidate beyond 2024 — has worked hard to stake a claim as the nation's most environmentally-conscious governor. But his record has been dogged by criticism from environmental groups who say his water policies benefit big agriculture at the expense of salmon and other species of fish in danger of becoming extinct. Millions of salmon once filled California's rivers and streams each year, bringing with them key nutrients from the ocean that gave the state an abundance of natural resources that were so important to indigenous peoples that they formed the foundation of creation stories central to tribes' way of life. But last year, there were so few salmon in the state's rivers that the officials closed the commercial fishing season. Frustrated by the criticism leveled against him and his administration, Newsom released a plan outlining his strategy to protect salmon — a plan that includes a heavy helping of projects that would remove or bypass aging dams that prevent them from returning to the streams of their birth to lay eggs. Newsom's salmon strategy includes a promise to complete an agreement by the end of the year to remove the Scott Dam and replace the Cape Horn Dam along the Eel River that have blocked salmon access to 288 miles (463 kilometers) of habitat. Once completed, the Eel would be the longest free-flowing river in the state, flowing north through the Coast Ranges before emptying into the Pacific Ocean near the town of Fortuna. These projects have already been announced and are in the early stages of development. Newsom's plan, however, puts on record his goal to either complete them or have them approved by state regulatory bodies before he leaves office. This article was provided by The Associated Press.

Show Notes: https://wetflyswing.com/571  Presented by: Northern Rockies Adventures, Angler's Coffee, Drifthook Fly Fishing, Togens Fly Shop Sponsors: https://wetflyswing.com/sponsors      Ryan Johnston, the visionary behind Cast Hope, unveils the transformative impact of his program on the lives of youth facing adversity. Not only will Ryan share heartwarming stories of change and growth, but he'll also reveal expert strategies for steelhead fishing. Learn how to navigate the challenges of the fish barrel roll, master the timing for jumping fish, and handle the thrill of a running fish. This episode is packed with insights that promise to enhance your fishing skills and inspire you to make a difference. Don't miss out on this captivating journey with Ryan Johnston—tune in now to elevate your fishing game and discover how you can contribute to a meaningful cause this season. Episode Chapters with Ryan Johnston on Cast Hope 7:00 - Ryan shares the inspiring journey of Cast Hope, born from a desire to use his gifts for the betterment of his community, sparked by a sermon he couldn't shake. Starting with a simple idea to donate guided fishing trips to kids facing tough times, Cast Hope blossomed into a nonprofit that now spans four regions, serving over 700 kids. 16:38 - Their vision is to cover 10 to 12 regions across the country to impact as many kids as they can. He encourages people to donate through their website at casthope.org/donate. 18:08 - He recounts an inspiring story from their specialized trip, the Heritage Trout Challenge, where older kids go on a journey across California to catch specific native trout species. A particularly moving moment involved a teenager named Obie, who, during a trip to catch coastal cutthroat trout, experienced the ocean for the first time. Despite living just two and a half hours away, Obie had never seen the ocean before, highlighting the transformative power of these experiences in opening new worlds for these children. 21:57 - He shares more heartwarming stories of transformation and connection through the medium of fishing. Ryan highlights the powerful narratives featured on their website, notably mentioning Jordy and Christina, two individuals whose lives were significantly altered by their engagement with Cast Hope. 36:58 - Ryan categorizes California's steelhead scene into three distinct groups, each offering unique experiences for anglers, which are valley steelhead, mountain steelhead, and coastal steelhead. 37:48 - He reminisces about the early 2000s, a time when the coastal steelhead scene was largely uncharted territory for fly fishers. Back then, anglers like Ryan could explore and fish in relative solitude, discovering new spots and techniques without the crowds seen today. 40:58 - He shares insights into the effective technique of side drifting from a boat, a method that allows for extended drifts and optimizes the time flies spend in the prime fishing zone. This approach, Ryan explains, is especially effective in rivers like the Eel, where runs can be a hundred yards long, allowing for a drift that keeps the flies in the 'zone' for an extended period. 42:38 - He delves into the intricacies of avoiding spooking the fish, the importance of water clarity, and how to execute a proper hook set for coastal steelhead, which are known for their size and strength. 47:08 - We get into the nitty-gritty of steelhead fishing tactics with Ryan, focusing on the leader setup for effective drifting techniques. He also delves into the strategy of locating steelhead, emphasizing the importance of mobility and observation. The approach is to fish quickly, moving on if a spot doesn't yield results after a few attempts, but to slow down and fish methodically upon hooking a fish. 51:45 - Ryan highlights the significance of upsizing micro spawn flies for better visibility and effectiveness in catching larger steelheads, with shrimp pink and steelhead orange being his go-to colors. 53:15 - Further, Ryan debunks common myths surrounding fly patterns for steelhead, emphasizing that the color and size of the egg pattern often outweigh the specific design of the fly. 54:45 - He takes us through his remarkable experiences fishing in Oregon, particularly on the Nestucca River, comparing it with his time on California's waters. 59:46 - He shares the unexpected success of his first book, "A Reel Job: Short Stories & Thoughts from the River". Released in 2022, he initially wrote the book for himself, with modest hopes of selling enough copies to cover his expenses. To his surprise, the book resonated widely, garnering praise from readers across the globe and selling over 2000 copies. Encouraged by the positive feedback and continuous requests for more, he has penned a sequel titled "Reelly?! - Unbelievable Fishing Stories & Guide Thoughts," set to launch in March. This upcoming book, featuring a cover designed by Derek Deyoung and his wife, promises another engaging collection of guide stories and extraordinary experiences from Ryan's 21 years on the water. 1:02:23 - Currently, he guides for Bigfork Anglers. They specialize in fishing the Flathead River in the valley and then the lower Clark Fork. 1:02:53 - He shares his preference for the type of boat he uses for steelhead fishing in California. He has been a longtime advocate for Hyde Drift Boats, particularly highlighting his transition to a Hyde skiff about six years ago. This lower profile, lighter boat offers significant advantages on the water, particularly in terms of maneuverability and reduced physical strain. 1:04:17 - He shares his transition from suburban life in Chico, California, to a more spacious and serene existence in Somers, Montana, near Flathead Lake. Moving to Montana has been a significant change for his family, offering them an incredible sense of space and freedom. Show Notes: https://wetflyswing.com/571  

On this week's episode of the EcoNews Report, host Alicia Hamann from Friends of the Eel River is joined by long-time Eureka resident and fisherman Steve Rosenberg and Humboldt Trails Council's Advisory Chair Karen Underwood. Alicia and her guests reflect on the history of losing public access to rivers and wild spaces, and discuss modern efforts underway to protect what remains. Featured is the recent issue of attempts to limit access to one of the few remaining fishing access points along the Van Duzen River at Fisher Road.To learn more about this issue, please visit this link.Support the show

Friends of the Eel River and the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations (PCFFA) have joined other groups in pushing for the removal of the dams from the Eel. PG&E have filed papers to give them up.

Congressman Jared Huffman joins the show to discuss the current happenings in Washington D.C. — Who the heck is Speaker Mike Johnson? Will we pass a continuing budget resolution? Why would any thinking person want to be a United States Representative? — and his legislative priorities. From offshore wind to Eel River dams to nickel mining on the Smith River, Congressman Huffman has a lot to share. Listen in to learn more.Support the show

Desiree Isaac-Pictou started playing wheelchair basketball in 2021, the year after a devastating accident at a motorsport event near Bathurst.

On this week's episode of the EcoNews Report we reflect on the tragic dam failure in Libya last month and discuss why Scott Dam on the Eel River poses similar risks. The PG&E-owned dam sits right on a significant fault line, the Bartlett Spring Fault. Between its unusual engineering and a century's worth of accumulated sediment, many factors are converging to make even PG&E wary of the risk. That's why the company made drastic changes to how they manage the dam last spring. And that's why they are pursuing expedited dam removal right now. Tune in to hear Alicia Hamann and Scott Greacen from Friends of the Eel River share their concerns about dam safety and lethal water temperatures for juvenile steelhead, and their hope for dam removal.For more info, see Alicia Hamann's recent op-ed in the North Coast Journal:Bigger Storms, Poor Oversight Put Dams at RiskSupport the show

On this week's episode of the EcoNews Report, our host Tom Wheeler is joined by Alicia Hamann and Craig Tucker from Friends of the Eel River to discuss a vague, last-minute proposal from water users to take over part of the Potter Valley Project. Pacific Gas and Electric, owners of the two Eel River dams and diversion tunnel that make up the Project, are in the midst of preparing their license surrender and decommissioning plan. The company will submit a draft plan this November, with a final plan due January of 2025. And PG&E has been clear that they want to rid themselves of this aging, liability-ridden project - they've told stakeholders that their plan will call for removal of all infrastructure in the water. BUT - they also told stakeholders this spring that the company would be open to proposals to take over all or part of the project through the end of July.  A proposal from Sonoma Water, Mendocino County Inland Water and Power Commission, and the Round Valley Indian Tribes was published just last week, but it's really more of a plan to make a plan. While it supports removal of Scott Dam, the plan is unclear about the future of Cape Horn Dam, or how any of their proposed modifications to Cape Horn Dam will be financed. Leaving the most difficult questions unanswered makes it all but certain that this proposal would delay PG&E's plans for decommissioning and dam removal.Tune in to learn about what Eel River advocates think about this proposal, and how conservation organizations plan to continue holding PG&E to a swift timeline for dam removal.More Info:Sonoma's Eel River Diversion Plan Risks Extinction of Humboldt FisheriesPast episodes about Eel River Dams: What's Next for Eel River Dams 2/12/2022 The Beginning of the End for Eel River Dams 4/16/2022 Big Doings on the Beautiful Eel River 8/6/2022 PG&E Finally Taking Dam Safety Seriously 4/1/2023Support the show

2014 - Fortuna, California. In February of 2014, two women—Danielle Bertolini and Sheila Franks— went missing within one week of each other in Humboldt County, California. They were both last seen in the presence of the same man, and were later known as part of the Humboldt County Missing Five.  Danielle and Sheila's remains were later recovered near the Eel River in a similar location. Their killer hasn't been brought to justice.  Danielle was a childhood friend of mine who grew up in Maine. Two years ago, I set out to bring light to her story and help her mother, Billie Jo, fight for justice. 2024 will mark 10 years unsolved. I have completely redone the original episodes to bring you this story fresh, including updates.  This is the story of Danielle Bertolini. SIGN THE PETITION! We are asking the Humboldt County DA to prioritize this case. You can help us make this happen. Please listen to her story and share this petition: change.org/danielleandsheila Detailed sources can be found on murdershetold.com Connect on Instagram @murdershetoldpodcast Support the show here Sponsor: Hello Fresh - Go to HelloFresh.com/shetold50 and and use code shetold50 for 50% off plus free shipping. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do you improve the flow of a river? Just ask our friends at Salmonid Restoration Federation. On this week's episode of the EcoNews Report host Alicia Hamann of Friends of the Eel River is joined by Dana Stolzman and Katrina Nystrom from Salmonid Restoration Federation, and Joel Monschke from Stillwater Sciences for a discussion of flow monitoring and enhancement projects on the South Fork Eel River. Tune in to learn more about SRF's decade of flow monitoring on Redwood Creek, the Marshall Ranch Flow Enhancement Project, and more.Learn more about Salmonid Restoration Federation.Support the show

This week on the EcoNews Report hosts Alicia Hamann from Friends of the Eel River and Tom Wheeler from EPIC discuss an experimental installation in the South Fork of the Eel River. Guests Marisa McGrew from the Wiyot Tribe's Natural Resources Department and Gabe Rossi and Philip Georgakakos, both research scientists with UC Berkeley, tell us all about the collaborative effort to install and manage a weir in the river. The primary purpose of the weir is to remove invasive pikeminnow from the river system and keep them away from prime rearing habitat for salmon and steelhead farther upstream.Weir technology is ancient, it is a floating fence that allows researchers to monitor and manage fish populations as they migrate upstream into a trap. Native fish are released and invasive pikeminnow are removed from the river. A camera also monitors downstream migration to capture as much data as possible.This collaborative project includes a large number of partners and community members named in the episode, and researchers are especially thankful to the landowner, Lost Coast Forest Lands, who is providing access to this site.Click here to watch a video and learn more about this exciting project. (https://vimeo.com/832438472).Support the show

Join us for another episode of Home Grow TV Talk Show & Podcast as we dive into a look at what's up in the Humboldt County outdoor /Sun-Grown scene. This week, we have a special guest: Jason Gellman, owner, and operator of Ridgeline Farms, nestled in the scenic hills of Southern Humboldt. Known for its award-winning sun-grown flowers, Ridgeline Farms is a beacon of quality, family values, and environmental stewardship.Jason will take us on a journey through the flavors of Ridgeline Farms, sharing his expertise in growing, stories from past emerald cups, how he went from outlaw to the Forbes 42.0 list, and the hard times in Humboldt right now.Don't forget to drop a comment on your favorite part below to support the show!

North Coast Regional Director for California Trout Darren Mierau describes what removing two aging dams from the endangered Eel River could mean for the salmon population. (2:09) Then, David Andrews, a senior scientist with the Environmental Working Group, discusses the growing impacts PFAS compounds of on our environment and ecosystems. (24:14)

Brother suspects were critically shot and their toddler passenger was hurt amid a wild and violent police chase in Eureka, Arcata officials addressed reports of people spiking drinks at local bars, the American Lung Association says Humboldt County could have the best air in California, a Sheriff's Officer allegedly pulled a gun on his wife and another man in McKinleyville, PBS ‘Untold Earth' showcased local redwoods, cops a say local woman's jail entry was lightened by a pound of fentanyl, dog attacks all the damn time, a good dog reportedly foiled a home invasion in McKinleyville, American Rivers says the Eel River is one of the nation's most endangered rivers, California's AG put Blue Lake on his schedule in recognition of missing and murdered indigenous people, Fairhaven residents temporarily teased with internet might be without it again, a local 8th-grader received major recognition in the science community, the city of Eureka found a box of century-old items while demolishing the Lloyd building, Sylvan Esso is coming to Arcata in August, Coast Central Credit Union saw account glitches and a Facebook hack, the sheriff's office disclosed drug seizure amounts from 2022, and more. more. Humboldt Last Week is Humboldt County's news podcast in collaboration with Tandoori Bites, Belle Starr Clothing, North Coast Co-op, Bongo Boy Studio, Photography by Shi, North Coast Journal, RHBB, and KJNY. Via Apple, Spotify, humboldtlastweek.com, or wherever else you get podcasts. Humboldt Last Week (new/alt/indie) Radio with no commercials resides at humboldtlastweek.com/radio

Every year since 1984, American Rivers has released a report called America's Most Endangered Rivers. To be highlighted by this report, rivers must have significance to human and natural communities, face consequential threat, and have an upcoming major decision that the public can help influence. This episode is an interview with Sinjin Eberle and Amy Souers Kober on what makes this report an effective river conservation tool, the most endangered rivers of 2023, and tangible actions that we as listeners can do to engage with the most endangered rivers of 2023. GUESTS American RiversInstagramAmerica's Most Endangered Rivers of 2023StorymapAmy Souers KoberSinjin Eberle SPONSORDenver Area Nissan Dealers websiteInstagram

Tune into the EcoNews Report for big news about Eel River dam removal – PG&E is finally taking dam safety seriously! On March 16, the company announced big changes to how they will manage Scott Dam and Lake Pillsbury reservoir based on an updated evaluation of seismic stability and dam safety. Dam removal advocates at Friends of the Eel River have been ringing alarm bells about dam safety for years and are hopeful about what this could mean for expediting the dam removal process.PG&E Admits Scott Dam Faces Serious Seismic RisksFree The Eel Support the show

A Ponderosa pine tree in Potter Valley, and the decades' old bald eagle nest high in its branches, appear to be safe from PG&E crews that tried to remove them two years in a row due to their proximity to powerlines. Now, after protesters from all over the state joined local activists and a nearby tribe to ensure that the tree remained standing, PG&E has declared that its “preferred solution” is to bury the lines. That would obviate the utility's stated safety concerns about the tree possibly falling onto the line and sparking a fire. The pine, which is dying and shows damage from a beetle infestation, did not budge during the recent series of atmospheric rivers, though other trees went down all over the county. Joseph Seidell, a tenant on the property, grew to love the birds. Their nest is just a few yards from the driveway on one side, and a few more yards away from the public road on another, making them local celebrities in the bird-watching community. Seidell started a GoFundMe campaign to underground the lines last year, but it fizzled. “It made the most sense,” he said. “It was a very obvious solution because the nest was very happily sitting up there with plenty of years to go, according to the arborist. So we said, why should we take it down? It's provided all this habitat, and there's an obvious solution to put the lines underground. PG&E didn't want to burden the expense, so we started a fundraiser. And we weren't raising the money. It was a very large amount of money, close to a quarter million dollars…finally we found out recently that they said they were going to do it, through a lot of pressure…this would be the perfect win, win, win: win for the eagles, win for you, and win for us.” Polly Girvin is an environmental and social justice advocate who has long been affiliated with the Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians. She marveled at the effectiveness of the seven activists who kept vigil at the tree for over a week, saying, “I really want to say, it was the seven valiant souls who endured an atmospheric river downpour for seven days to document that the nest was active, and to stay until the federal nesting protective period under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife regulations was activated, which was January 16th.” On January 11, activists rebuffed an attempt by PG&E crews to cut down the tree, just hours before the Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians sent a letter to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife, requesting government to government consultations. Congressman Jared Huffman also weighed in, telling us that he has “had deep concerns about Fish and Wildlife's ability to fulfill its mission with integrity for a number of years…If this was a permit U.S. Fish and Wildlife had to grant; if the law, facts and science compelled them,” he insisted; “They should have included tribal consultation. But they dropped the ball.” Some neighbors say they remember first seeing the nest, which is just across the Eel River from Cape Horn Dam, in the mid-eighties. It's consistently produced young, though not every year, and PG&E biologists believe that in some years, the pair has used an alternate nest site less than a mile away. But last year, the pair fledged at least one eaglet in the much-contested nest. This year, they returned, shortly after U.S. Fish and Wildlife issued the permit to take it down. But Peter Galvin, who is the director of programs and co-founder of the Center for Biological Diversity, as well as a member of EPIC, the Environmental Protection Information Center, wondered if the agency had satisfied all the requirements before giving PG&E the nod. “I suggested we look into whether the Section 106 Consultation under the National Historic Preservation Act had been done,” he recalled; “and because EPIC had been working closely with the Coyote Valley Band on the Jackson Demonstration State Forest, they already had good communications set up. And just maybe ten or fifteen minutes after the inquiry, the answer came back no. No, that didn't happen, and they're concerned about this and they're upset that that didn't happen. So we caucused further and by later that day, the tribe had sent in a letter of objection that they had not received the necessary and legally required government to government consultation. We found out further that the Fish and Wildlife Service had issued a permit in early January for this action, only days after sending a letter, asking if the Coyote Valley Band had any concerns, and that this letter was sent over the holidays, and they didn't wait for a response, and it turned out they did have concerns.” Linda Marlin, the owner of the property where the eagle tree resides, said last week that PG&E was preparing an easement document for her to sign, so that the work can commence. PG&E had shut off electric power to the property, and was supplying generators and fuel to the residents. A fuel delivery truck had damaged the driveway during one of the storms, and Marlin reported that the company was repairing the damage, “as we speak.” In a statement, PG&E spokesperson Megan McFarland confirmed that the company is “working with the property owner on options and next steps;” and wrote that Ron Richardson, PG&E's Vice President for the North Coast, had visited the site and spoken with community members and the company's tribal relations representative. Richardson is quoted in the statement saying, “Undergrounding is now PG&E's preferred solution for the lines on the Potter Valley property and we are working with the landowner in an attempt to secure the necessary land rights. This solution allows us to protect our hometowns while also taking into account the values of our local tribe, property owners and environmental advocates.” McFarland added that PG&E has also installed wildlife cameras on the site to monitor the nest, to “ensure that any current or planned PG&E work on the property is not disruptive.” Girvin summed it up: “So basically, this boils to a direct action, front line, a tribal assertion of sovereignty, legal assistance, and many, many concerned citizens expressing their desire to not see this tree come down. So I'll say, once again, it takes a village.”

A small group of activists from across California has gathered in Potter Valley to protect a dying Ponderosa pine tree containing a decades-old bald eagles' nest. On January 5, the US Fish and Wildlife Service issued a permit to PG&E to remove the tree, on the grounds that it poses a hazard to a nearby power line. PG&E de-activated the line over the summer, and is providing generator power to residents on the property at no extra cost — on the condition that they do not support efforts to protect the nest. Tom Wheeler, Executive Director of EPIC, the Environmental Protection Information Center, said he's still “still investigating all potential opportunities” to keep the tree standing, but that “the ability to get into court to stop this is difficult,” in such a short time span. During the two-week public comment period on the permit, which ended on December 27, Wheeler complained that “scheduling a public comment deadline to fall squarely within the winter holiday season is dispiriting, especially as the Service has recognized that this nest removal is the subject of significant public controversy.” One can only assume that this was intentional to depress otherwise substantial and hostile comments.” Earlier this week, he expressed disgust with PG&E, saying, “This is what a multi-billion dollar industry invests in: to fight over a tree;” and added he was “impressed by the community that's worked to protest the removal.” Environmental indigenous activist Polly Girvin said Monday the group plans to defend the nest for the duration, and that she's there on behalf of her great-grandchildren. “I'm here because they massacred the oaks at Coyote Valley,” the home of the Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians in Redwood Valley, she said. “It was a very traumatic experience, and I heard the same thing happened at the Yokayo Rancheria. So I'm here in support and solidarity in this Potter Valley territory, just because they have been really decimating the oaks on two reservations that I know of. They went way overboard.” Breeding season officially starts on January 15. Last year, an eagle landed in the nest as a PG&E biologist and local bird-lovers looked on. Plans to cut the tree were called off, and the pair successfully raised a chick last year. A spokesperson for Fish and Wildlife said PG&E can cut the tree during the breeding season, “in the event the tree poses an emergency or hazard situation.” The Service's ordinance does not allow intentional, lethal take of eagles, but it is permissible to remove an in-use nest “to alleviate an existing emergency, or to prevent a rapidly developing safety emergency” that could harm humans or eagles. US Fish and Wildlife pointed out that “Eagle nests commonly blow out of trees during winter storms, and nest trees occasionally fall down.” But on Monday morning, after a series of atmospheric rivers and gale-force winds, the nest tree, which is just a few hundred yards from the Eel River, was still standing firm. An activist named Bat described what he saw during Sunday night's downpour. “Right across the street, that power line was all snapped up,” he said “And then they had to come out here and redo this whole line.” He added that crews made no attempt to come through the gate to cut down the eagle tree, but “We were here, trying to be in the way of them getting to this tree, so we were just standing by the gate and keeping watch.” The fallen tree, a moss-covered oak which was still cut up by the side of the road, had been marked with a yellow spray paint dot. A branch of poison oak twined around its trunk still bore a piece of red plastic tape. The marks do not comport with standard forestry markings, and their meaning has been known to change from year to year. PG&E did not provide an explanation for the meaning of the dot and the tape on the tree that fell Sunday. The eagles' nest is just inside the gate to the driveway of a private property off of a narrow, nominally paved public road. There is another dirt driveway across the road that leads to Cape Horn Dam, part of the hydropower facility that is owned by PG&E. The dam was briefly threatened in 2017, when a firestorm caused by PG&E tore through Potter Valley and Redwood Valley. The birds seem to have gotten used to curious humans, and they made several appearances as people talked and got in and out of cars and opened umbrellas and set up a canopy. One activist was especially moved by the sight of an eagle that perched in a nearby snag, taking her measure before flying off to roost in the Ponderosa pine again. Isabella Azizi is a member of Idle no More SF Bay, an environmental organization that started as an Indigenous women's prayer group focusing on Native American sovereignty, land and water protection. She left her home in Oakland early Monday morning to accompany activist and videographer Peter Menchini to the site. “It was such a blessing to be able to see the eagle this morning,” she recalled, noting that, as a city dweller, she hasn't had many opportunities to view the iconic bird. “It just felt like the eagle was paying attention to us,” she said, “almost like a sense of gratitude to us, being able to use our bodies and our voices to stand up for it and its family that it's created for over 25 years…my heart's pounding as I'm talking, just really blessed to have its presence.” Azizi requested ceremonial Indigenous prayer for the effort to prevent the removal, and Girvin assured the group that she would work to bring roundhouse elders to the site as soon as they feel safe about traveling from the coast. In the meantime, Larry Aguilera of Willits described a prayer circle that he led at the eagles' nest last week. “As soon as we pulled in, the eagle just landed, and we saw the eagle flying around, and then there was a second eagle,” he reported. “They just went right to their nest and made themselves at home, because it is their home…it's one of the things we can do, so we held a prayer circle and gathered around and just did that, and prayed for the eagle.” Aguilera was singing and praying again on Wednesday morning between seven and eight o'clock, when Mendocino County sheriff's deputies and PG&E crews arrived on the scene. No arrests were made, and PG&E crews retreated after a brief standoff, leaving the tree and nest intact. Activist and videographer Peter Menchini reflected on what he witnessed, as a chipper truck sat silently further down the road. “PG&E thought better of it, and decided that they would say that they are going to leave it and that we won, but that the people who had generators were losing,” he said. “I was raised Catholic, so I recognize the Catholic guilt trip when someone's pulling it on me.” Activists also allege that a PG&E crew member tried to shoulder his way between them as they blocked the gate. PG&E did not provide a comment about the allegation. Residents are unsure if PG&E will continue to supply courtesy generator power to the property. Tenant Joseph Seidell said in a phone interview that he and others are looking for ways to provide solar power if PG&E removes the generators and does not reactivate the line. The property relies on well water, which is powered by an electric pump. Domestic animals and at least one goat also live onsite, making it cumbersome to relocate if the cost of fuel for the generator becomes prohibitive. A PG&E spokesperson did not directly address our questions about whether or not crews plan to return, and if the generators would be removed, but did provide some hints in a sentence that reads, “Upon removal of the tree, PG&E plans to remove the temporary generation that we had been providing to the property and will safely restore electric service.”

December 29, 2022 — The license for the Potter Valley Project is undergoing a variety of considerations. As PG&E prepares its plan for decommissioning the inter-basin hydropower project that diverts water from the Eel River into the Russian River, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, announced that it is considering reopening the license. That means that, although it granted PG&E an annual license in April, it's thinking about adding requirements for a number of wildlife protection and habitat monitoring measures that were proposed in March by the National Marine Fisheries Service, another federal regulatory agency. PG&E argues that the decommissioning process will provide plenty of opportunity to review protective measures, and that there's no evidence of harm to embattled salmon. But FERC appears to have taken notice of legal threats by environmental groups claiming the project violates the Endangered Species Act. FERC has accepted comments for and against the proposed reopening of the license, and PG&E has pledged to submit its decommissioning documents by January of 2025. By that time, the project may technically be under new ownership. This month, PG&E asked FERC to allow it to transfer a list of hydropower projects to a new Delaware-based LLC called Pacific Generation, writing that the transfers “are part of a broader corporate reorganization being undertaken to facilitate raising equity for PG&E's utility needs.” PG&E spokesman Paul Moreno noted in an email that, “Nothing will change for Potter Valley or the decommission process. Pacific Generation LLC will be a majority-owned subsidiary of PG&E, which will own other PG&E hydropower facilities as well as natural gas power plants and some solar arrays and battery storage. It was not created just for (the) Potter Valley Project.” PG&E assured FERC that it plans to “remain the majority and controlling owner of Pacific Generation;” and that its employees “will continue to operate and maintain the assets…just as they do today.” The restructuring would have to be approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) , which in 2023 will also set the rates for the next four years. In September, PG&E requested that CPUC expedite the process, completing testimony, hearings, and filing of briefs by May first. Mark Toney, the Executive Director of The Utility Reform Network, or TURN, a ratepayer advocacy group, said TURN is “opposing the deal strenuously.” One of TURN's many worries is that if PG&E goes bankrupt again, its assets could be out of reach of settlements. TURN filed an objection to PG&E's proposal and the request for expediting the proceeding, declaring that, “this application benefits shareholders, and an expedited schedule would only serve to benefit shareholders…not avoid ratepayer harm.” TURN also asked if it was reasonable for PG&E to indemnify Pacific Generation for wildfire damages caused by PG&E's equipment, writing that “The Commission should examine whether this would result in an unreasonable transfer of risks.” Environmentalists are concerned, too. Redgie Collins is legal counsel for California Trout, one of the groups that filed a notice of intent to sue PG&E for harming endangered species. Collins is also a steering committee member of the Hydropower Reform Coalition, a statewide consortium of environmental groups dedicated to “restoring environmental and recreational values at hydropower projects presently being relicensed,” according to its website. The licenses for three of the 21 hydropower plants PG&E wants to transfer to Pacific Generation are being surrendered, while seven are up for renewal. Collins suspects that PG&E is “trying to sneak bad assets into its portfolio,” in part by overstating how viable they are. In its transfer application to FERC, PG&E wrote that Potter Valley is a 9.4-megawatt project, though it hasn't generated any power since a transformer broke down over the summer. Earlier this year, Moreno said the utility expected to recoup the unspecified costs of replacing the failed equipment within five years. But by mid-December, PG&E filed a brief update with FERC, stating that, “PG&E is currently in the process of considering long-term planning associated with Power Generation's portfolio. As a result, numerous projects are being reassessed to ensure resources are utilized prudently, including the Potter Valley transformer replacement project.” Collins also speculates that if the transfer is approved, the company could raise debt on some of its projects. The utility insists that the transfer should enable Pacific Generation to issue debt at lower rates than PG&E, but TURN worries that “the total amount of debt could very well increase as a result of this transaction.” One thing is certain: ratepayers will cover the costs of decommissioning. Mark Pocta, a program manager at the Public Advocate's Office at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), doesn't believe the transfer would make much of a difference from a regulatory perspective. PG&E would still be regulated on a cost of service basis, and he does not believe that the rates would be set any differently if the assets are held by a subsidiary. The Public Advocate's Office is an independent group within the CPUC that is charged with representing the interests of ratepayers. Its members participate in proceedings, but they do not set rates or make decisions. Pocta noted that the cost of decommissioning hydropower plants is “typically funded through rates;” but that no money has been set aside for the purpose, because when hydro projects were built, there was an assumption that they had economic value. Before the Potter Valley license expired in April of 2020, PG&E tried hard to sell it. And a regional coalition tried unsuccessfully to drum up enough money to pay for the studies that were required to take over the license. Even without the costs that could accrue if FERC orders additional environmental monitoring and mitigation measures, PG&E estimates that decommissioning the project could cost $93 million in 2020 dollars. CalTrout estimated that it could cost between $133-$155 million. Pocta said a stipulation to set aside $48 million per year for the next four years to decommission Potter Valley and Battle Creek, a hydropower project in Shasta county, will come before the CPUC at its general rate case hearings in 2023. Decommissioning hydropower projects isn't something that happens frequently, so there are no set procedures in place. But Pocta remembers when plans to decommission another set of dams first got underway: Klamath, he remembers thinking, will take longer than ten years.

Trying to be an ethical person in the modern world is hard. How should we weigh the site-specific impacts from wind energy development against the potential climate benefit? How far should we go to try to save an endangered species (and at what point is that resource allocation better served somewhere else)? Should we rely on our intuition or does that risk confirmation bias? Does climate change clarify our moral obligations or does it make finding the "right thing" even murkier? (Is there even a "right thing"!?)Do you think about these things? Because Gang Green does. Colin Fiske of the Coalition for Responsible Transportation Priorities, Matt Simmons and Tom Wheeler of EPIC, Caroline Griffith of the Northcoast Environmental Center, and Alicia Hamann and Scott Greacen of Friends of the Eel River talk about how they make decisions as local environmental leaders. Send your own probing ethical questions to tom@wildcalifornia.org and we may feature your question on a future episode!Support the show

On this week's edition of the EcoNews Report, host Alicia Hamann of Friends of the Eel River is joined by three fisheries experts to talk about how we count fish in the Eel River. Tune in to hear from Wyatt Smith from the Round Valley Indian Tribes, Dave Kajtaniak from the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Charlie Schneider from California Trout as they discuss DIDSON cameras installed throughout the watershed and what data collected from these monitoring stations tells us about salmon and steelhead populations in the entire Eel River. This data can help influence conservation decisions as we work to meet recovery target population numbers for species listed under the Endangered Species Act. The data we discuss in this episode is specific to the mainstem Eel River, so it is not reflective of entire populations in the watershed, but rather a helpful indicator of just how many fish are out there.LINKS:Redwood Empire Trout UnlimitedFriends of the EelSupport the show

This week on Fresh Hop Cinema; Beers from Eel River Brewing (Fortuna, CA) Beer 1: "Emerald Triangle" // Style: IPA // ABV: 6.7% // Ratings: Jonny - 7.5, Max - 7. Beer 2: "Midnight Rider" // Style: Double IPA // ABV: 9% // Ratings: Jonny - 8.3, Max - 9. Film: "All Quiet on the Western Front" directed by Edward Berger. Ratings: Jonny - 8.9, Max - 9. Inside Hot & Bothered: - Max - Umpqua Hot Springs // Empire of the Vampire (Book Review) // Iron Man VR - Jonny - The Campfire; 4 years later // Andor (Disney +) // "God of War; Ragnarok" ------ Episode Timeline: 0:00 - Intro, Ads, & Shoutouts / / 4:09- "Emerald Triangle" / / 16:10 - "All Quiet on the Western Front" (No Spoilers) / / 29:34 - "All Quiet on the Western Front" (DANGER ZONE) / / 48:07 - "Midnight Rider" / / 57:39 - Hot & Bothered Please leave us a rating and/or review on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts! Got a few bucks to spare? Support us on Patreon for as little as a dollar per week at www.patreon.com/freshhopcinema

October 25, 2022--Anna talks with researchers Phil Georgakakos and Abel Brumo about the Sacramento Pike Minnow, how it was introduced to the Eel River in the 1970s, and how to manage their impacts on native salmonids in the watershed.

This week on the EcoNews Report your host Tom Wheeler chats with Friends of the Eel River's Alicia Hamann about the fantastic news that the Great Redwood Trail is finally in the clear from threats to take the public right of way. It's now full steam ahead on trail master planning - tune in to learn about how you can be involved and check out greatredwoodtrailplan.org. And in other groundbreaking news, Alicia shares information about the lawsuit just filed to protect public trust flows impacted by unregulated groundwater extraction in the Eel River.Links:https://eelriver.org/2022/10/27/protecting-public-trust-flows-in-the-lower-eel-river/https://greatredwoodtrailplan.org/https://eelriver.org/projects/protecting-the-eel-river-canyon/Support the show

October 26, 2022 — The Surface Transportation Board, the federal entity that regulates railroads, issued another ruling on the Great Redwood Trail this week, deciding that the agency can convert 176 miles of line to a trail. The Great Redwood Trail Agency will be allowed to railbank the track, which means filling it in with aggregate or dirt so that the railroad ties serve as a frame for the trail. The track runs from Commercial Street in Willits, where the Skunk Train depot is, to just outside Eureka. Robert Pinoli, the President and CEO of Mendocino Railway, the Skunk Train's parent company, did not know what the Agency's plans regarding the depot are. Representatives for the Agency and the State Coastal Conservancy, which is now in charge of the trail, have not addressed our question about the depot. Last week, the Surface Transportation Board rejected Mendocino Railway's bid to purchase thirteen miles of track from the depot to Longvale. A few hours after the Surface Transportation Board's Monday- afternoon approval to railbank the line, Senator Mike McGuire held a virtual Town Hall to unveil the first step of the trail's “master plan,” a process he expects will take two to three years before building the trail can begin. Karyn Gear, of the State Coastal Conservancy, is the Executive Director of the Great Redwood Trail Agency. The Conservancy has been involved in conservation projects on the shoreline as well as inland rivers bearing anadromous fish. Gear spoke about her organization's role in the planning process. “The Conservancy was asked by Senator McGuire and the Legislature to take a leadership role in doing the master planning for this project, and also to help be the interim staff for the Great Redwood Trail Agency,” she began. “The Legislature appropriated ten million dollars to the Conservancy to do just that, to help move this project forward. So the first thing we did, after we started looking for additional staff with expertise to work on this, was to start to develop a request for proposals to look for consulting firms to help with the master planning process.” The Conservancy settled on Alta Planning and Design, which has offices all over the state. McGuire insisted that there is plenty of money for the project, announcing that, “We have the funding sources for all of the trail master plan, and we have money in the bank for construction. We were able to secure ten and a half million dollars in state funds to pay for the staffing and master plan of the Great Redwood Trail. This is going to take us through the next several years of hard work and planning the trail. And a half billion dollars, five hundred million dollars, has been secured for the State Coastal Conservancy for projects that will help us fight our climate crisis and build trails of statewide significance. That includes the Great Redwood Trail.” McGuire and members of the Trail Agency hope that private landowners alongside the trail will take advantage of opportunities to offer hospitality services and amenities to trail users. Wild camping will not be allowed, but the senator enthused about one site that he said has already committed to providing a campground. “Eventually, what you're going to see are authorized camping spots throughout the trail,” he said. “In fact, just last year…the state, along with the Wildland Conservation Board, just purchased the old Lone Pine Ranch,” a remote forested property on the eastern bank of the Eel River, on the border of Mendocino and Trinity counties. It was formerly owned by Dean Witter, who bought it in the 1940's. It stayed in his family until his heirs decided to sell it to conservation groups. The Conservation Fund's website says that, “For many years, our partners at The Wildlands Conservancy owned a 3,000-acre portion of the Lone Pine Ranch. But in 2019, they sought our help to protect the remaining 26,000 acres…The support for this project has been tremendous with the help of Governor Newsom, Secretary of Natural Resources Crowfoot, the Center for Biological Diversity, California Wildlife Conservation Board, and the California State Coastal Conservancy.” McGuire described the property as “some of the most spectacular land that you've ever seen. It's 30,000 acres. It will have 12 miles of riverfront trail. That's going to be our first authorized campground. You're going to have restrooms there, be able to stock up on provisions and water. This is a game changer for the trail.” Deven Young, with Alta Planning and Design, which is preparing the master plan, said that the design could include enhanced access for CalFire vehicles, though McGuire pointed out that trail users are not among the main culprits, when it comes to human-caused fires. And McGuire referred to a ranger service that he hopes to deploy along the trail to pick up trash and assist travelers. Young spoke about ideas to create solar-powered hotspots that would enable hikers to call in emergency responders if someone gets hurt. “A lot of it comes down to wayfinding in and around the corridor itself,” he said. “It's remote. So demarcating and outlining and creating points along the corridor is really critical. As part of that wayfinding, we've actually found remote, really rugged trails have a lot of success using things like bluetooth beacons” with tiny solar panels along the trail, which allow hikers to have cell phone access and call for help. Timelines and exact figures are not available yet. And it will take a separate ruling from the Surface Transportation Board to allow railbanking south of Willits to Ukiah, and on to Cloverdale. Carol Hart, Chairwoman of the Great Redwood Trail Agency, is pushing to make it happen within a lifetime. “And I really hope, for our eighty-year-old plus people who have tuned in, that they are going to get out on this trail,” she enthused. “They are going to get to see the phenomenal Eel River Canyon, and the Founders Trail, and enjoy what this trail will have to offer.”

October 21, 2022 — The Great Redwood Trail overcame a major hurdle late yesterday afternoon, when a federal regulator turned down the Skunk Train's offer to buy 13 miles of track north of Willits. The Great Redwood Trail Agency, which owns the track, had asked the Surface Transportation Board, which regulates railroads, to allow it to abandon the track so it could start the process of converting it into a trail. The Board approved the abandonment, effective on June 19, unless it received a formal notice from an entity intending to buy part or all of the line. The Skunk Train, also known as Mendocino Railway, did so. Last Saturday,it filed its bid, known as an Offer of Financial Assistance, which the Board rejected within the five-day legal timeframe. The Board also lifted the hold on its authorization to abandon the line, which means that as of Tuesday, October 25, the entire 176 miles of track from Willits to just outside Eureka is officially an abandoned railway. There is no appeals process, and the Board will take up further issues around converting the railway into a trail in the next few days. The Great Redwood Trail Agency is working closely with Senator Mike McGuire, the California Coastal Commission, and environmental groups including Friends of the Eel River, to build a 320-mile trail alongside or on top of the railroad line from Marin to the Humboldt Bay. The Agency also holds the deed to the Willits yard, or depot on Commercial Street, which is a critical part of the Skunk Train's infrastructure. Last month, Robert Pinoli, the President and CEO of Mendocino Railway, told a judge he feared that if the line were abandoned, his company would no longer be able to use the yard. Pinoli was the only witness in a three-and-a-half day eminent domain trial, where Mendocino Railway is suing a landowner just outside of Willits, claiming that short lines like the Skunk Train are a vital element of the nation's infrastructure. As such, Pinoli argued, the Skunk should be authorized to take the property because its use of it would serve the most public benefit. The eminent domain trial seemed to conclude about a week before the Great Redwood Trail Agency signed the deed to the Willits yard, but it's since been reopened. It will start up again on November third. The process of converting the railway into a trail appeared to be threatened over the summer, when an anonymous “Coal Train” interest based in Wyoming declared its intent to purchase all 176 miles of the track and use it to carry coal from the midwest and ship it overseas from the port in Humboldt Bay. That plan was scuttled when badly redacted bank statements showed that the company was flat broke. The Skunk Train's challenge remained, though. On Saturday, it made good on its stated intent to buy the track from Willits to Longvale. In a 271-page Offer of Financial Assistance, the company argued that the Great Redwood Trail Agency had grossly overestimated the maintenance and rehabilitation costs of the line; that the Skunk Train had a potential client for its freight shipping services; and that it has the financial wherewithal to purchase the track for about five and a half million dollars. The company estimated that rebuilding the track would cost an additional seven to nine million dollars. The Great Redwood Trail Agency's attorney, Charles Montange, argued that “In order to show financial responsibility, MR (Mendocino Railway) must show available assets sufficient to cover purchase price and rehabilitation and other costs of sustaining the initial two years of operation.” The Agency calculated that the purchase price, rehabilitation costs, and the two years operation and maintenance would come out to a little over $39 million. The entire northern portion of the line is so unsafe that in 1998, the Federal Railroad Administration embargoed it, meaning that it is illegal to use the line. And a tunnel on the Mendocino Railway line between Willits and Fort Bragg has collapsed multiple times. There is no connection between the Mendocino Railway short line and the national rail network. Pinoli testified last month that to his knowledge, the last time Mendocino Railway interchanged a freight train with another train was the day before Thanksgiving of 1998. He did not know the last time a freight train left Mendocino County. Mendocino Railway did not include its assets or the name of its potential shipping client in the public filing of its Offer of Financial Assistance. The Surface Transportation Board did have access to that information, and it found that the Railway “failed to demonstrate…that it has, or within a reasonable amount of time will have, the funds necessary to not only acquire the 13-mile rail segment, but to rehabilitate, maintain, and operate it as well.” The Great Redwood Trail Agency hired Marie Jones, a Fort Bragg consultant, to conduct a market analysis of Mendocino Railway from Longvale to Willits. She wrote that, “As an abandoned community, (Longvale) will not provide a market for the rail-based transport of any finished goods, manufactured goods, or commuting traffic, and on its face, is not a tourist destination for excursion train use. Aggregates, gravel and sand are the only realistic potential freight from this area.” She calculated that permitted operations in the area allow for a maximum of 79,100 tons of gravel extraction per year. With competitive transportation costs in the Willits market, she concluded, “There is no space within the market for non-competitive transportation pricing.” Jones is dubious that any potential shipper would pay the higher rates she believes Mendocino Railway would have to charge to be profitable, especially since trucking is so much cheaper. According to Jones, for the train to compete with trucks, it should charge $211 per railcar. But Jones concluded that “the total capitalized cost for acquisition, construction, and operating costs for the Longvale to Willits rail line would be $3,767/railcar, which is an order of magnitude higher than the average trucking cost of $211 for 80 tons of aggregate delivery.” Montange summed up Jones' findings: “The only shipper that could possibly be served on the Longvale to Willits segment is Wylatti dba Geo Aggregates, which has previously been identified by MR (Mendocino Railway) as the only shipper in the Longvale vicinity, and which is also present in Fort Bragg. GRTA (the Great Redwood Trail Agency) retained Marie Jones to examine rail need and feasibility for all the shippers identified by MR, and the transportation market generally from Longvale to Fort Bragg. Suffice it to say that Ms. Jones shows in her resulting report (attached to Jones Verified Statement, exhibit 4) not only that Wylatti is being served by trucks but also that that trucks are cheaper than rail to satisfy all current or expected transportation needs. If trucks are cheaper, then freight rail is not feasible or needed.” The Board agreed that Mendocino Railway “has not demonstrated financial responsibility.” Meanwhile, the Great Redwood Trail Agency has released its “Feasibility, Governance, and Railbanking Report,” which McGuire refers to as the “Master Plan.” He anticipates it will take two to three years to get through the details of construction, fire safety, and community engagement before trail building begins. There will be a virtual town hall about the master plan on Monday night at 6:30 p.m.

September 20, 2022 — Erosion is a form of pollution, especially alongside waterways, as pieces of the terrestrial landscape make their way into rivers and streams, damaging fishbearing habitat.Now, several private landowners in Laytonville are working with the Eel River Recovery Project, using EPA money distributed by the State Water Resources Control Board, to remediate over 600 feet of erosion on four creeks that feed into the South Fork of the Eel River. Patrick Higgins, the director of the Eel River Recovery Project, gave an overview on Saturday morning as he led a tour along Cahto Creek. The four projects are “relatively substantial,” he said. “Two on Cahto Creek here, along the Cahto Trail. And one at Mill Creek, above Little Case Creek. And one at Black Oak Ranch along Streeter Creek. And these are all salmonid-bearing streams.” Each site ranges from a hundred feet to about 180 feet long, so Higgins notes that “they're pretty big open sores, where dirt's pouring into the creek. And that's not good for the private land interests, but it's also a form of pollution,” which fills in downstream pools and salmon nests. It can also cause rivers to get shallower, widening and heating up as the cold water comes to the surface. The Eel River Recovery Project sent surveys to all the landowners in the basin, asking them if they had problems with riparian erosion, then chose to work on the four sites that had the highest potential for sediment pollution and the most significance for fish habitat.The work is scheduled to take place between July and October of next year. Mostly, it consists of engineering features that will affect the velocity of the river where its flows have been altered by human activity —  or the lack of it, like building bridges and roads, and allowing conifers to overtop oak forests and absorb groundwater that some scientists believe would otherwise join the river.Dennis Hogan owns property near what he calls the Mulligan Bridge. He's working on improving forest health and remediating a section of riverbank that he says has receded steadily since he moved onto the place in 1989. He's also raising willow and other riparian saplings to plant on the newly engineered riverbank, once the heavy machinery gets out of the way. “The streambed is lower than it used to be, by quite a bit,” he told visitors on Saturday. The nearby bridge has concrete abutments, which could account for narrowing the river channel, causing the water to rush through with great velocity. And Hogan said the rate of erosion seems to have increased since a large oak on the riverbank came down about five years ago. Philip Buehler is the foreman of BioEngineering Associates in Laytonville, which designs riverbank stabilization projects.  On Saturday afternoon, he told a small group of landowners and nature lovers about the forces at work in the creek under Mulligan Bridge. He's taken a lead role in designing the structures that will be installed next year, and will be in charge of the crew that puts them in“What's happening here is really common on creeks,” he said. “You can see we're on a slight outside bend of the creek here on this side. With any outside bend, the water is moving faster over here than it is on the inside…we have all this blackberry and other vegetation that is strengthening that side of the creek. You can see where Dennis has cleared,  just behind the blackberry, it's really sandy, fine sediment. During high flows, when that part of the bank is inundated over there, you're getting slower water velocity in all of that vegetation. The vegetation is absorbing the energy of the flowing creek, and slowing the water down. When it's slowed down, sediment drops out and gets deposited over there. That's what's moving this creek eighty feet this way, is sediment being deposited over there, vegetation growing up over time. Over here (on the eroded side), we have no erosion-resistant vegetation, so it's stronger over there than it is over here.”Buehler took a few moments to talk more about bioengineering at the end of the tour on Streeter Creek at the Hog Farm. That's another erosion site where a section of fencing dangles in midair about ten feet from the edge of the riverbank.  “Bioengineering is a type of technology where we build living structures, generally out of locally harvested willow plants,” he said. “So we build our structures out of rock, live willow, and erosion control fabrics…the gist of it is, the projects are living things. They grow over time, they stabilize the river bank, and they have a lot of benefits for the creek in general.”At Hogan's property, Buehler plans to put in five structures made out of boulders, live willow branches, and root wads to coax the river into creating more deep water pools for young salmonids. “What we want to do here is move the channel, so it's flowing in the middle here, more to that side, rather than against this bank,” he explained. He expects the root wads to create turbulence in the channel as the water flows over them, scouring out a pool downstream, giving the fish a place to spend the summer, “until it rains, and we get a creek here again.”The next day, Laytonville got well over an inch and a half of rain.

September 19, 2022 — The rain arrived over the weekend, bringing relief to firefighters and salmon alike. In Mill Creek, which makes its way to the South Fork of the Eel River in Laytonville, coho salmon surprised a leading fisheries biologist.Patrick Higgins, director of the Eel River Recovery Project, sent out an email last week, reporting that he couldn't believe his eyes when he saw coho near some restoration sites, just a few days after a scorching heat wave.On Saturday afternoon, just before the clouds moved in, he led a tour of the restoration sites, including a visit to a shaded pool tucked into a bend of Mill Creek where living shadows flickered among the rocks. “I didn't know that coho still actively used Mill Creek, so it was kind of a minor miracle when I went in there last Wednesday, and there were these beautiful showy fish,” he marveled. “And not the steelhead, and no warm water fish, just mostly coho…it's a sign of resilience…it's a further illustration that we do need to improve the habitat here for fish like coho, that like three feet of colder water…and then we also found them at the Varnhagen Cahto Creek Ranch, so that means the adult coho went by there, and other coho in that year class also went by, and temporarily used the habitats that we're going to improve…the coho probably went by here in late December, early January, which was the last flood peak, and that's exactly perfect for their spawn timing. And then the rain skinnied out between January and March, and so there were fewer steelhead juveniles to compete with them, so it was just kind of the luck of the draw.” Landowner Joe Faigon said the site has been affected by events ranging from the great flood of 1964 to a variety of non-indigenous practices in the last two hundred years. Little Case Creek comes into Mill Creek at his property, he said. “And Little Case Creek has a longer history of rich guys redirecting it. And it's pretty much a straight run…Nine tenths of the year, it's dry as a bone until it gets wet, and then it's like a fire hose. Geigers and the local kids would use this corner as a swimming hole during the summer because it became that deep, mostly because of this log jam and the stuff they did over there to keep the meadow from flooding. And it was probably used as a sluice channel, way back,” when loggers used rivers to transport logs to the mills. The practice scoured the river bottoms and tore out many of the bends in the channel that slowed down the water velocity and created refugia for wildlife.Higgins is studying a number of factors at this site and several others in the Eel River and its tributaries. “We're doing an analysis of flow in Cahto Creek and Mill Creek, to see how they differ in flow from Alder Creek, which is an old growth system over in Angelo Reserve,” he said, as fingerling coho flickered in and out of visibility. “Likely we will see that flood peaks are greater on Cahto and Mill than in Alder, and also that base flows are maintained better on Alder, and that the descent of the hydrograph reflects greater evapotranspiration,” he predicted. He added that the ponds in Mill Creek had been just about dry for a week during the Labor Day heat wave, but, “as you can see, it's flowing beautifully, just from the cold nighttime temperatures, and the trees reducing evapotranspiration. When the pool is disconnected, they have to kind of scour around for food.” He paused to watch a fish snap a bug off the surface. “That's almost always true of watching fish,” he said, in what may be a time-lapse analogy of humanity's history of endangering species and then trying to restore them. “You come up to the creek, you see very little. First of all, you probably scared everything. Now we've been here for about five minutes. And they're all just kind of going, okay. We've got to eat lunch.”

On this week's EcoNews Report, Scott and Alicia from Friends of the Eel River join Gang Green to talk about dam removal and FERC relicensing. Also, the coal train is officially dead! Let's take a moment to celebrate that big victory.Support the show

July 29, 2022 — This week, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued two decisions that water interests in the Eel and Russian River watersheds have been waiting on for months. On Wednesday, the Commission approved a drastic reduction in the flow of water through the Potter Valley hydropower project into the East Branch of the Russian River. As of 2:00 yesterday afternoon, the water coming out of Lake Pillsbury started to be reduced from 75 cubic feet per second to five cfs. The Potter Valley Irrigation District will continue to receive up to 50 cfs on demand. PG&E still owns the project, though it recently submitted a 30-month schedule for decommissioning, which FERC approved. PG&E argued that it needed to reduce the flow in order to preserve the infrastructure at Lake Pillsbury, as well as cold water pools at the bottom of the reservoir for fish habitat. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), declared that if the water levels in the lake went down below 30,000 acre feet, the water would get too hot for juvenile salmonids. Though there is no fish ladder at Scott Dam, which impounds Lake Pillsbury, there is a needle valve at the bottom of the dam. The valve releases water into the 12-mile section of the Eel River between Lake Pillsbury and the van Arsdale Reservoir, near the diversion tunnel that directs the water into the Russian River. Charlie Schneider is the coordinator with the Salmon and Steelhead Coalition, a partnership among Trout Unlimited, California Trout, and the Nature Conservancy. He said early models indicated that, in order to preserve the cold water pools, the variance should have been implemented by July 15. “We're glad the variance was finally approved, but I think we need to better understand and look at those models to really see what's going to happen later this summer,” he said; “to see if it is in fact too late.” He added that conservationists are interested in preserving the 30,000 acre-feet of storage in Lake Pillsbury because in “big, deep reservoirs, the water stratifies, and the water in bottom part of the dam is cooler than the water at the top…the more water you're able to retain in there, the more cold water there is in the bottom of the lake. And that's the water that gets released from the low-level outlet. So it's really about preserving water temperature in that 12-mile reach between Scott and Cape Horn dams, making sure that water's a cool enough temperature to be habitable for salmonids.” Elizabeth Salomone, General Manager of the Mendocino County Russian River Flood Control and Water Conservation Improvement District, expects drastic changes for human water users on the other side of the diversion tunnel. “It's unusual for curtailments to cut into what we call the pre-1914 grouping,” she noted. “We do expect the curtailments to cut back into that pre-1914 category. But we won't know for sure until the State Water Board issues their findings and curtailment notices.” Salomone expects the state will allow Upper Russian River water users enough water to meet human health and safety needs, which is 55 gallons per person per day. Some urban water suppliers have other sources, including groundwater or recycled water. And some farmers as well as urban centers have contracts to divert stored water from Lake Mendocino. “So not everyone will go completely without water,” she concluded. The Commission also delivered an ambiguous opinion refuting the claims of environmental groups that the Commission has the authority to amend the Potter Valley Project's new annual license to include more protection measures for wildlife. The license for the Project expired on April 14. Within days, a group of conservationists and fishermen filed a 60-day notice of intent to sue PG&E under the Endangered Species Act. At the time, Redgie Collins, the Legal and Policy Director for California Trout, one of the coalition threatening the lawsuit, said that with the expiration of the license, PG&E “can no longer harm, harass, directly kill or injure salmon or steelhead at their project site.” The group wanted a new round of improved mitigation measures, arguing that the Commission had discretion over whether or not it granted the annual license. The Commission rejected that argument, saying that it was required to issue an annual license after the old one expired. And, while it also denied the coalition's call for an Endangered Species Act consultation, it did consult with NMFS to require PG&E to monitor water in parts of the Eel River and Lake Pillsbury. The utility must pay for two state programs to monitor salmon on the mainstem and middle fork of the Eel River for a period of time. It's also required to continue collecting data on water quality in Lake Pillsbury and provide that data to NMFS, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, and the Round Valley Indian Tribes. These are the four entities that PG&E consulted before making its request for the reduction. The Commission also disagreed with a slew of comments by Russian River water users complaining that PG&E was required to consult a drought working group composed of a wide array of stakeholders before requesting such a drastic change in the flows. The Commission wrote that “Establishment of and consultation with the Drought Working Group is not a license requirement; however the Commission encourages licensees to consult with stakeholders and to consider their interests when developing plans for Commission approval.” However, the Commission is now requiring PG&E to consult with the drought working group as it implements the reduction. Theoretically, the flows could be increased to 25 cfs. But the final decision will be left up to the four entities that supported the reduction to 5 cfs. Commissioner James Danly concurred with the Commission's decisions, but asked if it was fair to require ratepayers to finance the studies. Schneider thinks the solution is simple.“You know, he's sort of complaining about new operational measures while PG&E is no longer seeking to operate the project,” he reflected. “But the way to solve that is to get your facilities out of the river. Right? To get your dams out of the river, and then there won't be operational measures for you to need to comply with. He's sort of arguing like, oh, you guys should just let PG&E kill fish while they're decommissioning this project. You shouldn't worry about it. But we actually care about fish every year. Over the next couple of years while they're decommissioning this project, we want to make sure these fish are in good shape.” Danly wrote that he thinks “the Commission should ask the following: is it “reasonable” to require Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) — that is, California ratepayers — to pay to comply with new operational measures that are not required by law for a project that PG&E no longer seeks to operate? One must also bear in mind that compliance typically does not immediately follow an order's issuance. Orders requiring compliance frequently entail compliance plans which can take years to develop, review, and approve.” But Schneider called out the commissioner by name. “You're the people that can tell them to do it faster, FERC. Danly,” he exclaimed. “They take years. It's like, yeah, because you let them take years!” Cooperation in the allocation of water rights, often referred to as the California water wars, is rare. But on July 1, the state approved a first-of-its kind voluntary program in the upper Russian River, where senior water rights holders agreed to share their water with juniors. That program is contingent on project water that won't be available under the reduced flows, but Salomone remains optimistic. “About half of the water that's represented in water rights in the Upper Russian River signed up for the program,” she reported. “That's significant. That is a fantastic result for a pilot project. So what will happen now is that the program will essentially go on pause. It won't be canceled, it will just be on pause. It continues to be a participation tool. All of the participants will receive information on their water allocation, for which most of them, it will now go to zero. But as soon as conditions change, let's say we get a nice big rainstorm in October, or maybe even September, then the participants will be notified and their water allocation will go up as appropriate. So I am really proud of our Upper Russian River folks. This was a grassroots stakeholder-built program that took about two years to put together. And we are sticking with it, even if we have to hit the pause button. We're going to use it as a permanent tool in our toolbox, I hope.”

July 13, 2022 — There have been two developments in the ongoing saga of the Potter Valley hydropower project this week. The 20-year license has expired, but PG&E still owns and operates the project on an annual license. On Monday, PG&E submitted a rough schedule to surrender that license to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). In a separate filing, PG&E argued that it should be allowed to continue operating the project under the biological protections that were attached to the license when it was issued in 2002. The 100-year-old project consists of two dams and two reservoirs that impound water on the Eel River; and a diversion tunnel that sends Eel River water into the East Fork of the Russian River, eventually making up the majority of Lake Mendocino. At its height, the project was capable of generating 9.4 megawatts of power, but it's not currently producing power due to a broken transformer. The project provides water that's key to agriculture in the Russian River and has long been a hot-button issue for environmental organizations that argue it harms endangered fish in the Eel. On Monday, PG&E submitted a four-page proposal for a two-and-a-half-year timeline to surrender the license and decommission the project. The bulk of that time will be devoted to interacting with agencies and stakeholders as PG&E drafts more detailed documents. Environmentalists are pushing for a speedy removal of both dams. But PG&E spokeswoman Deanna Contreras said in an email, “We expect it will take many years following PG&E's submittal to FERC for a Decommissioning Order to be issued.” She added that PG&E still plans to replace the broken transformer, expecting it to amortize over a period of five years. Replacing the part could take up to two years. Water-using stakeholders include the Potter Valley Irrigation District, which has contractual rights to some of the water; and the City of Ukiah, which has pre-1914 rights to water further down the East Fork, before it flows into Lake Mendocino. The Sonoma County Water Agency claims the bulk of the water in the lake. The Russian River Flood Control and Water Conservation Improvement District also has water rights to the lake, and sells wholesale water in Mendocino County. All these interests are currently in suspense about whether or not PG&E will be allowed to drastically reduce the water flowing through the diversion tunnel. PG&E has stated that one of its reasons for asking FERC to allow it to cut down on the flows is to preserve a cold-water pool for young salmonids in the Eel River. But it's not just environmental advocacy organizations that are concerned about the project's impact on wildlife and the environment. Back in 2002, the National Marine Fisheries Service, or NMFS, wrote a Biological Opinion, laying out the measures that PG&E needed to take in order to comply with the Endangered Species Act. That opinion was incorporated into the license that was issued at that time, and which expired three months ago. In March of this year, NMFS wrote a letter to FERC, saying that the project was causing take, or killing and harming fish that are listed under the Endangered Species Act, “in a manner not anticipated in the Opinion and from activities not described in the Opinion.” The letter goes on to say that the fish passage facility at Cape Horn Dam has not undergone the proper consultations regarding endangered species, and that none of the operations at the facility are covered in the 20-year-old opinion. NMFS wants to re-open consultations about the license in order to update and strengthen the environmental protection measures. This means that the license for the project would be undergoing amendments at the same time that it is being surrendered. Within a few weeks of the NMFS letter, environmental advocates filed a notice of intent to sue PG&E under the Endangered Species Act, citing among other things that the fishway at Cape Horn Dam made the fish easy prey for river otters. In a 16-page letter to FERC, PG&E wrote that NMFS doesn't have evidence to back up its claims. PG&E also protested that NMFS failed to mention “any of the voluminous monitoring record covered by over 20 years of monitoring Project operations.” Redgie Collins is the legal and policy director for California Trout, one of the organizations arguing that PG&E is in violation of the Endangered Species Act. He believes the biological opinion expired along with the license, and that it needs to be updated. CalTrout is threatening litigation as part of a pressure campaign to speed up dam removal and install other structures that will enable a winter diversion from the Eel to the Russian. “We have plenty of information that shows that these 100-year-old plus Eel River dams kill fish,” he declared. “And becasue they kill fish, and because we believe that the Biological Opinion has ended, that PG&E is required to either re-consult, or open themselves up to litigation that we are preparing, as we speak.” Collins is inspired by plans to remove four hydropower dams from the Klamath River, which is scheduled to start next year. “It took them about 18 years to get to the point of the surrender process,” he said. “And once it kick-started there, the writing was on the wall for the eventual solution, which was worked on by a host of stakeholders, including tribal nations. Here we have a very similar path, and so we're hoping that they use the existing information that we've put forth, and the removal plan, and try to beat that 30-month window. That's our goal. It will never be quick enough for us.” The Round Valley Indian Tribes have weighed in on the NMFS request to amend the license, saying the tribes support all the protective measures proposed by the service. The tribes are one of the few entities PG&E notified of its intent to reduce flows coming through the project, much to the chagrin of the Russian River water users, who argued that PG&E should have assembled a full drought working group before asking FERC to sign off on the reduction, or variance. Collins says PG&E could have cut down the flows any time, without waiting around on FERC. “If they truly wanted to save listed species, they would have implemented the variance,” he said. “That cold pool will be functionally gone in a short period of time. We think just in a matter of weeks that cold pool will be drained based on the variance not being implemented.” With ag users writing angry letters pleading for more water and environmentalists threatening lawsuits, one thing is clear: the initial outreach to stakeholders is not going well. And the decommissioning process hasn't gotten started yet.

June 10, 2022 — By 7:00 on Wednesday night, the Board of Supervisors had agreed 4-1 to put a tax on the November ballot to fund county-wide fire and water needs. The amount of the tax has not been decided yet, but the split will be 60% for fire and 40% for water. However, it would be a general tax, which typically goes straight into the general fund for no specified purpose and only requires a simple majority to pass. A special tax requires a two-thirds majority. County Counsel Christian Curtis gave the board some structural advice, saying that he could set up a general tax with an advisory body to give the board recommendations as to the best ways to use the funds. “I can't guarantee the use of funds in any particular manner, or it will become a special tax,” he cautioned. The advisory body the board discussed came out to eight representatives of diverse interests, including one tribal representative. There are ten tribal nations in Mendocino County. The tax is likely to be one of two that come before the voters in November. The Citizens' Committee for the Library Initiative has been campaigning since January to put a quarter-cent sales tax on the ballot, in part to pay for capital improvements like roof repairs. They wrote in a letter to the Board that they have already gathered over 4,000 signatures. Supervisor Dan Gjerde read from a five-point memo he started circulating over the weekend, arguing against the water and fire tax. “Voters in every corner of Mendocino County will question why they are being asked to pay a water sales tax, when the water sales tax is originating from, and is the brainchild of, water interests in one corner of the county who pay virtually nothing for their water,” he declared. “Today we have a united Board of Supervisors that politically and financially supports the efforts of the Potter Valley Irrigation District, the Inland Water and Power Commission, and others who are attempting to retain reasonable water diversion rights from the Eel River to Potter Valley and to Lake Mendocino. But this support has limits. A debate at this time over an imperfect and unwelcome sales tax will trigger devastating political division within Mendocino County…and a Board-sponsored sales tax will lose at the ballot. Question: after the inevitable loss at the ballot, will state and federal funders want to give state and federal grants to support any Eel River diversion or related projects? I'm doubtful.” He threatened to campaign against it if it was three-eighths of a cent, but left himself room to support it if it was a quarter cent and its advocates were “open and transparent.” He was dismayed that elected representatives in cities, where the majority of the tax will be collected, had not been consulted. Janet Pauli, of the Potter Valley Irrigation District and chair of the Inland Water and Power Commission, argued in favor of the tax. She said the IWPC is now facing the decommissioning of the Potter Valley Project, and an opportunity for a long-awaited feasibility study of raising Coyote Valley Dam. She assured the board that the interests she represents are not asking the county to pay for their water. “We are now bound by two federal processes that are out of our control, but to which we must react and be engaged, or we will not have a voice in directing the future of our water supply reliability in the Russian River basin in Mendocino County,” she told the Board. “I'm here to speak to these two critically important and urgent funding needs. We have a budget for our funding needs for IWPC. I can't address other drought-related water supply funding requirements in the county, or fire and emergency services funding needs. But it seems clear to me that between the droughts and fires we have recently experienced, we should be prioritizing fire and water funding needs… A request for funding by IWPC is not a forever tax. It is bridge funding to help us get the information we need to form a regional entity that will be able to self-fund a sustained revenue stream based on monetization of the water supply from the Potter Valley Project, used by the people who directly benefit from the water.” But some speakers were skeptical about the level of planning that had gone into the measure on the part of the board. Michelle Bisson Savoy, president of the Friends of the Ukiah Valley Library, said the library has done a needs analysis, which she implied was missing from the newest tax proposal. “We got together quite an army of volunteers and went out and got a lot of petitions,” she said. “And what we heard, over and over again, is that as long as it doesn't raise the taxes, people will be okay with it…you don't have your ducks all in a row here yet, as to what you're going to do with the water and fire money.” Some supporters of the water and fire tax argued that those needs are existential, while libraries are not. Detractors pointed out that a sales tax is regressive and hits poor people hard, while libraries offer an array of important free resources. A water lawyer quoted Abraham Lincoln and the Bible. Cannabis advocate Ron Edwards ranked the priorities, saying, “this is really the most important issue facing the county: fire and water. Yet the turnout is hard for you guys to really get a feel. When we were talking about expanding cannabis, you had two hundred speakers show up. And I don't know what it will take to get that kind of buy-in and feedback from the general public. I'm just pleading with the public to pay attention to help you guys make a decision, because this is way more important than the cannabis issue.” Union representative Patrick Hickey, who signed on to a letter asking the board not to compete with the library tax for votes, called for a middle way — while also pointing out the strong position of the libraries. Measure A, a 2011 library tax, won 75.66% of the vote. “We need to work together,” he stated. “We can't be fighting each other, because if we fight each other, both initiatives are going to fail.” SEIU Local 1021 has not taken a position on the issue yet, because the Board has not offered its final proposal, but Hickey's own proposal is to ask voters to approve a quarter cent sales tax that would be split between fire and water needs. “Friends of the Library will be submitting their signatures next week, and they have more than enough signatures to get it on the ballot,” he promised. The board has four days to publish its agenda for the next meeting. The item is due at the assessor clerk recorder's office by August 12.

June 3, 2022 — Senator Mike McGuire may have taken his victory lap a little too soon at a town hall about the Great Redwood Trail on Wednesday night. “Tonight we are able to announce — and this is late breaking,” he declared; “We have finally put a nail in the coffin of Big Coal. We have beat back Big Coal and the toxic coal train.” The nail may be in the coffin, but there's no train in it yet. McGuire was exulting about what he thought was the extinguished threat of an anonymous coal interest, registered in Wyoming, that was planning to buy the railroad from Willits to Eureka and use it to ship coal to Asia out of the Humboldt Bay. That would put an end to years of effort to turn the railroad into a recreational trail all the way from one Bay Area to the next, from Marin, through the Eel River canyon to Eureka. Sections of the trail have already been built in some communities alongside the tracks. But McGuire and trail advocates were looking forward to railbanking, or filling up the tracks with dirt and gravel, so the trail could be on top of the ready-made line. In order to do that, the federal Surface Board of Transportation would have to declare the tracks abandoned, and grant McGuire and his allies permission to railbank. Anyone who wanted to prevent that from happening was supposed to file their intent to buy the tracks with the Surface Transportation Board by May 31. But the next day, possibly while McGuire was thanking supporters for beating back Big Coal, the North Coast Railroad Company announced its intention to buy the entire 176 miles of track from Willits to Eureka, including appurtenant branch lines. Congressman Jared Huffman issued a statement Thursday, saying “their late application should disqualify them for further consideration. If not, the coalition of community opposition and their lack of transparency certainly will.” The only name associated with the Wyoming-based LLC is Robert A. Wimbish, the attorney, who apologized for his tardiness by explaining that it was “due to unforeseen vacation travel delays.” At a hearing last month, Huffman asked the Surface Board of Transportation Chair, Martin Oberman, where he stood on demanding transparency. “Would the Board require that entity to engage with the community and the public in an open and transparent way,” he began; “in other words, if they're secretive about who they are, about where their funding comes from, is that a factor that you would consider?” Oberman replied, “that's not a factor that's come before us. But I generally believe in full disclosure, and when we get those kinds of applications, we have the ability to insist on a more fulsome application of the facts, which would include revealing the basic financial structure of the entity and so forth. So the general answer to your question is yes, but it's very much case-specific.” But North Coast Railroad isn't the only company trying to buy part of the track. McGuire is also worried about another application, by Mendocino Railway, the parent company to the Skunk Train. Mendocino Railway wants to take over 13 miles of track from mile marker 139.5 to 152.5, from Willits to just past Highway 162, in order to ship gravel from Outlet Creek to Willits or Fort Bragg. However, there is a tunnel on that stretch of the track that long been out of operation due to a landslide. “So right now, if there was a rail company operating on this line, they couldn't even get to the coast because of this massive landslide that's blocking the track,” McGuire said. He added that he does “have some concerns with this application…number one, it's going to create a huge hole right in the heart of the Great Redwood Trail.” In addition, he estimated that, while the cost of railbanking could be $12,000 to $15,000 a mile, repairing the damaged track and the tunnel would cost tens of millions of dollars. Oberman told Huffman the Surface Board of Transportation doesn't concern itself too much with financial details. “You know, we generally are mandated by statute to make it easy for rail lines to come into existence,” he said. “That's one of our jobs. “There's a spectrum on how much we look at financial viability. Generally speaking, we take the view that the market will determine whether a rail line is viable.” Two other train-track oriented interests filed their intent to buy sections of the track, as well. The Timber Heritage Association, a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the timber history of Humboldt County, wants to buy 18.5 miles from Eureka to Samoa, to offer excursion rides on restored timber crew cars. Pete Johnston, the Association's president, assured the Surface Board of Transportation that “Designation of this portion of the right of way is not in conflict with the larger Great Redwood Trail Agency's trail mission;” and he is willing to negotiate with the Agency “on any dual access or potential conflicts emerging to preserve corridor usage for both parties.” And Rail Runners Humboldt Bay in Arcata operates what it calls “a recreation concession for passengers to experience a pedal-powered rail vehicle for an excursion along Humboldt Bay.” In 2019, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors, the mayor of Eureka, and the Humboldt Bay Harbor Recreation and Conservation District, all wrote letters in support of the concession. The owners demonstrated their financial viability by taking out a line of credit on their home and putting up part of a retirement account to buy 5.5 miles of line in Eureka and Samoa. In his remarks to Surface Transportation Board Chair Oberman, Huffman characterized the coal train as, “very unlikely to happen, certainly is at odds with the climate policies expressed by the Administration and Secretary Buttigieg. So I just hope these factors will be on your mind as you discharge your responsibility.”

June 1, 2022 — As another dry summer heats up, the Board of Supervisors is considering asking voters to approve a sales tax for local fire districts and county-wide water projects. The tax for Measure B is due to decrease this year, and the Board hopes voters will agree to replace that reduction with the new tax, which is expected to generate about $7 million per year. At a meeting in mid-May, firefighters and Russian River water users expressed their support for the tax, though details about how to allocate the funds and the exact size of the need were not part of the initial discussion. The Inland Water and Power Commission is eyeing some of the potential money as it works to take over water rights associated with the Potter Valley Project. The rights are currently held by PG&E, the project's owner. Commission Chair Janet Pauli is preparing for an expensive and convoluted process The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has directed PG&E to begin the license surrender process. “That is going to be lengthy,” Pauli predicted. “We don't know exactly how it's going to unfold. We do know there are certain sections of that process that are going to require a lot of our participation, so that we can have a voice in what is going to occur with this project. That is going to require some funding.” Pauli added that there has not been consideration of a CDFW-funded study that examined several possible ways to continue diverting water without the current infrastructure. “If the diversion structure comes out, if that's the final disposition of the license surrender, then we have a very, very, very serious problem,” she said, citing the conclusion that, without water from the diversion, Lake Mendocino would not fill in eight out of ten years. The Commission was part of a consortium that tried to take over the license for the Potter Valley Project, though it fell far short of its funding goals. In addition, it was supposed to form a regional entity that would manage the project, a task that is also imperative for acquiring the water rights. The water rights coalition, Pauli said, “would ultimately own and manage and fund the diversion. That entity needs to be formed so that they can negotiate with PG&E regarding acquiring the actual physical infrastructure and securing the water right for the diversion, as well.” The long-term license for the hydropower project has expired, and PG&E is operating it on an annual license. “Now that PG&E is required to surrender the license, the project will no longer produce power,” Pauli reasoned. “Our job is to protect the diversion, to assure that that water can continue to be diverted into the Russian.” Another long-time goal, a feasibility study for raising Coyote Valley Dam, just got a step closer to the fundraising stage. A press release from Congressman Jared Huffman's office declared that expediting the study is one of his priorities as the Water Resources and Development Act winds its way towards completion. The Act was approved by the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure last month. The Inland Water and Power Commission is the non-federal local sponsor for funding that study, so “When the federal budget allows funding, we need to match it,” Pauli said. “Those costs combined will be about $3 million, over about a three-year period,” starting sometime in 2023. The IWPC is budgeting for its half of that cost, which would be $1.5 million. But without Eel River water, Lake Mendocino would rarely fill to its current capacity in a rainy year, let alone a millennial drought. Last month, PG&E asked federal regulators to expedite permission to slash the diversion of Eel River water from Lake Pillsbury into the East Branch of the Russian River, which flows into Lake Mendocino, from 75 cubic feet per second to five. The request is being vigorously contested by the Potter Valley Irrigation District and Sonoma County Water Agency. “The idea of people who benefit from this water supply helping to fund what's needed to get us that water supply is critically important,” Pauli declared. She expects that it will cost between $1.6 and $1.8 million a year, over the next five or six years, to secure the water supply through the diversion and raise Coyote Valley dam. “That's what our budget outline is showing right now,” she concluded. The Board of Supervisors plans to review an initial draft of the proposed tax ordinance at its meeting next Wednesday, on June 8th.

Friends of the Eel River is a nonprofit organization working for the recovery of the Wild & Scenic Eel River. In this episode we chat with the Executive Director, Alicia Hamann. The removal of the two dams in the Upper Eel River has been the main focus of Friends of the Eel River for over 20 years and Alicia provides us some valuable information on the history of the project, as well as what to expect moving forward.