Federal regulators said they squashed Redwood Valley’s emergency request after weeks of negotiations because they are prohibited from doing anything that might further harm threatened and endangered fish in the Eel River. “It did not fit into our description of an emergency,” said Dick Butler, supervisor of the National Marine Fisheries Service’s North Central … Read more
By: Scott Greacen Originally published in Econews, April 2014 Friends of the Eel River’s 2014 Eel River Symposium was held at the Fortuna River Lodge, March 7. Many thanks to all who attended and especially to the presenters who made the event such a rich, engaging day of presentations and discussion. Our watershed, region and … Read more
By: Scott Greacen Originally published by Econews, February 2014 See detailed timeline of correspondence and media coverage. Utility cites risk of sediment collapse; drained reservoir may run dry. A few people in the Russian River watershed still have a greater claim to the Eel’s water than do the river’s own salmon. After draining its reservoir … Read more
Friday, April 18, 2014 Katharine Carter, North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board 5550 Skylane Blvd, Suite A Santa Rosa, CA 95403 Via email to: Katharine.Carter@waterboards.ca.gov Re: Comments on the Public Review Draft 2012 Integrated Report Dear Regional Water Quality Control Board and Staff, Please accept the following comments on the Public Review Draft … Read more
By: Scott Greacen April 18, 2014 New Rules for Drying Times? Serial Variance Requests Reveal Vulnerability of Eel River Fisheries to Demands from Russian River Irrigators The Eel River’s surviving salmonids—chinook, coho, and steelhead—are struggling to come back from near-extinction. Good returns from 2010 to 13, particularly for chinook, felt like recovery might be getting … Read more
…with logging activity on the decline across much of the region and a thriving black market for pot — plus state-sanctioned recreational marijuana sales in Washington and Colorado — the spread of cannabis cultivation is now seen by many environmentalists and government scientists as the greatest threat to forests and streams damaged by decades of … Read more
Situated on the coastline of the notorious marijuana-farming Humboldt County, Greacen’s organization has witnessed firsthand some of the highs and lows for this new industry as it’s blossomed from a small handful of ex-hippies and cartel affiliates to a full-blown source of regional livelihood. “We see that there are big groups waiting in the wings, … Read more