Daniel Mintz Mad River Union MANILA – The county’s Planning Director has responded to complaints about the Friends of the Dunes (FOD) invasive grass removal and restoration work in Manila, saying that loss of foredune and wetland impacts are not occurring on the group’s property. Planning Director John Ford updated the group’s permitting status at…
Eco Briefs: Explore the dunes, go birding at the marsh, restore Patrick’s Point
LANPHERE DUNES Join a Friends of the Dunes Naturalist for a free guided tour of the Lanphere Dunes Unit of the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge on Saturday, Nov. 3 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The Lanphere Dunes Unit is home to diverse coastal ecosystems including coastal dune forest, seasonal wetlands, and large moving…
Herbicides used in dunes
Jessie Faulkner Mad River Union MANILA – When unexpected conditions arose, U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials opted to use a combination of the herbicides glyphosate and imazapyr to remove European beach grass re-sprouts at a small adaptation plot in the Lanphere Dunes in late March. “Due to the postponement of initial removal of European beachgrass…
Supes to take another stab at sea level rise study
Mad River Union HUMBOLDT – The Board of Supervisors will once again consider whether to send a letter of support for a grant that would fund a study of the dunes from Centerville to Trinidad. The meeting begins at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, April 7 at 825 Fifth St. in Eureka. As previously reported, the…
Study would help leaders make informed choices
The land around Humboldt Bay is slowly subsiding, while sea levels are rising, creating a double whammy that will eventually threaten properties, infrastructure, industry, housing and natural environs. In preparing for the inevitable trouble that lies ahead, planners are looking at how to brace dikes and levees and how to manage wetlands and tidelands to…
Supervisors wary of supporting massive dune study
Daniel Mintz Mad River Union HUMBOLDT – Criticism of invasive beach grass removal projects is affecting a dune ecology partnership’s effort to gain the Board of Supervisors’ support for a grant proposal. The debate over the effectiveness of removing invasive beach grass again emerged at the March 10 board meeting. Supervisors considered a letter of…
Restoration Or Ruin? A Dunes Divide
Jack Durham Mad River Union MANILA – In and around this tiny township, a war of words is being waged over the removal of invasive, non-native plants from the dunes. On one side of the clash is a small but vocal group of critics who claim that pulling European beach grass from the dunes destabilizes…
Uri Driscoll: Concerns Of A Conservative Conservationist And Environmental Economist
Can we take an honest look at the responsibilities that go along with constructing and maintaining a healthy economy as well as the economics of environmental restoration? A healthy economy obviously needs a healthy environment to be sustainable. Pretending one exists without the other is just burying our head in the sand. Conversely, if there…
GUEST OPINION: Are we preparing for or inviting disaster?
The counties approach to surveying the public regarding disaster preparedness is important. Visit http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HumboldtCohazmit. Even while we enjoy our homes, backyards and beaches we should be running through our checklist of what might happen if a “big one “ hits. Certainly being prepared to help our neighbors is a must do. Securing food and water…