Experts warn beachgoers not to bother seal pups because it can sever bond with parent
With harbor seal pupping season actively occurring along Humboldt and Del Norte county beaches, marine mammal experts are urging the public to give seal pups plenty of space and avoid intervening when they appear alone on the sand.Harbor seal pupping is at its peak in Northern California right now, and beachgoers are likely to see harbor seal pups on shore or on nearshore rocks. In an email, Dawn Goley, a Cal Poly Humboldt professor of zoology, said harbor seal mothers routinely leave their pups on shore or on rocks for hours while they forage offshore.“You may be concerned if you see pups alone on the beach, but that is totally normal! Harbor seal mothers will leave their pups on the shore and forage nearby, sometimes for hours,” said Goley. “They will come back to the exact place the pups were left so it is really important that the pup does not leave the site where it was left!”Goley said it’s common for pups to be left alone for long stretches and that moving them, even slightly from where they were left by their mother, can sever the bond between mother and pup, leading to abandonment.“The best way for people to care for harbor seal pups is to keep a safe distance from them (100 yards) and keep dogs away,” said Goley. “Do not remove them from the beach or move them. Again, if they are moved, they may be abandoned by their mothers.”If you are kayaking in local waters, please maintain a safe distance from harbor seals on nearshore rocks. If the mother can see you standing near the pup, it may prevent her from returning.If you are concerned about a sick, injured or potentially abandoned marine mammal, please reach out to the North Coast Marine Mammal Center 707-951-4722.Read Original Article
The following is a press release from the city of Arcata:Site cleanup is set to begin on the area affected by the Downtown Fire.The demolition and removal of fire debris near the corner of 10th and H Street can now proceed following the recent release of the site to the property owners by insurance companies. This milestone allows cleanup and recovery activities to move into the next phase.The City has been working closely with the property owners to identify a qualified contractor to complete the site cleanup and to help streamline the permitting process with the various regulatory agencies involved in the project.The cleanup effort is particularly complex because the damaged structures and debris crossed multiple property lines during the fire event. As a result, all affected properties must be cleaned and managed together as a single coordinated project. The City appreciates the cooperation and diligence of the property owners who have worked collaboratively to move the project forward and complete the cleanup effort as one unified project. For a project such as this, it is typical to take approximately four weeks for the contractor to mobilize and approximately four weeks to complete the work depending on specific site conditions.The selected contractor is expected to visit the site next week to review the site conditions, develop a detailed work plan and meet with permitting and regulatory agencies prior to mobilization. The City will share the project timeline with the public when it is available, so that community will know when the work will begin and when the project is expected to be completed.Cleanup operations will involve the removal of fire-damaged materials and debris from the site and loading it on to trucks for disposal out of the area. When construction begins, community members should expect intermittent traffic disruptions in the downtown area during the work to accommodate truck loading, hauling activities and construction equipment operations. Traffic control measures will be implemented to help maintain public safety and minimize impacts whenever possible.The City appreciates the patience and cooperation of the community, property owners and partner agencies as this work moves forward. Additional updates will be provided as more information becomes available. For immediate questions, please contact the City Manager’s Office at (707) 822-5953.
Humboldt Redwood Company’s request to change the way sediment pollution is regulated on the Elk River was shot down by the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board Thursday.Board members pointed to a lack of data showing sediment conditions on the river improving. A motion to adopt the changes failed, with four board members voting “nay” and only Dale Romanini and Jake Mackenzie in support.The changes surround Humboldt Redwood Company’s (HRC) Waste Discharge Requirements (WDR), the primary regulatory mechanism for controlling sediment pollution from logging in the watershed.This rejection followed Water Board staff’s assurances the changes would not reduce water quality protections on the river, which has been heavily impacted by sediment from logging operations, historic and present, and has regulations a staff member said were the strongest in the state.But environmental groups at the meeting swayed the board, saying instead the changes could increase sediment loads to the river, and argued the regulations should stay the same until marked improvement was recorded.“It’s hard for me to imagine that increasing logging on 40% slopes, on any geology, would not bring down sediment,” said Board Member Hector Bedolla, speaking of one requested change.HRC owns about 79% of the Upper Elk Watershed, according to Water Board documents. Under the 2019-era regulations, HRC can propose alternative practices, so long as they are equal or better than requirements in the original WDR. HRC sought a smattering of technical changes to the document.Jim Burke, Water Board senior engineering geologist, said during a presentation the changes were found to be “reasonable and appropriate” by Water Board staff — who assured the board throughout the meeting they would not reduce water quality protections.“This permit provides the strongest water quality protection of any permit in the state. The revisions preserve that high level of protection while better aligning the permit with real world operational conditions by allowing HRC flexibility in managing its forest while still complying with the [Total Maximum Daily Loads] targets,” said Burke.Keep Reading
The Eureka City Council took steps toward preventing offshore drilling support from being located in Eureka on Tuesday night, directing staff to come back with a resolution and work on changes to the local coastal program update.City Manager Miles Slattery explained that “What staff is recommending, and wanting to get direction upon from council on is to, in the interim, do …. what the Humboldt County has done … bring a resolution back for council’s consideration about the opposition for offshore oil drilling, and then incorporate into our ongoing update to our local coastal program some amendments to the coastal dependent industrial zoning district to prohibit those types of uses in those in that zoning district.”He added that changes to the local coastal program would allow the city to regulate access to the port. He noted that staff aims to have proposed changes to the council by the end of the year.“We plan on getting it to the planning commission, likely sometime this summer, and then go through that process and bring it to council, and then after that, it needs to go to the Coastal Commission for certification,” Slattery said.Public comment was primarily supportive of the city’s efforts to prevent offshore drilling infrastructure from accessing city property.“The first Earth Day was celebrated after an oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara that destroyed ecosystems and communities and beaches for many years afterward,” said Matt Simmons, an attorney for the Environmental Protection Information Center, based in Arcata.“And so the fact that there’s this big federal push now to restart offshore oil drilling off the coast of California, starting south of us, but including Northern California, is truly terrifying.” He noted that EPIC supports both the resolution and changes to the local coastal program.“One thing I wanted to add is that while we were talking about the local coastal program and potential extractive industries, that we should be on the lookout for another industry that the current federal administration is supporting, (which) is offshore mining,” he said. So this is where you take minerals out of the deep sea, you scoop them up and you bring them back to shore, and then you have to dump all the stuff that you dredged off of the bottom of the ocean floor and sift out the little tiny bits of precious metal that you find there. They have proposed projects in Guam and Alaska, but there are precious metal sulfide deposits off the coast of California as well.”Jennifer Kalt with Humboldt Waterkeeper offered similar thoughts.“What you have control over is those onshore support facilities within the city of Eureka,” she said. “And so we strongly support both the resolution and moving forward with the LCP update and working with the Coastal Commission, which is working with other jurisdictions, including Humboldt County, to do the same thing.”Councilmember Kati Moulton added that many in the county oppose any offshore drilling efforts.“I attended the meeting on Jan. 18 at the Wharfinger building with groups like EPIC and Humboldt Waterkeeper, and it was standing room only. It drew a crowd from across the county. It got our congressman here to talk about it, and there was widespread opposition to offshore drilling in general, but especially here on our pristine North Coast,” Moulton said. She drew on her personal experience.Keep Reading
For nearly three decades, Cal Poly Humboldt Wildlife Professor Jeff Black and citizen scientists have been quietly documenting the lives of one of the North Coast’s most charismatic residents: river otters.Now, marking the 27th and final year of this long-term research effort, Black is sharing new observations at the Arcata Marsh & Wildlife Sanctuary — a place where wastewater treatment, wildlife habitat, and public access intersect.Based on two years of intensive study, the latest findings, published in the Northwestern Naturalist, reveal just how deeply river otters rely on the marsh. Otters were present nearly every day, using the wetlands not only to hunt, but to raise pups, socialize, rest, and navigate a landscape shared with hundreds of daily visitors.“Watching the daily interactions between these top predators and their prey was a treat,” says Black. “These river otters regularly switched between fishing for fish and hunting for waterbirds — depending on which pond they entered.”The findings challenge common assumptions about river otters. While often thought of as fish specialists, the study shows that waterbirds — ducks, coots, and grebes — make up a significant portion of their diet during much of the year. Otters were also observed using a wide range of hunting strategies, from repeated diving for fish to stealthy ambushes through dense vegetation.Black’s latest publication and companion video (https://youtu.be/mvRQQhlAdrQ) by Deborah Ketelsen, media production specialist for the Center for Teaching & Learning, offer a window into the world of river otters in the Arcata Marsh, inviting the community to see the marsh — and its otters — with a fresh perspective.North Coast river otter spotters are encouraged to continue to submit their river otter observations to the larger, ongoing, community-based project celebrating river otters and clean water habitats, visit riverotterecology.org. Submit your wild river otter observations.Keep Reading
