News

Toxic ‘hot spot’ near Arcata could impact projects

Chemicals from former lumber mills found in high concentrations

2/20/16

Chemical leftovers from Humboldt County’s once booming timber industry could create costly delays for two Arcata projects near its marsh and wildlife sanctuary.

One project seeks to construct a dog park at the old Little Lake Industries lumber mill site on South I Street. The other would reuse dredged soils from the bay to create a buffer to protect city properties from sea level rise.

However, recent tests of Humboldt Bay sediment along the marsh found a “hot spot” of harmful compounds known as dioxins, according to Humboldt Baykeeper Director Jennifer Kalt. Dioxins are found in a wood preservative once used by many of the nearly 100 mill sites near Humboldt Bay, which had either spilled or had been dumped into the bay over the decades, Kalt said. “It was so toxic that it was restricted in the late 1980s,” Kalt said. “It’s only allowed now to be used on power poles.”

Bacterial barrage washes ashore – Tests imminent for E. coli sources

8/27/15

Humboldt Baykeeper and Pacific Watershed Associates are poised for genetic tests and analysis to pinpoint the sources of the fecal bacterium E. coli in six Humboldt waterways deemed “impaired” by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

Corrective action hinges on the results of the new tests. They are aimed at finding the precise sources of the pollutant, although E. coli is known to originate in the guts of warm blooded animals (humans, livestock, dogs, horses, birds, raccoons etc.). Other sources are faulty private septic systems, leaking municipal sewer lines and transient encampments. The bacteria can cause humans severe gastrointestinal distress.

Lawsuit: Clean Water Act rule change to impact local, national waters

Organizations say modifications affect local, national waterways

8/8/15

A group of environmental organizations, including Humboldt Baykeeper, have filed a lawsuit challenging proposed changes to the federal Clean Water Act that they claim would threaten waterways across the nation and locally that were once protected under the act.

EPA Identifies Local Impaired Waterways

Six rivers, creeks listed for fecal contamination

7/10/15

Six local waterways have been officially recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as being impaired by fecal bacteria, thus beginning what may be a lengthy assessment to identify and mitigate the sources of pollution.

Clam Beach Makes State ‘Bummer’ List; Other Humboldt stretches of sand get A’s  

6/18/15

   For the second year running, a beach near McKinleyville has been named to a water quality watchdog’s list of the worst beaches in the state.

  According to the annual Beach Report Card compiled by Heal the Bay, a Southern California-based advocacy group that grades beaches along the West Coast, Humboldt County’s Clam Beach landed the No. 3 spot on the list, this year slipping from a “D” grade to an “F.”