EcoNews Report

Snapshot Cal Coast is a statewide effort to document coastal biodiversity, focusing on intertidal zones and marine protected areas, using a series of citizen powered bioblitzes with the app iNaturalist. Bense-Kang talks to Carol Vandermeer, education coordinator for the Trinidad Land Trust, and volunteer/former ED for Friends of the Dunes about the local Baker Beach Bioblitz on June 24th.

More than 4,200 people are employed in fishing and related businesses in Humboldt County, but the industry has been in decline for years. Humboldt State University is leading a team of researchers to work with fishing communities of Eureka and Shelter Cove to assess needs and develop recommendations to improve the sustainability of their ports.

Tom Wheeler talks to Rick Tolley about a benefit art show upstairs at Umpqua Bank in Arcata that includes work from Karuk youth paintouts, art safaris, and Orleans elementary schoolkids. The artwork benefits the Mid Klamath Watershed Council. Also, Rob Diperna with EPIC talks about the Paris Accord, and potential strategies to sidestep America's withdrawal from it.

Salmonids in California have been struggling for decades and this study suggests 75% of California salmonids are likely to go extinct in the next century. Friends of the Eel River's Executive Director Scott Greacen and Admin Director Alicia Hamann discuss the State of Salmonids Report just published by California Trout and UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences.

“MPAs are one part of the management tool box….they serve as an insurance policy for fisheries, potentially enhancing some reproductive output, but also giving us an idea of what does an un-fished system look like so we can better ground truth our management models,” Eric Bjorkstedt, NMFS Fisheries Oceanographer and Adjunct Dept. of Fisheries Biology at HSU told the EcoNew’s Reports Delia Bense-Kang. Bense-Kang talks with researchers Ian Kelmartin , Katherin Osborn, and Eric Bjorkstedt , about

"So a professor, and environmentalist, and a fisherman walk into a bar... " That's how host Tom Wheeler opens this salmon-focused episode of the EcoNews Report. He's joined by Humboldt state professor and writer Cutcha Risling-Baldy , Regina Chichizola of Save the Klamath-Trinity Salmon , and Dave Bitts of The Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Association. The EcoNews Report is presented by the Northcoast Environmental Center .

Have you seen a rhino on 101? Matt Meyer of RhinoRide.org tells Tom Wheeler that he's not a cyclist. He is, however, a safari guide and conservationist who says that a rhino is poached once every 8 hours. He's towing this sculpture by bike down the west coast, which he says is "home to some of the most intense illicit wildlife trade in the US." In this episode, Wheeler drops a pop quiz on Meyer as they discuss the plight of the rhino . [Click for video]

Scott Greacen and Alicia Hamann of Friends of the Eel River discuss long-term threats to the Eel River. Friends of the Eel River's case challenging the North Coast Railroad Authority comes before the California Supreme Court this week – and the Eel River dams are now up for federal relicensing . Meanwhile, Scott attended a dedication ceremony last weekend for the project that will restore fish passage to Woodman Creek blocked by construction of the railroad a century ago.

"It's about time scientists ... go on the offensive," Mike Manetas told EcoNews Report's Jen Kalt. Amid the speakers, marchers, and colorful signs , Kalt asked people why they marched for science.

"Birds have always been a gateway to being outdoors," Gary Friedrichsen says. "It's a very easy way to get involved with nature in general." He and Sue Leskiw discuss Godwit Days and the Third Annual Tim McKay Birdathon with Delia Bense-Kang.