EcoNews Report

Chevron deference is no more. What's Chevron deference you ask? Well, it was the backbone of our federal administrative state. Congress often passes laws that are vague or are capable of multiple interpretations. In Chevron, decided in 1984, the Supreme Court said that where a law is vague, the agency gets deference to its interpretation of that law in issuing regulations. In other words, regulations were likely to withstand legal challenges because federal courts were directed to respect the opinions of federal agencies. The Supreme Court recently overturned Chevron, saying that agencies should not be afforded deference but rather it is courts to decide what laws mean. So what does that mean? CHAOS. 

Your legal eagles on the EcoNews, Tom, Matt, Melodie, and Scott, break down the decisions and discuss the ramifications on this week's episode.

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Special guest Congressman Jared Huffman is heading a task force in the Democratic caucus to address Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s policy outline for a second Trump administration. The document is pervaded by anti-science and anti-regulatory animus, with a particular focus on climate science and renewable energy. Friends of the Eel River Conservation Director Scott Greacen goes deep into these and even darker corners of the plan with Congressman Huffman.   

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Golden State Natural Resources, a non-profit organization, is partnering with Drax, a U.K.-based energy company, to propose two new factories to turn biomass into wood pellets and an export facility to ship the pellets to be burned for energy in South Korea and Japan. If approved, the mills would be a major expansion of biomass energy in California. Forest and climate advocates warn that biomass like this results in more carbon emissions than coal and could worsen forest conditions by driving the commodification of public lands. 

Humboldt's own Supervisor Rex Bohn sits on the board of Golden State Natural Resources through his service on Rural County Representatives of California, which provided the capital to start Golden State Natural Resources. 

Rita Vaughan Frost of the Natural Resources Defense Council and Gary Graham Hughes of Biofuelwatch join the show to discuss the proposal and the risks it brings for our forests and climate. 

Learn More!

https://news.mongabay.com/2024/06/burning-wood-is-not-renewable-energy-so-why-do-policymakers-pretend-it-is/

https://news.mongabay.com/2024/05/uks-drax-targets-california-forests-for-two-major-wood-pellet-plants/

https://www.nrdc.org/bio/rita-frost/why-wood-pellets-wont-solve-californias-wildfire-problem

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In the third episode of Humboldt Waterkeeper's special series on communities at risk from sea level rise, we hear from long-time residents and relative newcomers who share their thoughts and concerns about sea level rise. We are also joined by Laurie Richmond of the Cal Poly Humboldt Sea Level Rise Institute, which is a network of academics, tribes, government agencies, NGOs, private consultants, and civic and community groups working to envision the future of our region. How will we adapt to increased flooding and rising groundwater in low-lying areas? Whether we decide to protect certain areas, relocate critical facilities, or figure out how to live with rising water levels, major changes are on the horizon. The good news is that we have time to plan, and a lot of people are thinking deeply about these issues. 

Many thanks to Hilanea Wilkinson, Maurice Viand, Lia Stoffers, Weeramon Sudkrathok ("Cake"), Laurie Richmond, and to Jessie Eden, who produced this episode with funding provided by the California Coastal Commission Whale Tail Grant Program.   

For more info:

• Cal Poly Humboldt Sea Level Rise Institute's Digital Commons (reports and publications on sea level rise)
• California’s new Sea Level Rise Guidance 
• Wiyot Tribe's Climate Adaptation Plan
• Episode 1: Is Humboldt Bay the Canary in the Coal Mine for Sea Level Rise?
• Episode 2: Can We Clean Up Humboldt Bay Before the Sea Rises?

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The Wiyot Tribe has entered into a special partnership with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to help manage Headwaters Forest Reserve, part of the Tribe's ancestral territory. Headwaters Forest needs some help. The majority of the forest is in rough shape from a history of industrial logging, resulting in poor forest health and impaired watersheds. Together, the Wiyot Tribe and the BLM are working to restore the forest through ecological forestry and watershed restoration. The partnership between the two governments allows the Wiyot Tribe to utilize its traditional ecological knowledge in the furtherance of good land stewardship of its ancestral territory for the benefit of the general public. 

Marisa McGrew and Zach Erickson of the Wiyot Tribe join Marissa Vossmer and Zane Ruddy of the BLM to discuss their work to restore Headwaters Forest Reserve.

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This week on the EcoNews Report, our host Alicia Hamann from Friends of the Eel River discusses the opportunities and challenges presented by the Great Redwood Trail. The project, proposed to be the longest rail-trail in the nation, is the state's opportunity to fulfill its responsibility to remediate the environmental harms caused by the old railroad. These harms include fish passage barriers, toxic waste, and hazardous debris left in the river. The trail will also provide opportunities for safe active transportation, enhanced public access to the Wild and Scenic Eel River, and a boost to the tourism economy. But of course a grand vision like this has significant challenges too. Top of the list are protecting cultural sites abused by the railroad, navigating fragile geology, and of course, funding this whole thing.

Join us to hear from guests Ross Taylor, fisheries biologist and principle at Ross Taylor and Associates; Colin Fiske, Executive Director for the Coalition for Responsible Transportation Priorities; and Scott Greacen, Conservation Director for Friends of the Eel River.

Ross Taylor's Fish Passage Report: https://eelriver.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/NWPRR_FINAL-REPORT_FINAL_-DEC-2011.pdf

Great Redwood Trail Master Plan: https://greatredwoodtrailplan.org/

Friends of the Eel River info about the railroad: https://eelriver.org/projects/protecting-the-eel-river-canyon/

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To operate floating offshore wind turbines, we need to know what conditions are like far below the waves. Over a thousand feet beneath the surface, the ocean floor is mostly unmapped, with only scant knowledge about the geologic features present. 

Offshore wind developers are going to change that with autonomous underwater vehicles—basically drones of the ocean or underwater robots that can map the ocean floor.

Ciara Emery and Joel Southall of RWE join the EcoNews to talk about how they plan to study the bottom of the ocean and how the research will feed into the design of the project.

For more info:

• California Offshore Wind Energy Gateway
• Short Science Summary: Benthic & Pelagic Habitats  
• California Coastal Commission findings on Site Assessment activities (2022)

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Petey Brucker, stalwart defender of the Salmon River and friend to many, passed away on April 22, 2024. 

On this week's show, we are joined by his daughter, Allegra Brucker, and friends, Larry Glass and Nat Pennington, to talk about the impact Petey had on the planet on their lives. 

Listen to Petey's music.

OBITUARY: Petey Brucker, 1952-2024

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The Scott and Shasta Rivers were once salmon strongholds, but over-allocation of water has made these rivers nearly uninhabitable for Coho and Chinook. The State Water Resources Control Board established emergency regulations that set minimum streamflows during the most recent drought. But those will likely expire soon. Without new permanent instream flows, both rivers could run dry. 

A coalition of tribal governments, fishermen and environmental nonprofits are asking the State Board for new permanent instream flow dedications. And new legislation, if passed, will strengthen the ability of the state to protect those instream flows. Karuk Vice-Chairman Kenneth Brink, Cody Phillips of the California Coastkeeper Alliance, and Klamath advocate Craig Tucker join the EcoNews to talk about what's needed to save California's salmon.

Let Senator McGuire know that you support AB 460 and AB 1337. 

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California’s system of awarding water rights is anachronistic and out of touch with modern needs. Yet, we are still bound by it. The Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District is navigating these challenges. The District once provided a lot of water to the pulp mills of Humboldt Bay. When these shuttered, the District faced a challenge: without putting that water to “beneficial use,” the District could lose its water right. (And in the worst case scenario, some big water user could put their straw into our river and slurp that water away, like is done in the Trinity and Eel Rivers.)

Now the District is proposing a new in-stream flow dedication to protect that water right. District Board Director Michelle Fuller joins the show to discuss the process to dedicate an in-stream flow right.

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