The LookOut is a monthly review of climate issue developments and activism in our neighborhood.
Joined
by two other organizations, 350 Humboldt has appealed the
Planning Commission’s decision to greenlight building a
biggest-of-its-kind Atlantic Salmon producing factory on Samoa
Peninsula. Redwood Region Audubon Society Chapter and the Humboldt
Fishermen’s Marketing Association co-wrote the joint letter
identifying 14 problems with the Final Environmental Impact Report.
The
Planning Commission’s decision on August 4 came as no surprise
although the kneejerk attitude
of Chair Alan Bongio did exceed many people’s worst suspicions. He
said he knew the proposed project was great because “when you
have a good project they come out against it, and when you have [a]
junk project they never say a word.” The varied responses of
around ten different environmental groups apparently conveyed too
much information for him.
In
the appeal sent to the Planning Commission and the Board of
Supervisors, 350 Humboldt focuses on the climate impacts of
the proposed project that were not adequately addressed by the FEIR.
The letter identified four different ways in which GHG emissions were
either drastically underestimated or ignored altogether. The
emissions of feeding the fish were ignored altogether; electricity
emissions were underestimated, and inadequate or non-existent
information about both transport and refrigeration made Nordic’s
estimates of associated emissions impossible to trust.
The
date has been tentatively set for September 28 at 9 AM for the Board
of Supervisors to hear the appeal. If the board confirms the Planning
Commission’s decision, Nordic Aquafarms will still need permits from
the California
Coastal Commission, the Regional Water Quality Board, California
Department of Fish and Game, National Marine Fisheries Service, and
the US Army Corps of Engineers.
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Appeals
to the Board of Supervisors don’t grow on trees!
It turns out that the process costs $$$$. Who knew? If you can help
us replenish our coffers, please send a check to 350 Humboldt at PO
Box 231, Bayside CA, 95521. No donation, however small, will be
turned down.
350
Humboldt is sponsoring a march on Friday in Arcata on
September 23. Fridays for Future movement was started by Greta
Thunberg in Sweden who skipped school on Fridays in order to protest
her country’s inaction on climate issues outside the Swedish
Parliament. Inspired by that one school kid’s resistance, millions of
people now stage strikes for the climate all over the world on a
Friday in September.
The
event on September 23 in Arcata cannot be called a strike since it
begins at 5 o’clock, so we’re calling it a Global Climate March in
solidarity with the global strikes for climate. Students are
especially welcome.
Meet
on the Plaza in Arcata at 5 o’clock. Bring a sign if you can!
350
Humboldt has new stickers and buttons to express solidarity,
power, and hope for the future. Designed by Jamie Blatter and the
outreach committee, they are sturdy, waterproof, made to last for a
long time, and a gift to whoever wants them.
The
image encompasses the three most essential elements needed to deal
with the climate crisis: natural solutions, technological solutions,
and human participation. The slogan, “climate justice now,”
emphasizes that we’re striving for real change. Making energy–even
renewable energy–can be a messy business, and historically, poor
people–especially people of color all around the world–have had to
bear the brunt of pollution caused by energy production while the
privileged enjoy most of the benefits. Our hope is for a decent
future for all of us.
The
first day of August was the deadline for offshore wind bid
applications and comments from stakeholders about the lease area,
conditions, and auction format. After a comment period of unknown (to
me) length, BOEM will issue the Final Sale Notice, setting the date
for simultaneous auctions of leases in Morro Bay and off the Humboldt
coast. This article from Santa Maria Times gives an overview
of the auction process and includes impressive photos of gigantic
turbine blades being trucked through Lompoc.
In a
stroke of maddening irony, passage of the federal Inflation Reduction
Act could complicate and even delay the auction. The IRA ties
offshore wind leases to offshore oil and gas leases. Millions of
acres in oil and gas offshore leases must be offered in conjunction
with wind leases. However, the IRA also specifically requires that 80
million acres in the Gulf of Mexico be put up for oil and gas lease
auction by September 16 of this year. While incredibly outrageous,
that timing might keep the Morro Bay and Humboldt WEA development
fairly on track. You can read a thorough explanation here if
you can still see straight.
Redwood
Coast Energy Authority has been negotiating for a “multiple factor auction”, and it looks as though they’re getting it. Multiple
factors can mitigate the scenario whereby the highest bidder always
wins. Instead other things are recognized and accorded credit,
including local community benefit and commitments to wind workforce
training programs.
Interest
in the auction is running even higher since the California Energy
Commission increased the state’s target for offshore wind from
three to five gigawatts by 2030. The 2045 target is 25 gigawatts.
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The
Gateway Area Plan got a lot of attention during August
at two Arcata city council meetings, two Arcata Planning Commission
meetings, and a special study session
attended by both bodies. Public comment has been abundant as Arcata
considers the ambitious infill project. The APC will probably make
decisions on September 13 about maximum building height and traffic
routing.
As
Cal Poly Humboldt expands and climate change brings more people to
the north coast, bold solutions are required to address a housing
shortage that promises only to get worse. The proposed re-development
of 138 acres close to town center could feature buildings up to eight
stories high to allow the area to accommodate 3500 residential units.
This ambitious scale of growth is intended to take pressure off the
runaway housing market, provide affordable housing and prevent
sprawl, sparing agricultural land and forest. Incentivizing
developers to provide green priorities such as solar panels, bicycle
accommodations, and green space could also be an advantage of
planning for density, according to Director of Community Development,
David Loya. He would further woo developers by streamlining the
permitting process–a shortcut that raises a red flag for many.
Form-based code could also streamline planning by making design choices for
neighborhoods up front. A Building & Massing Presentation, which
is now available,
provides new information and 3D modeling about how this area of
Arcata would be transformed.
Whether
the benefits of this plan would outweigh its impacts is still a big
question. Many of the GAP’s critics declare themselves in favor of infill but question certain details.
The Arcata Fire Department recently went public with concerns about putting out a
high-rise building that’s on fire. There’s a lot to consider here as
climate change thrusts big changes and decisions upon us.
from Building & Massing Presentation
The
Board of Supervisors responded on August 23 to the Grand Jury
report about sea level rise. The executive findings of the thoroughly researched
report can be simply expressed: Expenses related to dealing with SLR
means that the political entities surrounding Humboldt Bay must share
the costs, and federal, state, and other public funding sources
should be pursued now. The contamination of former industrial sites
could spread via SLR into wetlands, creeks and the Bay. If no action
is taken by 2050, monthly maximum high tides will flood
infrastructure, wetlands and low-lying communities.
The
Board of Supervisors agreed with these findings.
The
Grand Jury made roughly a dozen recommendations, starting with a
formal resolution that SLR planning is a priority for county staff.
The supes reply that this is already being pursued. They also say
they’re already aggressively pursuing Federal, state, and public
funds for SLR mitigation, which was another recommendation.
The
Board wants to further analyze the recommendation calling for
creating a steering committee from all involved agencies and
organizations and stakeholders on the coast. Since many of the other
recommendations hinged on this steering committee, a noncommittal
response was made to those as well.
The
Board said they would not implement two of the recommendations. The
GJ called for the development of a retreat process for residents of
King Salmon, Fields Landing and parts of Fairhaven if those
communities cannot be saved. Referring to “specific
vulnerability assessments” that have already been developed, the
Board said that a retreat plan could be considered by a future
regional approach involving “county, residents and utility
providers.”
The
other rejected recommendation was for the county to expedite
mitigation and adaptation measures by getting upfront input from
regulatory agencies that would shorten their permitting processes.
But the Board said it couldn’t short-cut permitting processes
considered essential to protecting public health and safety. However,
the vulnerability assessments that have already been prepared analyze
how to facilitate “timely permitting.”
Extracurricular Links
Oily
hands are all over climate research departments
at our universities.
Listen
to Cool Solutions
Cal-Fire
goes even lower than we thought. Alert from EPIC
Hydrogen-powered
air cargo transport from
the cool ideas department.
If
only fossil fuel barons cared, they
could spare us their methane emissions.