by Larry Glass and Carrie Tully
Cancellation of the 50th Anniversary Celebration
We had our 50th Anniversary Celebration fully planned for August. We had it all figured out; a perfect location, awesome food, and a great band. Oh well. As officers of the nonprofit corporation that is the NEC, we had a tough call to make more than a month out from the event. We saw it coming and I believe we made the right call to cancel it for now. We still plan to celebrate this momentous occasion, and once the details are worked out you’ll be the first to know.
Trinidad Pipeline Project
The Trinidad pipeline (a project to bring water north from Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District) is coming back before the Trinidad City Council again (THIRD time). This very thinly veiled effort to enable the construction of the five-story hotel/monstrosity overlooking Trinidad Bay continues to live on after being defeated several times. This will have been voted on by the time you read this but I bring it up because proponents of projects like these get multiple times at bat, even if they keep striking out like this one has. The lure of big money is behind this, and many other, ill-conceived projects. The promise of 500,000 gallons of water per day is a siren song to developers who want to open up the mostly unspoiled, forested area north of the Little River to development, construction, and exploitation. No thanks!
Fire Season…Again
Here we are again with smoke and fire all around us. As I write this, Highways 299 and 36 are both closed to the east. I thought after last year’s August Complex “gigafire” the Forest Service might marshal more resources to try a prevent a rerun, but no. The Shasta-Trinity National Forest (STNF) has spent countless person-hours trying to plan salvage sales in the footprint of the August Complex. To set the record straight, EPIC, NEC, SAFE, and the Klamath Forest Alliance (KFA) have expressed concerns over the wisdom of such action. Now we have another widespread lightning event and major ignitions on STNF: the Monument Fire along Hwy 299, and the McFarland Fire along Hwy 36. The initial response to both of these seemed disorganized and hesitant at best, prompting many locals to wonder if this is the Forest Service’s “let it burn policy”. While I doubt that is the case, I can certainly see how people could assume that. While we espouse fire as a tool under the right circumstances, these are not those circumstances. The time to move on these types of fires is within the first few days. Once they get to thousands of acres the chances of success drop exponentially.
Freakish Weather Hits Close By
Last issue I was talking about extreme weather in the Pacific Northwest. We had some pretty close-to-home! The same storm that brought the fire ignitions also hit Weaverville with rain, wind, and thunder. Dime-sized hail was seen blowing and drifting and some observers stated there was an inch-and-a-quarter of rain in twenty minutes, and microbursts of wind that toppled many older trees on Main Street. Extreme has become the norm.
Staff Keeps the Momentum
This team doesn’t quit! We all felt the disappointment of cancelling the 50th Anniversary Celebration, but staff knows that the safety of our community is the highest priority, and that there are more ways for us to engage with you all.
I’d first like to thank all of those who participated in Craft for the Coast. We really weren’t sure what to expect for the first go of this event, and we were SO impressed with the art submissions! See the winners of the here. If you weren’t able to participate or make it to our art show, be sure to keep your eyes peeled for next year’s event (yep, this is gonna be an annual trash art fundraiser).
Can you believe it’s September?! We can’t either….but luckily we’ve been making plans, then re-making plans, and are now ready to bring to you another COVID-safe Coastal Cleanup Month. Our Coastal Programs Coordinator, Ivy, will have lots of details for you in her Coastal Column. Be sure you check out the details before you sign up.
Stay tuned for more exciting happenings at the Center. Next month we will have some new faces, and updates on our 50th Anniversary Celebration plans. We look forward to seeing you virtually – cheers!