EPIC's day in the sun: Going, going, gone.

◼ Paulie-ite is the new Director - Grant Scott-Goforth/The Journal

Remember those who promoted the degradation of the DA's Office. The ones who DO NOT CARE who gets hurt. The ones who spin the lack of child abuse prosecution as perfectly acceptable and promote the candidate who says, "some people molest out of LOVE."

In certain circles, they get promoted.

You know the kind of competence she accepts, supports and promotes. It doesn't speak well for any ORGanization.

EPIC gets a seat on the Planning Commission

Mark Lovelace proves, once again, the necessity of staying awake, engaged and vigilant.

◼ Lovelace Makes New Appointment to Planning Commission - Ryan Burns

...Whatever the reason, (Ralph) Faust, who was just reappointed to the Planning Commission’s Third District seat last year, chose to step down this week. Third District Supervisor Mark Lovelace chose as his replacement Noah Levy, an Arcata resident and program director for the SoHum nonprofit Sanctuary Forest.

Levy is also on the board of the nonprofit Environmental Protection Information Center (EPIC)...
__________________

Who is cutting down the billboards?

And who knows EXACTLY who it is?

Occam's razor.

Baykeeper wants you to gather their propaganda material for them - again

◼ Be A King Tides Groupie

Go take pictures of the high tide so they can pretend the oceans have risen due to - what is it now, Glogal Warming? Or Climate 'Change'? Some new term?

Then - sit back and watch, because if ANY of these pics DO show up in one of their scam fundraising letters, you ought to be outraged.

Then, start electing people that will rein in these new age con men.

NOTE: They've finally had to give up the price-y Old Town office space.
__________________
King tides to hit North Coast; no major flooding expected due to ...
Humboldt Beacon

For Humboldt Baykeeper policy director Jennifer Kalt, king tides provide a visualization of the impacts of rising sea levels on habitats and infrastructure ...

You thought I was kidding...

Supervisor Bass asks community's help for long term solution to end predatory lawsuits

◼ Supervisor Virginia Bass, Supervisor Rex Bohn and Chris Kerrigan were present outside the courthouse along with other concerned citizens and business owners in a protest against Jason Singleton organized by a local citizen. Supervisor Bass took this opportunity to pass out a handout in which she is asking the community to contact her if they are interested in being a part of long term solutions to benefit both people with disabilities and business owner. - John Chiv/Words Worth

Interesting.

Check out the interactive chart...

◼ This chart shows fishery-related grants from several foundations. Drag to move, click a node to focus.

Yes, Jason Singleton should rot in hell...

BUT.

He is no different than Baykeeper. EPIC. ERF, and ALL of the other predatory litigious orgs.

In fact, he MIGHT be slightly more honorable than they if you believe he, at least, does it on his own, without giant Foundation grant money.

But when it comes to being a despicable shakedown artist, making it rich using arcane bits of law, walking away with his 'go away' extortion money and breaking local business - there's no difference except for the fact that you like his targets and you've come to believe the org's targets deserve it.

...Funny, the Facebook discussions say 'something is being done about this" - which is laughable, because this has been going on for years, Clint Eastwood even testified before Congress detailing the abuses many, many, many years ago. But who dares stop these people? To do so implies you don't care about people with disabilities (not true), or the environment (not true), and on and on. These new-age con men have a license to steal, and they do so with abandon. They've learned how to milk the system, hijacking, bastardizing and twisting well-meaning laws to enrich themselves.

◼ Jason Singleton Strikes Again (5/8/08) - The Journal
◼ And again: ADA Beef Closes Barbecue Restaurant. Another Humboldt business has fallen victim to notorious attorney Jason Singleton’s lawsuit scheme, this time Arcata’s Porter Street Barbeque. - Mad River Union
◼ Piling On Jason Singleton - Andrew Goff/Lost Coast Outpost

But the amazingly greedy nature of this shakedown was clearly a bridge too far. And not only is the Amazon Defense Front coming up on the short end of the stick, but one of the American law firms engaging in this practice may wind up paying a hefty sum for their involvement.

◼ DC firm shaking down Chevron learns lesson about poking the bear - HotAir

There’s been a new, and some might say long overdue twist in the ongoing saga of Ecuador’s Chevron shakedown. We’ve been covering this story here since January of 2011 and it’s been a wild roller coaster ride. From the time the environmental groups involved were initially awarded a huge payday in a kangaroo court, we’ve seen blatant fraud uncovered on the part of the plaintiffs, “investors” in the lawsuit claiming they were defrauded, and the judge in the case admitting that he was bribed.

◼ Chevron seeks to sue Patton Boggs for fraud and deceit - Fortune

Since late 2010, Washington, D.C. law firm Patton Boggs has been poking a sleeping tiger. It has filed three peculiar federal lawsuits -- in its own name, not on behalf of any client -- against Chevron, the third-largest corporation in the United States. These cases have fared poorly; two were quickly dismissed, and a federal magistrate judge recommended tossing the third in March.

On Friday, the tiger awoke. Chevron (CVX) sought a federal judge's permission to bring counterclaims against the 455-lawyer firm for alleged fraud and deceit for its conduct in representing the Amazon Defense Front, which obtained a $19 billion environmental judgment against the oil giant in Lago Agrio, Ecuador, in February 2011. Chevron also seeks to charge the firm with "malicious prosecution" for having pursued its three lawsuits in bad faith. Chevron seeks to hold the law firm liable for any damages Chevron suffers from the Front's allegedly fraud-infested litigation, plus punitive and treble damages.

EPIC Liars, tramps and thieves

◼ Major marijuana bust in Fieldbrook - TS

Law enforcement officers uncovered approximately $1.5 million worth of processed marijuana and about 300 marijuana plants at a residence on the 900 block of Rock Pit Road in Fieldbrook, officials announced Monday.

Officials from the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Marshals Service assisted the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration out of Santa Rosa in making the marijuana bust Thursday while serving a state search warrant as part of an ongoing investigation by the Santa Rosa DEA.

According to a press release by the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office, authorities arrested two suspects -- James Edward Shelton, 38, and Amber Zo Jamieson, 28 -- on suspicion of cultivation and possession of marijuana for sale.

Five other individuals on the property were detained and questioned but no additional arrests were made, said Humboldt County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Wayne Hanson. According to Hanson, as the Santa Rosa DEA office builds its case, individuals will likely be brought in and indicted on federal charges.

”I imagine there are a lot of scared people out there right now,” Hanson said.

Authorities reported seizing 298 marijuana plants ranging in height from 1 to 5 feet inside the home and a nearby outbuilding. In addition, 10 extra-large duffel bags were found filled with 495 pounds of processed marijuana stored in vacuum-sealed, one-pound bags.

”I cannot remember ever finding that many one-pound bags of marijuana in one place,” said Hanson, who was on scene when the warrant was served....

Future arrests of individuals associated with the pair are expected.

◼ Fieldbrook pot bust is EPIC - The Mirror

EPIC’s Amber Jamieson was arrested yesterday in a multi-agency pot bust in Fieldbrook that yielded a smidge under 500 pounds of processed marijuana, neatly packaged for resale, with a street value estimated at $1.5 million.

Jamieson’s significant other, James Shelton, who was similarly arrested at the Fieldbrook residence, has a less direct connection to the litigious enviro org: Mr. Shelton–shocker alert–is a “glass-blowing artist” whose magical objets d’art are sold at EPIC’s gift shop.

Jamieson graduated from Humboldt State University with a degree in–wait for it–Natural Resources Economics. Despite the stupidity on full display now, she won an academic award at HSU and was photographed, possibly just for our amusement, standing next to a fellow award winner by the name of Soran “Rio” Anderson.

Yeah, I remember Soran, too, that was a funny story.

A "coalition of environmental groups"

◼ The usual suspects. Environmental coalition threatens North Coast Railroad Authority with lawsuit
A coalition of environmental groups has warned the North Coast Rail Authority that it will file a lawsuit if the agency certifies an environmental impact report for the reconstruction of a rail line that would operate between Lombard and Willits....

The predatory litigious orgs strike again.

The Peter Principle

◼ Baykeeper Pete expands his territory

Kicking and screaming

And Healthy Humboldt is not a "Special Interest Group"? Puh-leasee!! And Jennifer Kalt isn't involved with every significant anti-property rights special interest group in the County? Puh-lease!! Baykeeper, et-al, you name it... all the predatory litigious groups. Full disclosure, babe. C'mon.

◼ TS My Word: Time to keep moving on General Plan update Dan Ehresman and Jennifer Kalt of Healthy Humboldt

Let's have a full listing of your groups - now.

Related:
◼ TS My Word: Good decisions can only be made with accurate information Senior Planner Martha Spencer reacting to a recent Planning Commission hearing.
◼ The definition of disingenuous Bruce Lebel
◼ TS My Word: Say no to scare tactics Tina Christensen
◼ TS report Housing element riles McKinleyville residents

Gallegos chief cheerleader writes another Rackauckas-like letter to the editor

◼ Responsible stewardship of the environment - TS LTE

The comments thread is better than the letter:
Curmudgeon Right ON! WE cannot count on the Regional Water Quality Control Board, the Department of Fish and Game, the US EPA, the National Marine Fisheries Servic,e the Loooooooong list of enforcement agencies that cover things like leaking petroleum tnaks, we've got to have our MIGHTY DA protect us.

MEanwhile tweakers go free, you get a slap on the wrist for killing kids while drunk driving. What a crock. If we needed a DA to ignore the issues screwing up our daily lives and wanted a DA to focus on the nebulous feel good prosecution of profit-driven business...that's what we've got!

deBunker The writer maybe thinks that Gallegos invented environmental prosecution? Look back in the TS archives and in the legal records and you will find otherwise.
Handy of the Occasional DA to find a case that he can use for his campaign to keep the high-paying job that he sometimes shows up for. Who did the work?

Fisherman And how much did you make off the deal Mr. Baykeeper???

Cletus Van Damme And those damned gas tanks keep robbing liquor stores, molesting children, and stealing everything that isn't bolted down. They sell drugs too! I'm so glad our knight in green armor is the DA! And it's good to know that such an objective person such as Mr Nichols wrote a letter to support him! Right about election time! What a coincidence, eh Pete?

Bunch of effin' crooks.

anonymous
The state attorney general investigated this and filed the complaint. They also prepared the judgment. Gags just took credit for it. Check it out for yourselves. Go to the court clerk and look at the file. Its clear as a bell. Gallegos is up to his same tricks of taking credit for work he didn't do. Right up there with plagiarizing.

And Paykeeper is involved!

Pete Malloy
Pete Nichols ? ha ha ha ha ha, what a chump

DIRT DEVIL
Oh here's Petey spouting off again just to get his and Paykeepers name in the light. Are you getting a good deal from Paul on your next lawsuit against a real business or developer who wants to invest in our county's future. I'm surprised you had the time to write a letter while also being a marine biology expert. It does not surprise me you would extol the virtues of our esteemed DA since you are both masters of taking credit for something you had so little to do with. Maybe if our DA would spend as much time really prosecuting ALL CRIMINALS as he does breaking his arm to pat himself on the back we could have a much better place to live.

anonymous
Looks like this backfired for Paul and Pete. Now will the reporters pick this up?

P Nutgallery
Geez, Pete, letting the government hoard in on your business? Coffers must be full to share in the litigation bonanza. Hey, does WaterKeeper have a Louisiana branch office? There'll be someone to cash in on the disaster there I'm sure. But will they do anything to actually clean the environment? Track record says no. Despite the recent appearances (advertising) by Kennedy. There is more money in filing suit than performing cleanups (and stalling them for that matter). Cha-chinge, cha-chinge!$$$$$ Happy Earth Day $$$$

Drivel
BayWatch is a fine law office.

anonymous
So its a law office? Interesting.

reasonable
Nice work by Gallegos, AND everyone else who made this case. Companies don't agree to 1.1 million dollar settlements for no reason, Paul must have caught them red-handed.

As far as all the complaints on this thread that somehow this case means that violent criminals, robbers, burglars and so on are not being prosectuted aggressively, well that's pure BS. The fact is that violent crime is DOWN in Humbolt County, and Gallegos deserves at least some of the credit for that.

DIRT DEVIL
reasonable wrote:
Nice work by Gallegos, AND everyone else who made this case. Companies don't agree to 1.1 million dollar settlements for no reason, Paul must have caught them red-handed.
As far as all the complaints on this thread that somehow this case means that violent criminals, robbers, burglars and so on are not being prosectuted aggressively, well that's pure BS. The fact is that violent crime is DOWN in Humbolt County, and Gallegos deserves at least some of the credit for that.

No one is denying that the fine is not justified but the insult is that PG is taking credit for it. The AG did all the work and dropped it in his lap. He probably would not have found the problem himself up at the beach while surfing with his "friend"

peabody
so who got the 1.1 mil fine?

DIRT DEVIL
peabody wrote:
so who got the 1.1 mil fine?
Big Oil & Tire were fined for multiple violations according to reports. Now how many of those violations were really connected to a real threat to ground water I don't know. I know that fines are imposed for matters such as lack of paperwork and other clerical errors so not all may have been for problem tanks. The county is famous for going after minor offenders so the environmental health dept can justify their large staff. Stop by 100 H St.in Eureka and find out just how many people are really working. It is probably overstaffed and bloated just like all govt agencies we have to support.

anonymous
The county didn't go after big oil. The state did which is why the state did the investgation and filed the complaint. Its also why the state gets the fine. Paul did nothing more than cross out the name of the state attorney who prepared the judgment and hand wrote his own to take credit.

◼ Gallegos Gets Props, Again - The Reporta

The Mirror hits the bigtime

◼ Media Boogeyman: If Activists Scare You Away from Fish Oil, They Save the Fishes! Breitbart
...What might a real journalist do – one who wasn’t obviously biased towards Eco-Activists? For starters, take another look at who actually is named in the lawsuit: the largest producers of oil supplements. Why? Try to harm the biggest retailers and manufacturers and you harm the majority of the industry’s sales. Where’s the reporting on this angle? Non-existent.

How about the angle that only ten supplements were tested by the plaintiffs out of the hundreds on the market? Why hasn’t any reporter asked about the testing methods? What methods were used? What standards did they conform to?

Who exactly is the plaintiff – Mateel Environmental Justice Foundation? At least we have some intrepid bloggers who investigated exactly the kind of shady outfit Mateel is – one that makes profits from frivolous lawsuit settlements on the backs on the working people of America. As the Humboldt Mirror blog points out:

Mateel settled 39 lawsuits in 2008 for over $1.7 million….but it’s not just warning labels, product reformulations and excessive attorneys fees that Mateel is after. Through Prop. 65 lawsuit settlements, Mateel also pilfered … “other distributions” that was handed over to other environmental groups.

Oh, now the fact that the largest (read: deepest pockets) in the supplement industry got sued makes a little more sense, doesn’t it?

How’s that for real reporting?

Go back and look at all those articles you just Googled. Did any mainstream media outlet cover Mateel’s strategy? If you said “no”, then you win a pitchfork to help shove the PCB Boogeyman back in his closet.

The title is wrong, though - they don't save the fishes, they rake in the big bucks.

Big money in Predatory Litigation

Hmmm. Pg. 1 In 2008... Mateel Environmental Justice Foundation, $1,775,300.00, Attorney's Fees and Costs...$1,060,000.00... if I am reading this right, they gave a shitload of money (other distribution) to ERF (Ecological Rights Foundation), that would be "Humboldt Paykeeper's" predatory litigious parent... Pg. 26-31 from 2000-2008..., you got a calculator, heraldo? Pg. 26 1/3/08...$10,000.00, 1/14/08...$20,000.00, 1/22/08...$15,000.00, 1/23/08...$15,000.00, 2/15/08...$20,000.00, 2/19/08...$20,000.00; Pg. 27 3/3/08...$20,000.00 (ERF and CATS), 3/3/08...$5,000.00, 3/3/08...$20,000.00, 3/26/08...$15,000.00.... and on and on and on it goes

Pg. 2 from 2000-2008... $14,166,687.00...280 settlements... Attorney's Fees and costs... $7,917,000.00

AND The "Ecological Rights Foundation" themselves another 38 settlements,,, $950,000, 750.00, roughly half of that in lawyers fees and costs...

That's just in one document re: Prop 65. More money to CATS, ◼ KFPA ($35,000.00 and $15,000.00 Fifty grand? Is that a radio station?What'd the radio station do for that?)

◼ California Proposition 65
Funny, As You Sow shows up here too...

ongoing, will add links

The Mirror picked it up:
◼ Proposition 65: How to exploit a good-intentioned law to divert money to shadowy, litigious environmental groups (Feb. 11, 2010)
With a legal loophole on their side, 2008 was a spectacularly profitable year for the Mateel Environmental Justice Foundation. Never heard of the Mateel Environmental Justice Foundation? That’s not surprising. Mateel is a quiet little operation based out of Eureka that targets big businesses whose corporate headquarters are mostly far away from California in places like Maryland, Illinois and Ohio. According to California’s Attorney General’s Office, which tracks Prop. 65 lawsuits, Mateel settled 39 lawsuits in 2008 for over $1.7 million. Kudos to local lawyer William Verick for representing Mateel and raking in a hefty $1.06 million in attorney fees — roughly 60 percent of the total money awarded in the settlements.
But it’s not just warning labels, product reformulations and excessive attorneys fees that Mateel is after. Through Prop. 65 lawsuit settlements, Mateel also pilfered a shit load of additional dollars through “other distributions” that was handed over to other environmental groups, left-leaning radio stations and other interesting folks. How much? Well, just a paltry $619,850 in 2008.
So, just where did all that extra cash go from the Prop. 65 bonanza payouts?

Show us where the money comes from...

Paykeeper Pete Nichols knows how to use free media to spread his lies message. During Gallegos' election, he and his wife put out the meme that Humboldt County's CAST team was just like big city Los Angeles' team. Remember the letters and quotes of the lovely, missing in action Kay Rackauckus? His willingness to twist the truth there ought to tell you everything you need to know about the man. But he uses free My Word's, free airtime on radio stations to spread his propaganda. He uses it to paint a nice benevolent facade for his predatory litigious org. It works in other areas.

More and more, as scrutiny is applied to him and his activities, the truth is coming out. Today's response to Sneaky Pete's My Word is very interesting...

◼ Humboldt Baykeeper should come clean about the Marina Center
For many years, Humboldt Baykeeper has been saying that the Balloon Track should be cleaned up. But now that the cleanup is about to happen, Baykeeper is demanding that the Balloon Track should not be cleaned up until more unspecified work is done at some unspecified time in the future. Why has Baykeeper suddenly changed its tune?

Last week in this column, Baykeeper wrote that it wanted to “clear the air” about its opposition to the cleanup. We think that's a step in the right direction, but Baykeeper has not gone far enough.

Baykeeper may have given the impression that it opposes the cleanup because of the goodness of its heart, but Internal Revenue Service records show that some unidentified people have paid Humboldt Baykeeper nearly $2 million over the past few years, and that Baykeeper has paid lawyers and experts hundreds of thousands of dollars. This big money did not come from member dues, which in 2008 were only $16,000 -- not enough to pay even the salary of Pete Nichols.

Humboldt Baykeeper and its parent organization, known as Ecological Rights Foundation, should come clean. The public is entitled to know who is paying for Baykeeper's fight, and whether those people just happen to be wealthy businesses who don't want any competition from the Marina Center.

Baykeeper argues that “Security National is attempting to slip through a sham cleanup.” But when Baykeeper is pressed about what is wrong with the cleanup, the group has only vague responses.

The main objection, according to Baykeeper, is that the property has not been “fully characterized.” But the proposed cleanup is an interim cleanup, which is a cleanup done before all relevant data has been collected and before decisions have been made on final cleanup plans. Interim cleanups are performed when there is an obvious issue that can be resolved without waiting until the end of a long process. Here, dioxin has been found in ditch sediments. CUE VI will have those ditch sediments excavated, removed from the property, and properly disposed of. How can anyone object to that?

Someone may wonder how CUE VI knows when to stop digging. In this kind of excavation, the contractor starts by digging out a reasonable amount. In this case, the initial excavation areas were identified in the consultant's proposal to the Regional Water Quality Control Board, and were approved.

When the initial excavation is complete, the consultant takes samples from the excavated area, has those analyzed by a laboratory, and submits the results to the Regional Board for discussion on whether more dirt should be excavated. The excavation is complete only when the confirmation samples are satisfactory to the Regional Board.

Baykeeper sometimes takes credit for the cleanup of the Simpson Mill site at the foot of Del Norte Street. That site was used for penta treatment, and penta contains dioxin. The levels of dioxin at that site were many, many thousands of times higher than those at the Balloon Track, which was never used for penta treatment.

Baykeeper likes to talk about how many samples were taken at the Simpson site. But it does not talk about the levels of dioxin at the two sites. At the Balloon Track, CUE VI will be excavating soils with relatively low levels of dioxin. At the Simpson site, soils containing higher levels of dioxins will be capped and left in place with Baykeeper's blessing.

In the end, what counts is the quality of the cleanup. The cleanup of the Balloon Track goes beyond what is required by regulatory agencies and what has been accomplished at other sites.

If the cleanup plan is so bad, why hasn't Baykeeper brought in one of its experts to explain what is wrong with it? Baykeeper has hired many experts for the Balloon Track litigation. Not one of these experts has appeared before the City Council, and not one of these experts submitted any report about the cleanup to the Regional Board. This lack of technical expertise may explain why Baykeeper's arguments are so vague.

Baykeeper had an opportunity to convince the Regional Board that the cleanup was inadequate, but the only technical objections Baykeeper made to the proposed cleanup were in a letter from Baykeeper's lawyer.

Not surprisingly, the Regional Board was not persuaded by any of Baykeeper's objections. In mid-October, the Regional Board concluded that the cleanup should be implemented as proposed.

Humboldt Baykeeper should therefore come clean about what is really going on. Like anyone else, it is entitled to have its opinion about whether the Marina Center is good for the community. But if it is opposing cleanup because opponents of the Marina Center will do anything to delay that project, and if Baykeeper is receiving large amounts of money from project opponents, Baykeeper should not be hiding that information. The public has a right to know.

Randy Gans is a vice president of Security National Properties.

The implication that Pierson is also helping fund "Paykeeper" is certainly there. Wonder if it is merely a donation, or if there is a contractual arrangement. 'Bout time we did find out.

◼ Gans throws down on Nichols in today’s Times-Standard The Mirror

$16,000 in member donations sure doesn't pay for the fancy boat (Boston Whaler), the nice Old Town storefront office, the line of T-shirts, the nice signage, and all the concerts and fundraisers, much less Sneaky-Pete's salary, at least one attorney on staff, the scientific tests, and all that.

While legitimate business people in Old Town struggle to afford the rent, these bloodsucking incestuous activist groups rake in the big bucks.

Sneaky Paykeeper Pete's My Word: ◼ Clearing the air
It is time to clear the air of the confusion around the environmental community's apparent lack of desire to see Eureka's Balloon Track property cleaned up. Let me be clear, Humboldt Baykeeper, and other environmental groups, want nothing more than to have the Balloon Track cleaned up to the fullest extent for the health of our bay and community. Period. In fact, Humboldt Baykeeper has worked longer and put more time into getting that property truly cleaned up than anyone else.

At the heart of the issue is the Supplemental Remedial Action Plan (SIRAP) put forth by Security National (CUE VI) -- a plan which will not accomplish the goal of clean-up of the Balloon Track. Security National is attempting to slip through a sham cleanup for the Balloon Track, skirting applicable environmental laws, such as the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the California Coastal Act, and the city of Eureka appears to be assisting them in this attempt. It is highly unlikely that these actions will pass muster with the California Coastal Commission, which will be the next governmental body to weigh in on this matter.

The city of Eureka has had many opportunities over the past 20 years to take on Union Pacific over the contamination at the Balloon Track, but the city never had the intestinal fortitude to follow through with any action. Nearly four years ago, Humboldt Baykeeper alone stood-up and took on Union Pacific with a lawsuit, enforcing federal environmental laws, to force them to clean-up the Balloon Track so it could be redeveloped and utilized by the community as it is zoned, for “public use.”

Security National has since purchased the property, inheriting the lawsuit along with it, and now has essentially legally and financially shielded Union Pacific from any liability for clean-up. It is important to note that the decision to purchase this property was made knowing full well that the property is contaminated, and Security National is now a responsible party for the cleanup. Humboldt Baykeeper has every intention of holding Security National, as well as Union Pacific, responsible for a full characterization and clean-up of the property.

It has always been the contention of Humboldt Baykeeper that Security National can build whatever they like on the Balloon Track site as long it is fully characterized and cleaned up, and as long as they comply with all provisions of the law. What Security National cannot do is sidestep the law and public process to ram through piecemeal actions on their way to an inadequate cleanup in an effort to achieve their end goal.

The greenwashing of their project with pleas to “just let us get started” to cleanup the property is a transparent tactic. Humboldt Baykeeper has been asking Security National to do just that for years and we would step aside tomorrow if Security National would really do the right thing for the environment: fully characterize and cleanup the Balloon Track. It is truly that easy.

Unfortunately, there seems to be a cloud of influence that hangs darkly over the city of Eureka. I find it disturbing that the city has agreed to a generous “indemnification” agreement with Security National for any legal liability regarding the Marina Center project. This essentially hands the keys to the city of Eureka over to Security National regarding all things Marina Center.

This is unfortunate. The city of Eureka as lead agency for this project is charged by state law with requiring that environmental review of the project meets all of the requirements of CEQA. If Councilman Leonard, and others, truly believes that the FEIR they certified to under CEQA is one of the best he has ever seen, then why not be bold enough to defend it? Isn't that why they are elected in the first place?

Instead, Mr. Leonard and the council voted to certify what they know is an inadequate FEIR and then pleaded with environmental groups to “cease fire” on lawsuits for six months. If Mr. Leonard had as much of a grasp on CEQA as he proclaims, he would know that an individual or organization has only 30 days to legally challenge a project under CEQA.

If the City Council truly wanted a 6-month cease fire, they should have recirculated the FEIR and repaired the major flaws in the document as was repeatedly recommended by Baykeeper and others. The city had plenty of time to consider the ramifications of their action and will most certainly be informed by the courts that their environmental review of the Marina Center is woefully inadequate and incomplete.

Humboldt Baykeeper will continue to demand full characterization and cleanup of the Balloon Track. We have every intention of completing what we started four years ago for the health of the bay and the community. I am more than happy to talk with anyone about our actions and Humboldt Baykeeper's work to cleanup the property. I can be reached at 268-0664.
Pete Nichols is the executive director of Baykeeper.

Truer words

◼ Eureka approves Marina Center coastal development permit
Councilman Frank Jager said he is in favor of the first phase of the project because his constituents are.
A majority of the public speakers who turned out at a series of meetings regarding the project's environmental impact report, or EIR, and the permit supported moving forward with the Marina Center development, citing the creation of jobs and saying a cleanup of the site is long overdue.

”We as a council owe them that -- to get it moving,” Jager said. “I'm not intimidated by Humboldt Baykeeper, or EPIC, or any of those environmental groups. They're extortionists.”

They're ba-a-a-ck

◼ Humboldt Watershed Council
◼ HUMBOLDT WATERSHED COUNCIL: The website
Working in tandem.

Suit targets water quality enforcement

The groups, which include the Sierra Club, the Environmental Protection Information Center, and the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations, claim the State Water Resources Control Board and the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board have violated state law by allowing delays in enforcing water quality standards.

They want the agencies to draft enforceable standards on how much sediment can be allowed in streams and how warm streams are allowed to get from land uses like logging, mining, building and grazing. ...

Well, isn't this a lose, lose for farmers, wineries and timber IF you do believe in "Global Warming?"

The Predatory Litigious Orgs are at it again

Trying to stop the railroad. After killing off the Timber Industry, this is job one.

Hank has the story: Another Bite at NCRA
...Earlier today, three Humboldt County environmental organizations — the Friends of the Eel, Humboldt Baykeeper, and the Environmental Protection Information Center — sent the NCRA a letter demanding that the agency reverse its decision to mortgage land in the City of Ukiah to pay off Novato....

Naughty or Nice
and the letter...

Cap has it - and all things railroad related... NCJ: HUMBOLDT ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS THREATEN TO SUE NCRA ABOUT BROWN ACT AND MORTGAGE OF UKIAH PROPERTY.

He asks So, why is it the Humboldt groups, and not Ukiah, etc doing it?

Damn good question!