G2. Local Greens

The lake trout rehabilitation efforts succeeded, and this iconic Great Lakes fish species has fully recovered in Lake Superior.

The post Good Great Lakes Ecological News: The Iconic Lake Trout Recovers first appeared on Environmental Law & Policy Center.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
Date: 12/9/2024 
Contact: Anja Semanco | anja@alaskawild.org | 724-967-2777 

President Biden Finalizes Record of Decision for the Arctic Refuge  
 

Washington, D.C. — Today, the Biden administration released the legally mandated leasing Record of Decision (ROD) and Notice of Lease Sale for the Coastal Plain region of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. This marks the second lease sale required under the 2017 Tax Act, targeting one of the nation’s most ecologically sensitive and culturally significant landscapes. 

The administration’s decision reassesses the environmental impacts of oil and gas development in the Arctic Refuge and puts 400,000 acres of pristine wilderness up for bidding at a minimum price of $30 per acre. This move comes despite widespread opposition from the Gwich’in Nation, Iñupiat allies, and the majority of Americans, who stand firmly against drilling in the sacred Coastal Plain. 

“Pursuing oil and gas development in the Arctic Refuge is an unthinkable gamble that risks a pristine ecosystem and cultural homeland with irreversible destruction. It also comes at an exorbitant financial and reputational price for any company short-sighted enough to bid,” said Kristen Miller, Executive Director of Alaska Wilderness League. “The Arctic Refuge deserves to remain a place of refuge, not an industrial oilfield lining the pockets of big oil executives.” 

The risks to this globally important ecosystem—coupled with the cost of drilling one of the most expensive and beloved regions in the world—make it clear that responsible companies are unlikely to pursue such ventures. The first mandated Arctic Refuge lease sale was a failure, generating less than 1% of the projected revenue promised to American taxpayers. Despite this, the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) has signaled its intent to bid—in stark contrast to the widespread opposition by millions both within Alaska and across the country. 

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is the only refuge in the United States with an oil and gas drilling purpose—a stark anomaly in the country’s conservation framework. For decades, an overwhelming majority of Americans have stood up against oil and gas development in the nation’s largest and wildest Refuge, which serves as a sanctuary for wildlife and Indigenous communities.  

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Photo credit: Florian Schulz / Protect The Arctic

The post President Biden Finalizes Record of Decision for the Arctic Refuge    appeared first on Alaska Wilderness League.

The UK’s most controversial shale gas site has failed to meet the deadline to plug two fracked wells – putting it in breach of planning consent.

Cuadrilla’s mothballed Preston New Road shale gas site in Lancashire, February 2022. Photo: Maxine Gill

Cuadrilla had until yesterday (8 December 2024) to seal the two Preston New Road wells, in Lancashire.

But the work, known as well decommissioning or plugging and abandonment, has not started, even though the company was given extra time.

Lancashire County Council, which issued the latest consent for the site near Blackpool, told us the company was in breach of a planning condition.

Cuadrilla’s failure to seal the wells has angered local campaigners who have opposed the fracking site for more than 10 years. The local MP has written to the council about the delays. There are also concerns about who will pay for the decommissioning.

The Preston New Road wells are the UK’s only onshore horizontal shale gas wells to be fracked. The hydraulic fracturing operations in 2018 and 2019 caused multiple small earthquakes and led to a moratorium on fracking in England, which remains in force.

Since then, the site has been mothballed, with limited activity, for about five years.

This is not the first time Cuadrilla has breached planning conditions at Preston New Road. The site now joins at least two other onshore oil and gas pads in England currently in breach of planning permission.

We sent questions to Cuadrilla about the missed deadline but it did not respond.

More time

In June 2023, Lancashire County Council agreed to Cuadrilla’s request to extend the planning permission for Preston New Road. This gave the company an extra 18 months to plug and abandon the wells and two years to restore the site.

The authority confirmed to DrillOrDrop that the deadline to finish work on the wells was 8 December 2024.

When Cuadrilla applied for the extra time, it produced a project plan which allowed seven months to decommission the wells. According to the plan, work would begin in September 2023 and finish in March 2024.

Cuadrilla’s project plan discussed by Lancashire councillors and officials in June 2023

But it soon became obvious that Cuadrilla was behind its own schedule.

The company later extended the date for the start of decommissioning. But no work began.

Grass grew across the access road and the Preston New Road entrance briefly became a site for fly-tipping.

Update details

The extension of planning permission granted in June 2023 required Cuadrilla to send six-monthly updates to the county council.

The first report was due on 7 December 2023 and was a week late.

It said:

“initial rig procurement has started with the intention to join a wider programme of wellbore abandonments across the UK with other operators”.  

The report also changed the target date to begin abandoning the wells from September 2023 to summer 2024.

Senior council planner, Jonathan Haine, told residents he had “some concerns that they [Cuadrilla] are behind the project timeline so I will be raising that with them”.

The second update, due on 7 June 2024, was dated 28 June 2024. It was almost identical to the December 2023 report. The only difference was that Cuadrilla said initial rig procurement was “within the final stages of award”.

We understand that after the June 2024 report council planners sent questions to Cuadrilla about progress on decommissioning and restoration at Preston New Road.

In October 2024, the county council told BBC Radio Lancashire it was concerned Cuadrilla might miss the decommissioning deadline, then two months away. The authority said it was “in discussion with [Cuadrilla] as to how the restoration of the site can be progressed”.

Last week, a spokesperson for the authority told us:

“The planning permission in place requires Cuadrilla to decommission the wells at the Preston New Road site by December 8, 2024, and restore the site back to agricultural land by June 2025.

“In the event of a breach of planning permission, the County Council has powers to compel a landowner or operator to comply with conditions to a planning permission.

“We will continue to seek engagement from the firm on this matter.”

Reaction Banner outside Cuadrilla’s Preston New Road site near Blackpool, 2 October 2019. Photo: Ros Wills

Local people have regularly expressed frustration about delays at Preston New Road

A spokesperson for the campaign group, Preston New Road Action group, said:

 “It is disappointing if not surprising that Cuadrilla have missed their deadline. They have had 18 months to plug and cap the wells but so far appear to have done nothing.

“We will be watching with great interest to see what happens over the coming six months by the end of which the site needs to be completely restored. We can only hope that the regulators start to take some action and put pressure on Cuadrilla to get on with the decommissioning.”

Miranda Cox, a local resident and campaigner for Frack Free Lancashire, said:       

“Yet again we are disappointed but not surprised by Cuadrilla’s inability to adhere to planning conditions.  We were deeply concerned that Lancashire County Council granted them an extension in 2023 because we anticipated these delays.

“It is unfortunate that a company with such a poor track record in compliance was treated so favourably by the planning authority, despite a history of planning and environmental breaches.

“For years residents have had their lives blighted by fracking and, even when dormant, the site continues to remind residents how little those in positions of authority care.

“Residents have not been updated about progress, or lack of, and are frustrated that once again Cuadrilla seem to act with impunity.  We strongly urge Lancashire County Council to take action. We are angered that the public will no doubt end up picking up the bill for this incompetence”.

Nick Danby, another resident and Frack Free Lancashire campaigner, said:

“We have repeatedly pressed LCC [Lancashire County Council] on this matter and have repeatedly urged them to take enforcement action. LCC’s response has been pathetic and, in fact, they have not even replied to our last few approaches.

“It gives us no pleasure or satisfaction that we have been vindicated. LCC have completely failed the taxpayer and it seems highly likely that it will be the taxpayer that picks up the tab for the decommissioning and restoration of the Preston New Road site.

“The delays again raised concerns about who pays to return an onshore oil or gas site to its former condition if the operator and landowner cannot or will not do the work.”

Jeff Turner, another resident, said:

“I am glad the council will finally have to get involved as there is now a clear breach of the planning permission.

“I am dismayed they wouldn’t get involved sooner as their stance was Cuadrilla have always been compliant because they have provided the 6 monthly updates. It was obvious from even the first update that Cuadrilla were significantly behind schedule. Surely disregarding the timeline is a breach itself.

“Due to Lancashire County Council’s weak approach we are now in a position that Cuadrilla are around 16 months behind and have not even started decommissioning.”

What happens now? Remaining flare at Preston New Road, February 2022. Photo: Maxine Gill

The June 2023 planning permission required Cuadrilla to plug and cap the wells. This usually involves placing several cement plugs in the wellbore to isolate the hydrocarbon reservoir and other fluid-bearing formations. The aim is to “prevent unintended emissions or contamination”.

Cuadrilla is also required to remove remaining equipment from Preston New Road. The most recent drone footage showed a flare stack and bags of sand dating back to the fracking operations. Fencing and lighting, which are still in place, must be removed.

Under planning guidance, Lancashire County Council has a responsibility for taking “whatever enforcement action may be necessary, in the public interest”.

The guidance says effective enforcement is important to:

• “maintain the integrity of the decision-making process”
• “help ensure that public acceptance of the decision-making process is maintained”
• “tackle breaches of planning control which would otherwise have unacceptable impact on the amenity of the area”

The county council could issue an enforcement notice. This can be used where the local planning authority is satisfied that it appears there has been a breach of planning control and it is expedient to issue a notice.

Developers can appeal against an enforcement notice. But it is an offence not to comply once the period for compliance has elapsed, and there is no outstanding appeal. On conviction, developers could face an unlimited fine.

Local planning authorities have powers to enter enforcement notice land and carry out the requirements of the notice themselves

Planning regulations also allow local authorities to issue a breach of condition notice. There is no right of appeal against a beach of condition notice. Developers can face an unlimited fine on conviction.

Another deadline

Another decommissioning deadline for Preston New Road is fast approaching.

The industry regulator, the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), issued a plug and abandon notice for Preston New Road in August 2023.

This gave Cuadrilla more than 16 months to decommission the wells.

The deadline for completing the work is 22 days away, at the end of this month (December 2024).

We asked NSTA whether this notice remained in force and whether Cuadrilla had asked for an extension. We also asked what action NSTA had taken to monitor compliance with the notice and how it could be enforced.

The spokesperson for the regulator said:

“We cannot comment on any interactions we have had with operators due to reasons of commercial confidentiality. However, through our continuing stewardship of the onshore oil and gas industry, we are fully aware of ongoing developments.”

But an open letter from NSTA to licensees a year ago said:

“The NSTA expects all licensees to comply with their well decommissioning regulator obligations in a timely manner and particularly within specified timescales”.

The letter also said:

“That means that normally we do not expect licensees to request to extend suspension consents.”

It also said:

“We do recognise that circumstances may from time to time arise that might cause an application to defer such obligations to be made, however, the NSTA will only grant such a deferment of a decommissioning obligation in exceptional circumstances.”

Costs and liabilities

Opponents of shale gas have feared that some companies may try to avoid their decommissioning liabilities.

They have pointed to the complicated corporate structures, where a limited subsidiary company is set up to run a single well site.

This means the personal liability of the owners or shareholders of the operator is limited to their investment in the company. The company could go out of business, avoiding having to pay decommissioning costs, without involving the parent.

The government is liable for decommissioning offshore oil and gas assets if the operator were unable to pay for the work. But there is no equivalent legislation for onshore wells.

At Preston New Road, Lancashire County Council is responsible for enforcing the decommissioning and restoration work.

The council has told local people that if the operator, Cuadrilla Bowland Limited, went out of business and was unable to decommission the wells, the liability would pass to the landowner.

A senior Lancashire planner confirmed:

“Ultimately the land owner is responsible for the restoration of the site as the planning permission runs with the land, not the operating company so if there was any failure to restore the site and Cuadrilla no longer existed as a company we would be enforcing against the landowner.”

But in 2019, the then Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) admitted to the National Audit Office that arrangements to make the landowner pay were “unclear and untested”. BEIS was also “unable to explain who would meet decommissioning costs if the landowners were unable to do so”.

The Preston New Road well pad is owned by a limited company, JAAW Limited.

The most recent accounts of JAAW Limited, for the year ended 31 March 2023, recorded that the company had net assets after deduction of liabilities of £83,239.

We don’t know the cost of plugging and abandoning the two Preston New Road wells.

But we do know that a report by the National Audit Office in 2019 estimated well decommissioning at £195,000-£1,000,000 per well, depending on the design and depth.

Official fracking documents record the depth of the horizontal sections of the Preston New Road wells at more than 2km.  (PNR1z and PNR2).  

The site operator, Cuadrilla Bowland Limited, reported a loss of £46.3m in its accounts for the year ending 30 June 2023. Its net liabilities for this period were £44.5m.

The company is dependent for funding on Cuadrilla Resources Limited, the lead company of the Cuadrilla Group, and the ultimate parent company, the Australian mining group, AJ Lucas.

Cuadrilla Resources Limited reported a loss of £64.3m for the year ending June 2023 and net liabilities of £110.2m.

AJ Lucas has said it would continue to provide support to Cuadrilla companies for 12 months from 31 March 2024.

Local planning authorities can request financial security from an operator for the costs of restoration and aftercare of land. Nottinghamshire and North Yorkshire used this power with two shale gas applications in their areas.

But Lancashire County Council did not do this for Preston New Road, even though the wells were the first UK horizontal boreholes to be fracked.

John Hobson, of Refracktion.org, has followed Cuadrilla’s work at Preston New Road. He said:

“Local residents are rightly very concerned about the continuing delay in decommissioning the wells and restoring the site.

“If Cuadrilla Bowland Limited were to fail to fund the decommissioning costs then they would fall upon the landowner. The owner of the field where the pad is sited is a limited company with assets of just £83,000.

“According to the NAO, the Dept for BEIS was unable in 2019 to ‘explain who would meet decommissioning costs if the landowners were unable to so’.

“It is therefore entirely possible that the ‘decommissioner of last resort’ will end up being the local council tax payer.

“Lancashire County Council planning department are being treated with contempt by Cuadrilla. They need to seriously up their game and take enforcement action immediately to ensure that Cuadrilla decommission the wells and restore the site without any further delay.”

“Poor history of compliance” Delivery in January 2017 which failed to use the agreed traffic route. Photo: Neil Terry Photography

Anti-fracking campaigners have accused Cuadrilla of a “poor history of compliance” at Preston New Road.

In 2017, there were some deliveries to Preston New Road that did not use the agreed traffic route, breaching conditions of the planning permission. The county council said the breaches had been the result of police advice on protests. Enforcement action would not be “appropriate or expedient”, the council said.

Also in 2017, Cuadrilla breached a planning condition by delivering a rig overnight. More than 4,000 people signed a petition in four days calling for the enforcement of planning conditions. In this case, the council told the company to “put measures in place to prevent a recurrence”.

At around this time, campaigners also reported other alleged planning breaches, which included lorries waiting outside the Preston New Road site access, lorries with loose material that had not been sheeted and lorries leaving the site without using wheel-cleaning facilities.

There were also breaches of the environmental permit conditions in 2017, 2018 and 2019. These included failures on: methane and groundwater monitoring, waste and surface water management and incorrectly certified equipment.

Two other English onshore oil and gas sites are currently in breach of planning conditions.

DrillOrDrop recently reported on delays to restoration of the Broadford Bridge oil site in West Sussex and continued oil production at Horse Hill in Surrey, after the Supreme Court quashed planning permission.

DrillOrDrop has closed the comments section on this and future articles. We are doing this because of the risk of liability for copyright infringement in comments. We still want to hear about your reaction to DrillOrDrop articles. You can contact us by clicking here.

“The Hub” is a weekly round-up of transportation related news in the Philadelphia area and beyond. Check back weekly to keep up-to-date on the issues Clean Air Council’s transportation staff finds important.

Image Source: BillyPenn

BillyPenn: Cars prohibited from stopping in bike lanes in Philly – On Wednesday, Mayor Parker signed the “Get Out the Bike Lane” bill into law, making it illegal for motor vehicles to stop in bike lanes at any time. A $125 fine will be given to violators in Center City and University City, and a $75 fine in other parts of the city. This aims to keep bike lanes clear and protect bicyclists.

Image Source: The Inquirer

The Inquirer: How much did SEPTA fares increase? A helpful breakdown of each service – SEPTA’s 7.5% fare increase went into effect on Dec. 1st. Riders using SEPTA Key, PATCO, or contactless payment methods will now pay $2.50 on subways, buses, and trolleys. This is now similar to cash and quick trip riders. Regional Rail fares also increased and depending on the payment method and the station location riders will now pay 25 cents to $2 more.

Image Source: The Inquirer

The Inquirer: Pa. legislators should treat SEPTA funding like an emergency – Gov. Josh Shapiro flexed $153 million of highway dollars to fund SEPTA and prevent the massive 21.5% fare increase and possible service cuts that the agency was facing. This funding is only enough for the transit agency to maintain operation through June 2025, and is therefore a temporary bandaid. PA legislators need to invest in public transportation.

Other Stories

The Inquirer: What Amtrak prices are looking like this December — and how to save

WHYY: This iconic trolley bridge in Fairmount Park is getting restored

The Inquirer: It’s time to break the gridlock on ‘Roosevelt Boulevard Reimagined’

Smart Cities Dive: Streetcar and other rail transit vehicle fatalities the focus of FTA safety advisory

Pittsburgh Union Progress: Pittsburgh Regional Transit will begin selling bulk passes to employers, landlords and schools in January

The Environment Agency (EA) has extended a public consultation on changes to the operation of an East Yorkshire oil and gas site after pressure from residents.

Photo: West Newton Said No!

An information event will also be held, the EA said, to ensure local people and groups can give their views on the proposals.

The consultation is on the application by Rathlin Energy to vary its environmental permit for the West Newton-A site.

The company wants permission to carry out a form of small-scale fracking, described in the application as reservoir stimulation and also known as a proppant squeeze. Rathlin Energy also plans to extend the wellsite and drill up to six new boreholes.

 The public consultation had been due to close on Friday 3 January. DrillOrDrop article.

But the local community group West Newton Said No! urged the EA to extend the period for comments. It said the application contained complex and technical information that a layperson would find difficult to understand.

The group also said there should be more time because the consultation included the Christmas holiday.

West Newton Said No! also called for public information events so that local people could talk directly to EA staff and consult the supporting documents.

The EA responded by arranging a drop-in event on Thursday 9 January 2025 at Sproatley Village Hall, Sproatley Road, Sproatley, HU114GA from 12 noon-4pm.

The consultation now runs for an additional three weeks until Friday 24 January 2025.

Peter Stevenson, the EA’s area environment manager, said:

“It’s important to us that all interested parties can view the consultation documents and provide a response.

“I’d like to reassure people that we will carry out a detailed and rigorous assessment of Rathlin Energy’s application.

“We welcome comments from the public and interested groups on local environmental factors that people feel are important.”

DrillOrDrop will report on the progress of the permit variation, including comments on it from local people.

DrillOrDrop has closed the comments section on this and future articles. We are doing this because of the risk of liability for copyright infringement in comments. We still want to hear about your reaction to DrillOrDrop articles. You can contact us by clicking here.

Send your message to Metropolitan Water District today regarding the Delta tunnel vote!

On Tuesday, December 10th, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Board of Directors is voting as to whether they should spend an additional $141 million for Delta tunnel planning. This is not their vote to fund the tunnel— but it is a significant vote to continue funding the planning process.

We need your help! And our ask is very specific.

We are asking you to take the email template below, modify it, and send an email to the Board’s support staff at BoardExecutiveSecretary@mwdh2o.com.

Request that your email comment is shared with the Board. Also, please copy us on the email at info@restorethedelta.org so that we can keep count of the number of emails our supporters are sending.

By copying us, you will help us when we provide the Met Board with live public comments at the Board meeting which you can watch here. 

We are organizing this effort in this manner because the Met Board stops listening in a meaningful way when they receive too many calls and because our goal is to let them know that Delta communities support efforts in the Delta other than the tunnel to help them secure a sustainable water supply. We want to affirm that an opportunity for collaboration between the Delta and Southern California is genuine, and that such a collaboration can save Metropolitan and their rate payers billions of dollars while better protecting the Delta’s ecosystem and communities.

Your input is important because we know that the Governor is pressuring Metropolitan leaders to fund tunnel planning.

To counter that, our goal here is a message of unity that emphasizes better alternatives for Metropolitan Water District ratepayers because an affordable California is at the top of everyone’s priorities throughout the state.

Here below is the cut and paste email message. Keep your email positive and polite. Let it be known we are about problem solving. We thank you for helping us as we advocate for the Delta.

Onward,

Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla

Dear Metropolitan Board Members,

We are organizing this effort in this manner because the Met Board stops listening in a meaningful way when they receive too many calls and because our goal is to let them know that Delta communities support efforts in the Delta other than the tunnel to help them secure a sustainable water supply. 

I am a Delta supporter, and I am urging you to not move forward with an additional $141 million for Delta tunnel planning.  The tunnel during construction and operations will destroy the largest estuary on the West Coast of the Americas — its 700 native species, and its rural and urban communities.

The tunnel will also not solve your water needs in a cost effective manner.  Your own staff has estimated that the Delta Freshwater Pathway would cost MET $700 million, whereas the Delta tunnel starts at $20 billion before construction overruns and interest on bond debt.  The Freshwater Pathway provides 300-year flood protection and mitigates against seismic activity with its wide levees, also providing for space for wetland restoration. This plan along with local Delta contributions to levee upgrades, already in the hundreds of millions of dollars, coupled with collaborative efforts between Delta parties, the state, and Metropolitan for fishery protection and sustainable agriculture are an affordable alternative to the destructive and financially wasteful Delta tunnel.

California voters throughout the state made it clear that they want an affordable California. This cost effective alternative protects Metropolitan’s water supply and helps to keep ratepayer bills lower. 

Delay the vote before spending another $141 million of ratepayer money. Have staff conduct a deep financial analysis of the alternative and compare it to the tunnel.  Meet with Delta water leaders, community groups, and elected officials and thoroughly vet this alternative before throwing good money after bad.

The Delta community knows how to be part of the solution. Together, we can work for the best interests of the estuary and the people of Southern California.

Thank you for considering my comments,

Your Name

The health of the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary and Delta communities remains our top priority for 2025. 
Your tax-deductible gift will help us achieve our goals for next year and beyond. 
Support our organization today or mail a check to 2616 Pacific Ave #4296, Stockton, CA 95204.

NOVEMBER 2024

Welcome to the November edition of Brave New Climate, a monthly newsletter about industrial projects and energy policy issues in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta region, brought to you by Restore The Delta’s Carbon & Energy Program. In this edition, we highlight implications of a near-miss levee failure at Victoria Island for geologic CO2 storage plans, two industrial projects at the Port of Stockton with potentially significant pollution burdens, and lackluster clean energy planning by the Port to meet increased energy demand of electrifying terminal operations.

Around the Delta

An island in the Delta that is being proposed for geologic storage was nearly lost to a levee breach, reinforcing concerns we have with the lack of flood protections considered under US EPA Class VI permits. Restore The Delta has submitted comment letters to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding environmental concerns at two sites where geologic CO2 storage is proposed in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta: Union Island and Victoria Island.

• In our first letter, we outlined critical concerns with Carbon TerraVault’s Union Island permit application. The company failed to identify CO2 sources, which directly affects how corrosive the CO2 would be, omitted well construction details, and provided inadequate emergency response plans – all of which raise serious safety concerns. We also highlighted that Carbon Teravault needs to be transparent about property rights and injection operations, pointing to ongoing challenges at other carbon storage sites.
• In our second letter, we alerted EPA to an alarming levee incident on Victoria Island, another island where Carbon Teravault wants to inject CO2. The incident forced emergency crews to make urgent repairs when a 180-foot section of levee dropped dangerously low, threatening to flood vital Delta infrastructure including the Banks Pumping Plant. This near-disaster reinforces why EPA must require companies to implement comprehensive flood protection measures, verify proper levee maintenance, and create detailed emergency plans before allowing any underground CO2 storage in the Delta’s fragile ecosystem.

• The Nevada Cement Terminal at the Port of Stockton has a new owner, Eagle Materials, who is seeking to expand cement unloading operations at the site. The terminal is in the northeast corner of the Port’s East Complex, which is across the Deepwater Shipping Channel near the I-5 and Crosstown Freeway junction. It’s also about 500 feet north of the Boggs Tract community. On initial review, we are cautiously optimistic about the project due to the developer’s commitment to early community engagement and interest in community co-design of harm mitigation measures. That said, we are concerned with air pollution impacts to the Southwest Stockton community given the size of the proposed expansion, which currently forecasts 69 ocean going vessel trips, 437 rail trips, and 41,000+ truck trips to the site annually. For more information on our concerns with the project, see our comment letter. 
• Draft EIR released for Wood Pellet Export Terminal at the Port of Stockton. Restore The Delta is firmly opposed to this project for the following reasons: 1) the export terminal would have “significant and unavoidable impacts” on the Stockton community, adding to legacy pollution problems while adding minimal economic benefit; and 2) storing and shipping pelletized forest residues overseas to be burnt for electricity generation has no merit as a climate solution. Learn more about efforts to oppose the project here. 

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

The Port of Stockton has failed to meet its state-mandated clean energy procurement targets for the second reporting period in a row. On Nov. 18, Port commissioners unanimously approved the Stockton 2023 Power Content Label. The Port’s electricity mix for 2024 has a lower percentage of clean energy sources (38%) than it did in 2023 (42%) – a violation of the California Renewable Portfolio Standard, which requires 44% by the end of 2024. Further, 4% of the Port’s energy mix is attributed to Retired Unbundled Renewable Energy Credits, which don’t de facto stimulate development of new renewable energy generation. When the Port failed to meet its RPS commitments in July of 2021, it was fined $25,000 by the California Air Resource Board. These repeat violations unfortunately put a damper on the Port’s progress to electrify its operations and reduce local air pollution. We are concerned that electrification investments for Stockton Port District customers in the West Complex will be primarily powered by fossil fuel power plants. 

What We’re Reading

• California’s first carbon capture project gets OK from Kern County
• Industry’s Not-So-Golden Plan for California’s Forests
• Potential levee failure prompts SJ County to declare state of emergency

The health of the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary and Delta communities remains our top priority for 2025. 
Your tax-deductible gift will help us achieve our goals for next year and beyond. 
Support our organization today or mail a check to 2616 Pacific Ave #4296, Stockton, CA 95204.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has called on the California State Water Resources Control Board to protect tribal cultural practices in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay
Delta, with a focus on preserving subsistence fishing.

Yesterday’s Sacramento Bee, highlights comments made by EPA Regional Administrator
Martha Guzman, who asserted, “The EPA strongly supports the proposal in the draft plan to
designate tribal cultural uses throughout the Bay Delta watershed. This proposal recognizes the
centrality of vital fish populations to many California tribes.”

Guzman also challenged Governor Newsom’s “Voluntary Agreements” proposal, which would
allow water users to voluntarily reduce their use with limited oversight. Her remarks follow a civil
rights complaint filed with the EPA by a coalition of environmental groups and tribes, including
Restore the Delta, which argues that inadequate water quality standards have led to the
degradation of the Bay-Delta watershed, disproportionately impacting tribes that rely on fish for
both sustenance and cultural preservation.

Krystal Moreno from the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians commended Guzman’s
intervention, stating, “Tribal communities need water quality standards that protect the unique
way we utilize our waterways. We appreciate her leadership elevating this issue and hope the
board acts to incorporate her recommendation.”

Importantly, Guzman’s comments come at a time when California water regulators are
deliberating over several controversial options for the Delta’s future. This rare federal
intervention highlights the ongoing crisis in the Delta, and reinforces the State’s responsibility to
preserve water flows, fish populations, and tribal cultural practices.

Barbara Barrigan-Parilla, Executive Director for Restore the Delta, emphasized the added
pressure this places on Governor Newsom, saying, “Martha Guzman echoed the language of
our petition and addresses the governor. This is important. Who will his legacy be for, tribes or
water exporters?”

You can read more from Ari Plachta in the Sacramento Bee here.

The Northern Ireland Executive has agreed to ban exploration and production of all forms of onshore oil and gas.

Conor Murphy speaking in the Northern Ireland Assembly in April 2024. Photo: Northern Ireland Assembly

It endorsed a proposal by the economy minister, Conor Murphy.

Legislation for the ban, which will include hydraulic fracturing, will be introduced in late 2025.

In a statement (5 December 2024), Mr Murphy said:

“I am pleased to announce a ban on all forms of onshore petroleum exploration and production – including fracking. I welcome the Executive’s collective commitment to tackling our ongoing dependence on fossil fuels.

“Reaching our net zero target by 2050 is both a legal requirement and a moral obligation which is why decarbonisation is central to my economic plans. I have listened to what the citizens across the north have had to say on this issue through the public consultation earlier this year and they overwhelmingly supported my proposal to ban onshore petroleum exploration and production.

“This action today takes us a step closer to ending our over reliance on fossil fuels which are at the mercy of unstable global commodity prices. It will help my department focus all its efforts on supporting the development and generation of renewable energy. Today’s announcement also brings us into line with other jurisdictions like the south of Ireland and Wales.

“I will introduce legislation to the Assembly to ban onshore petroleum licensing. This will require amendments to the Petroleum (Production) Act (Northern Ireland) 1964 and other regulations.”

“The time involved in drafting and consulting on the legislation as well as allowing for committee scrutiny means that the legislation will be introduced in late 2025. In the meantime, my department will not accept or process onshore petroleum licensing applications.”

There are currently no active petroleum licences in Northern Ireland. The most recent active licence was relinquished in 2020.

In the public consultation, most participants supported a proposed moratorium and eventual legislative ban on all forms of onshore petroleum exploration and production.

DrillOrDrop has closed the comments section on this and future articles. We are doing this because of the risk of liability for copyright infringement in comments. We still want to hear about your reaction to DrillOrDrop articles. You can contact us by clicking here.

The Albanese Government looks to be limbering up for a festive season coal mine triple shot after it officially rejected reconsideration requests for three coal expansions that were subject to the landmark Living Wonders legal challenge.

Updated on December 4, 2024. 

Seven years after it was originally proposed , the 5212 Broadway project–the former California College of the Arts campus in Rockridge—was unanimously approved by the Oakland City Council on December 3, 2024. Presented by the Equity Community Builders (ECB) and Emerald Fund, this innovative development project will bring 448 much-needed new homes, including a commitment to 45 affordable homes onsite. Learn more here.

This win reflects the City of Oakland commitment to creating more equitable housing outcomes by up-zoning Rockridge in its latest Housing Element. 

Greenbelt Alliance was proud to endorse this project through our Climate SMART Development Endorsement Program in 2020. We celebrate this amazing win with other partners who advocated for this outcome, including the Housing Action Coalition, East Bay YIMBY,  East Bay For Everyone, and Urban Environmentalists.

Why It’s Important

Since its proposal in 2017, the project has undergone numerous, significant design iterations based on community input and discussion with City staff to arrive at the current proposal. The project features:

• 448 new homes in Rockridge, a historically exclusionary neighborhood which has seen scant new housing in decades. This includes a commitment to 45 affordable homes onsite.
• Much needed housing near Rockridge’s BART station, supporting transit in the neighborhood. This Is bolstered by commitment to 3X the required number of bike parking spaces.
• Extensive historic preservation and reuse including repurposing primary components of the Victorian Treadwell Estate Era and preserving historic landscape with multiple redwood groves, coast live oaks, magnolia trees.
• Community access to Macky Lawn, a nature playground, a terrace view deck, and meeting and event space within a historic building.

Original content provided by our friends at the Housing Action Coalition, posted on September 23, 2022 and later updated on October 14, 2024.

The post Win For Housing: Oakland Approves Transformation of Former Arts College Into Homes appeared first on Greenbelt Alliance.

NC WARN is honored to work with the Town of Carrboro and the Center for Biological Diversity on this project.

Contacts:
Patrice Toney, Town of Carrboro, (919) 918-7315, ptoney@carrboronc.gov
Jim Warren, NC WARN, (919) 416-5077, jim@ncwarn.org
Jean Su, Center for Biological Diversity, (415) 770-3187, jsu@biologicaldiversity.org

CARRBORO, N.C.— The town of Carrboro sued Duke Energy Corp. today for the company’s decades-long role leading a nationwide climate deception scheme that has worsened the climate crisis, harmed the community and cost the town millions of dollars. The lawsuit seeks to hold Duke Energy accountable for the damages inflicted on Carrboro by the corporation’s campaign to delay the transition from planet-heating fossil fuels to renewable energy. This lawsuit is the first to challenge an electric utility for knowingly deceiving the public about fossil fuels’ dangers.

“We have to speak truth to power as we continue to fight the existential threat that is climate change. The climate crisis continues to burden our community and cost residents their hard-earned tax dollars,” said Carrboro Mayor Barbara Foushee. “Duke Energy’s knowledge of the environmental injustice being caused by the use of fossil fuels has unfairly plagued our community for decades. Historically underserved and marginalized communities are facing disproportionate impacts and health risks that are associated with climate change. This was not an easy decision to make but I believe that we must be courageous as we call out these injustices and seek change and accountability.”

Today’s lawsuit says Duke Energy’s top executives have known for more than 50 years about the risks from fossil fuels but have been ringleaders of a widespread campaign to mislead the public about its climate harms and increase reliance on coal and gas for electricity. Carrboro has been working to fight climate chaos and environmental injustice for years, including developing community-based solar programs, implementing climate resilience measures for low-income residents and small businesses, and funding nature-based solutions for stormwater management.

“This lawsuit represents an incredible opportunity to put an end to corporate deception and enter a new era for Carrboro,” said Mayor Pro Tem Danny Nowell. “It’s time for us to hold Duke Energy accountable for decades of deception, padding executives’ pockets while towns like ours worked to mitigate the harmful effects of climate change. This suit will allow the Town of Carrboro to invest new resources into building a stronger, more climate-resilient community, using the damages justly due to our residents to reimagine the ways we prepare for our climate reality.”

Duke Energy, the third largest-polluting corporation in the U.S., has worked with industry front groups and PR firms to deceive the public about the science of climate change and block action to combat it, causing Carrboro and its residents significant harm, the lawsuit said.

“The Carrboro community has worked for over five decades to protect, conserve and preserve the environment, the ecosystems and the wellbeing of its citizens,” said Council Member Randee Haven-O’Donnell. “Carrboro is a strong, vibrant community, and Duke Energy needs to be held accountable for the deception and damages it’s caused and continues to cause. Duke Energy’s deceptive public campaign erases the progress we strive for to address climate change. We’re the little engine that could, and we hope other towns can be, too, and hold their polluting utilities accountable. In Carrboro, we’re standing up to be the change we want to see in the world.”

Fossil fuel-driven climate change has battered Carrboro, like the rest of the country, with more frequent and severe storms and flooding, and record-high temperatures. The death and destruction across the region from Hurricane Helene are the latest examples of the worsening climate crisis.

The Town of Carrboro is on the hook for millions of dollars in repairs to roads, rising energy bills and other infrastructure costs to adapt to and mitigate the harms from climate change. Duke Energy is responsible for these damages because the massive utility knew its campaigns to obstruct climate change legislation and mislead the public would accelerate the climate crisis and worsen its impact on the town, the lawsuit said.

“This lawsuit exposes Duke Energy executives as using the tobacco scandal playbook. They’re making the global climate crisis worse despite widespread and accelerating misery,” said Jim Warren, executive director of nonprofit NC WARN. “And they’re still expanding fossil fuels and suppressing renewables – in flat defiance of scientists demanding that we do the exact opposite. We need the judicial system to hold Duke Energy leadership accountable and finally break their corporate control over our political system and public decisions.”

Today’s lawsuit, filed in Orange County Superior Court in Hillsborough, said Duke Energy is damaging the Carrboro community by deceiving its customers and the broader public. Duke Energy denied the harms from climate change and now claims to be a clean energy leader while it builds more methane gas-burning power plants and suppresses solar and other renewable energy. The utility chooses dirty energy to power homes and businesses but falsely promotes and advertises methane gas as a climate solution. 

“We’ll soon have a climate denier-in-chief in the White House, but Carrboro is a shining light in this darkness, taking on one of the country’s largest polluters and climate deceivers,” said Jean Su, energy justice director at the Center for Biological Diversity, which is advising on the case. “Climate action doesn’t stop at a national level, and Carrboro is holding Duke Energy and all fossil utilities’ feet to the fire. This town is paving a way for local governments to drive climate justice despite who’s in Washington.”  

Duke Energy provides electricity to 8.2 million monopoly-captured customers across six states, including nearly all of North Carolina as well as parts of South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. One of the largest electric power providers and among the largest corporate polluters in the world, the utility emitted roughly 80 million tons of carbon dioxide in 2021. These emissions were made possible by Duke Energy’s decades-long deception campaign.

Eleven states and dozens of municipal and Tribal governments across the country have filed lawsuits to hold major oil and gas companies accountable for deceiving the public about fossil fuels’ role in climate change. In October Oregon’s Multnomah County, which includes Portland, added the regional gas provider NW Natural to its 2023 lawsuit against fossil fuel corporations for their role in the area’s fatal 2021 heat dome.

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NC WARN and the Center for Biological Diversity have created a website to share information about this lawsuit. Visit SueDukeEnergy.org to learn more and take action.

The post Lawsuit Targets Duke Energy’s Decades of Climate Deception, Harm to North Carolina Town appeared first on NC WARN.

Community groups have denounced Santos’ attempts to avoid water and environmental scrutiny for its polluting Narrabri Lateral Pipeline, which will clear a swathe of destruction through 30 km of the Pilliga Forest if built. 

Updated on December 3, 2024. Originally published on August 24, 2022.

After seven years in the making, the Northgate Town Square project in San Rafael was unanimously unapproved on December 2, 2024!  This represents a historic win for Marin County: the project has been in the works since 2017, and is one of the biggest multifamily projects in Marin County in decades. 

With the City Council’s green light, Northgate Town Square will convert a dated suburban mall into a beautiful mixed-use project. It will include an open-air concept and community gathering place and more than 1,400 badly-needed new multifamily homes for city workers and residents in Marin County—including 143 affordable homes—, adding to the housing supply in a resource-rich area.  

In August 2022, Greenbelt Alliance was excited to officially endorse MerloneGeier’s Northgate Mall redevelopment project in San Rafael, through our Climate SMART Development Endorsement Program.

Sustainable Features

In addition to increasing the housing stock, the Northgate Mall proposal further prioritizes our climate SMART—Sustainable, Mixed, Affordable, Resilient, Transit-Oriented— criteria in a number of ways.  

The development prominently features green infrastructure and commits to an all-electric design. In terms of water efficiency, the project plans to use recycled greywater for landscape irrigation, utilize a dual plumbing system, and make significant EV charging, battery storage, and solar capacity available on-site. The site is also less than 0.5 mile from the nearest SMART (Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit) station, integrates new bike lanes throughout the project, and includes a 9,000 sq. ft bicycle center with a repair station and bike parking.    

According to census data, more than 86% of the workers in San Rafael commute in from outside the city. In Marin County, more than 65% of the workforce commutes in from outside the county, mainly from Richmond and Alameda, due to high housing prices driven by a severe shortage of available homes. The Northgate Mall project will help improve this trend, allowing more city and county residents to live where they work.  

We are excited to see MerloneGeier’s vision for the Northgate Mall site come to fruition with the support of the community. We look forward to supporting more projects like these throughout the Bay Area.

Greenbelt Alliance’s Climate SMART—Sustainable, Mixed, Affordable, Resilient, Transit-Oriented— Development Endorsement Program goals call for fully protecting the Bay Area’s greenbelt, directing growth within existing communities, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and accomplishing both in a way that equitably benefits all Bay Area residents. Our Endorsement Program supports projects that advance the right kind of development in the right places. By promoting climate SMART development, we can create thriving, resilient neighborhoods with ready access to transit and housing choices for all of the Bay Area’s people. Find out more about our Endorsement Program here. Feel free to contact our team for more information and support.

Header Photo: Northgate Mall website

The post Greenbelt Alliance Endorsed: Northgate Mall appeared first on Greenbelt Alliance.

Introduction to Friends of Gualala River’s Annual Newsletter 2024

November 22nd, 2024. The mouth of the Gualala River opens while thousands of gulls ride out the atmospheric river on the bar. Photographer Laura Baker

Winter arrived November 20th with an atmospheric river that swept over the coast, bringing record rainfalls to the Mendonoma area. Overnight, the airborne river fell across our watershed, swelling the Gualala, sending huge logs hurtling down the chocolate-colored waters.

At the coast the mouth of the lagoon—closed since last June— burst open and the lagoon was transformed once again into the estuary, with its ebb and flow of salty tides. Somewhere beneath the river’s rush, young steelhead moved out into the ocean to begin the sea-going part of their life cycle. And maybe, just maybe, a few adult coho salmon entered the estuary in their quest to spawn in their natal stream.

Steelhead in the Gualala estuary. Photographer: Rozanne Rapozo

While it’s impossible to ignore this late seasonal spectacle of water around us, Friends of Gualala River has had its eye on our river water all year long. We have engaged in a number of different programs to address water quality, water flows, and the fate of stormwater that flows into our estuary. And, we are enlisting the help of talented local volunteers and a paid staff person to accomplish our goals.

Read on to learn how FoGR continues its 30-year quest to protect the Gualala River and the natural resources of the entire watershed. But first a message from the President of our Board about our organization and the values we espouse.

2024 Newsletter Articles

1. Water, Water Everywhere (this article)
2. Note from the President
3. Meet Our New Conservation Analyst
4. FoGR’s Campaign to Reduce Sediment in the River
5. How Local Citizens Play A Role in Monitoring Our River Water
6. What’s In Our Stormwater?
7. Treasurer’s Report

FoGR Newsletter, December, 2024

As I sit down to write this year’s newsletter, I find myself reflecting on the essence of our organization and our collective impact on the Gualala River watershed. It’s a complex and ever-evolving landscape, requiring our constant attention and dedication.

Gualala River lagoon after the rain, Nov. 15, 2024, photo by Jeanne Jackson

How can we best express our gratitude to our supporters? How can we inspire more people to get involved and make a difference? How do we navigate the complex issues of land use, water rights, and environmental regulations? How can we honor the legacy of those who came before us and ensure a sustainable future for the river? What can we do to be more authentic in our intentions to care for the watershed?

These are the questions that guide our work at FoGR, some of which is reflected below. As we continue to explore solutions to these challenges, we invite you to join us in this journey.

Whether it’s volunteering your time, donating to our cause, spreading the word about our mission, or simply enjoying the watershed through kayaking, hiking, or fishing, your support is invaluable. Together, we can protect the Gualala River for generations to come.

Sincerely,
Nathan Ramser
President, Friends of Gualala River

Dylan Freebairn-Smith receives his B.A in Environmental Sciences from UC Santa Barbara, 2024. Photo by UCSB.

My name is Dylan Freebairn-Smith, and I am FoGR’s new Conservation Analyst. I grew up in Gualala, spending my first 18 years exploring our magnificent Southern Mendocino Coast. In June of 2024, I graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara, with a degree in Environmental Studies. As an avid surfer, hiker, angler, diver, and mushroom hunter, I want to bring my knowledge back to my community and help restore and preserve our local ecosystems.

FoGR is an organization whose goals align with mine. Protecting the Gualala River and its watershed is integral to keeping abundance and biodiversity as characteristics of our lands and waters. I have seen a decline in these characteristics throughout my lifetime, and working for FoGR is the perfect avenue for me to use my education to uplift our beautiful North Coast environment.

Dylan headed out to surf the waves from the latest storm. Photo by Sutton Freebairn-Smith

by Dylan Freebairn-Smith, Conservation Analyst

One of the first projects that Dylan has tackled is analyzing the TMDL program for the Gualala.

Summary

The Gualala River has been listed as impaired under the federal Clean Water Act due to elevated sediment levels since 1993 and has exceeded the Environmental Protection Agency’s Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) of sediment since 2001. This issue has powerful implications for the Gualala’s ecological, economic, and anthropogenic beneficial uses.

Sediment from the remains of a timber company’s summer crossing sheds into the North Fork during winter flows. (Photo courtesy of FoGR)

The chief sources of sediment are roads, landslides, and legacy timber harvesting practices. FoGR’s successful 2021 litigation against the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board required the Gualala River’s Sedimentation issue to be amended to the Regional Basin Plan. Currently, Draft implementation documents are being prepared for public and board review.

The Water Board is hiring new specialized staff to help design and implement the Draft plan. FoGR is following this issue closely so that our local community will be prepared to understand and comment upon the plan.

Details

A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), put simply, is the maximum amount of a pollutant that a waterbody can endure while still providing its beneficial uses. When a waterbody exceeds the designated TMDL for a type of pollution, it is considered “impaired.” The Clean Water Act Section 303(d) then requires this waterbody to be added to the Section 303(d) List of Impaired Water Bodies.

The Gualala River is currently on this list due to sediment impairment, which affects the beneficial uses listed below.

1. Cold Freshwater Habitat
2. Rare, Threatened, or Endangered Species
3. Spawning, Reproduction, and/or Early Development
4. Migration of Aquatic Organisms
5. Commercial and Sport Fishing
6. Estuarine Habitat
7. Municipal and Domestic Supply
8. Water Contact Recreation
9. Non-Contact Water Recreation

If you enjoy fishing for Steelhead or want to see Coho Salmon return to the Gualala River, items 1-6 of this list may concern you. If you enjoy a clean river to swim in, a healthy riverbank to lie on, and clean water to drink, items 7-9 may interest you. An explanation of each “beneficial use” can be found at https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/northcoast/water_issues/programs/basin_plan/180710/BPChapter2BeneficialUses.pdf

This is not new information; the Gualala has been considered sediment-impaired by the EPA since 2001. The TMDL process is long and bureaucratic, but we are at a crucial point locally. FoGR’s successful 2021 litigation of the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board (NCRWQCB), required the NCRWQCB to amend the Regional Basin Plan with Orders and an Action Plan to address the Gualala River Sediment TMDL impairment.

A juvenile steelhead swims in the rapids of the Garcia River in June 2024.

The release of these documents for public review is approaching. The Draft Orders, to be published in April 2025, are part of the implementation plan and will require the inventory, assessment, and prioritization of road treatment to control sediment sources.

In June 2025, the Water Board will release the Draft Action Plan and Staff Report for public review. The Action Plan and Staff Report will contain implementation actions to control sediment pollution and the required environmental documentation. Once released, these documents will include instructions for the public to submit comments.

In other good news for the Gualala River TMDL, three new staff and a million dollars annually for 5 years have been provided to complete the Basin Planning Amendment, Order development, and subsequent implementation actions.

As more details develop, we will keep you updated on the work the North Coast Water Board is doing to fulfill its mandate from the settlement. In the meantime, sign up for quarterly email updates from the Water Board on the Gualala River Orders and Action Plan. Community involvement is key.

by Laura Baker, Board Member

Three years ago the non-profit, The Stream Team, landed a Whale Tail grant from the State Coastal Conservancy, to monitor water quality in the Gualala estuary.

Friends of Gualala River and the Redwood Coast Land Conservancy have partnered with The Stream Team to teach local citizens how to collect and test water from 4 different sites in the estuary for various conditions such as pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and other variables. Meeting once a month between May and October, the group has developed 18 months of data that will be logged and available at CEDEN (California Environmental Data Exchange Network).

The Stream Team volunteers analyze samples of estuary water at the Gualala Point Regional Park. Photographer: Laura Baker

The project teaches citizens proper monitoring protocols so that they can continue tracking estuary conditions to add to background information. When there is an episode of a large scale change in the river—such as a large landslide or a chemical spill—the baseline monitoring information can be compared for impacts. The program is part of FoGR’s commitment to documenting and improving the water quality in the river.

by Laura Baker, Board Member

In 2021 FoGR learned of a chemical found in tire grit that pollutes stormwater and kills a number of different aquatic species. It is especially toxic to coho salmon— 40 parts per billion in a quart of stormwater kills juvenile coho. Information has been pouring out of the State of Washington where the effects of 6 PPD were first discovered as scientists race to learn more about how the compound kills and what can be done about it.

The compound is intentionally added to tires as a safety measure to reduce wear when the rubber is exposed to ozone. The bad news is that this compound is found in tires, playground rubber mats, and anywhere that tires are recycled and re-used. While there are lawsuits aimed against tire manufacturers to find a substitute for 6 PPD (which becomes the more hazardous 6 PPD-Q when exposed to ozone), the short-term answer contains some good news: early research suggests that stormwater that is captured and allowed to percolate through different media like soil, compost, etc., can be cleaned of 6 PPD-Q.

Thanks to the collaboration between FoGR and The Stream Team (with whom we work to monitor water in the estuary), we began to investigate the fate of stormwater that flows untreated from downtown Gualala into our estuary/lagoon.

Timmarie Hamill of The Stream Team collecting stormwater from a downtown Gualala drain. Photographer: Laura Baker

Virtually every drop of stormwater that originates above the estuary from the mobile home park down to the highway bridge across the river is conveyed through the stormwater system directly into the estuary. But does it contain 6 PPD/6 PPD-Q? Some people have expressed doubt that there’s enough vehicle traffic in Gualala to generate measurable amounts of 6 PPD-Q and other toxins.

The answer to this important question lies in data that we have collected from 3 separate storm events (May 4th, October 12th, and November 1st, 2024). In every sample collected in accordance with the strict protocols established by the US Environmental Protection Agency, we detected 6 PPD-Q in significant amounts. In all but one sample, the amounts exceeded the LC 50 for juvenile coho. The LC 50 is the lethal concentration of a toxin that kills 50% of the population which, for juvenile coho, is 40 nanograms/liter with less than 24 hours of exposure. It’s hard to wrap one’s head around just how small an amount that figure represents, so here’s a simple example. One quarter of a teaspoon of sugar = 1 gram. Divide that by 1 billion to get 1 nanogram: in other words 40 billionths of a gram per liter which is about a quart.

The laboratory tests for 6 PPD-Q are expensive. Fortunately, The Stream Team landed a small grant from the Rose Foundation to help pay for some of the initial costs associated with analyzing 6 PPD-Q and for updating their Monitoring Plan (MP) and Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) to ensure the data we collect is technically valid and informs management and restoration plans currently being developed for the Gualala River and estuary.

Is there a way to intercept and treat the stormwater pouring into our estuary? The Gualala Streetscape Project offers an opportunity to look critically at how the current stormwater system might be modified to accomplish that. To that end, FoGR has hired Greg Kamman, an ecohydrologist with cbec engineering, and continues to partner with The Stream Team to devise a potential plan to address that issue. We will be releasing more information as it develops.