‘Railbanking’ term avoided in final decision

7/13/12



Its membership is unclear, but the formation of a com­mittee is in the works to look at the future of the railroad around the Humboldt Bay corridor.



After hours of delibera­tion, the North Coast Rail Authority — a group formed by the state Legisla­ture in 1989 to protect rail infrastructure — voted unanimously Wednesday to form a committee focused on rail and trail issues around the bay. The board decided to form the com­mittee with the understand­ing that it doesn’t have any funds to expend on extra travel related to committee issues.




Second District Supervisor Clif Clendenen, who serves as a North Coast Railroad Authority director, said he’s planning to work with the county’s public works department, the Humboldt County Association of Gov­ernments — which is largely responsible for county trans­portation projects — and possibly Caltrans staff to brainstorm ideas for creating the committee. He said HCAOG might be able to help financially support the committee.



“I think we’ve got enough potential resources to where we could make a committee function,” Clendenen said.



The authority was asked by the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors, spurred by a request from a local advocacy group, to form a committee to look into railbanking. Bay T(rail) Plan advocates peti­tioned the supervisors last month to send a letter to the NCRA making the request. These advocates want to see the rail between Arcata and Eureka turned into a paved, multi-modal path.



The Bay T(rail) Plan’s idea of “railbanking” the railroad around northern Humboldt Bay has elicited fears from some that the railroad could disappear forever. Congress created the term “railbank­ing” in 1983, and it allows for unused rails to be converted into trails — at least until the time when the railroad is needed again. Supporters have said the act of railbank­ing preserves the railroad’s right-of-way, allowing the trail to be converted back to a railroad if needed.



Clendenen said the term “railbanking” was not well received by half of the NCRA board. Instead of forming a committee to specifically look at railbanking, the board decided to support a Hum­boldt Bay Rail Corridor Committee that will evaluate the creation of trails, look at rail bed restoration and the restoration of rail service consistent with NCRA trail policy.



“We’re going to look at the trail issues consistent with our rails-with-trails policy,” Clendenen said.



Bay T(rail) Plan advocate Judy Hodgson said there was definitely some board resist­ance to the railbanking idea, despite support for the cre­ation of a railbanking com­mittee by Assemblyman Wes­ley Chesbro.



A letter from Chesbro to the NCRA board states the rail­banking committee could address questions “concern­ing the rapid deterioration of the NCRA’s bayside railroad prism, the threat which the deterioration of the prism poses to the integrity of (U.S.) Highway 101, questions relating to liability issues, as well as to develop potential options for both protecting the NCRA’s railroad prism and providing for its prospec­tive use for rail, trail or rail­and-trail.”

Hodgson said photos of the railroad’s deterioration from the county public works department were dramatic, and made an impact on the NCRA board’s decision to create the Humboldt Bay Rail Corridor Committee.

“They were extremely con­cerned about the rail bed condition,” Hodgson said.

She said rail operator John Williams, with Northwestern Pacific Railroad Co., told the board he did not have any cur­rent plans to restore rail service around Humboldt Bay.

In a letter to the Board of Supervisors last month, Williams said he’s opposed to railbanking and that rail­banking any portion of the line would constitute an interference with the North­western Pacific Railroad Co.’s contractual rights. The letter states the company is also opposed to the formation of a railbanking committee.

“I am convinced that a rail­with-trail is attainable between Eureka, Arcata and Samoa and that it is the more appropriate solution,” Williams wrote.

The NCRA board meets next month in Marin County and will likely discuss the committee’s membership in more detail then.

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7/11/12

At the end of six hours of testimony with nary a break for lunch Wednesday, the North Coast Railroad Authority board voted 6-0 to form a committee to study — something — just not what the Humboldt County Supervisors and State Assemblyman Wes Chesbro had requested.

The “ask” from Humboldt leaders was to form a committee to study railbanking as an option to protect and maintain the deteriorating railroad right-of-way, between Arcata and Eureka. The 1983 federal railbanking law allows a line that is out of service to be used as a trail in the interim, until rail service is restored.

It has been 15 years since a train has run on any tracks on the North Coast. The line has seen no maintenance and is rapidly deteriorating, as evidenced in a slide show and report from the Humboldt County Public Works Department.

In the motion they passed, NCRA directors agreed “to support formation of a Humboldt Bay Rail Corridor Committee to evaluate creation of trails, restoration of the rail prism [the rail bed] and restoration of rail service consistent with NCRA trail policy” as long as someone else pays their expenses to attend any meetings.

That sounded at first like a win for trail proponents, but the catch is the “consistent with NCRA trail policy” clause. Director John McCowen pointed out repeatedly that the NCRA has only a policy on rails-with-trails –- trails alongside a rail line. It has no “rail-to-trails” policy, which would allow removal of the existing line to create a bicycle and pedestrian trail along the bay.

A rail-with-trail project between Arcata and Eureka would cost more than $31 million vs. $4 million for a trail, according to a 2007 feasibility study.
Director Hal Wagenet said any use of the word “railbanking” would be “a non-starter” for him, so the committee’s name was changed.

The rail operator, John Williams of Northwestern Pacific Railroad Co., attended the meeting. He admitted he has no current plans to restore rail service to the north end of the line and suggested Humboldt County come up with its own plan. In a previous letter, he said he opposes railbanking and he opposes any committee.

The NCRA board meets in Novato next month.

In the meantime, the Bay Trail Advocates have some very cool buttons to pass out and an active website: www.baytrailplan.org.

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Debris highlights many ongoing marine issues


7/8/12


Grant Scott-Goforth 

Well before the predicted arrival of debris, a dock wrenched from Japan’s coast during last year’s tsunami washed up on an Oregon beach last month, highlight­ing the need for a coordinated response by local and state agencies.



While officials say there’s a slim chance tsunami debris arriving on local shores will reach the disaster level, there are environmental and safety concerns about the flotsam expected to wash up on North Coast beaches over the next several years. As scien­tists scramble to predict the impact that an estimated 1.5 million tons of debris could have on the North Coast, the state is encouraging public education, and other groups are planning cleanup efforts.



Assemblyman Wesley Ches­bro, D-Arcata, said the state is in the process of assessing the problem to determine what level of response is needed. He said the Assembly is con­sidering holding a hearing with involved agencies.



“At that point, we could decide if there’s legislation needed,” Chesbro said. “We have lots of questions and not many answers.” The California Emergency Management Agency, or CalEMA, has taken efforts to educate the public, coordinat­ing with multiple agencies in California, Oregon, Washing­ton and British Columbia to track the tsunami debris. The agencies have collaborated on a website, found online at disasterdebris.wordpress.com. CalEMA information officer Lori Newquist said that the agency is utilizing social media as much as they can to share information for little cost.



Oregon Democratic Gov. John Kitzhaber announced last week that his state would be setting up a hotline, saying it’s an easy way for residents and vis­itors to report Japanese tsunami debris. The hotline can be reached by calling 211 within the state of Oregon. It will be staffed during business hours, and will take record­ed messages at other times.

Washington state announced its own hotline this week.

Oregon has said it will work with California, Washington, Alaska and Hawaii to request money from the federal government to help with their efforts. If the debris had washed up all at once, it would unquestionably qualify for federal disaster funds, Kitzhaber said. But since it’s emerging in pieces, the states will have to work harder, he said.

There are also concerns about invasive species hitching a ride across the Pacific Ocean by clinging to items like the dock that washed ashore in Oregon.

Humboldt State University profes­sor Sean Craig, who works in the university’s marine lab, said large debris could house numerous organisms that carry enough larva or spores to reproduce in local waters.

Craig said a Japanese alga — simi­lar to the kind that appear in miso soup — could potentially edge out native kelp populations. The reper­cussions go beyond marine plants to fish and other sea life.

“There are multiple examples of invasive species that have cost peo­ple millions and millions of dollars,” Craig said.

Invasive species have long been a concern for marine biologists, and some regulations and precautions are taken, including special paints for boat hulls that repel organisms.

Items like the floating dock and debris pulled into the ocean from the mainland were never expected to be ocean bound, and don’t have those protective measures.

The disposal of general debris will likely fall to the public sector, with some government agencies and nonprofits expecting an increase in organized beach cleanup efforts.

Ocean Conservancy North Coast program coordinator Jennifer Sav­age said her organization will be focused on cleanups and education. “As far as cleanups, there’s not a comprehensive plan in place yet,” Savage said. “There’s a lot of effort underway.”

The Ocean Conservancy has been monitoring marine debris in coop­eration with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and hopes that tracking and dealing with marine debris will help the response when natural disasters occur.

Savage said she has already been receiving calls about debris — items which are most likely not from the tsunami — highlighting an already ongoing problem.

“In general, ocean trash is prevent­able,” Savage said.

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Volunteers fence trees near Strawberry Creek to deter rodents

7/8/12

The chances of spotting coho salmon, steelhead and other fish at the lower end of Strawberry Creek near Orick has increased thanks to the efforts of volunteers.

But after planting thousands of trees to curtail the growth of invasive reed canarygrass, a group of beavers has thrown a monkey wrench into the proceedings, creating a bit of a dilemma.

”About three months ago, they took down a couple hundred to 300 trees in two nights,” said Bob Pagliuco, a habitat restoration specialist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service. “So we banded together to come up with a solution.”

Some people wanted to remove or relocate the beavers, Pagliuco said. Others wanted to kill them. But beavers are important to the ecosystem and to coho salmon, Pagliuco said, so they came up with another solution.

About 30 volunteers descended upon Strawberry Creek on Saturday for the AmeriCorps' volunteer day to help fence off the trees, which include willows, alders, spruce and redwoods. The volunteers come from the California Department of Fish and Game, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the AmeriCorps Watershed Stewards Project, the California Conservation Corps and the non-profit group Pacific Coast Fish, Wildlife and Wetlands Restoration Association.

The volunteers will also apply a latex-sand paint to the trees to try to dissuade the beavers from eating them, said of the Watershed Stewards Project. Carlin said he and his partner, Matt Bray, helped organize Saturday's restoration project as an individual service project.

”We're trying to keep mindful of the importance of beaver in the ecosystem, especially with coho salmon,” Carlin said. “We jumped on (the project) to serve as an example that you don't need a depredation permit; you don't need to relocate the beaver -- they can cohabitate here. We're just trying to see if this will be successful, and then we can apply it to other projects.”

Volunteers planted roughly 1,600 trees about a year ago as a way to stop the growth of the reed canarygrass, said Mitch Farro, projects manager for the Pacific Coast Fish, Wildlife and Wetlands Restoration Association.

Canarygrass, which can grow in mats thick enough and strong enough to walk upon, depletes oxygen levels in watersheds, increases flooding and crowds out other plants, Farro said. It has caused problems up and down the West Coast as far away as Alaska, he said. The only way to deal with it is to create shade.

”If you lower the light down enough, it kind of goes away and isn't a problem,” Farro said.

The volunteers are currently working on privately-owned ranch land. Farro said the landowner realized that if the canarygrass can be thinned out, it reduces flooding in his field.

”It's a win-win,” he said.

But then the beavers began causing a problem. Pagliuco said even though the beavers have destroyed the trees either for food or to build a dam, they're very important.

”These dams they build back up water and create a pond environment,” he said. “What we've been finding in the winter and in summer, these pond environments are extremely productive. There's lots of fish growing in beaver ponds, and they're found to grow significantly faster than the fish growing higher up in the tributaries.”

Farro said the beavers have also created a problem with trees on a ranch near the Smith River. Volunteers planted trees there a few years earlier, and the beavers moved in there and completely destroyed them.

Once the trees near Strawberry Creek get big enough, the fences will come down, and the latex paint will be taken off, Farro said.

”There will be enough trees that if the beavers take a few, it's no big deal,” he said.

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