The Humboldt County Civil
Grand Jury just released its second investigative report revealing the
startling future of sea-level rise in the Humboldt Bay.
The 2021-2022 report
titled “The Sea Also Rises” details how rising waters may affect highways,
sewage treatment plants, commercial properties, farms, homes and 52 Wiyot
cultural sites in the area.
To create the report, the
Grand Jury conducted interviews with sea-level rise experts, including public
planners from Humboldt County, Arcata, and Eureka, officials from Humboldt
County, the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District, The
Coastal Commission, The Coastal Conservancy, environmental scientists, a tribal
representative, non-profit organizations and a state legislative analyst.
The report delivers the
sobering fact that Humboldt Bay has a subsidence problem that puts it in danger
of having greater a sea-level rise than any other place on the West Coast.
According to the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, subsidence is a term for when the
ground sinks, specifically after things underground get moved. This can be
caused by earthquakes, removing water, fracking or rivers adding more sediment
to the area.
As sinking and sea-level
rise continue, the report warns of monthly flooding around the Humboldt Bay.
Specifically, a three-foot sea-level increase will make communities in King
Salmon and Field’s Landing especially vulnerable to frequent floods. Such
flooding may cut off the only access road to King Salmon. The report said high
tides are already starting to cause damage in the area.
Flooding also poses a risk
to Highway 101 along the South Bay, Elk River Slough, and Arcata Bay and
Highway 255 on the Mad River Bottoms.
The report also details
how local waste systems will take a hit including septic tank failures in
Fairhaven and Finntown communities.
“Fairhaven/Finntown are
not yet impacted by tidal actions, but because they do not have a wastewater
treatment plant and instead rely on septic and leach field systems, they are
finding those systems become nonfunctional at very high tides,” the report
said. “Property values within these communities are suffering because of these
impacts.”
Energy systems are also at
risk. PG&E’s Humboldt Bay Generating Station and the interim spent nuclear
fuel site could be impacted in addition to approximately 9.6 miles of municipal
water transmission lines, 30 electrical transmission towers and 113
transmission poles, according to the report.
Spots on the South and
North Jetties, three cargo and commercial docks, and contaminated sites in
Arcata and Fairhaven are also locations of concern.
Securing funding and
acquiring the proper permits from regulatory agencies could pose an obstacle to
mitigating the impacts of sea-level rise, but the Grand Jury is calling on
local lawmakers to help.
“The Grand Jury believes
SLR planning needs to be a priority among all elected officials in the County,”
the report states. “The County of Humboldt; the cities of Arcata and Eureka;
and the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation, and Conservation District should
formally state their immediate and continuous support for, and commitment to,
SLR mitigation and adaptation efforts.”
The Grand Jury will share
more information with the public in coming weeks.
KRCRTV.com
Carly Wipf
May 19th, 2022
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