President’s Column

Chet Ogan

Lost Coast Headlands Preserve

First, I need to make a clarification to a comment I made last month. Although the Lost Coast Headlands Preserve has been designated as a BLM trust, the former Centerville Naval Facility has not yet been given to the preserve. Congressman Mike Thompson has placed a bill before Congress to turn over that facility, but it has not yet been approved. Last month, Tom Leskiw led a field trip along portions of the Preserve including a new trail that has been designated to the mouth of Guthrie Creek. The field trip stopped at the Centerville Naval Facility where Tom Leskiw and Jan Anderson heard several Pygmy Nuthatches among the Monterey pines planted as windbreaks. They were unable to confirm the birds on that trip, but several follow up parties did confirm them. Dr. Stan Harris classifies Pygmy Nuthatches as irregular and rare in Humboldt and Del Norte counties. The addition of the former naval facility will add a unique blend to the flora of this area. You can look from the road, but please do not go into the facility.

Coal plant

The power plant in Blue Lake is again considering ways of providing energy. This time they are looking into using Anthracite coal barged from Alaska to power the plant. Becoming energy independent is a goal of the United States, and it is a worthy goal especially in reflection to the events on Terrorist Tuesday. Let us still consider wind, wave, and solar power alternatives for our area. Those could make us truly oil independent.

Terrorist Tuesday

On September 11 we lost a key person in our local environmental community. Rich Guadagno, manager at Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge, was very likely among those who thwarted the terrorists attempt to crash that jetliner into a building at our nation’s Capitol. Rich Guadagno will be missed but not forgotten. The new headquarters building at HBNWR will be dedicated in his honor. HBNWR will be looking for volunteers to help staff the new building and lead interpretive walks so that the facility can be open on weekends. For more information contact Shannon Smith at 733-5406.