In a world of worsening heatwaves, flooding, drought, glacial melting, megafires and other calamities of a changing climate, Gary Gragg is an optimist. As California warms, Gragg — a nurseryman, micro-scale farmer and tropical fruit enthusiast — looks forward to the day that he can grow and sell mangoes in Northern California. “I’ve been banking […]
Agriculture
Posted inNews
California Poised to Restrict Bee-killing Pesticides
Widely used insecticides that harm bees and songbirds would face far-reaching restrictions in California under regulations proposed by the state’s pesticide agency. The new limits would be among the nation’s most extensive for agricultural use of neonicotinoids, a class of insecticides used to kill plant-damaging pests like aphids. The highly potent pesticides have been shown […]
Posted inNews
Californians Used More Water as State Braces for Another Dry Year
Californians used 2.6 percent more water in January compared to before the drought emergency was declared, a sign that urban residents are ignoring the state’s pleas to take the drought seriously and cut back. The increased water use in California’s cities and towns came during the second-driest January on record, as the Sierra Nevada snowpack […]
Posted inNews
Ag Producers Urged to Apply Now for Emergency Access Passes
With the need to prepare for wildfires before winter even draws to a close becoming more critical as megablazes move into year-round threats — with each new fire season surpassing the last — Humboldt agricultural producers are being encouraged to apply now for a Restricted Area Access Pass. Having the annually issued pass is a […]
Posted inNews
A Democrat Wants to Crack Down on Employers that Exploit Workers. Will this help?
Fresno Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula introduced a new bill that would establish a labor trafficking unit within Cal/OSHA to investigate and prosecute people who force or coerce vulnerable people into jobs with little or no pay, often under unsafe working conditions. The bill is cosponsored by the Western Center on Law and Poverty and the Sunita […]
Posted inNews
California Can Keep Thirstiest Crops, State Ag Chief Tells ‘State of Mind’ Podcast
The head of California’s agriculture agency said on the California State of Mind podcast that even devastating drought doesn’t mean the state must uproot its thirstiest crops. Instead says Karen Ross, head of state Department of Food and Agriculture, improvements in water usage among some of the state’s biggest water consumers will help solve the problem. […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
Ranch Land
This is an old ranch entrance on Kneeland Road. The grassy upland meadows make up the spine of Humboldt County. A third of the county’s land is occupied by ranches and many utilize this difficult agricultural land for cattle grazing. Some 100 years ago, the primary livestock on these upland meadows was sheep. The grazing […]
Posted inNews
The Megadrought is Just One Factor Driving Up the Price of Your Bread
A perfect storm of trouble—extreme dry conditions, a volatile commodity market, and climbing expenses—have millers and bakers passing on rising costs to customers. Last spring, pandemic-related supply chain issues led to too little flour on supermarket shelves, just as cooped-up consumers turned to home baking for comfort. The problem was never a shortage of flour […]
Posted inNews
Day-Passes for Farmers in Fire Zones Available
Starting today, licensed farmers with property in Southern Humboldt’s August Complex evacuation zone can obtain one-day passes from the county Planning and Building Department to check on their crops and livestock. One vehicle per pass will be allowed to visit sites in the evacuation zone between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. The passes will be […]
Posted inNews
HSU’s Humboldt Bay Seaweed Farm (VIDEO)
Humboldt State University is overseeing California’s first commercial open-water seaweed farm in Humboldt Bay. “Seaweed farming is an industry that is about 500 years old,” said farm co-designer, HSU Fisheries Biology Associate Professor Rafael Cuevas Uribe. “But this is going to be the first time here in California that somebody’s doing red seaweed at commercial […]
Posted inNews
25 New Confirmed COVID-19 Cases Eclipse Yesterday’s Record
Only yesterday 10 new COVID-19 cases confirmed by Public Health was an unsettling single-day record. But today’s reported positive test more than double that with 25, bringing Humboldt County’s total to date to 280. Still in the first week of the month, August has yielded 47 new confirmed infections. In a release, County Public Health […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
HumBug: The Current Mass Extinction
There have been five major mass extinction events in the fossil record. Some folks claim the human race is causing the sixth right now. Dumping massive amounts of greenhouse gasses, saturating the world with never before seen chemicals and introducing all manner of non-native species willy nilly are touted as the major causes. I have a […]