Repair work on an underground gas line in Loleta, damaged during the magnitude 6.4 earthquake that shook the region Dec. 20, is expected to begin in mid-February, according to PG&E. Areas in the Eel River Valley — especially Rio Dell — bore the brunt of the powerful temblor. According to the utility’s spokesperson, PG&E has […]
PG&E
Posted inNews
Supes to Consider Bushnell Censure
The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors is set Tuesday to consider the public censure of Supervisor Michelle Bushnell after an investigation sustained an allegation that the Second District representative mistreated a Planning Department staff member during a December of 2021 meeting. The staff report states the “board action is limited to public censure,” which would […]
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NCJ Preview: Burgers, Bareilles, Building Barriers and Bongio
NCJ Burger Week is upon us and we’re scanning the menu to see what’s flipping around the county. We’ll get into the free concert Humboldt native Sara Bareilles is playing in Eureka and how her roots have influenced her life and career. Down in Fortuna and Rio Dell, plans for new housing and other construction […]
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‘Edge of the Cliff’: PG&E’s Lack of Electricity Capacity Puts Eel River Valley Projects at Risk
City officials in Fortuna and Rio Dell are raising concerns about PG&E’s inability to provide new electric hookups in the Eel River Valley, leaving major economic development plans in the lurch and putting future projects, including new housing, at risk. Fortuna City Manager Meritt Perry said he is bringing the issue before the City Council […]
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Massive Fire Destroys Trailers Donated for Betty Kwan Chinn Housing Project
A massive fire at the foot of Hilfiker Lane in Eureka just before 12:30 a.m. today destroyed six modular trailers donated to local philanthropist Betty Kwan Chinn by PG&E for a housing project and damaged another five at the site, all of which will need to be demolished. According to Humboldt Bay Fire, initial units […]
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Audit: California Utilities Aren’t Doing Enough to Reduce Wildfire Threats
As record-breaking drought fuels another potentially dangerous wildfire season, the state auditor reported today that state officials are failing to hold California’s electric utilities accountable for preventing fires caused by their equipment. The report to the California Legislature found that the new Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety approved utility companies’ wildfire prevention plans even when […]
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State Unveils Long-awaited Standard for Drinking Water Contaminant
On Monday, California proposed a long-awaited standard for a cancer-causing contaminant in drinking water that would require costly treatment in cities throughout the state. Traces of hexavalent chromium are widely found in the drinking water of millions of Californians, some naturally occurring and some from industries that work with the heavy metal. The proposed standard […]
Posted inLetters + Opinion
No Peeking Behind the Nuke’s Fence
After a modest burst of self-congratulation upon finishing the physical decommissioning of its Humboldt Bay nuclear plant in November of 2021, PG&E has gone deeply silent in answering the Journal’s follow up inquiries into the long-term safety of the highly toxic radioactive waste now ensconced 44 feet above Humboldt Bay at Buhne Point. The lack […]
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Honsal Declares Local Emergency Due to Storm, Work Continues to Open 96, 299
Sheriff William Honsal has declared a local emergency due to the winter storm, which has created life-threatening conditions in some areas and caused damaged across the county. In a Facebook announcement last night, the sheriff’s office said the declaration “allows for the county to seek state and federal reimbursement for damage repairs and other associated […]
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PG&E Reactor Officially Decommissioned, Nuclear Waste Not
PG&E’s Humboldt Nuclear Power Plant reactor site was deemed fully cleaned up by the Nucle ar Regulatory Commission today. While the federal government no longer has oversight over that part of the site — “none at all,” said commission spokesperson David McIntyre — the spent fuel and other radioactive waste, however, remains under federal jurisdiction. […]
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Power Outages, School Closure in Gusty Storm’s Wake
Hundreds of Humboldt County residents remain without power this morning after a storm carrying strong winds blew through the region last night. One of the largest outages, according to the PG&E outage map, is in the Dow’s Prairie neighborhoods behind the airport in McKinleyville, where residents are slated to see their lights turn back on […]
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PG&E Activates ‘Islanding’ Mode Due to Fires
Due to the Monument and McFarland fires in Trinity County, PG&E has shut off power from the main grid and isolated the Humboldt Bay Generating Station, a process known as “islanding,” to power parts of the region, although some customers in Willow Creek, Burnt Ranch, Salyer and areas of southern Trinity County are without power. […]