Comments are due February 18th on Humboldt County’s draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for the Nordic Aquafarms project, a massive land-based fish factory at the old Samoa pulp mill site. Based on the DEIR, numerous impacts have not been fully assessed and mitigated, specifically increased electricity demands, greenhouse gas emissions, and the ocean discharge. We believe reasonable changes to reduce these impacts are achievable. To make sure Nordic commits to these changes, we are requesting the following modifications:
- An explicit requirement in the EIR that the project will, from day one of operations, be powered solely through renewable energy.
- The project maximizes its feasible onsite renewable energy production through more aggressive utilization of solar, including over parking areas.
- An adaptive management provision that requires Nordic to buy locally-produced renewable power as it is commercially available.
- Modeling of ambient water quality using data from the mixing zone near the RMT II diffuser instead of the data taken from Humboldt Bay (approximately 3.5 miles south-southeast of the discharge point).
- Baseline monitoring and continuous monitoring of the effluent should be performed by experts and compared to an established threshold which would trigger protective actions.
This project would be the largest of its kind. It is unprecedented and could greatly impact our community, coastal areas, and Humboldt Bay. As environmentalists, climate activists, and stakeholders, our goal is to make sure this project undergoes the highest level of scrutiny and is as least impactful as possible.
Make your voice heard by simply sharing our points above or sending your own to CEQAResponses@co.humboldt.ca.us by Feb. 18, 2022.The DEIR is available for public review at the Planning and Building Department as well as online via the department’s website. For more information, you can contact Cade McNamara, Planner II, by email at cmcnamara@co.humboldt.ca.us or by phone at (707) 268-3777.
