Tene Louise (Blankenship) Kremling – beloved daughter, sister, mother, wife, grandmother and cousin – went to be with her Creator the morning of May 14, 2021.

Tene, a Yurok tribal elder, was born on September 23, 1946 and raised in Orick. She spent most of her life in Humboldt County. Tene was deeply connected with her family’s native culture. She had a passion for the outdoors. Tene enjoyed going on backpacking trips, cross country skiing and camping with her friends and family. Many stories were shared by Tene around a campfire or along a hiking trail. She was a published poet and her poetry reflected her love of nature and family. Tene and her husband Leroy loved dancing and could be caught any given night dancing to local polka, country or line dancing music. Tene was a member of the Humboldt Accordionaires.

Tene graduated from McKinleyville High and received her BA from HSU. After Tene raised her two sons she attended and graduated from Sacramento State College. She graduated with a master’s degree in social work in 1992 and received her Licensed Clinical Social Worker certification shortly after. After graduation Tene accepted a position in Bishop, Calif. where she met her current husband, Leroy. Tene and Leroy returned to Humboldt County in 1996 where she worked at United Indian Health Services as a Social Worker for many years. She also worked for many local tribes, taught Native American Studies at HSU and traveled the country as teacher and presenter at many Native American conferences. She grew professionally and made many great friends. Tene’s mission to help native children and their families be healthy and thrive by using her professional guidance, understanding and deep compassion for people has helped countless families over the years. In recent years Tene and Leroy spent retirement traveling to Texas, where they had a second home.

Tene will forever be remembered as a loving, caring, considerate, understanding and adventurous. She will be tremendously missed.

Tene is preceded in death by her parents, Blanche and Harry Blankenship. She leaves her husband, Leroy Kremling of Fortuna. Sister, Judy (Tony) Misch. Son, Kenny (Samantha) Frick, their kids, Magen(Josh) Gray, Zack (Emily) and Mackenzie. Great Grandkids Jaxon, Travis, Paige and Blair. Son Byron (Kimbelry) Frick. And Leroy’s family Julie (Matt) Alex, Caroline and Scarlett. Jennifer (Nick) Paige & Paxton.

Arrangements are made through Paul’s Chapel in Arcata. She will be laid to rest with her parents at Trinidad Cemetery. A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, June 5 at 1 p.m. at Orick Community Hall.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Tene Kremling’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.

Angelo John Bettiga was born June 16, 1925. He passed away May 11, 2021 at the age of 95. He was an active member of St. Joseph Catholic Church.

He attended Ferndale Schools. A few weeks before graduating high school, Angelo was drafted into the army where he served as a paratrooper in World War II stationed in France.

After two years in the army, Angelo came back to Ferndale and started working for the Pacific Lumber Company in Scotia as a spotter and a monorail operator. While still working for the mill, Angelo bought an old fashion sweet shop in Ferndale. Angelo stayed busy with two jobs for many years.

Angelo went out on his first date with his wife Winnie on New Years Eve of 1950. They were then engaged in April on Easter and married in September of 1951.

Angelo and Winnie moved to Scotia in 1959 with their two children and later had their third child. They resided in Scotia for many years and took pride in their yard while winning prizes from the Scotia yard contest. Before his retirement Angelo became the head gardener of Scotia.

Angelo also built a summer home in Lake County where all of his family and friends enjoyed it.

Angelo then retired in 1989 and moved to Fortuna. During retirement Angelo enjoyed walking, working in his yard, traveling with his wife Winnie on bus trips, going to McDonald’s to have coffee, and enjoying getting a hot dog at the casino with family and friends.

Angelo was a proud family man. He always said his greatest accomplishment was his family. Angelo supported them in all of their activities including ball games, the fair and school events.

He enjoyed life to the fullest and enjoyed being with his family and friends. He always had a “twinkle” in his eyes and a smile for everyone. He never knew a stranger and made friends everywhere he went. Angelo was always there to offer an extra hand to anyone in need.

He was a wonderful son, father, husband, brother, and uncle to his family and he will be missed by all.

He is survived by his wife, Winnie, and children Milissa Nunes, Kevin Bettiga (Elaine), and Lori Coppini (Tim). He is survived by his grandchildren Troy, Brad Renner, Brooke Renner, Brett Renner, and several step-grandchildren. He is survived by his one great-grandchild Nyah. He is survived by many nieces and nephews. He is survived by many great friends including Ronnie, Greg, Darin, Shirley, Betty, Marie, Gary, Jackie, the extended Carl Renner family, and his K-9 friend Bandit.

He was preceded in death by his father Emelio and mother Mary, as well as his siblings Gloria Nordhues (Al), Charlie Bettiga (Kay), Amelia Hudson (Kenny), and Floyd Bettiga, his son in-laws Jerry Renner and Dwight Nunes, and his good friend Leno.

He was laid to rest surrounded by his immediate family at Ocean View Cemetery on May 17, 2021.

In lieu of flowers, the Angelo Bettiga family asks for you to say hello to a stranger or lend out a helping hand to someone in need. Your friends always need extra prayers.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Angelo Bettiga’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.

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Is the Port of Humboldt Bay about to become a major development site for the emerging offshore wind industry on the West Coast? Sounds pretty likely, according to this press release from the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District:

The Port of Humboldt Bay, managed by the Humboldt Bay Harbor Recreation and Conservation District, will be recipient of $11 million to be used as matching funds for a $55 million Port Infrastructure Development Program grant application which is due on July 30th.

The funding still require approval by the legislature and will be provided by the California Energy Commission to assist the Port with significant upgrades required to support the emerging offshore wind industry off the West Coast.  

The Harbor District has completed a phased master plan for the entire 168-acre shoreline area between the Samoa Cookhouse and the former pulp mill where Nordic Aquafarms and the new broadband cables will land.

Harbor District Executive Director, Larry Oetker said that with the help of the Headwater Fund, “the first part of the project will be to receive input from the tribes, public, industry, and regulatory agencies on the conceptual master so that we can revise the plan to minimize the impacts and make the plan better. Once the plan is finalized, an environmental impact report under CEQA will be prepared, made available for public review, and applications submitted to the Coastal Commission and other regulatory agencies.”

As part of the initial phase of the project, the existing 6-acre Redwood Marine Terminal I would be completely replaced with a new modern heavy-lift terminal, and eel grass and other impacts would be mitigated.

The terminal will be all electric and the terminal and shoreline would be designed for the projected 2100 sea level rise elevation. Once developed, the facilities on Humboldt Bay can be utilized to construct/ assemble offshore wind turbines and associated components to tow them to other offshore locations on the West Coast.

Coastal Humboldt County has world-class offshore wind resources and the Samoa Peninsula has vacant and under-utilized Coastal Dependent Industrial lands that are perfectly situated to support the operations necessary to assemble, deploy, repair and maintain wind energy turbines.

The master plan outlines as a future phase, a new 500,000 [square foot] manufacturing complex specifically designed to support the emerging West Coast offshore wind industry. This complex includes 300,000 square feet for a wind tower fabrication facility where highly skilled workers would take five-inch-thick, American-made steel and transform it into wind towers and floating foundations similar to what is done in the Port of Rotterdam, Netherlands, for Europe and is currently under construction in the Port of Paulsboro, New Jersey, for the East Coast offshore wind industry.

Harbor District President Stephen Kullmann said, “Humboldt Bay is the ideal choice for the West Coast Offshore Wind Energy Port. I am happy to see the state support Humboldt Bay with port development funding, which will not only help revitalize the harbor and bring jobs and economic development to the community, but also help California meet its ambitious renewable energy targets and all of us address the threat of global climate change.”

Humboldt Bay is perfectly positioned as the closest offshore wind turbine assembly facility and deployment port to the proposed Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) north coast lease areas which are proposed to be 30 miles off Humboldt Bay.

Humboldt Bay has been identified as the West Coast’s most viable site for final assembly of offshore turbines. This port has deep-water access with no bridge restrictions and hundreds of acres of empty, available dockside land at the site of pulp and lumber mills that were abandoned when the region’s forest industry collapsed in the 1990s. Humboldt Bay’s deep draft shipping channels can accommodate the large marine vessels carrying wind turbine components, but the upland facilities must be significantly renovated to allow heavy cranes to assemble the floating platforms. 

On March 29, 2021, President Biden announced his initiative to Jumpstarts Offshore Wind Energy Projects to Create Jobs. As part of this initiative, the Administration established a goal of 30 GW of offshore wind off the US by 2030. The Administration issued an Executive Order that calls on our nation to build a new American infrastructure and clean energy economy that will create millions of new jobs.  

Governor Newsom’s California Comeback, California Climate Action Plan, and AB 525 all outline an ambitious agenda to combat global warming, cut greenhouse gas emission, and increase renewable sources of energy such as offshore wind.

By meeting our electricity needs through clean, pollution-free offshore wind energy, California can also deliver vital air quality improvements in frontline communities. About 78% of California’s gas power plants reside in communities identified by CalEPA as having the state’s highest burden of poverty and cumulative environmental health burdens.

The aquaculture, broadband, offshore wind, and other maritime industries are clean, green, modern, and coastal dependent. Executive Director Oetker said that: “the Harbor District and our partners have been working for years to find coastal dependent industries that are a good fit for our region; provide good paying jobs for our community; result in a healthy planet, and hopefully will encourage some of our kids to return back to Humboldt County to raise their families.”

The Harbor District would like to thank Governor Newsom, California Energy Commission, Humboldt County, Redwood Coast Energy Authority, and HSU Schatz Energy for your leadership roles in helping to bring this new industry to Humboldt Bay.

State Lawmakers Speak on the Floor of the U.S. House of Representatives About the Klamath Water Crisis. | Klamath Falls News

PREVIOUSLY: Catastrophic Juvenile Fish Kill Unfolding on the Klamath River, Yurok Tribe Declares

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A week after the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced it would cut off Upper Klamath Lake water supplies to more than 130,000 acres of farmland in the Klamath River Basin until October due to the extreme drought plaguing the region, a team of lawmakers has introduced a $57 million relief proposal for residents and wildlife affected by the water crisis.

Republican Congressmen Doug LaMalfa of California and Cliff Bentz of Oregon spoke on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday, calling for federal relief for the basin’s water users, including farmers, fishermen, tribes and affected wildlife.

“The catastrophic drought and historic zero water allocation by the Bureau of Reclamation have been absolutely crushing to irrigators, water users, and wildlife in the Klamath Basin,” Bentz said.

The proposal calls for:

• $40 million to assist farmers through USDA programs. These funds will help protect multigenerational family farms though this crisis.

• $2.5 million to aid wildlife refuges, including funding for a rescue duck hospital to limit botulism outbreaks, funds for necessary maintenance to stop the spread of diseases and improve habitat, funds for pumping groundwater.

• $2.5 million to assist families whose residential wells have gone dry due to lack of overall water availability in the Basin.

• $4 million in aid to water districts to repair canals. Without water flowing through canals, subsidence and wall collapse will destroy existing infrastructure.

• $3 million in aid for commercial fisherman affected by a loss of fishing opportunities on the lower Klamath.

• $5 million in food aid through USDA and Bureau of Indian Affairs to Tribes and Tribal Governments.

The water shut-off was enacted last week after the Bureau of Reclamation opted to close the “A” Canal — a major lifeline of the Klamath Project — for the remainder of the 2021 season. Due to the unprecedented drought conditions, the agency said further use of the canal would present “significant safety risks” to the residential areas of downtown Klamath Falls.

“This year’s drought conditions are bringing unprecedented hardship to the communities of the Klamath Basin,” Reclamation Deputy Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton was quoted as saying in a press release last week. “We have closely monitored the water conditions in the area and the unfortunate deterioration of the forecasted hydrology. This has resulted in the historic consequence of not being able to operate a majority of the Klamath Project this year. Reclamation is dedicated to working with our water users, tribes, and partners to get through this difficult year and developing long-term solutions for the basin.”

In response to the historically low water supply, the USBR has pledged $15 million in immediate aid to the Klamath Project Drought Response Agency to help alleviate suffering felt by the basin’s water users.

An additional $3 million in technical assistance will reportedly be available to tribes for ecosystem activities in the Klamath Basin and the U.S. Department of Agriculture also said it can provide drought relief funds for the region.

Distribution of these relief funds are expected to begin next month.

For years the City of Arcata has been planning to make necessary safety improvements to the cracked, bumpy and not exactly pedestrian- or bicycle-friendly portions of Old Arcata Road. The Arcata City Council will receive an update on this long-planned project during tonight’s meeting.

Improvements are proposed for the roughly one-mile portion of Old Arcata Road — starting at the end of Samoa Boulevard and extending just past Jacoby Creek Road — and will include repaving the roadway, adding bike lanes and extending the sidewalks. The project also includes plans to construct a new roundabout at the Jacoby Creek Road intersection, along with crosswalks, paved walkways, additional lighting and signs connected to the roundabout. The majority of the project area is located within Arcata City limits, but a small portion falls under county jurisdiction.

Map of the project area

After some citizens complained about previously proposed plans in 2012, Arcata City Engineering Netra Khatri told the Outpost, the City decided to take a different approach and eventually contracted with SHN Consulting Engineers to help prepare a “community–driven plan.” The consultant and the City hosted several community meetings and have used the feedback to redesign the project. 

Plans have recently had to shift again, Arcata Community Director David Loya told the Outpost, after a member of the public, Kathleen Stanton, contested the city’s historic resources report for the Mitigated Negative Declaration — a declaration filed when planners determine that a project will have no significant environmental impacts. Stanton, a historic research consultant, states in a letter to the City that the report, which only identified seven historic sites in the project area, is “woefully inadequate” and that no field study was conducted in an attempt to identify potential historic resources.

“By narrowly defining the project area, not surveying the area on foot and having no historic context to guide the identification or evaluation of previously unrecorded properties, the consultants missed many historically significant and eligible buildings and sites in the historic logging and farming community of Bayside,” Stanton writes in her comment to the City.

The City will now need to complete a full Environmental Impact Report (EIR), which will add more time to the process. After the EIR has been completed, it will then be released for a 30-day public comment period and eventually will come back to the council for approval. After that, the City will complete the design and approval process. If all goes well, Khatri told the Outpost, project construction is expected to start in summer 2022.

Khatri encouraged members of the public to attend tonight’s meeting to voice their support or concerns over the project, or to email nkhatri@cityofarcata.org, and said he is looking forward to finally completing this much needed project.

“The Old Arcata Road improvements have been on our books for a long time,” Khatri said. “The improvements are critical. [The road] is not in great condition and it’s an alternative route to 101, so that makes it even more critical.”

The Arcata City Council meets virtually tonight at 6 p.m. You can view the full meeting agenda and directions on how to participate here.

California Highway Patrol press release: 

On 05/16/2021, at approximately 1945 hours, the CHP Humboldt Communication Center (HCC) received a call of a vehicle versus pedestrian traffic collision on Tish Tang Rd., near Airport Rd., in Hoopa. Based on CHP’s preliminary investigation, it appears this collision occurred when Virgil McLaughlin, Jr., of Hoopa, was walking in an unknown direction on Tish Tang Rd. and was struck by a southbound 2019 Nissan Altima being driven by Jerome Pollara, also of Hoopa. Emergency medical personnel arrived on scene and attempted to render aid to Mr. McLaughlin. However, due to the severity of his injuries, Mr. McLaughlin succumbed to those injuries on scene and was pronounced deceased by medical personnel.

Approximate location 

Impairment is not considered to be a factor in the driving of the vehicle. Impairment of Mr. McLaughlin is unknown at this time and is pending toxicology results by the Humboldt County Coroner’s Office.

The CHP is continuing to investigate this collision and asks anyone with information to contact the Humboldt Area CHP office at (707) 822-5981.

Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

On May 18, 2021, deputies with the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office Marijuana Enforcement Team (MET) served one search warrant to investigate illegal cannabis cultivation in the Blake Mountain area of Eastern Humboldt County. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services Environmental Health - HazMat Unit, Humboldt County Code Enforcement and the California State Water Resources Control Board assisted in the service of the warrant.

One parcel was investigated during the service of the warrant. The parcel did not possess the required county permit and state license to cultivate cannabis commercially.

During the service of the warrant, deputies eradicated approximately 1,924 growing cannabis plants.

Location of Blake Mountain

Assisting agencies found the following violations:

• Four water diversion violations (up to $8,000 fine per day, per violation)
• Three depositing trash in or near a waterway violations (up to $20,000 fine per day, per violation)

Additional violations with civil fines are expected to be filed by the assisting agencies.

No arrests were made during the service of the warrant. The case will be forwarded to the DA’s Office for review.

Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-2539.