Fall-run Chinook salmon migrate and spawn in the Feather River near California Department of Water Resources infrastructure and the Feather River Fish Hatchery in Oroville, on Oct. 28, 2024. Photo by Xavier Mascareñas, California Department of Water Resources.
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Facing the continued collapse of Chinook salmon, officials today shut down California’s commercial salmon fishing season for an unprecedented third year in a row.
Under the decision by an interstate fisheries agency, recreational salmon fishing will be allowed in California for only brief windows of time this spring. This will be the first year that any sportfishing of Chinook has been allowed since 2022.
Today’s decision by the Pacific Fishery Management Council means that no salmon caught off California can be sold to retail consumers and restaurants for at least another year. In Oregon and Washington, commercial salmon fishing will remain open, although limited.
“From a salmon standpoint, it’s an environmental disaster. For the fishing industry, it’s a human tragedy, and it’s also an economic disaster,” said Scott Artis, executive director of the Golden State Salmon Association, an industry organization that has lobbied for river restoration and improved hatchery programs.
The decline of California’s salmon follows decades of deteriorating conditions in the waterways where the fish spawn each year, including the Sacramento and Klamath rivers. California’s salmon are an ecological icon and a valued source of food for Native American tribes.
The shutdown also has an economic toll: It has already put hundreds of commercial fishers and sportfishing boat operators out of work and affected thousands of people in communities and industries reliant on processing, selling and serving locally caught salmon.
California’s commercial fishery has never been closed for three years in a row before.
Some experts fear the conditions in California have been so poor for so long that Chinook may never rebound to fishable levels. Others remain hopeful for major recovery if the amounts of water diverted to farms and cities are reduced and wetlands kept dry by flood-control levees are restored.
This year’s recreational season includes several brief windows for fishing, including a weekend in June and another in July, or a quota of 7,000 fish.
Jared Davis, owner and operator of the Salty Lady in Sausalito, one of dozens of party boats that take paying customers fishing, thinks it’s likely that this quota will be met on the first open weekend for recreational fishing, scheduled for June 7-8.
“Obviously, the pressure is going to be intense, so everybody and their mother is going to be out on the water on those days,” he said. “When they hit that quota, it’s done.”
One member of the fishery council, Corey Ridings, voted against the proposed regulations after saying she was concerned that the first weekend would overshoot the 7,000-fish quota.
Davis said such a miniscule recreational season won’t help boat owners like him recover from past closures, though it will carry symbolic meaning.
“It might give California anglers a glimmer of hope and keep them from selling all their rods and buying golf clubs,” he said.
“It continues to be devastating. Salmon has been the cornerstone of many of our ports for a long time.” — Sarah Bates, commercial fisher based in San Francisco
Sarah Bates, a commercial fisher based at San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf, said the ongoing closure has stripped many boat owners of most of their income.
“It continues to be devastating,” she said. “Salmon has been the cornerstone of many of our ports for a long time.”
She said the shutdown also has trickle-down effects on a range of businesses that support the salmon fishery, such as fuel services, grocery stores and dockside ice machines.
“We’re also seeing a sort of a third wave … the general seafood market for local products has tanked,” such as rockfish and halibut. She said that many buyers are turning to farmed and wild salmon delivered from other regions instead.
Davis noted that federal emergency relief funds promised for the 2023 closure still have not arrived. “Nobody has seen a dime,” he said.
Fewer returning salmon
Before the Gold Rush, several million Chinook spawned annually in the river systems of the Central Valley and the state’s northern coast. Through much of the 20th century, California’s salmon fishery formed the economic backbone of coastal fishing ports, with fishers using hook and line pulling in millions of pounds in good years.
But in 2024, just 99,274 fall-run Chinook — the most commercially viable of the Central Valley’s four subpopulations — returned tothe Sacramento River and its tributaries, substantially lower than the numbers in 2023. In 2022, fewer than 70,000 returned, one of the lowest estimates ever.
About 40,000 returned to the San Joaquin River. Fewer than 30,000 Chinook reached their spawning grounds in the Klamath River system, where the Hoopa, Yurok and Karuk tribes rely on the fish in years of abundance.
The decline of California’s salmon stems from nearly two centuries of damage inflicted on the rivers where salmon spend the first and final stages of their lives. Gold mining, logging and dam construction devastated watersheds. Levees constrained rivers, turning them into relatively sterile channels of fast-moving water while converting floodplains and wetlands into irrigated farmland.
Today, many of these impacts persist, along with water diversions, reduced flows and elevated river temperatures that frequently spell death for fertilized eggs and juvenile fish.
The future of California salmon is murky
Peter Moyle, a UC Davis fish biologist and professor emeritus, said recovery of self-sustaining populations may be possible in some tributaries of the Sacramento River.
“There are some opportunities for at least keeping runs going in parts of the Central Valley, but getting naturally spawning fish back in large numbers, I just can’t see it happening,” he said.
Jacob Katz, a biologist with the group California Trout, holds out hope for a future of flourishing Sacramento River Chinook. “We could have vibrant fall-run populations in a decade,” he said.
That will require major habitat restoration involving dam removals, reconstruction of levee systems to revive wetlands and floodplains, and reduced water diversions for agriculture — all measures fraught with cost, regulatory constraints, and controversy.
“There are some opportunities for at least keeping (salmon) runs going in parts of the Central Valley, but getting naturally spawning fish back in large numbers, I just can’t see it happening.” — Peter Moyle, UC Davis fish biologist
State officials, recognizing the risk of extinction, have promoted salmon recovery as a policy goal for years. In early 2024, the Newsom administration released its California Salmon Strategy for a Hotter, Drier Future, a 37-page catalogue of proposed actions to mitigate environmental impacts and restore flows and habitat, all in the face of a warming environment.
Artis of Golden State Salmon Association said the state’s salmon strategy includes some important items but leaves out equally critical ones, like protecting minimum required flows for fish — what Artis said are threatened by proposed water projects endorsed by the Newsom administration.
“It fails to include some of the upcoming salmon-killing projects that the governor is pushing like Sites Reservoir and the Delta tunnel, and it ignores the fact that the Voluntary Agreements are designed to allow massive diversions of water,” he said.
Experts agree that an important key to rebuilding salmon runs is increasing the frequency and duration of shallow flooding in riverside riparian areas, or even fallow rice paddies — a program Katz has helped develop through his career.
On such seasonal floodplains, a shallow layer of water can help trigger an explosion of photosynthesis and food production, ultimately providing nutrition for juvenile salmon as they migrate out of the river system each spring.
Through meetings with farmers, urban water agencies and government officials, Rene Henery, California science director with Trout Unlimited, has helped draft an ambitious salmon recovery plan dubbed “Reorienting to Recovery.” Featuring habitat restoration, carefully managed harvests and generously enhanced river flows — especially in dry years — this framework, Henery said, could rebuild diminished Central Valley Chinook runs to more than 1.6 million adult fish per year over a 20-year period.
He said adversaries — often farmers and environmentalists — must shift from traditional feuds over water to more collaborative programs of restoring productive watersheds while maintaining productive agriculture.
As the recovery needle for Chinook moves in the wrong direction, Katz said deliberate action is urgent.
“We’re balanced on the edge of losing these populations,” he said. “We have to go big now. We have no other option.”
On April 3, 2025, the State of California Department of State Hospitals (DSH) formally notified my office, as well as the Humboldt County District Attorney, of their intent to release Richard Stobaugh, a convicted serial rapist, found to be a sexually violent predator (SVP), back into Humboldt County.
The DSH notice follows a December 4, 2023, order by Humboldt County Superior Court Judge Kaleb Cockrum directing the conditional release of SVP Stobaugh from DSH Coalinga. Despite objections from the District Attorney’s Office, Judge Cockrum granted Stobaugh’s petition for outpatient supervision and treatment for Stobaugh following a court trial. This ruling allows the DSH to relocate Stobaugh from a locked facility to a residence in Humboldt County.
We have now been notified that 2171 Peninsula Drive in Manila is selected as Stobaugh’s proposed residence. On May 7, the court will consider whether to order this single-family home within the community of Manila as his new residence.
Richard Stobaugh
Let me be clear: I strongly oppose Judge Cockrum’s ruling and the DSH placing this sexually sadistic predator anywhere in our county. Richard Stobaugh has a long, violent, and deeply disturbing history of sexually assaulting women in Humboldt County. His actions were not only premeditated and violent, but often committed under terrifying circumstances involving weapons, home invasions, and utter disregard for human life or dignity.
Background on Richard Stobaugh:
1981 - Raped a woman at knifepoint after breaking into her dorm room in Arcata. Served 5 years.
1987 - Armed with a firearm and wearing a ski mask, raped & sexually assaulted two women at a hotel. Forced one of the women to run naked several blocks outside the hotel, then he raped her again in a residential backyard.
1987 - Broke into a woman’s home with a gun; attempted to kidnap her, before she fled
1988 - Entered a sleeping woman’s home and raped her.
1988 - Broke into the home of a pregnant woman, tied her up, and raped her at knifepoint.
Stobaugh was convicted and has been incarcerated since 1988, In 2012, he was determined to be a Sexual Violent Predator. He was then transferred to a locked Department of State Hospital Facility, where he is now awaiting his release.
A medical expert diagnosed Stobaugh as a sexual sadist, someone who derives sexual gratification
from inflicting pain and psychological suffering on his victims. His crimes involved extreme
violence far beyond what was necessary to subdue his victims, a clear indicator of the continued
threat he poses.
We cannot ignore this reality. Placing this man back into our community, in proximity to women
and children, is irresponsible, dangerous, and unacceptable.
I encourage all residents of Humboldt County to join me in voicing opposition to the proposed
relocation of Stobaugh. I urge you to speak up.
This isn’t a political issue; it’s about protecting
public safety and ensuring our community can live without fear.
Public Hearing:
Date / Time: May 7, 2025, at 10:15am
Location: Superior Court of California, Humboldt County, Courtroom One - Honorable Judge Christopher Wilson 825 5th Street Eureka, CA 95501
Contact Information to Submit Your Opposition:
SVP CONREP Community Program Director - Liberty Healthcare: LIBERTYSVPCONREP@LibertyHealth.com
Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office: HSO@co.humboldt.ca.us
Humboldt County District Attorney: districtattorney@co.humboldt.ca.us
We must stand together to protect our community from known, violent offenders. I will continue
to fight this placement and urge Governor Newsom and state officials to find safer, more
appropriate alternatives. Thank you for your support and dedication to keeping Humboldt County safe.
William Honsal Humboldt County Sheriff
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UPDATE: The Humboldt County Superior Court issued the following announcement in response to Sheriff William Honsal’s letter:
In response to the press release issued by the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) dated April 15, 2025, regarding People v. Stobaugh, the Court cannot receive ex parte communication. This includes the email provided in the press release, by regular post, or any other method. Court proceedings must be conducted in courtrooms open to the public, and this case is no exception. Ex Parte communication is prohibited per the California Code of Judicial Ethics.
Sheriff Honsal also issued a follow-up statement emphasizing that all communications regarding Stobaugh’s potential relocation to Humboldt County should be directed to the Sheriff’s Office, the District Attorney’s Office and the Department of State Hospitals. He asked members of the media to remove a “confidential” email address that was previously listed in this post.
The Redwood Harley-Davidson to DMV transformation is nearly complete. | Photo: Andrew Goff
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After a five-and-a-half-year stay at the Bayshore Mall, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is relocating its Eureka office to its new home at 2500 Sixth Street — the former Redwood Harley-Davidson location at the north end of town, just off Highway 101.
According to a flyer posted at the Bayshore Mall office, the DMV will shutter its current location at 5 p.m. on Friday, May 16. The new Eureka location will open at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, June 4.
If you simply can’t put off your DMV duties during those three weeks, chances are you can get ‘em taken care of online. If not, you’ll have to drive an hour or more to a “nearby” office in Crescent City, Garberville or Weaverville.
On a gentle spring morning Dan O’Leary peacefully left the planet,
evolving into his spirit being.
After several years’ struggle with dementia he was ready to explore
new frontiers.
Born on May 27, 1951, number 5 of 11 children born to Mary Ellen
Callahan O’Leary and Robert Benjamin O’Leary. He was raised in an
Irish Catholic family on the Lazy O farm outside of Albert Lea,
Minnesota with 5 brothers and 5 sisters: Patrick, Geraldine, Joann,
John, Kathleen, Steve, Sheila, Mary, Tim and Kevin.
Always proud of being a non-conformist he set out after graduating
in 1969 on hitchhiking adventures to Boston, Mexico and Central
America. He traveled to visit his sister in Nicaragua and returned to
live an alternative life-style in California. From 1973-1977 he
served as a sonar technician in the Submarine Service. He loved
telling tales of his time “In the water.” He earned certification
as a hard-hat deep sea diver and served in both the Navy and Coast
Guard reserves.
Returning home to Minnesota in 1978 he found employment managing
Edgewater Park in Albert Lea where under the oak trees he met and
fell in love with his future wife, Peggy. In November, 1978 Dan and
Peg set out in a Buick station wagon bound for California just ahead
of the winter blizzards. The destination was Humboldt County where
Dan used his G.I. bill to attend HSU and College of the Redwoods
where he made life-long friends. They returned to Minnesota to marry
in August, 1979. This epic celebration was also an O’Leary family
re-union with siblings attending from all over the world. Over the
years the Lazy O West clan grew to include Tim, Mary, Genevieve,
Sheila and Kevin. This tie-dyed Grateful Dead family now includes
second and third generations.
Dan and Peg settled in Manila on spit of land bordered by bay and
ocean and welcomed two sons, Devon in 1983 and Brady in 1986. Dan
loved being a dad, volunteering at their pre-school, taking
wheel-barrow loads of kids to the beach, playing board games and
acting as assistant Scout leader during the boys’ cub and boy scout
years. He also served on the Manila Community Service District board
for many years. Dan was a prolific reader, everything from Sci-Fi,
military history to comics. He enjoyed making and sharing his
home-made crackers which were a staple at many potlucks. He loved
spending time every weekend with fellow Ribiero Roosters, throwing
horseshoes, playing scrabble and hanging out with the guys.
As Dan’s illness progressed Dan could be found walking miles
around Manila. He was always happy to wave to neighbors and loved his
community.
He is survived by his loving wife; Peggy, sons; Devon and Brady,
brothers; Patrick and Tim, sisters; Joann, Sheila and Mary and many
nephews and nieces and their families.
A memorial is planned on May 31, 2025 in the barn at 3446 Ribiero
Ln., Arcata, from 4 p.m on. Bring a dish, a memory, story or song. All
are welcome.
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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Dan O’Leary’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.
In loving memory of Glenn Wayne Keisner,
Sr August 11, 1947 -
April 7, 2025
“For every joy that passes,
something beautiful remains” -unknown.
Glenn Wayne Keisner - proud member
of the Wiyot (Table Bluff) Tribe…. Son to his late parents George
and Madaline Keisner; husband to Lorraine Keisner for 55 years.
Father to four children (Robert, Theresa, Manuel, and Glenn Keisner
Jr.). He was a brother to 10 siblings (Delmer, Dorothy, George,
Georgina, Judith, Henry, Patricia, Lornie, Ronnie and Gail Keisner);
survived by his son Glenn Wayne Keisner Jr.
Glenn was a sports fanatic. He loved
his San Francisco Giants and San Francisco 49ers. If there was a game
on…the TV would be glued to that channel and would not be changed.
You did not need to ask where he would be during the baseball or
football seasons. He would be sitting in his armchair, Mountain Dew
in one hand, remote in the other, rooting for his team.
He worked hard and always had a
project going! If he was not in his chair watching sports, you could
find him under a car, leaning over a car, buying a car, or inside one
of the many cars he enjoyed fixing up. He would bring the family to
Stock Car Races regularly.
He was a proud Native American
Veteran who served his country in the Vietnam war.
Glenn was the classic strong silent
type. He did not talk much, but when he did, he would make you laugh.
He showed his family love through his actions. He always provided for
his family, without complaint, and worked long hours; lumberjacking,
pulling green chain, and forklift driver at the mill until he
retired. He always made time to play Yahtzee, Skip-bo, Pinochle, and
Crazy 8. Spending evenings and entire weekends with the family
laughing and playing games around the kitchen table. He instilled
that same work and play ethics in his family.
He was always available to help his
friends and family whenever they needed him. He was a respected
father, good friend to everyone who knew him, and a loving husband.
He always had visitors to the house just stopping by to talk and
laugh with him.
Glenn was not a flashy man, he did
not want to be in the spotlight, he did not care about fancy clothes
or fancy things, but he provided everything a family needed and
remained the silent benefactor to many in his family. There is no
truer saying than “you don’t know what you have until it’s
gone!” His stance as a father was always firm, his character as a
man always generous, and his soul was always kind! He is loved and
missed dearly by his family and friends! ❤️
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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Glenn Keisner’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.
Benjamin Herbert Weed April 12, 1961 - March 5, 2025
It is with great sadness that I announce that Ben passed away at home on hospice from kidney failure in the early morning on March 5, surrounded by his family.
Ben was born in Fortuna to Emery and Mable Weed. He lived most of his life in Ferndale. He had many friends growing up and told me great stories of his childhood living in Ferndale, where his friends know him as Benjy. He was well liked and loved and didn’t have a mean bone in his body.
After graduation, Ben worked for the Humboldt Creamery but didn’t care for it so his dad drove him down to Santa Rosa, where he worked at a couple of different jobs. Then he decided that he wanted to go to Anchorage, Alaska, and he started working for Southern Air Transport. Ben told me this was his favorite job and he worked there for 5 years until the Air Transport became independent contractors, which made it hard for him to stay on.
Ben came back to Ferndale and took care of his mom Mable until she passed. He worked as a painter, painting estimator and finally as a road construction flagger.
I met Ben and we had an instant bond. We had the best time traveling everywhere in California, especially Sacramento, because he knew I loved it there, getting up early and going on nature walks, bird watching and listening to classic rock and dancing until the wee hours of the night and just spending time together, and during Ferndale celebrations you could always find him in our front yard having a BBQ and inviting everyone to join even if he didn’t know them. What a great smile he had.
Ben leaves behind his wife, Nina Diehl, his faithful 2.9 lb teacup yorkie, The Tank, step daughters, Amber (Anthony) Makakoa, Ashliegh (Bryan) Murphy and newly engaged Emily Diehl & Bryan Juentu, his adopted son Linus Zettl, his granddaughters Ashem, Noelle and Mae Makakoa-he loved being their Poppa!, his sister Jaci (Carl) DiStefano, nephew Demetrius (Layla) Distefano, Sister-in-law Rosie Weed & niece Brianna (Ian) Birnam, cousin Scott (Monica) Madden and numerous nephews, cousins and great cousins.
Ben was preceded in death by his dad, Emery Weed, his mom, Mable Weed, his brothers Emery (Butch) and Greg Weed.
Arrangements were made with Sanders Funeral Home/Humboldt Cremation & Funeral Service in Eureka.
Per Ben’s request, no services will be held as he asked that all his family and friends just go out to the beach and drink a cold one in his honor and listen to the Rolling Stones and think of him.
I would like to thank all his family and friends that came to see him before he passed, it meant so much to him to be able to say goodbye to you all. I will miss my Benny terribly, but until we meet again, I will dance and remember how much we loved each other.
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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Ben Weed’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.
Robert (Bob) Michael Steeves passed away on April 6, 2025. Bob was born on May 4, 1944. He was a lifelong resident of McKinleyville and a proud native of Humboldt County. Bob was a descendant of the Steeves and Bartow families, who were among the early settlers of McKinleyville.
Bob was a member of the Karuk Tribe. He was the great-grandson of Gertrude (Fry) Thornton (Tu-Tu-Kan-Ish), a full-blood Karuk Indian. He was the son of Elmer and Mildred (Bartow) Steeves, and the brother of Betty Shamberger (Jim), Barbara Jones (Steve), Elmer Steeves Jr. (Sharon), and Ron Boone (Cassandra). Ron was Bob’s cousin but was raised by the Steeves family and was like a brother to him.
Bob was a member of the first graduating class of McKinleyville High School in 1963. After high school, he went to work for Simpson Timber Company until he was drafted into the Army and served in Vietnam. When he returned from the military, he resumed working at Simpson’s, where he remained until his retirement. Bob was deeply respected and admired by his coworkers because of the work he did.
Bob enjoyed hunting, fishing, and camping. He especially cherished surf fishing, duck hunting, clam digging, deer hunting, and camping in places like Salmon River, Bullseye Lake, the Trinity Alps, and Modoc. Many of these adventures were shared with family and close friends Ike Ganfield, Ron Morton, Jim Shamberger and Steve Jones.
Bob married Darlene (Holt) Steeves in 1966, and they shared over fifty years of life together. Bob was a caring and devoted husband.
He is survived by his wife, Darlene; his beloved sisters Betty and Barbara (Steve); and his brother Elmer (Sharon). He also leaves behind his double cousins Patty, Carol, Nancy, and many other loving family members.
Bob was preceded in death by his parents, Elmer and Mildred; his brother-in-law, Jim Shamberger; his cousin-brother, Ron Boone; Cassandra Boone; nephews John Shamberger and Doug Jones; and his best friends Ike Ganfield and Ron Morton.
The family would like to thank caregiver Kathy Belair for her kind and compassionate care.
Bob will be laid to rest at Greenwood Cemetery in Arcata. A graveside service will be held on Friday, April 18, at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to your favorite charity.
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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Bob Steeves’loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.
