DIGGIN' IN: The Gienger Report
December 10, 2007
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DIGGIN' IN: The Gienger Report
August 22, 2007
As I write this we're in the middle of July. Everything has been really dry. Lightning fires around the Klamath, the Sierras, and Southern California. CDF, know known as CalFire, reported over 170 fires started from a spate of lightning fires last week. And then--lo' and behold--the North Coast was blessed with, in many places, about an inch of real rain overnight between July 17th & 18th. A beautiful respite. Supposed to be back to hot and dry next week. I hear that the Southern Humboldt Fire Plan is being pushed to completion. Stream and watershed restoration work, as well as many fuel hazard reduction projects, are in full swing. (read more)


DIGGIN' IN: The Gienger Report
April 24, 2007
With the exception of the month of December, we are still waiting for much of our winter rain. During several weeks in December, salmon were able to spawn in the upper parts of the Mateel watersheds. January 07 was one of the driest on record. February brought more precipitation, both rain and snow, that raised the rivers--accommodating spawning for steelhead. Intense cold periods in February eased into a mild and warm early March, almost hot in places--coming in like a lamb rather than a lion. I'm hoping for abundant spring rains, on into May and June, to tide the watersheds' fish and people over to the fall rains. (read more)


THE Gienger REPORT...Diggin' In
November 15, 2006
Another summer season has come and gone. There were record-breaking heat waves, but the late spring rains helped to keep stream flows higher than usual leading into our next "rainy season." Some brief showers in September and October gave a bare hint of what is hoped to be a good water year for spawning salmon and steelhead. Most restoration projects have been completed, and the rest have crews and equipment frantically moving to finish work. (read more)


Watershed Restoration: Thirty Years of Progress
April 5, 2006
When I was asked a few weeks ago to "write up" some watershed restoration projects--how they worked, how they didn't work, problems, processes, successes, lessons--I immediately started to weigh the comparative merits of a dozen or so projects that might be good examples to evaluate. By yesterday I'd pared it down to three or so possibilities for this edition of Branching Out. But then, tossing and turning at various times during the night, my mind mulled over the broader context and approaches of "watershed restoration" rather than the myriad of details in any particular example of a current restoration or rehabilitation project. For a person involved in watershed restoration, like any number of people carrying out projects for years along the North Coast, there's a whole lot of background that gets "jumped over" by focusing judgment on a particular project. (read more)


THE Gienger REPORT...Diggin' In
April 5, 2006
Responding to the Winter Rains (read more)


DIGGIN' IN: The Gienger Report
Since arriving in the Mattole Valley of Humboldt County in 1971, Richard Gienger has immersed himself in homesteading, forest activism, and watershed restoration. Richard's column covers a range of issues including fisheries and watershed restoration and forestry, plus describes opportunities for the public to make positive contributions in the administrative and legislative arenas as well as in their own backyards. (read more)



Contact Information

Email: rgrocks@humboldt.net
Phone: (707) 923-2931