By MELODY KARPINSKI
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Wednesday, February 27, 2013 at 6:26 p.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, February 27, 2013 at 6:26 p.m.
The construction of the controversial Willits bypass off of Highway
101 has stuttered after the discovery Monday of a bird nest that interfered
with the first day of construction.
Two bird nests were discovered on the site, the first of which
CalTrans officials suspected to be man-made. A second nest was removed for
analysis by a California Department of Fish & Wildlife environmental
scientist.
The discovery of the second nest caused CalTrans to voluntarily suspend
construction until consultations with Fish & Wildlife were complete, said
Phil Frisbie, a Mendocino County CalTrans official.
The bypass project has met opposition from environmental groups and
local busineses, and caused a 24-year-old Willits woman to stage a tree-sit
protest. Environmental groups have said that CalTrans is out of compliance with
the federal Migratory Bird Protection Act.
“Our main concern is that this is the migratory season,” said Sara
Grusky, a leader of the group Save Our Little Lake Valley, which is protesting
the bypass. “They shouldn't be allowed to remove that vegetation.”
CalTrans is abstaining from the removal of further vegetation pending
re-evaluation of the area in conjunction with the Fish & Wildlife
department, Frisbie said.
“We are working with them to make sure we are meeting with all state
and federal regulations,” Frisbie said.
Prior to the discovery of the nest and the need for re-evaluation,
Frisbie maintained that CalTrans followed the law and remained within their
permit constraints.
One point of contention is the allegation that the first nest found on
the site was man-made, something Grusky calls “outrageous.” Frisbie said a
CalTrans biologist and permit compliance officer Jerome Washington made the
allegation based on how the nest was woven and where it was found.
Construction briefly resumed Tuesday until two protesters, Grusky and
Jamie Chevalier, stepped in front of the excavators, which paused construction
a second time. Frisbie said the construction was stopped due to the crew
running out of materials, and not because of the protesters.
The tree-sitting Willits woman calling herself “Warbler,” remains in a
pine tree just off of Highway 101, still hoping to stop the bypass. “Warbler,”
whose real name is Amanda Senseman, ascended the tree Jan. 28 and has refused
to come down despite concerns from local law enforcement and a rash of snowy
weather.
Senseman's actions have attracted a number of supporters and critics.
Senseman disagrees with the stigma of some of the labels critics have attached
to her, saying she does not consider herself a radical environmentalist or a
hippie anarchist.
“I don't consider myself any of those things. I'm just someone with
common sense who's looking towards the future,” Senseman said. “We don't need
another four-lane freeway, we need more sustainability.”
Frisbie said CalTrans is currently taking a “hands-off” approach to
Senseman's actions in an effort to respect her freedom of speech. Construction
on the bypass is expected to resume by the end of the week.
You can reach Staff Writer Melody Karpinski at 521-5205 or melody.karpinski@pressdemocrat.com.
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