SRF January enewsletter 2006
INSIDE: Concurrent sessions focus on environmental, biological, and policy issues that affect salmonid habitat restoration and recovery of native fish populations. Sessions include Dam Removal, Project Monitoring for Watershed Management, Estuaries, Salmonid Education, Southern Steelhead Research and recovery, Habitat Mapping for Southern Steelhead, Environmental Justice and the Restoration Movement, Floodplain and Sediment Management, and “The Local Perspective: Science, Structure, Streams and Steelhead in Santa Barbara County.” The plenary session will feature Assembly Member Pedro Nava who will address the California Ocean Protection Council. Brock Dolman of the WATER Institute will address issues of human development patterns on watershed resiliency, biodiversity, and endangered salmonids. Julia McIver, Principal Consultant to the State Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Water, will discuss Salmonid Education and the Legislative Process. Lisa Thompson of UC Cooperative Extension will address Southern Steelhead Recovery. And Geomorphologist David Montgomery will give a talk adapted from his book King of Fish, The Thousand-Year Run of Salmon. This year SRF, South Yuba River Citizens League and the Community Environmental Council will also offer a watershed, river and fisheries film festival on Thursday, February 23. The poster session and reception will be held on Friday evening and the conference will culminate with a Cabaret, Awards Ceremony and Banquet on Saturday night. For more information about the conference, please see www.calsalmon.org or contact Salmonid Restoration Federation at 707 923-7501. February 22, 2006 Workshops and Field Tours Water Conservation Workshop will discuss how to make existing water conservation efforts more effective and what models we can create for the future. This workshop features leaders in the water conservation field including Mary Ann Dickinson from the California Urban Water Conservation Council, Martha Davis from Inland Empire Utility Agency, Ade Adjani who will discuss the role of community-based organizations in returning water to Mono Lake, Bwan Kim with the Environmental Justice Coalition for Water, Eric Wesselman from the Tuoloumne River Preservation Trust, Bob WIlkinson from UC Santa Barbara, and Brock Dolman from the Water Institute. Fish and Wildlife Friendly Agriculture: A Workshop in Sustainability This morning workshop will cover using planned grazing in the management of native grasslands and the implementation of sustainable winegrape growing in California. The afternoon field trip will visit El Chorro Ranch to see restoration work that has been done on El Jaro Creek for the endangered steelhead. This project addresses severe streambank erosion and sedimentation in a creek that provides prime spawning and rearing habitat for steelhead on a working cattle ranch. This is one of several pilot projects on private property that provide feasible solutions to erosion and sedimentation issues. Workshop participants will view 3 projects including; a culvert replacement, side draw erosion treatment, and streambank stabilization to reduce erosion and sedimentation. How sustainable grazing practices for fisheries and wildlife are incorporated into restoration projects will also be discussed and viewed during the tour. This tour will also visit a local vineyard where restoration work has occurred. Nicholas Canyon: Chumash Demonstration Village Mati Waiya, Executive Director of Wishtoyo Foundation and Ventura Coastkeeper, will lead a tour of Chumash restoration sites in Nicholas Canyon in Malibu Creek. This tour will also visit restoration projects on Carpinteria Creek. Fish Passage and Restoration Tour on the Santa Clara River This tour will visit fish passage facilities that are used by endangered southern steelhead and Pacific lamprey. The Nature Conservancy will also lead a tour of the Santa Clara estuary and TNC properties on the river to discuss conservation work on the Santa Clara river as it relates to steelhead. Thursday, February 23, 2006 Removing Coastal California's Fish Passage Barriers: from Prioritization to Implementation This workshop will present fish passage case examples of inventory and assessments, regional planning efforts to prioritize barrier treatements, and design and construction. Reestablishing Salmonids in Cities: The Next Generation of Urban Stream Restoration will be chaired by founder of Urban Creeks Council Ann Riley. This workshop will highlight design and construction of habitat, dam removal, soil bioengineering and restoring ditches to functioning ecological systems. The tour will focus on finding solutions for urban flood damage reduction and fish habitat protection and migration, and fish passage barrier removal on Mission Creek. Field Tour of the Ventura River and Matilija Dam This tour will begin at the estuary and river mouth where we will observe beach erosion and fisheries issues. Working our way upstream we will see points of water diversion, bridges, and levees that will require modification with the removal of Matilija Dam. Finally we will visit the dam itself and see the extent of sedimentation that has occurred since its construction. Take Action to Make the Watershed Bill a Vehicle for Long-term Restoration Funding Please Call your Legislators and Ask them to Support SB 1125 and any additional legislation that would offer funding for salmonid restoration. See the list of key representatives below. Sen. Chesbro introduces measure to permanently fund salmon restoration Sen. Wesley Chesbro, D-Arcata, Monday introduced SB 1125, which would permanently protect state funding for environmental programs including salmon habitat restoration on the North Coast. California's natural resources infrastructure must be a high priority throughout the state,said Chesbro in a press release. On the North Coast the restoration of historic salmon and steelhead runs are critical for both our economic and environmental well being. SB 1125 will lead the state to a sustainable use of the revenue from leasing state resource leases in a way that protects our marine and coastal environment. The measure would permanently establish the Resources Trust Fund (RTF), which authorizes specified amounts of revenue generated by oil and gas leases for environmental programs. These funds are received and deposited in the state treasury by the State Lands Commission. Resources Trust Fund would be allocated among the Salmon and Steelhead Trout Restoration Account, the Marine Life and Marine Reserve Management Account, Fish and Game Fund, the State Parks System Deferred Maintenance Account, and the Natural Resources Infrastructure Fund. It would annually allocate $12 million for the Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Program. Joining Chesbro in introducing SB 1125 was a statewide conservation group, CalTrout. SB 1125 needs to become law because of the economic and intrinsic value of California's remaining native runs of wild salmon and steelhead trout, many of which are listed as either 'threatened' or 'endangered' under the state and federal endangered species acts,said Brian Stranko of CalTrout. Salmon and steelhead trout support recreational and commercial fisheries that provide thousands of jobs and are important to regional economies in California. Stranko added, CalTrout believes that the continuing escalation of world oil prices is likely to continue and means that California is receiving record amounts of revenue from its oil leases administered by the State Lands Commission. We believe that California should continue to invest some of this windfall in programs and projects benefiting the natural resources and environment of the state. SB 1125 makes this possible. The legislation needs to be in print for 30 days and then will be assigned to a policy committee for its first hearing in March. # http://www.times-standard.com/local/ci_3388341 Here is a list of potential authors for a Watershed Bill. Please give them a call to encourage them to author or support watershed legislation that has a long-term funding mechanism for salmonid restoration. You can find their contact info at http://www.assembly.ca.gov/acs/acsframeset7.htm and http://www.sen.ca.gov/~newsen/senators/senators.htp Key in the Senate (* possible author) Chesbro(D) - North Coast, Chair Budget Committee, staff Bob Fredenburg *Ducheny(D) - San Diego, staff Kasey Schimke Kuehl(D) - Santa Monica, Chair Sen Natural Resources, staff Bill Craven, long history in watershed issues and water quality Machado(D) - Stockton/Davis, Chair Rev&Tax, staff uncertain on this issue, key on Delta water issues Maldonado(R) - Santa Maria, staff Julia King Perata(D) - Oakland, President proTemp, staff Kip Lipper *Simitian(D) - Palo Alto *Lowenthal(D) - Long Beach, Chair Envir Quality and on Budget subcommittee on Resources Key in the Assembly (* possible author) *Hancock(D) - East Bay, Chair Nat Resources, staff Hans Hemann and Kyra Ross (committee), key on policy and budget issues Laird(D) - Santa Cruz, Chair Budget Comm and on Nat Resources, staff Clyde McDonald, key on water and all budget issues *Nava(D) - Santa Barbara, freshman Asm, former Coastal Commissioner, strong on environment and will be strong legislator Nunes(D) - LA, Speaker, staff Mary Kaems and Jim Alford, key on everything Pavley(D) - Santa Monica, last year in Asm but will run for Senate in 2008 (Kuehl's seat), staff Adrienne Alvord, Chair Budget subcommittee on Resources and on Water, Parks & Wildlife, strong on environment and has history on watershed issues *Saldana(D) - San Diego, freshman, staff uncertain, on Nat Resources and Water, Parks & Wildlife Wolk(D) - Davis, Chair Water, Parks & Wildlife, staff Susan Treabess and Craig Reynolds Wild and Scenic Film Festival Featured on February 23, 2006 http://www.calsalmon.org/conference/2006/film-festival.htm The Salmonid Restoration Federation, Patagonia, the South Yuba River Citizen’s League and the Community Environmental Council will host the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival at the Santa Barbara Vet’s Hall from 7 to 10pm on Thursday, February 23, 2006 as an exciting part of the 24th Annual Salmonid Restoration Conference. Whether it is the struggle for environmental justice, a whitewater adventure, or an educational documentary about dam removal, these films will expose audiences to current water issues and inspire action. Hosting the first environmental film festival in Nevada City, California, in 2003 was yet another avenue for the South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL, pronounced ‘circle’) to promote community-building within the Yuba Watershed, as well as a way to explore environmental issues within a larger, global scale through an exciting and influential medium. The first four festivals of the 23-year-old grassroots organization have proved wildly successful, bringing in award-winning international films, filmmakers, celebrities, activists, and filmgoers from all over the western United States. Due to the overwhelming response, SYRCL has partnered with Patagonia to bring you the festival On Tour. We want to share the powerful messages of these films with a larger audience. SYRCL will share the magic of the Wild and Scenic Film Festival with your community and hopefully inspire a sense of activism that the festival promotes. Check out: www.wildandscenicfilmfestival.org. For more information about SYRCL and the Yuba Watershed, visit www.yubariver.org For more information about Patagonia, visit www.patagonia.com The Santa Barbara Wild and Scenic Film Festival will feature the films Discover Hetch Hetchy, Tales of the San Joaquin, Coastal Clash, and Bigger than Rodeo. Tickets are $10 or $5 for Conference goers and students. Film Previews: Discover Hetch Hetchy by David Vassar An epic and historic battle of conservation exists in one of the nation’s most spectacular parks, Yosemite. Hetch Hetchy was once an area described as a twin Yosemite Valley. But Hetch Hetchy is buried beneath 300 feet of water, dammed by San Francisco in 1923 for use as a reservoir. Now an opportunity exists to bring the valley back to life and meet the water needs of the Bay Area. (United States, 2005, 18:56 min) Tales of the San Joaquin by Christopher Beaver The San Joaquin River has been called the hardest working river in America and also the most abused. Follow filmmaker Christopher Beaver down the 350 miles from the source near Yosemite National Park, to the point where its waters flow into San Francisco Bay. Once the birthplace of hundreds of thousands of salmon, the river now runs completely dry year round. Yet, dedicated people surround this river and are working to bringing it back to life. (United States, 2005, 27 min) www.cbfilms.net Coastal Clash by Elizabeth Pepin and Christa Resing “Let’s go to the beach” has always been an entitlement of California living, with 80 percent of Californians living within 30 miles of the water’s edge. But as urbanization continues to encroach on the 1,100-mile-long coast, our shoreline has come under siege. Development is swallowing up miles of coastline; access to beaches is being cut off ; and seawalls may be causing beaches to disappear. A battle is raging around the fundamental question: Whose coast is it anyway? (United States, 2004, 60 min) Bigger Than Rodeo by Tripp Jennings and Karl Moser Combining equally the burliest waterfalls ever seen on video and the biggest aerial freestyle ever shot, Bigger Than Rodeo is an instant jaw dropper. Follow the crew and top paddlers in their search for the sickest whitewater imaginable. They find something more meaningful and truly bigger then they imagineEd Lucero’s 105-foor record-breaking waterfall. Please send SRF salmonid restoration job descriptions, conference announcements, training and funding opportunities to include in this monthly enewsletter. Salmonid Restoration Federation Executive Director (707) 923-7501 (707) 923-3135 fax www.calsalmon.org srf@calsalmon.org |
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