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“Steam Donkey” Logging Plan Adjacent to The Sea Ranch: Recommended for Approval

Review Team Recommends Approval of Logging Plan. Public Comment Period Ended on March 11, 2024. Director’s Decision (final approval) expected by April 2, 2024. UPDATES: Mar. 16, 2024: Public Comment period ended Feb. 29, 2024: Review Team Recommends Approval of Logging Plan Feb. 23, 2024: Add GRT Forester’s Responses to 2nd Review Questions Feb. 15, 2024: Add Questions from 2nd …

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We stopped a logging plan in California, and you can too!

A presentation by Ethan Arutunian in February, 2024, hosted by the Forest Protection Forum of Sierra Club California’s Stop Clearcutting CA Campaign. In this talk, Ethan Arutunian describes how a grassroots campaign by Friends of the South Fork Gualala (FSFG) completely stopped the 283-acre Bootleg timber harvest plan (THP) in the Gualala River watershed. They defeated CALFIRE, and a wealthy …

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Rainbow over Gualala after severe storm

Rainbow over the Town of Gualala, with the Gualala River estuary, after severe wind storm; February 7, 2024 Rainbow over the Town of Gualala after severe wind storm; February 7, 2024 Photos courtesy of Jeanne Jackson

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There was drama where the Gualala River meets the turbulent Pacific Ocean!

After the storm on December 27, 2023, the Gualala River was running high and fast. The Pacific Ocean was roiled up with huge breakers and the river was full from the rains. Here’s a video of the action. See if you can spot the River Otter swimming in the raging river! Here’s what it looked like on Thursday morning, December …

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Federal regulators reject controversial pumped storage project proposed for Sonoma Coast

by Mary Callahan, The Press Democrat, December 19, 2023 [excerpt:] Federal regulators have denied a requested preliminary permit for a highly controversial hydropower facility on coastal land near Fort Ross, all but shutting down a proposal that aroused anger and opposition throughout the region. In a six-page decision issued Tuesday, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission noted a wide range of …

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Rain falls, River rises, Mouth opens

Gualala River estuary, Dec. 20, 2023 Gualala River estuary – muddy water after ~6 inches of rain, Dec. 20, 2023 Gualala River breaches the barrier beach, Dec. 20, 2023 Gualala River flows to the sea, Dec. 20, 2023 Photos courtesy of Jeanne Jackson

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FoGR’s 2nd Letter to Sonoma BOS re:
Oak Woodlands Protection Ordinance

December 12, 2023 Sonoma County Board of Supervisors 575 Administration Drive Room 100 A Santa Rosa, CA 95403 To the Honorable Members of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors: Friends of Gualala River (FoGR) thanks you for the opportunity to comment once again upon the importance of passing the Oak Woodland Protection Ordinance. Our previous letter of November 21, 2023 …

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FoGR Letter to Sonoma BOS re:
Oak Woodlands Protection Ordinance

November 21, 2023 Sonoma County Board of Supervisors 575 Administration Drive Room 100 A Santa Rosa, CA. 95403 To the Honorable Members of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors: Friends of Gualala River thanks you for the opportunity to comment in support of the proposed Oak Woodland Protection Ordinance, a critically important step in saving our wild oaks, one of …

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Thinking Long-Term: Why We Should Bring Back Redwood Forests

By John Reid, September 25, 2023 YaleEnvironment360 Published at the Yale School of the Environment [Excerpt:] Only 5 percent of the redwood forests that once stretched across coastal Northern California have never been logged. An initiative to restore these forests is gaining momentum, aided by research showing that redwoods store more aboveground carbon than any forest on Earth. Lyndon Johnson …

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FoGR Midsummer Newsletter,
August 2023

These have been busy times for Friends of Gualala River.  We’d like to update you on our activities involving litigation, advocacy, and education and outreach.  The brief reports below are linked to more in-depth information elsewhere on our website. Litigation and Advocacy Spring at the Gualala River lagoon; photo by Craig Tooley, reprinted with permission. FoGR Wins Fight to Enforce Legal …

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Fishing Industry Groups Notify Tire Companies of Intent to Sue Over 6PPD Impacts to Salmon, Steelhead

Press release by Earthjustice, August 15, 2023 [excerpt] The Institute for Fisheries Resources (IFR) and the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations (PCFFA) today notified U.S. tire manufacturers of their intent to sue over the use of a chemical called 6PPD in rubber tires because of its devastating impacts on Endangered Species Act (ESA)-protected salmon and steelhead. When 6PPD reacts …

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Local Artist Chris Grassano wins Environmental Art Award

Chris Grassano receives the Environmental Art Award sponsored by Friends of Gualala River at the 2023 Art in the Redwoods Fine Arts Festival Redwood Melody, by Chris Grassano Friends of Gualala River (FoGR) sponsored an award at the Art in the Redwoods Festival in 2023, for the twenty-second year in a row. A cash prize contributed by FoGR was given …

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Thursday, August 17: Industrial Project at Fort Ross State Historic Park?

  Friends of the Jenner Creek will be hosting a Community Workshop on the Fort Ross proposal on: Thursday, August 17, starting at 7 pmat the Jenner Community Center An Alabama corporation wants to construct a major industrial facility involving Fort Ross State Historical Park and the surrounding countryside to pump saltwater from the ocean to the top of Seaview …

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Court rejects Gualala River logging plan

For Immediate Release, August 5, 2023 Contact: Ethan Arutunian, Friends of the South Fork Gualala, info@fosfg.org, 206-353-3487Daniel Garrett-Steinman, Garrett-Steinman Law Offices, dan@dpgslaw.com, 415-996-7823   SANTA ROSA, CA – In a legal victory for the Gualala River watershed, Sonoma County Superior Court Judge Bradford DeMeo has ordered the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) to annul and set …

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Sonoma, Mendocino County grape growers battling new rules designed to reduce sediment, pesticides in local waterways

by Mary Callahan, The Press Democrat, August 2, 2023 [excerpt:] A new program targeting 1,500 commercial grape growers in Sonoma and Mendocino counties and designed to improve water quality in local creeks and rivers is drawing criticism from members of the agricultural community. The draft rules include reporting requirements, annual fees, well and groundwater monitoring, ground cover requirements and restrictions …

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