News

When we think of timber road runoff threats, we habitually think of fine sediment, indirectly affecting coho (and steelhead) by habitat degradation. But this is direct acute mortality by rubber tire chemicals. A new wrinkle on wheeled vehicles operating on rough, abrasive gravel haul roads. – FoGR by Erik Stokstad Science  04 Dec 2020: Vol. 370, Issue 6521, pp. 1145 …

We are excited! This annual newsletter is packed with news about the successes in Friends of Gualala River’s (FoGR’s) work in the watershed this past year: from the progress of our lawsuits (yes, we have two separate suits against egregious logging plans!) and the fundraising efforts to support them, to the many education and outreach projects we’ve undertaken to increase …

In a year of continued pressure on species of plants and animals around the world from climate change and local land use practices, members of Friends of Gualala River continue to organize to protect our beautiful watershed from impacts from egregious logging plans. We want to reverse these impacts and help our river overcome decades of pressure on all the …

This annual newsletter is dedicated to the memory of Friends of Gualala River Vice President Richard “Rick” Jackson who passed away on October 27, 2020 from complications of Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Rick joined FoGR’s board in early 2017 at a crucial time when the volunteer organization was undergoing a transition and needed a serious boost in leadership to face the many …

by Jeanne Jackson November, 2020 Friends of Gualala River (FoGR) appealed the most recent ruling on the Dogwood THP (Timber Harvest Plan) to the state appeals court. Attorney Edward Yates represents FoGR. Briefs are in to the three-judge panel. Yates estimates we will know the judges’ decision by the end of the year if Gualala Redwood Timber (GRT) doesn’t request …

Friends of Gualala River is proposing to build a powerful interactive educational exhibit for the public to learn more about the river, its history, and the complex ecosystem that makes its home in the watershed. Friends of Gualala River (FoGR) is hoping that one or more of our supporters would like to fund a truly worthy project. FoGR is proposing …

Friends of Gualala River takes action to protect the Gualala River from damage caused by all-terrain vehicles. For more than a decade, Friends of Gualala River (FoGR) has called attention to the harm caused by driving in the river. Many community members are aware of FoGR’s long-standing public education campaign about the damage that off-road vehicles cause the river’s ecosystem, …

Friends of Gualala River (FoGR) is pleased to announce that the Sonoma County Conservation Council (SCCC) has recognized Chris Poehlmann, FoGR president emeritus, with the 2020 Ernestine I. Smith Environmentalist of the Year award in the category of Forest Champion. Chris was one of three recipients of this year’s award, along with Rick Coates, director of Forest Unlimited and wildlife …

(members: Chris Poehlmann, Lynn Walton, Pat Maxwell, Nathan Ramser, Rachael Klapko, Brody Klapko, Laura Baker, Chair) When the Friends of Gualala River (FoGR) Education and Outreach Committee formed 4 years ago, we came together over the idea that providing the Gualala River watershed community with good factual, science-based information was key to the success of protecting the river and its …

by Shirley Brice Heath What follows here is a series of videos that help answer this and other questions. More inquiries that easily come to mind when folks hear the name “Friends of Gualala River” may be obvious. Some ask: “So why does a river need ‘friends?’” And others ask: “And why, in particular, does Gualala River need ‘friends?’” This …

Chris Poehlmann, a long-time active member and President Emeritus of Friends of Gualala River (FoGR), will be recognized as an “Environmentalist of the Year” by the Sonoma County Conservation Council (SCCC) and the Sierra Club Sonoma Group at their annual awards event on December 4, 2020 (held via Zoom this year). Congratulations, Chris! In announcing the awards, SCCC said, “2020 …

Thank you donors! We’ve raised over half the funds needed for our Endangered Species Act lawsuit. Help us reach our funding goal and save the Gualala River, its redwood forest and its threatened and endangered species. “As Mother Earth faces climate change and growing numbers of species are going extinct, FoGR has a responsibility to speak for the threatened and …

by Chris Poehlmann, October, 2020 Two new plans have just been submitted to log the forest along Annapolis Road that will degrade large areas of the viewshed of one of our most treasured scenic roads. The view of the hills from Annapolis Road and adjacent to The Sea Ranch before and after “Twin Bridges” will be an eyesore for decades …

by Tempra Board Sea Ranch Soundings, Fall, 2020 © copyright 2020, The Sea Ranch Association reprinted with permission Editor’s note: On September 18, 2020, as this edition of Soundings was going to press, FoGR and the Center for Biological Diversity filed their federal lawsuit. On July 7, 2020, Friends of the Gualala River (FoGR) joined forces with the Center for …

by Lana Cohen, The Mendocino Voice, September 25, 2020 [excerpt:] Two conservation groups, Friends of Gualala River, and the Center for Biological Diversity have filed a lawsuit in federal court against Gualala Redwood Timber Company. They claim the timber company’s planned timber harvest project in the Gualala River watershed violates the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). The suit was filed …

By Scott Thomas Anderson, Sacramento News & Review, September 23, 2020 [excerpt:] Conservation groups sue massive logging project as violation of Endangered Species Act For many, the lush, towering redwoods along Sonoma County’s Gualala River are vestiges of a once-unspoiled Golden State, the verdant vanguard of a century-old forest that cradles an undammed stream spilling from the coastal mountains into …

For Immediate Release, September 15, 2020 Contact: Peter Galvin, Center for Biological Diversity, (707) 986-2600, pgalvin@biologicaldiversity.org Charles Ivor, Friends of Gualala River, (707) 337-0147, cfifish@mac.com GUALALA, Calif.— Conservation groups filed an Endangered Species Act lawsuit today against the Gualala Redwood Timber Company to protect threatened and endangered fish, birds and frogs from a logging project in a redwood forest near …

“We Speak for the River” That is our motto for the effort to raise $175K for an Endangered Species Act (ESA) lawsuit to stop the current, reckless Dogwood timber harvest plan, and other floodplain logging plans, in the Gualala River. It’s a daunting amount to raise for our small, but mighty, all volunteer non-profit. FoGR has received a $25,000 matching challenge …

By Lana Cohen, The Mendocino Voice, August 1, 2020 [excerpt:] MENDOCINO Co., 8/1/20 — Friends of Gualala River, a local nonprofit, plans to move their five-year conflict over logging in the Gualala River floodplain from Sonoma County Superior Court to federal court. The local conservation group is teaming up with the Center for Biological Diversity, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting …

by Guy Kovner, The Press Democrat, July 14, 2020 [excerpt:] A five-year battle over plans to log in the remote Gualala River flood plain has taken a big step up with a powerhouse environmental group’s declaration to take the case to federal court, alleging the commercial tree harvest would harm protected fish, frogs and birds. Friends of Gualala River, a …