River Issues

Friends of Gualalal River (FoGR) is a member of the North Coast Stream Flow Coalition, which supports rational management and regulation of groundwater to protect streamflows. FoGR endorses Chris Malan’s policy analysis and recommendations in her op-ed essay, below. Protect state’s groundwater and the public interest now! by Chris Malan Chair, North Coast Stream Flow Coalition Op-ed published in the …

Friends of the Gualala River is astonished to learn that NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), the federal agency responsible for the recovery of coho salmon and steelhead, is PROPOSING TO REMOVE THE GUALALA RIVER ESTUARY (our beautiful lagoon from the beach upstream through the regional park) from the Marine Sanctuary. Incredibly, they are proposing the same for the Russian …

On Friday, June 13, 2014, Peggy Berryhill interviewed Richard Charter, long-time defender of the coast, on KGUA, 88.3 FM in Gualala, CA. Listen to the interview on SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/kgua/richard-charter-ocean-santuary-613/ “An interview with the legendary Richard Charter about the NOAA hearings in Point Arena, Gualala and Bodega Bay on permanently protecting our ocean from Bodega Bay to Point Arena from oil drilling, …

Understanding and Managing the Effects of Groundwater Pumping on Streamflow by Paul M. Barlow and Stanley A. Leake November, 2012, U.S. Geological Survey Introduction Groundwater is an important source of water for many human needs, including public supply, agriculture, and industry. With the development of any natural resource, however, adverse consequences may be associated with its use. One of the …

by Rob DiPerna Environmental Protection Information Center January, 2013 [excerpt:] Throughout the north and central California coast, Coho salmon are teetering on the brink of oblivion. According to the National Marine Fisheries Service, 85-90 percent of remaining Coho population in the Central California Coast ESU occurs in watersheds with privately managed forestlands. The 2011 Central California Coast Coho Recovery Plan …

Permanent Protection for Our Sonoma and Mendocino Coastlines is Within Reach We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to secure permanent protection for one of the most iconic and sensitive portions of the California coast. The spectacular beauty of our coastline between Bodega Bay and Pt. Arena attracts millions of visitors, but it’s what you can’t see with the naked eye that …

These are time-lapse videos of the Gualala River mouth in Northern California during the months of February, March & April, 2009, taken by Dane Behrens, a PhD student in Environmental Science at UC Davis. They were taken with a time-lapse package from Harbortronics (www.harbortronics.com) at 20-minute intervals. This was taken with the permission of Don and Jan Plenty, who let …

by Randall Sinclair “Fish Emulsion” Mankind has tried many ways To rid this planet Of unwanted species. Coyote, Puma, Pomo, Coho. Religion, bullets, treaties, clearcuts. Now he poisons the Mother Tree. The She-Oak that feeds us Without discrimination. High in carbohydrates, The Oak has seen many cultures Through hungry winters. The Timber Barons Think that Tanbark Has become a problem …

By Jeanne Jackson and Peter Baye Friends don’t let friends drive in the Gualala River. The Gualala River, now closed to the Pacific Ocean by a huge sandbar, is a coastal treasure. Creatures big and small make it their home. Care must be taken to protect them and this beautiful wild river that is a part of our lives. Closed …

(CDP 55-2006) Proposed construction of a new 285-foot long concrete block retaining wall behind the Surf Supermarket parking lot in downtown Gualala, to connect to an old 105 foot long retaining wall behind the Surf Supermarket itself. May, 2010 updateThe old retaining wall behind the Supermarket failed in 2006, allowing sediment and debris to flow into the Gualala River estuary …

Eight Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Gaden Shartse Monastery in southern India returned to our coastal communities for the fourth time in May, 2011. The monks are from one of three Tibetan refugee resettlement communities which were set up in India to accept refugees who were fleeing Tibet after the Chinese invasion of 1959, where over one million Tibetans were …

by FELICITY BARRINGER © New York Times February 3, 2011 [Excerpt:] “An article published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters this week describes a new and simple way of measuring groundwater’s contribution to small streams on the surface. . . Groundwater, they found, tends to be cooler than surface water in summer and warmer in winter; the infrared devices record …

A fish and wildlife biologist, retired from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, has been conducting systematic studies of the population status of steelhead in the Gualala River since 2001. Annual spawning surveys focus on an 18 mile reach of the Wheatfield Fork selected as a population-indexing reach. GualalaRiverSteelhead.info Over the years, he has compiled a wealth of detailed information …

Federal Agency Cancels Permits to Study Wave Energy on the Sonoma Coast The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has canceled permits issued to the Sonoma County Water Agency (SCWA) to study power generation from wave energy at three coastal sites on the Sonoma coast. SCWA was unable to raise the millions of dollars needed to study the sites, including one …

The Legislature has given the California State Lands Commission authority over California’s sovereign lands – lands under navigable waters. These are lands to which California received title upon its admission to the Union and that are held by virtue of its sovereignty. These lands are also known as public trust lands. The Commission administers public trust lands pursuant to statute …

Update: June, 2010 The California Supreme Court declined to hear a challenge to the Coastal Commission’s jurisdiction over coastal fireworks, in a case involving the Gualala Festivals Committee (GFC). In 2008, the California Coastal Commission told the GFC that they would need to apply for a permit to set off fireworks over the Gualala River estuary. Gualala Point Island The …

River otter in the Gualala River Short video taken by a friend of the Gualala River, just west of the Green Bridge, near the confluence of the North & South Forks, in July 2009.

Despite protections in our system of laws, rivers and streams on California’s north coast being progressively de-watered with disastrous impacts to fisheries, aquatic ecosystems, recreational opportunities and the regional economy. The North Coast Stream Flow Campaign is a movement to get water back in northern California rivers. Mighty rivers that once teamed with fish and provided countless hours of recreation …

Settlement Agreement between State Water Resources Control Board and North Gualala Water Company The Water Company will pay a fine of $11,600, avoid making new service connections until it has submitted a revised water supply contingency plan and a revised streamflow measurement plan, and petition for change in the existing bypass term or apply for additional water appropriation. The North …

A Documentary narrated by Tom Skerritt Rivers of a Lost Coast extended trailer Rivers of a Lost Coast is a new documentary that looks at our relationship to nature through the eyes of the most fabled angling community in American history. This surprisingly touching film was recently labeled a must see by the San Francisco Chronicle and Seattle Times. Monday, …