Published: Jan. 20, 2009 It’s not news that salmon populations have declined drastically. Last year, regulators voted to ban all salmon fishing along the Pacific coast of California and Oregon. Their actions wiped out the livelihoods of thousands of commercial fishermen, fish processors and charter boat operators. The threat facing salmon is so dire that […]
Read MoreCategory: Gravel Mining Impacting watershed
Comment Letter on North Coast Basin Plan
Please review – open to suggestions COAST ACTION GROUP P.O. BOX 215 POINT ARENA, CA 95468 January 21, 2009 Catherine Kuhlman: Executive Officer North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board 5550 Skylane Blvd. Ste. A Santa Rosa, CA 95403 Subject: Proposal to Amend the North Coast Basin Plan by Establishing Exception Criteria to the […]
Read MoreSonoma County Sued in Gravel Pit Excavation
Jane Kay, Chronicle Environment Writer November 11, 2008 The lawsuit, filed Thursday in Sonoma County Superior Court against the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors and Syar Industries, charges that the Napa gravel company is threatening the county’s most valuable natural resource – its groundwater. Gravel mining also removes from use valuable streamside farmland, the suit […]
Read MoreSome Garcia River History
The effort in the Garcia has a lot of history. John Hooper summarizes – below. I worked on FrOGs Board and with CAG. CAG did the TMDL litigation and has continued with water issues that the somewhat retired FrOGgies are just learning about. The process goes on – as it never ends. Some day I […]
Read MoreMeetings on the Russian’s Biological Opinion
For the full story – please visit my web site – there are several articles on this subject – you can go to the ENVIRONMENT category for the full collection. And please pass along this information so we can get many people attending these important meetings! Thank you! http://www.westcountygazette.com/blog/2008/11/sonoma-county-water-meetings-biological.html We have a lot of meetings […]
Read MoreGarcia and Gualala River Condition
Attached is an update on current conditions on the Gualala and Garcia rivers. Currently the very low levels of flow are challenging fishery survival. This is true on many of our north coast rivers.. There are minimum by-pass flow conditions (established by DFG) in place on the Garcia and Gualala rivers that are not being […]
Read MoreBenefit for Russian River Riverkeeper
Please join Don McEnhill, the Riverkeeper and the Riverkeeper Park volunteers for dinner on Tuesday, Sept. 9 at the Rainbow Cattle Company. Dinner is provided by the volunteers. Donations are welcome. The donations, a portion of the bar proceeds and all the “model train” money goes directly to support the Park. To learn more about […]
Read MoreOfficial Comments on DEIR for Water Use
Marc Bautista, SCWA Please find attached Word .doc file containing my comments re NBWRA DEIR. Please let me know if there are any problems with the receipt of this document by the end of the public comment date. Just as an added comment, I am of the opinion that events and conditions are changing at […]
Read MoreWant Fish? Workshop on Instream Flows–AB 2121
Want Fish? The State Water Resources Control Board next workshops on maintaining instream flows, draft policies for implementing AB2121 are here. Do not let this SWRCB public workshop on minimum instream flow draft policies (AB2121) be dominated by a massive turnout by the Farm Bureau, large water sellers, and Real Estate developers, as in the […]
Read MoreLetter to Editor Regarding Syar’s Permit Extension
FYI, Mining moonscape EDITOR: It’s wonderful to see The Press Democrat editorial get it right on an important Russian River issue (“Flashback”). Gravel mining below Healdsburg has removed millions of tons of gravel from the riparian corridor. Much of the middle reach of the river beyond a thin veil of vegetation has been reduced to […]
Read More3rd Annual Spring-run Chinook Symposium
Hello, SRF has two exciting events this summer: the 3rd Annual Spring-run Chinook Symposium and the 11th Annual Coho Confab. I have pasted our event announcements below. Please feel free – even encouraged! – to share these PSAs with your co-workers, constituents, list-serves, Events calendars, or other organizations you think might find these events useful […]
Read MoreAppeal for Action on Syar Mining Hearing–July 8th at 2:10 pm
Rescheduled Syar Phase VI Pit Mining hearing July 8th – 2:10pm** Please help defend one of the biggest victories for the River that our Supervisors are prepared to reverse – the 10-year limit of Open Pit strip mining of our aquifer! Urge the Supervisors to Vote NO on the permit and uphold the 10-year limit […]
Read MoreRegarding the Syar Gravel Permit Extension
(Note: The decision on Syar’s permit extension before the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors on June 10 was postponed until Tuesday, June 8, at 2:10 pm.) It will be very interesting to see today how the Board of Supervisors addresses the issues around the requested Syar gravel mining extension as it relates to water supply […]
Read MoreSyar Permit Hearing Re-scheduled July 8 at 2:10 pm
Please note the Syar permit hearing is scheduled for 2:10 PM on July 8. Cheers, Paula “The Syar Phase 6 terrace pit hearing has been continued by the Board of Supervisors to July 8th at 2:10pm.” Ken Ellison Supervising Planner County of Sonoma
Read MoreThe True Cost of Gravel Mining in the Russian River
How the public foots the bill, while miners truck out the profits. [Editor’s Note: Syar Industries, Inc. is requesting a permit for continued gravel mining in the Russian River from the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, June 10, at 2:30 pm. The permit was not approved by the Planning Commission in April but […]
Read MoreEnd Gravel Mining in Russian River on June 10, 2:30 pm
Help to put an end to Gravel Mining in the Russian River! Help defend one of the biggest victories for the River that our Supervisors are prepared to reverse – the 10-year limit of Open Pit strip mining of our aquifer! Urge the Supervisors to deny the permit and uphold the 10-year limit to protect […]
Read MoreApplying the ‘Water Framework Directive’ to RR Watershed
I thought you might appreciate this. The DWR has been very supportive of the Russian River Watershed Council, and citing the European “Water Framework Directive” is an interesting approach. Have a wonderful spring weekend, Rue ————— Rue, In case you haven’t seen this, a March 2008 UCB paper on applying the European ‘Water Framework Directive’ […]
Read MoreHearing for Syar’s Application for Instream Mining Extension
Attend the hearing for Syar’s attempt to extend the ARM plan permit for instream mining in the Russian River When: Thursday, April 3, at 1 pm Where: PRMD Hearing Room, 2550 Ventura Ave. in Santa Rosa If Sonoma County intends to extend the ARM Plan for terrace mining on the Russian River (This plan was […]
Read MoreAssessing site specific and cumulative impacts on anadromous fishery resources
Stream Flow Folks: For thought and discussion: In my stream flow file I found a document, NMFS/James R. Bybee to Mr. Harry Schueller/SWRCB, dated April 18, 2001 (my how the years fly by – the SWRCB should have a copy of this letter and it should be included in the record). This letter, by NMFS, […]
Read MoreOn Low Salmon Returns
To All, On my note (included below) to groups and individuals on the subject of low salmon returns I was properly reminded by my friend Brian Hines that the conditions for these low returns, as presented by me, failed to account for poor ocean conditions and potential global warming effects. It is true. All of […]
Read MoreWorkshop Feedback on Instream Flows
SWRCB Technical Workshop on Draft Policy for Maintaining Instream Flows for Northern California Coastal Streams Feb. 6, 2008 The meeting in Santa Rosa was fully packed (exceeding the meeting room safety limitations), primarily with ranchers and grape growers protesting issuance of new policies for setting and maintaining minimum instream flows and other impacts to their […]
Read MoreComment Letter on Mad River Watershed Gravel Mining
Janet Parrish U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 75 Hawthorne Street (WTR-2) San Francisco, CA 94105 Ph: 415-972-3456 Fax: 415-947-3537 Janet Parrish, After reading all available information on the proposed Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for sediment and turbidity in the Mad River watershed and tributaries, we have the following comments. The Voice Family would like to […]
Read MoreOn the Water Board’s Sediment Control Plan
Daniel: You comments are spot on – and – appreciated. I am copying them to other concerned parties that might make use of them. Thank you. Anderson is correct. It will be tough to get money for staffing in this environment. That is why we all must work hard on supporting this and at approaching […]
Read MoreNC Regional Water Board’s Sediment Plan
The Regional Board has extended the time period for comment to December 14. You now have more time. Read below and down to, including, extension notice from Rebecca Fitzgerald – Regional Water Quality Control Board. Interested Parties – Impaired Rivers – Albion River, Eel River, Elk River Watershed, Estero Americano, Freshwater Creek, Garcia River, Gualala […]
Read MoreFlyover Images of the Gualala Watershed
FYI…Below are some messages with weblinks of quite the detailed image based resource for folks interested in the Gualala Watershed! Sure would love to see this down for the Russian River Watershed with all it’s tribs!!! Brock Hi Fluvial Folks, The Adelmans (http://www.californiacoastline.org/)have done a flight up the Gualala River at the request of my […]
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