Estero Americano, It Takes the Public to Save a Place

In 2021, EAC turned 50 years old. This is a significant milestone for a small grassroots environmental nonprofit. Since we were unable to celebrate properly due to the pandemic, we decided to honor the legacies of our past, present, and plans for the future through storytelling, field trips, and sharing our archives to share the impact of EAC on our community now and into the future.

This month, we are sharing our first mission moment by highlighting Americano Estero. EAC and Estero Americano have a long and storied history together, as it took more than a decade of advocacy and vigilance with partners to to ensure the Estero–an exceedingly rare tidal estuary did not succumb to pollution and development as so many of our wetlands have.
Keep Reading to Learn More about Estero Americano.

Beach Report Card Posted!
Morgan Patton

Did you know that since 2020, we have partnered with the County of Marin Environmental Health Services and the Point Reyes National Seashore to collect recreational water quality samples at Drakes Beach and Drakes Estero?

We started our program in October 2020 (after a five-month delay due to the pandemic) after reviewing the 2019 Beach Report Card published by Heal the Bay and noticed that Drakes Estero and Drakes Beach were no longer being sampled. With the help of Surfrider Marin, the incredible staff at Environmental Services, and some donor support (to help cover lab fees) we kick started the sampling program back to life. 

Recreational water quality sampling runs weekly April 1 - October 31 annually, but we wanted to sample in the winter months as well, collecting at least one sample a month and following any significant rain event. 

We completed our first full cycle of sampling in 2021 and were pleased to see Drakes Beach and Drakes Estero added back into the annual Beach Report Card!

In an effort to raise awareness about water quality issues in coastal Marin County, we share on social media the weekly results published by the County of Marin that includes results from beaches and creeks throughout Marin County. 

We recommend checking the water quality before heading to the beach or creeks to prevent potential illness. Some of the most popular water recreation locations have chronic e-coli issues including the Inkwells, White House Pool, and Chicken Ranch Beach (channel B).

You can follow EAC on social media to get our weekly alerts or you can bookmark the County's website to check before you head to the water. 

Read the 2022 Beach Report Card (Includes 2021 Water Sample Data)

Your'e Invited EAC's Open House August 20th 12PM-2PM

You’re invited to our open house and reception on August 20, 2022 from 12PM - 2PM celebrating our newest environmental educational exhibit, Protect our Ocean and Safeguard our Future.

This will be a wonderful opportunity to meet our team, and learn about the state and federal marine protected areas along the coastline of Marin County, the dangers of plastic pollution, and the impacts of climate change on our coast and oceans. This will also be an opportunity to meet the artists, students, and partners who all helped to bring this exhibit to life.

Inspired by the natural beauty and diverse marine life found along coastal Marin County, the exhibit highlights how protections like the network of California Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and the Greater Farallones and Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuaries support biodiversity, protect coastal and marine habitats, and safeguard the ocean for current and future generations by providing climate change resilience. 

California’s coastal ocean waters are among the most biologically productive in the world. These marine resources are vital to the state’s coastal economy, provide numerous ecosystem benefits, and about 70% of the state’s population resides along the coast. The productivity, wildness, and beauty of the coast is central to California’s identity, heritage, and economy. It’s essential to protect, conserve, and manage the diversity of coastal resources and uses to safeguard living marine species and their habitats, scenic views, water quality, recreational values, and cultural and geological resources in the face of changing climate conditions and over-consumption.

Visitors will learn about the richness of intertidal and open ocean life and about some of the challenges these areas face due to changing climate conditions, the plastic pollution crisis, and what we can do as individuals and collectively to safeguard our coast and oceans. 

Learn More

Three County Campaign: A Cleaner California Coast
Grace Milstein, Communications Associate

Over 10 million people a year visit the California coastline and adjacent communities across Marin, Sonoma, and Mendocino counties. With such significant numbers of visitors comes challenges relating to human impact on the environment. More than 55,000 pounds of trash has been removed from sensitive coastal environments across the three counties in the last year alone.

In response to this, Marin, Sonoma and Mendocino Counties, in conjunction with many federal, state, local partners, and organizations, are collaborating with the nonprofit organization, Leave No Trace (LNT). This coordinated campaign will provide visitor education and outreach to reduce the amount of litter and waste in coastal regions and watersheds. Marin County Parks, EAC, and Visit Marin are participating as coordinating partners to help move this project forward.

The bilingual LNT campaign is well on its way with the goal of all strategic planning to be completed by the end of August. Design elements, professional development, and collaboration with local partners will begin in September. As part of this effort, we will publish our visitor stewardship guide that has been created to highlight stewardship practices to reduce impacts of trash and litter in our coastal communities and environment.

Earlier this year, we created online Community Resources on our website that includes information on recreating in coastal Marin, how to be good stewards of our natural ecosystems, and who to call to report pollution, permit problems, etc. We also developed a google map of the public restrooms in the area!

We are excited to partner and support the campaign to reduce coastal trash and further our efforts to keep our roadsides free of trash throughout the year. The combined efforts throughout the three counties along with LNT will support safer wildlife corridors, coastal and riparian zones, and recreational opportunities, while bringing community volunteers together outside to protect what we all love about West Marin.

Interested in getting involved? One of our current programs, Litter Bugs Me, cleans up local watersheds before the winter rains arrive to avoid trash being swept downstream and out into Tomales Bay. For more information, check out our website and sign up today!

Team Up to Clean Up: Litter Bugs Me & Coastal Clean Up Day

This year, we are celebrating our Litter Bugs Me (annual roadside and watershed clean up event) with Coastal Clean Up Day (the world’s largest annual volunteer creek, beach, and ocean clean up)!

We are coordinating with community groups including village associations, local nonprofits, community centers, organizations, and individuals to help keep our watershed and beaches clean before the rainfall. These clean up events are a wonderful opportunity to join people around the world in solidarity to demonstrate our respect and desire for clean water and healthy marine life.

INDIVIDUAL VOLUNTEERS

Looking for a way to help but you are not part of a Team Up to Clean Up Crew, you can sign up with EAC and join us on Saturday, September 17th to clean up trash in Point Reyes Station, Giacomini Wetland trails, Platform Bridge Road, and Millerton Beach.

TEAM UP TO CLEAN UP CREW SIGN UPS

Crew teams are organized by a team leader who will coordinate with EAC on clean up locations, gather their team’s volunteers, report their estimated trash weights, and submit photos. Crews pick up trash from September 12-17th.

MPA Watch Mid-Year Report Released
Morgan Patton

Our 2022 mid-year report is now available for download. We want to sincerely thank our 23 Marin MPA Watch volunteers who collected data on Marin County beaches and at Corte Madera Marsh from January through June that informed this report.

EAC's MPA Watch program is part of a statewide network of organizations training volunteers to observe and collect data on human uses of coastal and marine resources both inside and outside of MPAs. MPA Watch data informs the management, enforcement, and science of California's MPAs and provides insight on how human uses are changing as a result of MPA implementation. By involving local communities in this important work, MPA Watch programs inspire and empower stewardship, and educate California communities about ocean ecosystems. 

Key Findings from Mid-Year Report:

Drakes Beach (Point Reyes State Marine Reserve): 27 surveys and a use rate of 10.9 activities per mile surveyed. This was an increase of 65% compared to the prior year. 97% of the observations were on-shore, non-consumptive (60% sandy beach recreation, 35% wildlife viewing, and 2% tidepooling). Offshore recreation included board sports. Less than 1% of observations were consumptive uses. One potential poaching violation was observed.

Limantour Beach (Control Site): 12 surveys and a use rate of 13.8 activities per miles surveyed. This is a 6% decrease compared to 2021 (continued downward trend from 2020’s activity rate of 27.8 activities per mile). 98% of the observations were on-shore, non-consumptive uses (89% sandy beach recreation), and the remaining top non-consumptive activities include animals on (6%) and off-leash (1%) and shore enforcement and paddle boarding. Consumptive observations-offshore unknown fishing was 1% of the total. 25 dogs were observed with only 5 off-leash. 

Agate Beach & Duxbury Reef: 75 surveys and a use rate of 21.7 activities per mile surveyed. This is a decrease of 56% compared to the prior year’s rate of 49.7. Despite these decreases, Duxbury remains the highest use rate of all the MPAs monitored by Marin MPA Watch. 98% of observations were onshore, non-consumptive uses (45% tidepooling, 39% beach recreation). 110 potential violations were documented and  and 5 reported to local or state agencies. This is a much greater number of violations than any other MPA survey site. 180 dogs were observed  (88 on leash and 92 off-leash).

Read the Report

County Adopts New Stream Ordinance
Morgan Patton

We are pleased to report that the County of Marin unanimously adopted the proposed stream conservation area (SCA) ordinance for the San Geronimo Valley on July 19th. The new ordinance consists of amendments to the County’s zoning ordinance (or Development Code) that establishes a SCA buffer of 100 feet or more, create standards for development within the buffer, and provide permit review procedures and requirements. 

This ends 15 years of advocacy by the Salmon Protection and Watershed Network (SPAWN) and the Center for Biological Diversity regarding the County’s analysis of the environmental effects of the 2007 Marin Countywide Plan on endangered and threatened status fish in the San Geronimo Valley. 

EAC is especially encouraged to see the recent modifications to the proposed ordinance including: 

• a 35-foot riparian buffer as secondary protection that was recommended in the County’s 2010 Salmon Enhancement Plan;
• the reduced building allowance horizontally and allowance for vertical development (the allowance of vertical additions is a fair compromise and will hopefully incentivize less of a footprint in the watershed);
• the No Net Loss of Habitat, where development within the SCA triggers a replacement with native vegetation at a 2:1 ratio to be monitored by the property owner, and; 
• the term “Infeasible Development” being replaced with clear guidance on how to build out undeveloped parcels in the SCA. 

All of these measures taken together will help protect our local biodiversity including endangered coho salmon, hopefully allowing for its population to increase while also ensuring that Marin residents understand the reasonable development limitations.

EAC and many other NGOs support the ordinance; and we are hopeful that it will help protect endangered coho salmon, steelhead trout, and our riparian corridors. An exciting culmination of over 15 years of work by SPAWN, and now the ordinance serves as a model for other County jurisdictions. 

Past Copies of Print and Email Newsletters

Western Monarchs - Videos, Working Group Update, Resource Library 

Healthy Tomales Bay

Marin MPA Watch Volunteer Program

Point Reyes National Seashore Ranching Plan

Safeguarding our Coast and Ocean Blog

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