What a start to 2023! Rain and snowfall early this month broke 100 year-old records in some parts of the state. Despite some devastating regional flooding, it was a welcome relief from the past three years that were the driest ever recorded—and collectively, the previous 20 were the driest in the last 1,200 years. So yeah, good to get some rain, though these extremes remind us of the variable nature of California’s Mediterranean climate and how scientists’ predictions about climate change increasing this variability are coming to fruition. Climate change is here and in California, this translates into a water crisis. 

With the start of the new year, CalTrout begins as focused as ever on building resiliency of California’s waters to better adapt to the extremes of climate change. This is a huge challenge; you’ve seen how we are ramping up to meet the moment. As part of this ramp up, we are pleased to introduce Charlie Schneider as CalTrout’s Lost Coast Project Manager which is a new position for our organization. His role primarily entails building our work capacity between the Russian and Eel river watersheds and continuing CalTrout’s efforts to free the Eel River and decommission the Potter Valley Project. We’re excited to have him on board, have a dedicated staff member working on the removal of the Eel River dams, and be expanding into new places.

Speaking of new places, CalTrout has officially opened our new Mt. Lassen region! The region has a physical office in Chico and joins CalTrout’s six other regional offices across California, a legislative/policy office in Sacramento, and CalTrout headquarters in San Francisco. By positioning CalTrout in key geographical areas where wild fish influence the community, the organization is suited to implement large-scale conservation projects for the benefit of California’s fish, water, and people.

The Mt. Lassen region is kicking off with its flagship project, the Iron Canyon-Big Chico Creek Fish Passage Project (read more about it in the stories below). The project was recently recommended for over $9 million in funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). One of the reasons—an important one—that allows us to achieve these substantial grant awards is the large support we receive from our donors. The generosity of CalTrout’s members allows us to leverage and grow grant funding and execute more programs that benefit wild fish and people. Thank you to all who contributed to our 2022 year-end campaign. It was the most successful one we’ve seen for our organization!

Thanks again for your continued support and we look forward to sharing with you more of our progress throughout the year.