Streamkeeper’s bLog – September 2017

September 28, 2017

A successful feedback loop

A word from CalTrout’s ED, Curtis Knight

Last week we had the pleasure of getting to know Assemblymember Jim Cooper (D-Elk Grove) and Assemblymember Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton) on a field trip to Clearwater Lodge where we fished the Pit and Fall Rivers and Hat Creek. Along with some fun times spent on the water, and seeing Jim catch his first fish on a fly rod, we toured Hat Creek, the state’s first Wild Trout Management Area and where we recently have restored in-stream habitat and improved recreational infrastructure. This includes the installation of a pedestrian bridge at the historic Carbon Bridge site from which our group saw two bald eagles fly overhead, putting an exclamation point on the beauty and grandness of this area.

This was also a great opportunity to share with our legislators the value of the area’s spring-fed rivers to California’s water supply, and what CalTrout is doing to better understand and protect them. Stockton and Elk Grove, along with many of California’s largest cities and towns, may be hundreds of miles away from these areas, but these spring waters can be traced directly to the tap of millions of Californians as far south as San Diego.

Working in Sacramento with our legislators is an important part of CalTrout’s working model. We work in areas throughout the state where wild fish influence communities. We solve complex resource issues that benefit wild fish and people. We scale up and memorialize these successes in Sacramento through new policies and state funding directed at these programs. And in turn these policies and funding go back to these communities. It is a successful feedback loop.

With the current legislative session just ending, we are pleased to report the successful passing of Senate Bill 5, the new ‘Park Bond’. This funding bill still needs the governor’s signature (likely) and then goes to the voters next year for passage. If passed, the $4.1 billion would go towards water and parks projects in California.

Developing positive relationships and giving tours of the amazing rivers in California showing off our work has positioned CalTrout as the go-to organization for legislators for guidance on issues pertaining to fish, water, and people.

Tight lines,

CURTIS SIG

MEET THE AUTHORS

Peter Moyle is the Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology and Associate Director of the Center for Watershed Sciences, at UC Davis. He is author or co-author of more than 240 publications, including the definitive Inland Fishes of California (2002). He is co-author of the 2017 book, Floodplains: Processes and Management for Ecosystem Services. His research interests include conservation of aquatic species, habitats, and ecosystems, including salmon; ecology of fishes of the San Francisco Estuary; ecology of California stream fishes; impact of introduced aquatic organisms; and use of floodplains by fish.

Robert Lusardi is the California Trout/UC Davis Wild and Coldwater Fish Researcher focused on establishing the basis for long-term science specific to California Trout’s wild and coldwater fish initiatives. His work bridges the widening gap between academic science and applied conservation policy, ensuring that rapidly developing science informs conservation projects throughout California. Dr. Lusardi resides at the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences and works closely with Dr. Peter Moyle on numerous projects to help inform California Trout conservation policy. His recent research interests include Coho salmon on the Shasta River, the ecology of volcanic spring-fed rivers, inland trout conservation and management, and policy implications of trap and haul programs for anadromous fishes in California.

Patrick Samuel is the Conservation Program Coordinator for California Trout, a position he has held for almost two years, where he coordinates special research projects for California Trout, including the State of the Salmonids report. Prior to joining CalTrout, he worked with the Fisheries Leadership & Sustainability Forum, a non-profit that supports the eight federal regional fishery management councils around the country. Patrick got his start in fisheries as an undergraduate intern with NOAA Fisheries Protected Resources Division in Sacramento, and in his first field job as a crew member of the California Department of Fish & Wildlife’s Wild and Heritage Trout Program.

Streamkeeper’s bLog – September 2017

U P C O M I N G E V E N T

Science on Tap: Staying Flexible in a Complex World – A Look into Lamprey

MEET THE AUTHORS

Streamkeeper’s bLog – September 2017

Streamkeeper’s bLog – September 2017

A successful feedback loop

A word from CalTrout’s ED, Curtis Knight

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