Friends of Gualala River

This article is a brief overview.
See all of the articles from the Water Quality campaign.

Historically, the Gualala River was home to abundant coho salmon and steelhead trout populations that numbered in the tens of thousands. Today, the endangered coho salmon are all but gone and threatened steelhead are struggling to survive in the home river they evolved and adapted to over millennia. The dwindling salmonid population is a critical indicator of the declining health of the Gualala River, and its 300 square mile watershed, and continues to be at the core of Friends of Gualala River’s work.

FoGR is working with state agencies to reduce water quality impairments from both sediment pollution and pollution from stormwater run-off containing toxic tire grit (6PPD).

Adult coho salmon; photo by NOAA Fisheries Sediment (TMDL)

In 2001, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) listed the Gualala River as impaired under the Clean Water Act due to excessive sediment and high temperatures – both conditions that hamper fish spawning and create unhealthy conditions for fish throughout their lifespan. The chief sources of sediment are roads, landslides, and legacy timber harvesting practices.

California agencies failed to develop plans to reduce sediment and temperature for 20 years. In 2021, FoGR petitioned the State Water Resources Control Board and North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board to incorporate the EPA’s Gualala River Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for sediment into the North Coast Basin Plan and to develop and implement an action plan specifying how sediment pollution will be reduced throughout the watershed. That petition was successful. FoGR achieved a major accomplishment that will help improve water quality and reduce sediment pollution in the Gualala River and its tributaries – a pivotal step in assisting salmonid recovery efforts.

Now that FoGR has successfully negotiated an agreement, work can begin in earnest to restore the impaired Gualala River and its tributaries. The Regional Water Board adopted the Action Plan for the Gualala River Sediment TMDL in February, 2026, and is developing a Gualala Roads Assessment Order, a watershed-specific order that will address sediment pollution by requiring the inventory, assessment, and prioritization of sediment-generating roads.

Sediment from the remains of a timber company’s summer crossing sheds into the North Fork during winter flows. (Photo courtesy of FoGR) Stormwater (6PPD)

In 2020 FoGR learned of a chemical found in tire grit that pollutes stormwater and kills a number of different aquatic species. It is especially toxic to coho salmon— 40 parts per trillion in a quart of stormwater kills juvenile coho. Information has been pouring out of the State of Washington where the effects of 6 PPD were first discovered as scientists race to learn more about how the compound kills and what can be done about it.

In 2022, CA Urban Streams Alliance-The Stream Team (The Stream Team) expanded its long-standing watershed monitoring program and began collaborating with Friends of Gualala River (FoGR) to investigate 6PPD-Quinone (6PPD-Q)—a tire-derived pollutant highly toxic to Coho Salmon and Steelhead—in the Gualala River estuary.

In May of 2024 the team of volunteers ran their first samples and discovered that stormwater runoff from the downtown area of Gualala contains high levels of 6PPD-Q, confirming their suspicions. “It makes sense,” says Baker. “Even though Gualala is a small town in a rural area, we have concentrated traffic, especially trucks, trailers, and other heavy vehicles all using Highway 1.”

Storm-event samples were collected at four sites upstream and downstream of major road surfaces and analyzed for 6PPD-Q, zinc, oil and grease, and standard field parameters. Results show elevated 6PPD-Q (up to 170 ng/L), zinc, conductivity, and turbidity, with highest concentrations at sites influenced by Highway 1, gas stations, and parking lots.

Gualala River estuary / lagoon at sunset, April 27, 2026.
Photo courtesy of Efi Benjamin, River Bend Kayaks.

GUALALA ROADS ASSESSMENT ORDER Recent Public Meetings

North Coast Water Board staff and the Sonoma Resource Conservation District (Sonoma RCD) recently hosted two community meetings to provide information on the developing Gualala Roads Assessment Order. Presentations addressed components of a typical road assessment, paths to completing assessments required by the order, and updates on the technical work conducted by the Sonoma RCD.

A selection of questions raised by meeting attendees (in bold) and North Coast Water Board responses (in italics) are included below. This summary does not capture all community discussions; it is intended only to give high‑level responses to a selection of key concerns. For answers to additional questions, please see the Frequently Asked Questions on the Gualala Roads Program web page or contact project staff identified in the Contact Information section below.

The responses below outline order concepts and do not represent final decisions.  Concepts may change as staff continue internal deliberations and further input is received from the public. The North Coast Water Board will make final decisions only at adoption. Before then, draft order language will be available to the public once the draft order is released for review.

Q: Who will the order apply to?

A: The Gualala Roads Assessment Order will apply to landowners in the Gualala River Watershed who own 1,000 acres or greater.

The North Coast Water Board retains the authority to issue separate, individual Water Code section 13267 informational orders to other landowners if the North Coast Water Board’s Executive Officer determines that roads on their properties pose a risk to water quality.

Q: When will landowners be required to complete road assessments and implement treatments?

A: Assessment requirements for landowners in the Gualala River Watershed will be included in the Gualala Roads Assessment Order. Treatment requirements will be included in a later regionwide roads order.

A compliance schedule for completing road assessments and road management and treatment plans will be included in the Gualala Roads Assessment Order. Staff are considering a timeframe of approximately three years for assessments and road treatment plan submission, with flexibility for landowners to request an alternative timeline for Executive Officer approval. Landowners in the Gualala who accept North Coast Water Board-funded contract support will be subject to the same compliance schedule as those who conduct assessments independently.

Compliance schedules for the future regionwide roads order will be included in that order. Development of the regionwide roads order will occur through a separate public process, which is expected to begin this summer.

Q: What criteria will be used to determine who may serve as a “qualified professional” when conducting assessments for landowners?

A: North Coast Water Board staff are considering what criteria will be used to determine who may serve as a” qualified professional” when conducting assessments for order compliance.  A balance is being sought between flexible requirements and demonstrable experience in sediment and erosion control. These details will be made available this summer when the draft order is circulated for public review.

Similar orders issued by the North Coast Water Board require plans designed to prevent and minimize sediment delivery to be developed by professionals who possess qualifications such as licensure as a Registered Professional Forester, Professional Geologist, or Professional Civil Engineer.

Q: How much contract funding is available to support road assessments for landowners?

A: The North Coast Water Board has secured $5 million in contract funding to support Gualala landowners. These funds are being used to (1) develop technical reports that will recommend assessment methodologies, (2) conduct community outreach, (3) provide technical trainings to landowners on road improvement techniques, and (4) conduct road assessments. To date, approximately $3 million Based on a preliminary analysis, staff expect the currently contracted funds noted above will be able to cover most of the assessments and report development for landowners subject to the order.

Q: How will the $5 million of contract funding be used to educate landowners?

A: The Sonoma RCD is contracted to conduct a series of technical trainings to guide and support landowners in erosion and sediment control concepts and implementing road maintenance techniques to reduce erosion and sediment delivery to streams. The Sonoma RCD and North Coast Water Board are currently identifying a timeline for providing these technical trainings. Details will be provided when available.

Q: Will landowners be provided a template for completing assessments on their own?

A: The Sonoma RCD is contracted to develop an Evaluation Methodology report for the North Coast Water Board. This report will recommend a road assessment protocol and will be available for landowner use. Similarly, the California Salmonid Stream Habitat Restoration Manual, Part X provides example data forms and direction on conducting effective road assessments. In addition to these protocols, staff expect the order to allow landowners to propose an alternative assessment protocol for Executive Officer approval.

Timeline

A draft Gualala Roads Assessment Order will be made available for public review in summer 2026 in advance of a December 2026 adoption hearing of the North Coast Water Board. Specific dates for the review period and adoption hearing will be shared when available.

Upcoming Public Engagement Opportunities

North Coast Water Board staff continue to hold recurring staff office hours that serve as unstructured meetings during which members of the community are encouraged to share any questions or comments they may have about Gualala Roads Assessment Order. Details for upcoming office hours will be provided when available.

A third community meeting will be held at the Lake Sonoma Visitor Center on Thursday, June 18th, 2026, from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm. Additional details will be provided to email list subscribers when available.

GUALALA RIVER SEDIMENT TMDL ACTION PLAN ADOPTION

The North Coast Water Board adopted the Gualala Sediment Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Action Plan in February 2026. The Action Plan will be considered for approval by the State Water Resources Control Board in early 2027.

FUTURE QUARTERLY UPDATES

North Coast Water Board staff will continue to provide quarterly updates throughout the development of the projects. Please direct interested individuals or groups to subscribe at the following link for timely project information: public.govdelivery.com/accounts/CAWRCB/subscriber/new?topic_id=r1_tmdl_gualala_river_watershed

CONTACT INFORMATION

If you have any questions, concerns, or would like to know how to get further involved, please feel free to contact the following staff:

General Inquiries:
RB1-Gualala@waterboards.ca.gov

Gualala Roads Assessment Order:
Matt Graves (707) 576-2831 matt.graves@waterboards.ca.gov

Gualala TMDL Action Plan:
Joel Bisson (707) 576-2703 joel.bisson@waterboards.ca.gov

Are you ready to learn more about how beaver coexistence can build capacity for land managers and owners in California? Join the California Beaver Coexistence Training and Support Program on June 10, 2026 from 9-11:30am for an informative webinar featuring coexistence experts and practitioners.

By the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center
– visit their website to register for the webinar on June 10, 2026.

During their 2nd annual webinar, participants will hear from Grey Hayes, Beaver Coexistence Program Manager at Occidental Arts & Ecology Center. Grey will share about the California Beaver Help Desk. This new landowner support tool provides technical and financial support for those ready to expedite beaver solutions—from neighborhoods experiencing flooding, wetland managers with clogged culverts, and ranchers looking to preserve shade-producing trees.

The webinar will also feature presentations and discussions with two of the state’s leading beaver coexistence professionals: Cathy Mueller with Connected Ecology and David Krawitz-Greenspan of Wet Meadows Institute. They will share case studies showing how their work makes living alongside beaver easy and affordable for communities. The Beaver Institute’s Aaron Hall will describe the national context of California’s beaver coexistence efforts. Additionally, Molly Alves from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Beaver Restoration Program will offer updates about that program, and Vicky Monroe of CDFW’s Human Wildlife Conflict division will discuss how her team works to resolve human-beaver conflicts. 

Participants are encouraged to watch our previous webinar, which this year’s will build upon with timely new information and insights about coexistence in California. We anticipate ample time to answer participant questions during the webinar.

For more information, visit the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center:

• Beaver Coexistence In California Webinar
• Bring Back the Beaver

by Kenyon Rupnik
A version of this article was published in the
Independent Coast Observer on April 10, 2026

Chad Watts volunteered his labor and his 40-foot bucket truck to help replace a dead battery in the weather station atop the Gualala Point Regional Park Visitors Center.

Visitors looking up at the Gualala Point Visitors Center will see a weather station on top sitting thirty feet up in the air. The solar powered station is a partnership with Sonoma County Regional Parks and Friends of Gualala River. It has sent local climate conditions to whale watchers, beach goers and kayakers for five years.

Last month the lithium backup battery wore out, signaling that it needed to be changed. It required a simple three-volt battery, but reaching the station was going to be anything but simple.

Chad Watts with his PG&E bucket truck.

Jeanne Jackson asked for help through the Gualala Trading Post, and Chad and Marianne Watts answered. Chad is a “trouble shooter” for PG&E stationed in Point Arena, and he and PG&E volunteered his forty foot bucket truck for the project.

On Friday March 27 he met Gretchen Jay, the park ranger, and Laura Baker and Kenyon Rupnik from Friends of Gualala River at the Visitors Center for unit maintenance and battery change. As the pictures show, Chad is no stranger to heights.

Chad Watts talks with Laura Baker at the Visitors Center.

Hopefully, the new battery will last another five years before needing a change. Gualala’s users of the weather station thank Chad and PGE for his expertise and the equipment that made an otherwise difficult job very easy.

The weather station is a project of Friends of Gualala River, Sonoma County Regional Parks and Further Reach. Gualala Point weather conditions can continue to be viewed at the Friends of Gualala River website. The weather link also has information from other Davis weather stations in the watershed and from real-time PG&E fire camera views.

Photos courtesy of Kenyon Rupnik

Beavers, nature’s furry water engineers, are making a comeback on a major Central Coast waterbody with help from the California Water Boards and a group of dedicated educators and volunteers.

published by California Water Boards, April 8, 2026

Beavers stand on a lodge they made in Mather Lake. Credit- California Department of Fish and Wildlife

Funding from a 2021 settlement agreement between the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board and Pacific Gas and Electric Co. is supporting the Drinkable Rivers Program in San Luis Obispo County, a program that puts elected officials, students and others on the water to witness the benefits of beaver dams and ponds.

“The program not only helps the river, wildlife and the environment, it also directly involves the public,” said Ryan Lodge, executive officer of the Central Coast Water Board. “Providing hands-on experience for people who care deeply about the environment builds support for protecting the Salinas River in the long term. Additionally, the settlement with PG&E for water quality violations illustrates how our enforcement actions can both serve as a deterrent and lead to measures that benefit the public and the environment.”

The Central Coast Water Board is one of nine regional boards tasked with overseeing water quality in their watersheds. The regional boards set water quality standards and discharge requirements and take appropriate enforcement actions when necessary.

From pests to protectors

Once viewed as pests, beavers are now recognized for their many ecological benefits and their ability to help revitalize creeks and rivers. Research has shown that beaver dams can boost groundwater levels, improve water quality, provide drought resiliency, support biodiversity and even reduce wildfire risk.

“Beavers are our original river stewards and truly a keystone species; they are worth getting excited about,” said Audrey Taub, executive director of the San Luis Obispo (SLO) Beaver Brigade, a nonprofit dedicated to improving beaver habitat. “We want people to know that beavers can improve climate, drought and wildfire resilience throughout California.”

Targeted by settlers and fur trappers, California and the West’s beaver populations declined sharply in the 1800s. Trappers desired the beavers’ valuable pelts while landowners retaliated against the giant rodents for building dams that slowed stream flow, flooded farmland and disrupted water delivery systems.

North American beaver populations were once pegged as high as 200 million, but after decades of exploitation and eradication, there are only approximately 10-15 million beavers left.

Among many other benefits, beaver dams — such as the one shown here on the Salinas River — can raise groundwater levels by slowing flows, allowing water to pool and seep into groundwater tables. Credit- California Water Boards staff A comeback story

With the help of conservationists and researchers, California beavers’ prospects are improving. In 2023, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife conducted its first beaver conservation release, returning beavers to the ancestral lands of the Mountain Maidu people in Plumas County. More releases have followed across the Sierra Nevada mountain range.

“Thanks to the leadership of our tribal partners and years of preparation, beavers are returning to their original homeland around the state,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2023. “California is restoring wildlife and critical habitat by working hand-in-hand with the tribes who have stewarded these lands.”

‘Beaver believers’

Back on the Central Coast, the Beaver Brigade has one hard and fast requirement for its tour participants: they must be willing to get wet.

On a sunny summer morning, the brigade led Central Coast Water Board staff into the Salinas River’s clear and shallow waters. Surrounded by thickets of cottonwoods, willows and other native vegetation, the participants got a close look at beaver dams and ponds on a stretch of the river near the city of Atascadero.

The river is the cornerstone of the Salinas Valley’s productive agricultural industry. Its surface flows and groundwater stores help farmers grow the lettuce, broccoli, strawberries, wine grapes and other crops that have earned the valley the moniker of the nation’s “salad bowl.”

The one-day educational tours, offered in English and Spanish, are free and teach participants to identify signs of beaver activity and how the dams can reduce common aquatic pollutants such as nitrates, phosphates, metals and excess sediments.

“People that go on our tours become beaver believers instantly,” Taub said. “We offer people the chance to be comfortable in a natural setting and see the beauty and wildlife all around the river.”

In addition to tours, the brigade uses grant funding from the Central Coast Water Board’s enforcement activities to support its summer internship course that offers teenagers career preparation skills, including data collection and presentation experience. The program also helps participants prepare for college by facilitating connections with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s College Corps Program.

Enforcement supports environmental work

The Water Boards’ Office of Enforcement plays a key role in protecting water quality, water supply and water availability for present and future generations by providing technical and legal support for enforcement actions across all the Water Boards’ regulatory programs.

Staff from the state and regional water boards work with public water systems, dischargers, and other regulated parties to ensure compliance with applicable laws and permits. Most formal enforcement actions fall into one of two categories: compliance orders and monetary penalties. In fiscal year 2024/25, the Water Boards issued 2,509 informal enforcement actions, 1,293 compliance actions and 209 penalty actions, imposing approximately $29 million in penalties.

In some cases, the Water Boards allow parties to settle their enforcement matters by completing or funding environmentally beneficial projects, including the one that is educating Central Coast residents about the importance of beavers.

To resolve alleged water quality violations at its Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, PG&E agreed to pay $5.9 million to the Central Coast Water Board; the board ultimately allocated $1.2 million from the settlement to the Central Coast Community Based Water Quality Grants Program, which helps fund the Beaver Brigade.

“The funding we receive [from the 2021 PG&E settlement] allows us to broaden whom we can take out to see the re-emerging beaver habitat and educate about the importance of the health of the Salinas River,” Taub said.

Central Coast Water Board staff and board members in front of a beaver dam on the Salinas River during a Beaver Brigade tour. Credit- California Water Boards staff