By Renee Victoria Hoyos,
Special Assistant to the Secretary
California Resources Agency

The Joint Task Force on California Watershed Management was convened by Secretary Mary Nichols and State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Chair Art Baggett to evaluate the state of watershed management in California. Furthermore, the Task Force made recommendations regarding watershed management to the Legislature through a report entitled “Addressing the Need to Protect California’s Watersheds: Working in Partnerships.” Representatives of various state, federal, and local organizations compose this 14–member task force. The members met four times in the fall of 2001 to discuss watershed management issues facing California.

Earlier in the year, staff from the SWRCB and the Resources Agency, along with a UC Berkeley consultant, researched 10 watershed partnerships selected through an open application process. The ten watershed groups selected for study were:

• Arroyo Seco Watershed Restoration Feasibility Study
• Clear Lake Basin Watershed Management Project
• Codornices Creek Watershed Restoration Action Plan
• Elkhorn Slough Watershed Permit Coordination Program
• Humboldt Bay Watershed Advisory Committee
• Los Peñasquitos Lagoon Enhancement Plan and Program
• Santa Ana River Watershed Program and Santa Ana Watershed Group
• Santa Clara Basin Watershed Management Initiative
• Tomales Bay Watershed Council and Lagunitas Creek Technical Advisory Committee
• Yuba Watershed Council