Archived Press Releases

PRESS RELEASE - August 8, 2005

Public Input Requested:
Churn, Clover and Stillwater Creek Watershed Assessment is Underway!

Come join your neighbors and other interested stakeholders for the newest Shasta County watershed group representing the eastside watersheds of Churn Creek, Clover Creek, and Stillwater Creek. These watersheds include all of the Enterprise, north Redding, Churn Creek Bottom, City of Shasta Lake, Mountain Gate, and Bear Mountain Rd communities. The Western Shasta Resource Conservation District (RCD) is hosting this August 10, 2005 meeting from 5:30-7:00 PM at their north Anderson office: 6270 Parallel Rd, just west of Highway 273 at Hill St, ½ mile north of Ox Yoke Rd.

This exciting meeting is an opportunity for the public to provide input and suggestions for the structure and outline of the recently started Churn-Clover-Stillwater Creek Watershed Assessment. The Assessment will be a similar document to the Shasta West Watershed Assessment made available to the public last month. The RCD and their contractor will be providing a draft version of the outline that will be used to guide the development of the data-rich assessment over the next one and a half years. Public participation will be a key component during the development of the assessment as watershed stakeholders provide firsthand information about the current and historical changes occurring in the watershed.

Additionally, the meeting will feature several key topics covered in detail during the July 13 meeting, including: developing consensus on a more formal name for the watershed group, organizing a watershed-wide tour, and clarifying topics for guest speakers at future meetings.

The Western Shasta RCD received funding from the State Water Resources Control Board through the Proposition 13 Watershed Grant Program for this project. Forming watershed groups is one way of organizing everyone in a watershed (an area from ridgetop to stream, and everywhere in between) to work cooperatively to conserve and improve the health of the environment, especially water quality, fish and wildlife habitat, and therefore, improve the local quality of life. The activities of people upstream from where you live impacts you and the lives of people, fisheries and wildlife downstream. We all depend on watershed health for drinking water, flood protection, sustainable resources and other elements in determining the quality of life.

All three watersheds have similar flooding problems, wetland issues, disappearing riparian habitat, communities of non-native vegetation such as Giant Reed, and rapidly expanding housing and commercial development. Watershed groups can provide the opportunity to address these issues and gather resources for effective watershed management. For additional information on this meeting and upcoming meetings, please contact the Western Shasta RCD at (530) 365-7332 x 203.