A second-grade after-school student at Bay View Elementary School whips her hair in a circle, flinging water drops all over her fellow Watershed Rangers classmates as they squeal in a fit of laughter. Although the rainy season has not yet arrived in Santa Cruz and...

Before the winter rains come, how will you get ready for rain? The first significant rainfall of the year scours your streets and neighborhoods and will move everything in its path into local waterways. Heavy rain picks up and moves bacteria, oil and grease, sediment,...

Written by: Anna Maldonado CWC Environmental Leaders Fellow   Growing up in Santa Cruz, I was always aware of the San Lorenzo River running through town. After finishing my second year at UC San Diego studying Earth Sciences, I was...

Photos Courtesy of Jake J. Thomas Photo and Coastal Watershed Council staff. Storm drain murals beautify and increase public art in local neighborhoods, a priority for river neighbors, and help people visualize how their local storm drain is connected to...

The results of the 20th Annual Snapshot Day are here!During Snapshot Day 2019, 60 volunteers collected field measurements and water samples from rivers, streams and sloughs across Santa Cruz County. To determine the health of waterbodies sampled during...

The Coastal Watershed Council's River Health Day program engages corporate teams, community volunteers and youth groups to remove invasive species, plant native plants and improve ecosystem health along lower San Lorenzo River. In addition to...

On average, a dog produces 3/4 pounds, around 340 grams, of waste a day. In each gram of poop there are 23 million coliform bacteria. That means every time you pick up after your pet, you stop millions of billions of harmful bacteria from infecting people and dogs swimming downstream.

Thank you to all of the community scientists and other volunteers who attended the 20th Annual Snapshot Day on Saturday, May 4! Snapshot Day is the largest and longest running single-day water quality monitoring event in California. Every year, trained...

Thank you to all the Beach Flats community members who gathered on May 3rd to help design storm drain art at Beach Flats Park! Beach Flats is one of three riverside neighborhoods that will be collaborating with the Coastal Watershed Council, the City of Santa Cruz,...

Article originally published by FISHBIO in their weekly e-newsletter, the Fish Report. View Original Article on the...

Do you like working with others to benefit the environment and the community? Do you want to help inspire the next generation of environmental leaders? If you (or someone you know) wants to spend the summer honing leadership skills and improving the San Lorenzo River,...

This spring a storm drain near you is getting a makeover. Thanks to the partnership between the Coastal Watershed Council, neighbors in the Beach Flats and Ocean’s 11 communities, Environmental Projects Analyst Suzanne Healy and City Arts Manager Beth Tobey, local...

Thank you so much for making 2018 great! Yes, you. People like you who follow CWC's work, who participate, act and advocate for your river are generating positive change for your San Lorenzo River. You've accomplished a lot in 2018 and, as a result, your river is...

What does 2019 have in store for the Coastal Watershed Council? We are looking forward to more walks along the Santa Cruz Riverwalk, blooming native plants along the San Lorenzo River and getting to know Santa Cruz’s network of river lovers and...

If you've ever crossed the San Lorenzo River at the Trestle Bridge in the peak of summer, you know it can be a harrowing experience. There are bikers, dog walkers and beachgoers bumping past one another to get to the opposite bank. Next summer, that will change. On...

Your support drives each and every accomplishment of the Coastal Watershed Council from engaging 500 volunteers and helping to empower 2,500 youth each year for a cleaner and healthier San Lorenzo River. The impact that CWC and these volunteers and youth create...

Do you remember the first time you put on waders and stepped into a river? Walking forward, you watched your boots disappear as the water deepened. You felt a cold pressure wrap around each leg, and maybe you wondered, is there a hole where the water is seeping in? If...

The Coastal Watershed Council is committed to fostering the leadership of the next generation of environmental leaders and is proud to do through our summer fellowship program. This year, Francisca Fazzio spent her summer working with the Coastal Watershed Council as...

No matter your age, you can make a difference. This school year, CWC will teach over 2,500 youth through scientific investigation and study of the San Lorenzo River watershed, increasing their awareness of environmental issues and how they can be part of...

The 19th Annual Snapshot Day took place on Saturday, May 5, 2018. Led by the Coastal Watershed Council, volunteers from Santa Cruz joined volunteers across the Central Coast in studying water quality in local streams running to the Monterey Bay and nearby...

Did you know that the City of Santa Cruz received a grant to plant 500 trees throughout Santa Cruz this year? Thanks to volunteers and staff from the Coastal Watershed Council, Patagonia Santa Cruz Outlet and City of Santa Cruz Parks and...

Nearly 100 youth explored the San Lorenzo River this summer. Youth from the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter, Nueva Vista Community Resources and the downtown Boys and Girls Club explored, investigated and examined the lower San Lorenzo River as part of their...

The year is 2025 and you have created the Santa Cruz Riverwalk of your dreams. You decided what activities you can do there, what features to add, how to connect the Riverwalk with the San Lorenzo River and how the Riverwalk makes you feel. Maybe your...

When educators inspire wonder and curiosity in their students, the students learn differently. They build an interest in observing more, in research and in understanding what they see. Students seek to develop their own explanation of how, why or what...

Santa Cruz's Chinatown once stood along the lower San Lorenzo River, built on "China Lane" between the city's downtown business district east of Front Street, where today stands Regal Riverfront Cinemas. As the Coastal Watershed Council looks to the river's future, we...

Repair your sewer lateral. Save money. Protect the San Lorenzo River. On June 12 the City of Santa Cruz launched an incentive program to support Santa Cruz homeowners and business owners in completing repairs on their sewer laterals. The incentive program includes a...

By Alexandra Baldwin, CWC Restoration Ecology Intern   Have you noticed the hundreds of pink flags along the lower San Lorenzo River between the Laurel and Soquel Avenue Bridges?   Each flag marks a young beneficial plant that was planted by a community...

Gambusia affinis is one of the most widely introduced species across the globe. When they are destructive in their non-native ecosystems, they’re deemed an invasive species, yet in other contexts they may cause little to no harm. Read on to find out...

The Coastal Watershed Council (CWC) is moving our office to the lower San Lorenzo River so that we can more easily care for the river on a daily basis, see what’s happening at the river from our desks and more easily host events that bring you to the river. CWC's...

On Saturday, March 17, volunteers from the Santa Cruz Warriors and Big Brothers Big Sisters worked together to plant over 400 plants along the San Lorenzo River. The crew of 80 river stewards included staff, players, coaches, season ticket holders and Big Brother Big...

How do you take action for the lower San Lorenzo River and the Santa Cruz Riverwalk? There are so many ways to make a difference! Hear from Community Foundation CEO Susan True about how she takes action to transform the lower San Lorenzo River into a community...

“It can’t swim anymore!” Swarming around a tupperware container filled with water representing the San Lorenzo River, youth at the Boys and Girls Club excitingly use a turkey baster to remove water from the creek representing the extraction of water from

Are you interested in spearheading change for the San Lorenzo River?Are you ready to practice your leadership? Do you like working with others to benefit the environment and the community? If you (or someone you know) wants to spend their summer honing their...

By Megan Sabal, UCSC, Graduate Student, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Department Striped bass (Morone saxatilis) are anadromous fish that spawn in freshwater and travel to productive ocean waters to reach impressive sizes. Within this...

The Santa Cruz Riverwalk's 5 mile loop was completed in 2017 with the construction of the Branciforte Creek Bicycle Pedestrian Bridge. On January 24, this project and its engineer -City Engineer/Assistant Public Works Director Chris Schneiter (pictured here, left) -...

By Katherine Dale, PhD student, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of California Santa Cruz Take a walk along the San Lorenzo River and you’ll almost certainly see black, football-shaped birds speedily swimming around. They might be...

You've heard of giving challenges - the Ice Bucket Challenge, Giving Tuesday and more. Here's another opportunity to join in and give back. And this time, it's directly in your community. Santa Cruz Gives is a holiday fundraising program that’s new to our county, but...

As 2017 comes to a close, we reflect on what we have accomplished together over the past year. We recognize the youth and the adults, the corporate teams and community groups that explored and took action to improve the San Lorenzo River and other...

Each year, CWC organizes River Health Days along the San Lorenzo River. These volunteer events aim to improve riparian habitat by removing or slowing the spread of invasive exotic plants and supporting native plant growth. From August to October 2017, CWC organized...

What a difference you have made in your community this year! You have contributed your time, energy, donations and ideas towards a healthier, cleaner, safer and more vibrant San Lorenzo River, for everyone. You've worked alongside the Coastal Watershed Council and...

The 18th Annual Snapshot Day took place on Saturday, May 6, 2017. 55 volunteers visited 43 sites from Año Nuevo Creek to the Pajaro River to get an annual “snapshot” of water quality in Santa Cruz County. Led by the Coastal Watershed Council, volunteers...

The first significant rainfall of the season is technically known as the ‘first flush’. First flush events have a scouring effect on local neighborhoods, moving bacteria, sediment, fertilizers, cleaners and metals into local waterways. During the “first flush” or...

"People should care about steelhead trout because they are threatened species!"   Huddled in groups, fifth and sixth grade students at Pacific Elementary School discussed the various threats to steelhead trout survival based upon their investigation...

The Coastal Watershed Council is committed to fostering the leadership of the next generation of environmental leaders. Throughout the year we incorporate leadership development into our environmental education program Watershed Rangers, we work alongside local high...

What does a healthy river look like to you? You may imagine people playing in the river, or a river teeming with spawning steelhead in the early winter. Perhaps a river with tall and short trees surrounding it. In order to support animals and humans a river must have...

School is a place for development, learning, challenge, creativity and discovery. At schools, youth build a deeper sense of community both on the school campus and with our neighboring world. The Coastal Watershed Council has had the privilege to work with teachers...

By Mollie Behn, CWC Education Coordinator “Where does the river start?” I ask. “At the Santa Cruz Boardwalk” responds one of the youth. To those that have lived at the river mouth all their lives, it does seem that way, but it's not actually the case. The headwaters...