1. The Watershed Project Michelle LeBeau Jennifer Robinson
Miller Creek Pilot Watershed Project Stewardship Group Formation & Historical Ecology of the Watershed
North Bay Watershed Association
March 7, 2008
The Watershed Project
Michelle LeBeau
Jennifer Robinson
San Francisco Estuary Institute
Micha Salomon
Meredith Williams
Chuck Striplen
Robin Grossinger
Josh Collins
Linda Wanczyk
Photo Courtesy Marin History Museum, Brady Collection

2. Acknowledgments Harry Seraydarian - North Bay Watershed Association
Liz Lewis & Paul Curfman - Marin County Flood Control & Water Conservation District
Lucas Valley Homeowners Association
Jeff Haltiner – Hydrologist, Philip Williams and Associates
Ernest Klock - Marin County Dept. of Public Works
Jocelyn Moss, Barbara Eaton - Marin History Museum
Dennis Healey, Robert Taylor - Marin Community Development Agency
Sue Holland - Miller Creek School

3. Discussion today Project Overview Stewardship Formation
Historical Ecology
Future directions

4. Project Goals and Approach
Stewardship Group Formation:
Establish an organization
Develop the funding plan
Historical Ecology Study
Historical & existing conditions
Landscape change assessment
How can Historical Ecology be used to promote stewardship and further community watershed understanding?
Will informed stewards use their historical understanding to establish ecological goals? enhance steelhead habitat protection efforts?
Can Miller Creek residents use HE to inform bank and riparian restoration efforts?

5. Key Project Learning Effective partnership
Good community participation in both aspects of the project
Successful launch of stewards group
Challenging final products

6. Miller Creek Watershed Stewards
Strong government encouragement
Generated public interest
Core team established
4 public outreach meetings
Fiscal sponsorship
Future funding sources identified

7. A Resource Guide for Community Stewardship Efforts
Over 50 active community-based organizations or groups in the San Francisco Bay Area to protect our valuable water resources
Organizations take many forms, from formal to informal, calling themselves Keepers, Alliances, Fields of, Stewards, Watershed groups or watershed organizations, among others
Sustainability is a growing issue for all watershed efforts

10. Community Organizing
When starting a watershed stewardship organization, all parties with any stake in the watershed should be identified and informed
Create a database or some type of tracking system for community contacts

11. Structuring a Community-Based Organization
Steps for Finding the Right Structure for Your Organization
Step 1: Focus & Purpose
Step 2: Organizational Structure
Step 3 : Action Plan
Step 4 : Annual Budgeting

12. Project and Program Management (Contd…)
Examples of common Projects undertaken by watershed organizations
Creekside Re-Vegetation Projects
Native Plant Demonstration Gardens
In-Class Creek Ecology and urban runoff education
Storm Drains Stenciling Campaign
Production of Creek Care Best Management Practices Guidelines
Volunteer Water Quality and Macro Invertebrates Monitoring Program
Compilation of Oral Histories of Long-Term Residents of the Watershed
GIS Mapping of the Creek or of the Places of Interest
Development and Installation of Watershed Signs
Pollution Reduction Campaigns
Advocacy
Organizational Development

13. Fundraising
Good set of questions to ask at the beginning of a fundraising cycle:
How much do you need? What’s your goal?
Do you need operating support or project-specific funds?
How long will you need to sustain that funding level?
What are your volunteer and staff resources?
How much time is available?
What is the interest of the volunteers?

14. Fundraising (Contd…) Fundraising Strategies
Board Member Solicitation (ongoing)
Individual Contribution (most flexibility in terms of time frame)
Public Funders (time frame typically ranges from 3 to 12 months)
Membership Program (ongoing)
Corporate/Business Contribution (time frame typically ranges from 3 to 6 months)
Corporate Foundations (time frame typically ranges from 4 to 6 months)
Private Foundations and Trusts (time frame typically ranges from 4 to 6 months)
Fundraising Event (intimate events can be planned in 3 to 4 months; most take 6 to 12 months of planning)
In Kind Services

15. The lake at Heather Farm
Walnut Creek, CA
The lake at Heather Farm
1834 tule grove
1850 “warm sulfur spring”
1894 near contour lines and new roads
1959 filtration plan

16. Historical Ecology: science + history
Tool for understanding landscape change
Helps understand the contemporary landscape
Challenges assumptions, identifies opportunities
Reveals options for the future
 better understanding of how the system is functioning (hydrology, geomorphology, and ecology)
 basis for integrated watershed planning
Work with the natural landscape patterns and tendencies
More informed community members

17. Legend
Work in progress
Study Completed

18. Painting of Miller Creek by George Demont Otis

19. THANK YOU!!!