ESTUARY AND THE LOWER RIVER
Enhancing the Estuary and Lower River
The Eel estuary is the third largest coastal wetland in California, spread over roughly 10,000 acres. Reconnecting and restoring estuary habitat can provide needed rearing habitat which is vital to ensuring that juvenile salmonids are large and healthy when they enter salt water. Our goal aims to improve habitat, flows, and connectivity in the lower river to support these migrating native fish.
The Eel estuary has been diked and manipulated for over a century, but there is incredible potential to reclaim former marsh land as landowners retreat from agricultural lands increasingly prone to flooding and salt water incursion. Our work is focused on implementing effective groundwater management and preparing for climate change and sea level rise.
Groundwater Management
Public Trust Litigation
Connecting habitat
Groundwater Management
A groundbreaking legal decision in 2018 determined that the public trust doctrine does apply to groundwater, and that SGMA compliance does not nullify public trust obligations. Click here to read about the case, ELF v. State Water Resources Control Board and click here to listen to a podcast episode about the decision and its implications.
Public Trust Litigation
California Case Could Set National Precedent on Indian Water Rights
IN PALM SPRINGS, one of the hottest regions in California, precious groundwater has been depleted for decades to build lush golf courses, swimming pools and tract homes. Now the local American Indian tribe is pressing for a right to help manage that water. The Agua...
New Virus Infected the Brains of Last Year’s Eel River Salmon Run
Researchers have identified a novel virus found in the brains of Eel River salmon from last year’s strenuous run, but the find is not generating any concerns for fish health this year. U.C. Davis Associate Professor of medicine and epidemiology Esteban Soto Martinez...
Eel River Salmon go Blind Awaiting Rain
By Will Houston Recent high tides and brief mid-September rains gave some Eel River salmon a fleeting chance to move closer to their spawning grounds. But a lack of adequate flows on the river is causing many fish to fall ill as they crowd within small pools for weeks...
For a New Culture of Water in California
Just a year after Jerry Brown signed into law The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), the Union of Concerned Scientists has published a riveting report titled "Measuring What Matters: Setting Measurable Objectives to Achieve Sustainable Groundwater...
Eel River Flows Near Record Lows
The Eel River came close to reaching its lowest recorded flow reading near Scotia on Tuesday but is not expected to reach it any time this week due to Wednesday’s rainfall. On Monday and Tuesday, pressure flow gauges near Scotia recorded an average flow of 19...
Connecting Habitat
The Eel River estuary presents opportunities for modeling a proactive approach to adapting to sea level rise. Sea level rise in Humboldt Bay and the Eel River Estuary is among the fastest on the west coast of North America. Tectonic activity causes the land to sink and the mountains of the Lost Coast to rise quickly. While we work to open access to spawning grounds in the headwaters of the Eel, it’s also important to connect and enhance habitat in the estuary so all those juvenile salmonids have a safe and productive place to grow.
A wide range of entities have restoration projects on-going in the estuary including the Humboldt County Resource Conservation District, California Trout, Duck Unlimited, The Wiyot Tribe, Department of Fish and Wildlife, and more. And yet, we need more! The region needs a comprehensive Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment. But importantly, our community needs to acknowledge that informed by modern science, and facing the impacts of climate change, we cannot simply cannot manage natural resources in the same way we did 150 years ago.
Contact Us
Membership forms and other printed material may be mailed to:
Friends of the Eel River
PO Box 4945
Arcata, CA 95518
Email: foer(at)eelriver.org
Phone: (707) 798-6345
Please complete the form below and someone will respond to you shortly.