Santa Clara County Creeks Coalition

Advocates for Living Streams

Friends of Stevens Creek Trail moving to remove fish migration barrier on Stevens Creek here.

  

Click here to see our Self-Guided Walks Brochures for Three Locations Along the Creek

 

movie

           Coyote Creek:

    Beauty of a Living Stream

thumbnailcoyotecreekvideo

 

 

 

 

           Stevens Creek:

    Our Dream of Living Streams

creek 3

Restore and Protect Our Streams for all to Enjoy!

Become a member or renew your annual membership with a secure, tax-deductible gift (suggested donation is $50 per membership). When you join the Santa Clara County Creeks Coalition, you’re supporting the efforts to make our creeks healthy and beautiful once again – reversing the damage done to them through decades of urban development – and creating opportunities to enjoy them in many ways. All members will receive our electronic newsletter three times a year and updates on our work.

Coalition Initiatives

2020

Initiated administrative support to the Friends of Stevens Creek Trail in implementing the Stevens Creek Steelhead Passage Improvement Project to remove a fish migration barrier in the upper watershed. Completion expected in 2021.

Conducted tour of Coyote Creek for Board of Guadalupe Coyote Resources Conservation District and members of the public. Visited sites representing potential for invasive plant removal and native plant revegetation, fish migration barriers, thermal pollution and fishery predation, water management challenges.

Formally withdrew Water Rights Complaint filed by Sierra Club and Creeks Coalition in March 2018. Withdraw was appropriate because the State Water Board had taken no action on the Complaint in almost 2 years and there was evidence that no action would be taken in the future. The regulatory system to protect our streams is basically “broken”.

Secured codification of proposed legislation from Legislative Counsel to the State Legislature with respect to a proposed “Public Trust Resources Protection Act”. This bill would require the State Water Board to raise fees on water rights holders to fund a program to establish instream flow objectives and habitat enhancements necessary to compensate for lost ecological values and functions on 85 rivers in California within 15 years.

Secured codification of proposed legislation from Legislative Counsel to the California State Legislature with respect to a proposed “San Francisco Bay Region Fish Migration Barrier Removal and Remediation Act. This bill would require the Department of Fish and Game to removed all fish migration barriers on 42 SF Bay Region streams within 12 years.

2019
Filed expert testimony with State Water Resources Control Board with respect to protection of water quality and fishery habitat conditions at the confluence of Alamitos Creek and the Guadalupe River

Filed expert testimony with the Regional Water Quality Control Board with respect to restoration of habitat conditions, primarily temperature, conducive to the rearing of steelhead trout in Los Gatos Creek, a tributary of the Guadalupe River

Filed comments with the Santa Clara Valley Water District on the Lake Almaden Creek Lake Separation Project pointing out the need to expand the scope of the project to include cessation of operation of the Flashboard Dam, as recommended by NOAA Fisheries in 2014, in order to fully achieve the fishery habitat benefits of the project

2018

Filed a Water Rights Complaint with the State Water Resources Control Board alleging adverse impacts on public trust resources (steelhead trout) caused by operations of the Flashboard Dam at the Alamitos Drop Structure on the Guadalupe River in San Jose, downstream of the confluence of Alamitos Creek and Guadalupe Creek. Requested remedies were a series of studies to determine the flows necessary to assure long term sustainability of steelhead trout on the tributaries of the Guadalupe River and a feasibility study to determine the feasibility of cessation of operation of the flashboard dam so as to enable the restoration of the creek channel as a flowing creek rather than a backwater pond.

2018

Jan:    

  • Transferred "Friends of Coyote Creek Watershed" project to the South Bay Clean Creeks Coalition, ending our 4 years of effort to create a  Trash Free Coyote Creek.
  • Made presentation at the Peninsula Conservation Center about next steps in restoring fish passage on Stevens Creek.  Working with the Deep Cliff Golf Course to get grants to remove their barrier to fish migration. Providing information to NOAA and the San Francisco PUC to encourage them to address the barrier associated with the Hetch Hetchy Pipeline Crossing of Stevens Creek.
  • 2017
  • Removed 60,000 pounds of trash from the banks of Coyote Creek with the help of 842 volunteers during the life of the Trash Free North Coyote Creek project.
  • Completed the Stevens Creek Steelhead Passage Improvement Feasiblity Report - recommending facility modifications to improve adult and juvenile migration at 8 locations along the creek.
  • Completed stakeholder input process for opportunities and constraints report for the Metcalf Ponds/Parkway Lakes Steelhead Passage and Habitat Improvement Project
  • HIred Jake Black, a student at West Valley College majoring in Park Management, as our student intern to make a dozen presentations on the history and ecology of Coyote Creek to high school classes throughout the watershed.
  • Completed invasive plant inventory on Granite Rock property in north San Jose; began preparation of the Coyote Creek Invasive Plant Removal and Native Plant Revegetation Implementation Plan
  • Implemented a docent training program and had 10 docent led nature walks along Coyote Creek in north San Jose
  • Secured grant from Santa Clara County Open Space Authority to support the efforts Amanda Fukamoto, the coordinator of the Coyote Creek Homeless Stream Stewards, to organize the homeless to remove trash from the banks of Coyote Creek.
  • Hired Holly Rodriguez as Social Media and Volunteer Outreach Coordinator; hired Jana Neubauerova and Stuart Richardson as project coordinators.

 

2016

  • Hired new staff:  Briana Lipka as Program Director and Lon Saavedra as Strategic Development Advisor.
  • Assisted Campus Community Association to secure a grant from Santa Clara Valley Water District to conduct planning to address fish passage and habitat issues at the Metcalf Ponds facility on Coyote Creek in South San Jose.
  • Assisted the Friends of Stevens Creek Trail to secure a grant from the Water District to conduct planning to address fish passage at eight locations along Stevens Creek (with funding support from Cities of Cupertino, Sunnyvale and Mountain View and the Mid-Peninsula Regional Open Space District.
  • Assisted Working Partnerships to secure a grant from the Water District to conduct planning to hire the homeless to remove invasive plants and revegetate with natives along Coyote Creek – with the goal of achieving environmental enhancements and social justice benefits of helping the homeless to gain the wherewithal to relocate to stable housing off of the creek.
  • Contracted with San Jose State University Students to secure political support for restoring steelhead trout passage on Coyote Creek and for relocating the homeless to tiny-houses-on-wheels managed villages outside the creek corridor.
  • Developed draft proposal to create a Native Plant and Butterfly Habitat Garden along Coyote Creek
  • Submitted a proposal to the Water District to develop on District land a “creek cleanup staging area and transitional housing for the homeless” to facilitate creek cleanups by homeless participating in the trash cleanup program of the Coyote Creek Homeless Stream Stewards.
  • Began implementation of the Trash Free North Coyote Creek grant awarded by the Water District to achieve a trash free creek in north San Jose, implement a docent walks program and conduct outreach to the corporate community.

 

2015

  • Successfully completed the 15 month Trash Free Coyote Creek project, having removed 82,000 pounds of trash with the help of 1296 community volunteers along a 2 mile stretch of Coyote Creek in south San Jose.
  • Held a conference called the “Coyote Creek Howl” at San Jose State University focused on issues related to environmental restoration, education, recreation, and homeless issues related to creeks and housing.
  • Re-started the “Coyote Creek Homeless Stream Stewards” – a group of homeless individuals living along Coyote Creek in north San Jose working to help the homeless manage their own trash and help create a trash free creek.  (The group has removed 58,000 pounds of trash between October 2015 and July 2016 – proving that the homeless can be part of the solution, not just the source of the problem.)
  • Received award from the Mayor’s Office, along with other volunteer creek cleanup groups, for our efforts to mobilize community volunteers to remove trash from the banks of San Jose Creeks

 

2014

  • Awarded grant from the Santa Clara Valley Water District to create a Trash Free Creek along a 2 mile stretch of Coyote Creek in South San Jose using community volunteers.
  • Secured support for the “Restore Coyote Creek” project from the San Jose State University’s Center for Community Learning and Leadership – seeking to link students and faculty to the effort to restore the ecological health of Coyote Creek and respectfully relocate the homeless to off-creek supportive housing.

 

In 2013

  • Created the "Friends of Coyote Creek Watershed" and conducted our first trash cleanup on December 13 – removing 3-1/2 truckloads of trash along Coyote Creek south of Tully Road in the area where City Parks Rangers had previously dismantled a homeless encampment that was polluting the creek
  • Submitted grant applications to the Santa Clara Valley Water District to provide a full-time community outreach and education/cleanup event coordinator for FY 2014-2015.
  • Submitted a grant application to the Santa Clara Valley Water District to remove the fish migration barrier at the City of San Jose's Singleton Road crossing and the begin engineering for addressing fish passage at the County's Ogier Ponds. These are the two most important fish migration barriers on Coyote Creek. If successful, the Singleton Road barrier would be removed by 2016!
  • Assisted the Friends of Los Gatos Creek with their trash cleanups.
  • Walked Los Gatos Creek recording the locations of invasive species, spawning habitat, homeless encampments and trash/grafitti along a 4 mile stretch of Los Gatos Creek.
  • Continued our advocacy for implementing the historic "Fisheries and Aquatic Habitat Collaborative Agreement of 2003" to restore salmon and trout fishery on Stevens Creek, Guadalupe River and Coyote Creek

 

In 2010 we focued on improving communications and coalition bulding by continuing with:

  • Promoting more Creek and Watershed Groups through a our website www.creekgroups.org
  • Promoting water and energy conserving buildings the also prevent erosion and toxic runoff through a partnership with the Silicon Valley Water Awards Coalition.
  • Promoting creative ideas toward trash reduction through our website www.trashytalk.org and working with a broad based group on a "Zero Litter Initative".
  • We had to put our our community outreach program on hold with the departure of Richard McMurtry who has retired.
  • Promoting collaboration, awareness, and education through our annual Creeks and Watershed Conference coming in November

In 2009 we are focusing on several campaigns:

  • Promoting more Creek and Watershed Groups through a our website www.creekgroups.org
  • Promoting water and energy conserving buildings the also prevent erosion and toxic runoff through our website www.bluegreenscc.org
  • Promoting creative ideas toward trash reduction through our website www.trashytalk.org
  • Promoting stewardship for streams and stream restoration with the continuation of our community outreach program
  • Promoting collaboration, awareness, and education through our annual Creeks and Watershed Conference coming in November

In 2008 we focused on:

  • Promoting stewardship for streams and stream restoration with our new community outreach program
  • Promoting collaboration, awareness, and education through our annual Creeks and Watershed Conference November 15th
  • Promoting solutions for methods of minimizing stream erosion through various techniques
  • Promoting clean water with our Citizen Clean Water Improvement Network website www.ccwin.org

In 2007 we focused on:

  • Promoting collaboration, awareness, and education through our first annual Creeks and Watershed Conference November 17th
  • Promoting solutions for methods of minimizing stream erosion through the continuation of series of workshops for decision and policy makers

 

 

Copyright © 2016. All Rights Reserved.