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Who We Are Nature

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Who We Are Nature NATURE WHO WE ARE BOLINAS LAGOON PRESERVING A ADVISORY COUNCIL Marin County Parks – NATIONAL TREASURE MEMBERS INCLUDE leads the effort to restore, preserve, manage, and care for the lands REPRESENTATIVES FROM: of Bolinas Lagoon for this and future generations. Uniting to Protect Bolinas Lagoon National Park Service and Greater Farallones Audubon Canyon Ranch National Marine Sanctuary – help protect and preserve the conservation, recreational, cultural, ecological, Bolinas Rod and Boat Club and aesthetic qualities of Bolinas Lagoon and the surrounding landscape. JUST 15 MILES northwest of bustling ITS CHANNELS, mudflats, marshes, and THE LAGOON’S incredible natural abun- College of Marin San Francisco, tucked between the rolling streams shelter and feeds multitudes of dance led to its designation as an Audubon One Tam – hills of Bolinas Ridge and the lower Point plants, marine mammals, birds, fish, and Important Bird Area, a State and National inspires community support for ecosystem restoration, education, Community At-Large Reyes peninsula, lies the 1,100 acre Bolinas invertebrates, including rare and special- Treasure, and one of only seven Ramsar and stewardship on and around Mount Tamalpais THE BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPES, THE SEA, THE BEACHES, AND Community of Bolinas Lagoon tidal estuary. Perched atop the status species. Tens of thousands of local Wetlands of International Importance in the Science Partners – THE LAGOON—these are what we work to protect. As members of the San Andreas Fault, this special place where shorebirds, seabirds,and migrants along the western United States. However, alongside including Audubon Canyon Ranch, UC Davis Bodega Marine Laboratory, Community of Stinson Beach the land meets the sea, is home to some Pacific Flyway rely on the lagoon for food, its history of protection and recognition is a community, local organizations, and agency representatives, we are all and Point Blue Conservation Science, along with numerous other organiza- of the richest and most diverse habitats while its protected sandbars and islands story of dramatic change that threatens the connected to this land and the cultural and personal values it holds for past, Golden Gate National tions, agencies, and academic institutions help provide critical research in the world. provide pupping grounds and year-round future of Bolinas Lagoon. Recreation Area to support management and planning. present, and future generations. resting sites for hundreds of harbors seals. Greater Farallones National Threatened and endangered steelhead trout The treasures of Bolinas Lagoon are also shared by the thousands of visitors and coho salmon maneuver through its waters Marine Sanctuary who find enjoyment, inspiration, and solace from its surrounding hills and to reach their upstream spawning grounds. AND YOU... shores. Birds, seals, fish, and invertebrates—including rare and endangered Marin County Parks The most important partner in protecting Bolinas Lagoon species—also depend on the lagoon and its environment, and we aim to is you! Whether it’s getting your hands dirty helping in the Point Blue Conservation Science preserve it. field, donating to a project, or advocating for its protection, Point Reyes National Seashore you can take pride in knowing that you are an important part As members of the Marin County Board of Supervisors’ Bolinas Lagoon Seadrift Homeowners Association We have such incredible resources here in Bolinas Lagoon. We have of a long tradition. Advisory Council, we proudly carry on the egacy of preservation, fault lines that govern our habitat and our geography. We are in collaboration, community, and stewardship. the heart of the Pacific Flyway and we are nestled within historical coastal redwood basin. What happens here, the beauty and the Local conservation networks, land managers, the fishing community, impacts, are important for West Marin, but they are important for environmentalists, scientists, and residents must continue to join forces to the globe too. Bolinas Lagoon should matter to everyone. VOLUNTEER GIVE meet today’s challenges while planning for the future. Putting our collective – Dr. Martin Griffin, Founder, Audubon Canyon Ranch Get outside and enjoy the lagoon’s breathtaking scenery You can support Bolinas Lagoon by making a tax- while helping restore critical habitats and recreation areas. deductible donation through One Tam. plans into action will take all of us working together. Contact Kate Bimrose at [email protected] or Contact Matt Leffert at [email protected] We pledge our dedication to the Bolinas Lagoon restoration because we (415) 970-5245. or (415) 561-3069. are all stewards of this land. We invite you to join us in this effort. Sincerely, The restoration of Bolinas Lagoon builds upon Bolinas Lagoon Advisory Council decades of grassroots community efforts. Together, we can continue this legacy and ensure Chair Co-Chair a bright future for this treasured place. Cover photo: Clint Graves JOIN US. Additional photography: Parks Conservancy and NPS staff and volunteers BOLINAS LAGOON PROJECTS LEGACY RESILIENCY ACTION PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE... AFTER YEARS of community efforts to raise awareness about Bolinas u l c h ...OF CHANGE ...OF PRESERVATION AND s G Lagoon, the US Army Corps of Engineers released a draft feasibility w i For tens of thousands of years, Bolinas Lagoon and its surrounding SOME OF THE PROPOSED L e COMMUNITY CARE study in 2002 that proposed dredging 1.4 million cubic feet of sediment watershed hosted some of the region’s richest natural habitats. Early PROJECTS INCLUDE*: from the lagoon, including all of Kent Island and much of the Pine Gulch Although humans have contributed to the challenges facing Bolinas u l c h settlers were quick to take advantage of this abundance. By the mid- G Creek delta and north basin. The potential impacts of this proposal s NORTH END Lagoon, we also hold the solutions. n 1800s the region’s resources were feeding a newly booming San KENT ISLAND VEGETATION MANAGEMENT i k l sparked a call for a more adaptive and innovative approach. i Francisco Bay Area’s seemingly insatiable appetite for raw materials. Starting in the 1960s, dedicated individuals and environmental restores the island’s ability to naturally shift with tides W In 2008, community members, scientists, agencies, and local organiza- and currents, and allows native plants that are important Logging, farming, and residential development eventually trans- groups came together to protect the lagoon. The Bolinas Lagoon tions came together to create the Bolinas Lagoon Ecosystem Restoration for pollinators, birds, and other wildlife to return to formed this once connected ecosystem of upland hills, forests, Foundation was instrumental in raising the funds and political Project: Recommendations for Restoration and Management, which the island. streams, and marshes into the fragmented landscape, channelized awareness needed to support restoration. Organizations like includes over 25 recommendations for restoring the lagoon and waterways, and hardened shorelines we see today. Roadway flood- Audubon Canyon Ranch purchased and gifted land to Marin County to help create the Bolinas Lagoon Open Space Preserve, its watershed. P ing, fish passage barriers, and creek and wetland habitat loss have NORTH END WETLAND ENHANCEMENT i n protecting much of this landscape from future development. e increased. Invasive species have penetrated the landscape, and native Today, we are putting that vision into action and you can help! Residents, AND SEA LEVEL RISE ADAPTATION G eelgrass, fish, and clam populations have largely disappeared. Today, the Bolinas Lagoon Advisory Council, scientists, and the local public agencies, local organizations, and other stakeholders are work- restores critical wetland habitats and reconnect the PINE GULCH u l The Bolinas “Y” intersection at CREEK c community continue to support ongoing efforts to reverse past ing together to restore habitats, protect wildlife, keep roads safe, and lagoon to its upland creeks, benefiting numerous h Future climate change and sea level rise will further test these frag- the north end of the lagoon is an damage and ensure the lagoon’s resilience to future changes. preserve the lagoon’s stunning natural beauty. Numerous studies and wildlife species, reducing flooding on local roads, C mented habitats and challenge both human and wildlife residents to example of how roadway devel- r opment fragments habitats and ongoing monitoring of physical processes, habitat, and wildlife support and allowing the lagoon to shift and expand with e B o l i n a s find new ways to adapt and survive. e k prevent the lagoon from shifting these projects and help guide future planning. storms and sea level rise. in response to sea level rise. L a g o o n BOLINAS LAGOON has existed in a state of constant change The projects described on the next page address many of the chal- SEADRIFT EUROPEAN GREEN CRAB REMOVAL KENT ISLAND for over 7,000 years, as winds, waves, tides, and earthquakes sculpted lenges to the lagoon’s ecological diversity, physical processes, relies on volunteer support to remove thousands How lucky we are to live in such a rich, biologically diverse tidal estuary and its complex network of habitats. Yet, in less than 200 hundred years, and resilience to future changes. The projects represent just some of invasive crabs each year, protecting the diversity SEADRIFT LAGOON watershed! But, if you think we humans are lucky, just ask the pelicans, the
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