South Yuba River Citizens League names Yuba Water its Partner of the Year by Yuba Water Agency May 4, 2023 Member Submitted News Yuba Water was recently recognized as South Yuba River Citizens League’s Partner of the Year for its support of efforts including forest health, habitat restoration on the lower Yuba River and water education. Yuba Water and SYRCL are both founding members of the nine-member North Yuba Forest Partnership, which was leveraged significant funding – more than $150 million – to treat areas at risk of catastrophic wildfire in the Yuba River watershed. Together, the partners are working on an unprecedented scale to collaboratively plan, analyze, finance and implement ecologically-based thinning, prescribed fire and other forest restoration across more than 275,000 acres in the watershed. We are also partners on three habitat restoration projects in the lower Yuba River watershed – the 157-acre Hallwood Side Channel and Floodplain Restoration Project, the 142-acre Long Bar Restoration Project and the 5-acre Rose Bar Enhancement Project. The projects expand seasonal floodplain habitat to benefit Chinook salmon, steelhead trout and other wildlife. The Hallwood Project also reduces flood risk by lowering water surface elevations and velocities. A third aspect of our partnership with SYRCL is in water education, especially our ongoing support of SYRCL’s salmon expedition tours. Made possible through funding from Yuba Water, Yuba County fourth grade students attend a day-long rafting adventure on the Yuba River where they learn about the Nisenan tribe and how they managed the land prior to the Gold Rush, the hydraulic mining impacts to the river, salmon lifecycles, the other wildlife that rely on the Yuba River to survive and much more. The award was presented at SYRCL’s annual State of the Yuba event at Peace Lutheran Church in Grass Valley on April 26. The State of the Yuba event is an opportunity for SYRCL to share its vision for the future, recent accomplishments and to recognize the many people and organizations who have donated their time and resources to support SYRCL’s mission.
