Freshwater and Land

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“We can no longer afford to consider air and water common property, free to be abused by anyone without regard to the consequences. Instead, we should begin now to treat them as scarce resources which we are no more free to contaminate than we are free to throw garbage into our neighbor’s yard.”  – President Richard M. Nixon, State of the Union Message, January 22nd, 1970.

What happens on land and in our creeks and channels directly impacts wildlife habitat, drinking water, and ultimately the coast.  As rainwater falls on the Santa Ana Mountains, it travels through streams and into the Santa Ana River, picking up pollutants from the streets and storm drains along the river’s route to the ocean.  When Coastkeeper works to improve local watersheds by reducing and mitigating water pollution, we are protecting the integrity and strength of our local communities.  These are a few of the many projects Coastkeeper is leading to improve the environmental and economic sustainability of Orange County.

Current and Past Projects

The Coastkeeper Garden

Located at Santiago Canyon College, the Garden uses practices that require less water, fertilizers, and herbicides than typical landscaping choices.

 The Cadiz Project

Cadiz Inc., a publicly traded corporation based in Los Angeles, is seeking to pump 50,000 to 75,000 acre-feet of groundwater a year, from the Eastern Mojave Desert railroad town of Cadiz to benefit Southern Orange County.

Inland Empire Waterkeeper

Coastkeeper opened the Inland Empire Waterkeeper chapter to bring our efforts into the upper Santa Ana River watershed, in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

Nursery Project

In a collaborative effort, Coastkeeper worked with nursery operators to reduce pollution from local nursery and agricultural operations.

241 Toll Road Project

The proposed extension to the 241 toll road would cut through some of Orange County’s last remaining coastal wild areas. Read more…

Citizen Water Monitoring

There had not been an equally close watch of water quality on the channels and rivers that drain to the coast. This absence of data is why Orange County Coastkeeper began a Citizen Water Monitoring Program. Read more…