Goals and Objectives of Cottonwood Creek Watershed Group
Maintain the rural and agricultural nature of the Cottonwood Creek Watershed.
· Establish, improve, and maintain communication with Tehama County and Shasta
County planning departments so that decision makers have access to CCWG
expertise and management planning efforts.
· Continue to engage stakeholders to gauge the community’s desire to sustain the
rural and agricultural nature of the Cottonwood Creek Watershed.
· Inform landowners about and encourage their participation in available programs to
preserve open space and agricultural lands.
Address problematic bank instability and channel instability.
· Facilitate and participate in projects that address problematic bank instability, which
will also preserve riparian conditions and enhance aquatic habitat.
Develop a sustainable gravel management program.
· Promote and assist with obtaining funding for the creation of a sediment budget to
determine whether gravel can be extracted from the active channel or adjacent
floodplain without significant impacts to habitat and the long-term channel stability
of Cottonwood Creek.
Sustain existing populations of native fish, wildlife, and plant communities, and
enhance these where possible.
· Investigate limiting factors for anadromous fish in the Cottonwood Creek
Watershed.
· Enhance habitat and spawning conditions that will increase anadromous fish
populations.
· Sustain and enhance important fish, wildlife, and native plant habitat elements.
· Maintain or improve habitat connectivity.
· Promote and support a healthy forest ecosystem.
· Promote preservation and/or enhancement of habitat for federal and state-listed
species and species of concern known or suspected to occur within the Cottonwood
Creek Watershed.
Develop an upland brush management program that reduces fire risk and enhances
habitat value.
· Promote and/or implement fuels management projects, which preserve or, at a
minimum, protect federally identified Communities at Risk.
· Work cooperatively with fire management and land management agencies and
landowners to sustain a fuels management program in the watershed, while also
considering fuels issues/connectivity to adjacent watersheds.
Sustain and expand quantity and quality of riparian habitat throughout the watershed.
· Develop resources to support enhanced riparian vegetation and habitat projects with
landowners.
· Investigate the potential for conservation easements.
· Pursue measures to prevent and discourage trespassing and illegal dumping.
Sustain good water quality that provides for beneficial uses, and enhance water
quality where needed.
· Implement a monitoring program to establish baseline water quality conditions and
periodically repeat to track long-term trends.
Expand watershed conditions and practices that increase stormwater infiltration,
increase base flow, and reduce negative impacts of flood flows.
· Investigate the potential for increasing the number of ponds and wet meadows.
· Implement projects to demonstrate feasible methods to address persistent channel
entrenchment, including gullying, throughout the Cottonwood Creek Watershed.
Develop a noxious and invasive plant management program that includes control of
salt cedar/tamarix and giant reed/arundo.
· Develop resources to assist landowners with removal of salt cedar (Tamarix chinensis)
and giant reed, or arundo (Arundo donax).
Expand the use of road maintenance and land use practices that reduce discharge of fine-grained sediment to waterways.
Continue to play an active role in the information dissemination, education, and outreach provided to stakeholders about stewardship of the Cottonwood Creek Watershed.
· Create a sustainable education and outreach plan for CCWG.
· Obtain resources to continue implementing effective education and outreach to the
Cottonwood Creek Watershed stakeholders.
· Establish, improve, and maintain communication with Tehama County and Shasta
County planning departments so that decision makers have access to CCWG
expertise and management planning efforts.
· Continue to engage stakeholders to gauge the community’s desire to sustain the
rural and agricultural nature of the Cottonwood Creek Watershed.
· Inform landowners about and encourage their participation in available programs to
preserve open space and agricultural lands.
Address problematic bank instability and channel instability.
· Facilitate and participate in projects that address problematic bank instability, which
will also preserve riparian conditions and enhance aquatic habitat.
Develop a sustainable gravel management program.
· Promote and assist with obtaining funding for the creation of a sediment budget to
determine whether gravel can be extracted from the active channel or adjacent
floodplain without significant impacts to habitat and the long-term channel stability
of Cottonwood Creek.
Sustain existing populations of native fish, wildlife, and plant communities, and
enhance these where possible.
· Investigate limiting factors for anadromous fish in the Cottonwood Creek
Watershed.
· Enhance habitat and spawning conditions that will increase anadromous fish
populations.
· Sustain and enhance important fish, wildlife, and native plant habitat elements.
· Maintain or improve habitat connectivity.
· Promote and support a healthy forest ecosystem.
· Promote preservation and/or enhancement of habitat for federal and state-listed
species and species of concern known or suspected to occur within the Cottonwood
Creek Watershed.
Develop an upland brush management program that reduces fire risk and enhances
habitat value.
· Promote and/or implement fuels management projects, which preserve or, at a
minimum, protect federally identified Communities at Risk.
· Work cooperatively with fire management and land management agencies and
landowners to sustain a fuels management program in the watershed, while also
considering fuels issues/connectivity to adjacent watersheds.
Sustain and expand quantity and quality of riparian habitat throughout the watershed.
· Develop resources to support enhanced riparian vegetation and habitat projects with
landowners.
· Investigate the potential for conservation easements.
· Pursue measures to prevent and discourage trespassing and illegal dumping.
Sustain good water quality that provides for beneficial uses, and enhance water
quality where needed.
· Implement a monitoring program to establish baseline water quality conditions and
periodically repeat to track long-term trends.
Expand watershed conditions and practices that increase stormwater infiltration,
increase base flow, and reduce negative impacts of flood flows.
· Investigate the potential for increasing the number of ponds and wet meadows.
· Implement projects to demonstrate feasible methods to address persistent channel
entrenchment, including gullying, throughout the Cottonwood Creek Watershed.
Develop a noxious and invasive plant management program that includes control of
salt cedar/tamarix and giant reed/arundo.
· Develop resources to assist landowners with removal of salt cedar (Tamarix chinensis)
and giant reed, or arundo (Arundo donax).
Expand the use of road maintenance and land use practices that reduce discharge of fine-grained sediment to waterways.
Continue to play an active role in the information dissemination, education, and outreach provided to stakeholders about stewardship of the Cottonwood Creek Watershed.
· Create a sustainable education and outreach plan for CCWG.
· Obtain resources to continue implementing effective education and outreach to the
Cottonwood Creek Watershed stakeholders.
