River Partners
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Habitat Restoration Program
This program involves
planning, designing, and implementing habitat restoration projects. Our work ranges from consulting and project
design to full-scale implementation and land management for 3 years.
Otay River Restoration Initiative
River Partner’s Otay River Initiative seeks to restore 500 acres of degraded watershed lands in Southern San Diego County. Though located within a biodiversity hotspot, the Otay River watershed is in ecological trouble; areas have been ravaged by wildfire and are dominated by invasive weeds. Restoration not only would bring back critical habitat for the region’s imperiled wildlife, and eliminate the public safety hazards associated with invasive plants, such as arundo and tamarisk, it also would improve open space for underserved neighborhoods in South San Diego County.
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Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
River Partners creates wildlife habitat for the benefit of people and the environment. We seek to accomplish this objective by focusing our efforts on designing and implementing multi-benefit projects. A critical component of our success is River Partners' ability to understand both California's agricultural economy and changing water needs due to drought and flooding. River Partners seeks to function as a dynamic, fluid organization that can flexibly respond to the challenges of a constantly developing landscape.
River Partners aims to positively impact people and communities by providing multiple benefits associated with habitat restoration. We work throughout California and have the opportunity to affect communities of all sizes, types, and economic levels. We implement habitat restoration with the goals of increasing flood safety for riverside communities, enhancing water quality in multiple watersheds, providing recreation and outdoor education opportunities, and increasing available jobs in disadvantaged regions.
Our organization also seeks to provide multiple benefits to wildlife through habitat restoration. Much of California's natural hydrology has been modified by conveyance and flood safety structures. Agriculture now extends all the way to the rivers' edge, leaving little room for habitat corridors to support native wildlife species. Through restoration, River Partners applies climate-smart technology to implement self-sustaining grasses, shrubs and trees that benefit a suite of federally and State-protected species. Our goal is to restore California's historic floodplain, increase the acreage of migration corridor available to wildlife, and contribute to recovery plan actions for multiple threatened or endangered species statewide.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
River Partners has developed a restoration model over the past 20 years that combines agricultural techniques with restoration science to install high-quality habitat. Our model is continually adapting to meet the needs of target wildlife species and California communities, in light of climate change and fluctuating water availability.
A typical restoration includes multiple phases, occurring on property owned either by River Partners or a third party. The restoration process requires planning, permitting and project design, followed by site preparation, irrigation installation, planting, and plant establishment. River Partners' Science Staff conducts project monitoring to determine progress and guide adaptive management strategies that influence future project design.
River Partners focuses on the importance of multi-benefit projects in California. We seek funding from State, federal and private resources – each of these resources is interested in strengthening an important aspect of California's ecosystem or community landscape. Instead of working towards single-program goals, however, River Partners strives to combine project objectives to leverage funding and provide multi-use space for the people and wildlife of California. Below are some multi-benefit project strategies:
Enhanced flood safety: Restoration allows historic floodplains to accept flood flows that would typically be confined to the river channel. Increasing the area of land that can take on flood flows reduces the water level in nearby communities, providing time to evacuate and reducing property damage.
Enhanced Water Quality for Californians: Restoration reduces the amount of contaminants that filter into watersheds. River Partners restores former agricultural properties. Removing agricultural applications and implementing natural soil filtration systems limits contaminants that enter the river.
Water Conservation: River Partners protects and enhances the availability of water, one of California's most valuable resources. Native restoration includes the removal of non-native species, which typically divert water and sunlight from native plants. Removing invasive plants gives native species the opportunity to establish a seed bed and in the long-run, use less water. Also, restoration projects retire agricultural irrigation, returning water used to irrigate to the river system. We are actively working on establishing a California Water Code Section 1707 dedication of water for instream use to benefit wildlife – a permanent obligation of water that cannot be used for farming or consumption.
Working with California's Agricultural Community: Many of River Partners' employees have experience in agriculture or are farm owners themselves, providing us with a connection to the needs and viewpoints of a community that is central to California's economy. Our connection to this community allows us to identify strategies to meet both the agriculture and conservation community
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
River Partners has employees in three offices in California: Chico, Turlock, and San Diego. These offices strategically allow us to focus on different regional challenges that face the Northern California, Central Valley and Southern California watersheds, respectively. Our 28-person team is divided into three departments. The Development Team is responsible for identifying potential projects, fundraising to implement projects, and working with the rest of the staff to ensure implementation is feasible. The Operations Team determines the feasibility of projects based on irrigation source and equipment needs. Once a project is underway, the Operations Team implements the project design, completing irrigation installation, earth moving, planting, and maintenance. The Science Staff develops project designs based on habitat needs of target species and monitors projects to determine success. River Partners' staff come from a variety of backgrounds including agriculture, legal, finance, biology, and ecology. These specializations allow for the organization to engage partners on a variety of levels and identify solutions that move us closer to our goals.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
River Partners has successfully fundraised over $70million in state, federal and private funding to acquire or restore over 12,000 acres in the state of California. These dollars have made valuable impacts to both wildlife and communities and in many ways, helped to shape the objectives of the conservation community in the Central Valley. River Partners has accomplished many goals, but has many yet to overcome. Primary goals in the near future include the following:
- Cross-border watershed restoration: River Partners seeks to make meaningful contribution to the current focus on restoring watersheds on the U.S.-Mexico border. These watersheds are controversial due to competing regulatory authority, but their restoration is imperative to ecosystem health in southern California.
- California Water Code (CWC) Section 1707 dedication: River Partners is actively working to establish the first Central Valley petition for a CWC 1707 dedication of flows for instream use for wildlife benefit. This means river flows in the San Joaquin River that were previously used to irrigate crops would be retired and instead remain in the river system for the sole purpose of benefitting wildlife that depend on the San Joaquin River flows.
- Federal levee breaching: River Partners owns property that includes a federal levee. Breaching this levee would restore the natural river process that existed before flood control systems were established. This breach will create additional wildlife habitat in a location that does not threaten people or property. Breaching requires Congressional approval.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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River Partners
Board of directorsas of 04/20/2017
Irv Schiffman
CSU Chico, Retired
Term: 2009 - 2012
Irv Schiffman
CSU Chico, retired
Monroe Sprague
Ken Grossman
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
Allen Hackett
Hackett Farming
Mark Kimmelshue
Legacy and Assoc.
Suellen Rowlison
retired
Tom Lando
Lando and Associates
John Carlon
Sierra Cascade Blueberry Farm
Julie Rentner