2025-04-13T17:17:10-07:00 2024-12-31 262327737 Richard Watson Jr CPA 8 Metro Lane Sacramento CA 95816 990 2024-01-01 263676166 Sacramento Area Creeks Council SACR 9164544544 PO Box 162774 Sacramento CA 95816 Mark Baker Treasurer 2025-04-13 true true Richard Watson P00020816 9166060552 X 2024 2025-03-06 01:10:19Z Crystal Tobias PO Box 162774 Sacramento CA 95816 93764 false X saccreeks.org X 2008 CA The Sacramento Area Creeks Council preserves, protects, restores and maintains the natural streams in our urban communities through education, advocacy, financial support and technical expertise. Our goal is to educate the general public on the aesthetic, recreational, educational, and ecological value of our urban waterways. 14 14 0 300 0 37979 86591 0 0 3110 37979 89701 2712 2500 0 0 0 0 29931 57903 32643 60403 5336 29298 48603 77778 1356 1233 47247 76545 Sacramento Area Creeks Council (SACC) seeks to promote public and private care of natural streams and waterways through education, advocacy and hands-on activity. Educational materials, workshops and field outings are some of the tools used to achieve these goals. SACC: provides support for creek, waterway, open-space and neighborhood cleanups; participates in the decision-making processes which affect the health of Sacramento area waterways, and in the land use planning process to promote creek preservation, sound flood control project design, habitat restoration and effective stream bank stabilization methods; distributes educational materials encouraging the teaching of science concepts and holds community workshops on creek issues; supports on-going volunteer water quality monitoring efforts; co-sponsors grants to preserve and restore creeks and their natural corridors; SACC offers educational materials and participates in neighborhood fairs and public events, working with schools, false false 58877 2500 84901 The cleanliness of our rivers, creeks, and streams is vital to the health of our ecosystems. These waterways are the veins which supply the heart of the oceans and must remain unpolluted. However, up to 80% of debris now found in our oceans comes from land-based sources, which makes cleaning these rivers-of-life critical. Sacramento Area Creeks Council (SACC) preserves, protects, restores, and maintains the natural streams in our urban communities through education, advocacy, financial support, and technical expertise. Our goal is to educate the general public on the aesthetic, recreational, educational, and ecological value of our urban creeks.To accomplish this goal, SACC (saccreeks.org) acts as the fiscal sponsor for several volunteer groups: River City Waterway Alliance (RCWA). RCWA volunteers fervently clean our creeks and rivers by performing five or more cleanup events every week; Elk Grove Anti-Trash Volunteers (EGAT). EGAT volunteers tackle the City of Elk Groves ongoing litter and illegal dumping problems in its parks, trails, waterways, fields, and streets; Arcade Creek Adopt a Creek Project (ACAACP). ACAACP volunteers have been cleaning Arcade Creek for many years, focusing mainly on the upper reaches where over 600,000 pounds of trash have been removed; The Waterbird Habitat Project (WHP). WHP is dedicated to ridding the Sacramento area waterways of abandoned fishing gear, which threaten the lives and safety of waterbirds, fish and other wildlife. RCWAs accomplishments in cleaning local waterways are shocking. In 2024 alone, RCWA volunteers removed over 1.2 million pounds of trash from Sacramento area waterways. Since the group's formation in January 2023, 2.5 million pounds of trash have been removed during 700 events (including 1,231 shopping carts, 1,208 tires, 2,600 pounds of batteries, 17,000 needles and over 500 cell phones), with volunteers contributing 21,300 hours of work. At the Park Maintenance Worker rate of $173 per hour (including benefits) paid by Sacramento Regional County Parks, this amounts to over $3.6 million in volunteer services over a two-year period. The efforts of RCWA volunteers in Arcade Creek (903,605 pounds of trash were removed during 312 events) and Steelhead Creek (513,423 pounds of trash removed during 83 events) have improved the passage of Chinook salmon and steelhead trout into the upper-watershed, as demonstrated by the most recent Dry Creek Salmon Count which showed a significant increase in salmon from the prior year (5 salmon in 2023, vs. 208 in 2024 the most observed in 10 years). As noted above, an astonishing number of shopping carts are dumped into our local waterways. Because shopping carts (and the accompanying textiles and toxic trash) hinder the passage of fish by blocking channels, RCWA helped Sacramento County draft a shopping cart ordinance, and is helping Sacramento City with a similar ordinance.Because of these extensive cleanup efforts (as noted above, and along the American River 690,952 pounds over 190 events; and Bannon Island 163,700 pounds of trash over 35 events), many areas are in what we call maintenance mode, where only occasional cleanups are necessary to keep these valuable riparian habitats clean. EGAT completed 25 cleanups in 2024. EGAT and RCWA volunteers have been working diligently to help clean the Bufferlands Nature Preserve, operated by Sacramento Area Sewer District. During 12 large cleanups, over 53,000 pounds of trash and inorganic debris have been removed. Dozens more events are needed here to help preserve this 2,150-acre buffer of open space for wildlife habitat. In December 2024, The Waterbird Habitat Project (WHP) worked with SACC volunteers, on land and in the water, to remove more than 9,000 pounds of invasive primrose from the front of the viewing deck at William Pond. Throughout 2024, WHP also removed abandoned fishing gear which accumulates beneath the water's surface and catches on submerged and shoreline tree branches. This gear strangles, suffocates, and causes severe damage and death to those species that depend on the river for survival. Equally important is raising awareness of this challenging problem to keep waterbirds and other wildlife free from fishing gear injuries. In the past year, WHP has retrieved over 1,000 abandoned hooks, lures, lead weights, and reels of line from the river. With the support of Emighs Hardware and Sacramento County Parks, informational signs and fishing line recycling receptacles have been installed in high-risk areas where a high density of waterbirds and other wildlife live in close proximity to heavy angling activity.Sacramento Area Creeks Council and its affiliates recognize the importance of collaboration and have formed many crucial partnerships. These partnerships include Sacramento County Regional Parks, the County of Sacramento, the City of Sacramento, American River Flood Control District, Reclamation District 1000, Sacramento Area Sewer District (SacSewer), Forensiclean, ACTenviro, the City of Citrus Heights, Caltrans, Republic Services, Save the American River Association, and many others. For instance, week-long multi-agency cleanups are performed annually on the floodplain of Steelhead Creek between the West El Camino bridge and Arcade Creek which typically remove between 50,000 and 120,000 pounds of trash and debris per event. SACC gave several guided tours of our impacted waterways for local politicians, and drafted verbiage to include creeks and waterways in Sacramento County's ordinance to protect critical infrastructure. Through our relationship with Sacramento County Department of Waste Management and Recycling, SACC is the fortunate beneficiary of free dump vouchers which enabled volunteers to make over 113 dump-runs since July 2023, resulting in the deposit of over 155,000 pounds of trash at the North Area Recovery Station. The trash hauling has been aided by a December 2023 Confluence Grant from SacSewer which funded a new and vital dump trailer.At RCWAs two-year anniversary celebration in January 2025, RCWAs group of Badgers (as RCWA volunteers are affectionally known) received a Proclamation from Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty in recognition of their accomplishments and tireless dedication to local waterways. Additional recognition of this eager and committed group has included the following awards: Environmental Council of Sacramento (2023), Sacramento Environmental Commission (2023), Assembly member McCarty Certificate of Recognition (2023), and Best of Carmichael, Community Group (2024).Among other notable accomplishments during 2024, SACC board members were interviewed by Insight on Capitol Public Radio in March 2024, and by LiveWire! on Access Sacramento in April 2024. SACC also participates in monthly American River Parkway Coalition meetings, and contributes articles to newsletters for the American River Bike Patrol, College Glen Neighborhood Association and Save the American River Association. SACC is a member of ECOS Habitat 2020 (Environmental Council of Sacramento), a coalition that works to protect the lands, waters, wildlife and native plants in the Sacramento region.SACC held its inaugural Streamside Social at Camp Pollock in October 2024, an evening of food and beverages including presentations from Vince LaPena (River Ramblings and Comments About Creeks), Roland Brady Ph.D. (From Dereliction to Community Amenity: Restoring Streams in Cities) and David Ingram (River City Waterway Alliance in Action). SACC continued its outreach activities through several community events, including the Family Fall Fest near River Bend Park in September, Walk on the Wildside in May, ECOS Earth Day at Southside Park, and NatureFest at Effie Yeaw Nature Center. Looking to 2025, SACC plans to ramp-up invasive species removal and will identify a keystone project for Steelhead and Arcade Creeks in the Ueda Parkway. Cleanups in these two areas were a major focus of RCWA volunteers during 2024, and will continue in 2025. However, a larger project and significant funding are necessary to restore these urban waterways and green spaces with native plants, trails and parks in order to provide environmental justice for the adjacent neighborhoods which have been negatively impacted by the neglect of these waterways.Social Media Presence: RCWA is extremely active on social media and maintains a very active YouTube channel that currently showcases 417 videos (505 subscribers), Facebook page (1,650 followers), Instagram profile (1,097 followers) and TikTok account (315 followers).www.youtube.com/@rivercitywaterwayalliance4646 58877 true true false false false false false false false false true false false false false false false false false false false false false false true false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false true 0 0 false 0 false false false false false false false 0 false false false false false false false X 14 14 true false false false false false false true true false false true true true true true true true true false CA X X Mark Baker 9164922249 PO Box 162774 Sacramento CA 95816 X Crystal Tobias President 20.00 0.00 X X 0 0 0 Gary Hare Secretary 3.00 0.00 X X 0 0 0 Steven Mayer Director 1.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 David Irons Director 8.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Mark Baker Treasurer 30.00 0.00 X X 0 0 0 David Ingram Director 30.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Roland Brady Vice President 30.00 0.00 X X 0 0 0 Deborah Dodd Correspondence 10.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Bill Templin Director 5.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Khaliah Irons Director 8.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Carl Salmonsen Director 8.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Chris Smith Director 10.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 Amy Gardner Director 3.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 June Taylor Director 5.00 0.00 X 0 0 0 0 false false false 0 13600 18688 54303 4800 86591 0 0 0 0 0 0 7173 13600 4063 3110 0 0 0 89701 2500 2500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 201 201 4389 4389 485 445 40 0 0 70 70 2600 2600 0 0 0 0 2340 2340 1274 1154 120 Volunteer meals 27525 27525 Cleanup supplies and equipment 10210 10210 Dump vouchers 4800 4800 Restoration supplies and signs 1464 1464 2545 1179 1366 60403 58877 1526 0 20131 68417 0 16771 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 11701 2340 11701 9361 0 0 0 0 0 48603 77778 1356 1233 1356 1233 X 47247 76545 47247 76545 48603 77778 29298 X false false false X 29311 4139 6989 20465 81791 142695 0 0 29311 4139 6989 20465 81791 142695 31677 111018 0 0 3110 3110 145805 0.76140 0.94830 X RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED 11701 2340 9361 9361 false Streamside Social 20773 13600 7173 1405 1826 100 732 20773 13600 7173 1405 1826 100 732 4063 3110 Form 990, Part VI, Section A, Line 2 David and Khaliah Irons are husband and wife. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, Line 11b A PDF copy of Form 990 is emailed to the Board of Directors for comment and review prior to its filing with the IRS. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, Line 12c Board members complete an annual questionnaire disclosing any posible conflict of interest and are required to disclose any conflicts when motions are presented for vote during the year in accordance with the Organization's Conflict of Interest Policy. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, Line 15a The Organization is currently run by unpaid volunteers. However, a compensation policy exists whereby compensation is reviewed and approved by the Board of Directors which is based upon a comparison of compensation paid by similar organizations in the Sacramento region. The comparison and approval is documented in the minutes. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, Line 15b The Organization is currently run by unpaid volunteers. However, a compensation policy exists whereby compensation is reviewed and approved by the Board of Directors which is based upon a comparison of compensation paid by similar organizations in the Sacramento region. The comparison and approval is documented in the minutes. Form 990, Part VI, Section C, Line 19 Governing documents, policies and financial statements are made available upon request.