Speak up and protect drinking water and wildlife habitat

On Monday, September 12, the Land Use and Transportation Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors will consider allowing unmanaged access to currently protected areas of the Peninsula watershed. Please join us in urging the San Francisco Supervisors and Mayor Ed Lee to reject unmanaged access, improve the existing docent program, and protect our region’s celebrated water quality and critical wildlife habitats.

Why This is Important

San Francisco’s 2.7 million water customers are blessed with some of the finest drinking water in the nation, thanks to strong protections of its watersheds in the Sierra Nevada and Bay Area. The 23,000-acre Peninsula watershed, a State-designated Fish and Game Refuge, has the highest concentration of rare, threatened, and endangered species in the nine-county Bay Area.

Some recreation advocates have been pushing to “open up” currently protected areas of the Peninsula watershed to mountain bikers, hikers, and equestrians. Unmanaged access into remote areas such as along Fifield-Cahill Ridge would inevitably invite trespass, impact wildlife habitats, and increase the risk of wildfire.

The Peninsula watershed is not a park. Committee for Green Foothills is generally a strong advocate for public access and we treasure the hundreds of miles of accessible trails in nearby county, state, and national parks, as well as Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District’s preserves.

Improving and expanding the existing docent program on Fifield Cahill Ridge will provide increased opportunities for managed access, consistent with the watershed’s fundamental mission – maintaining our celebrated water quality.

For more information, please see Legislative Advocate Lennie Robert’s letter to the Land Use Committee or contact her at [email protected] or (650) 968-7243 x390.

Send an email opposing Resolution File # 160183 through our online form below to the San Francisco Supervisors and Mayor Lee, with copies to the SFPUC (San Francisco Public Utilities Commission) and San Mateo County Supervisors.

Thanks for speaking up for open space! Your voice does make a difference.

Thank you for your interest in this issue. We are no longer asking people to send emails since the meeting date has passed. Please contact Advocate Lennie Roberts for more information on how you can get involved.

For an update on this issue please see our blog post: Next Action to Protect Peninsula Watershed