Holly Heyser – Page 2 – Delta Protection Commission

NEWS

ONGOING EVENTS/OPPORTUNITIES

Community Events: Big Break All Abilities Day

All abilities day flyer — State Parks Grants

Delta Happenings – Feb. 11, 2025

Lucky Sighting at Port, Freeport Gateway, New DPC Members

NEWS

ONGOING EVENTS/OPPORTUNITIES

Community Events: Webb Tract meeting, Chinese New Year, Big Break All Abilities Day

Delta Leadership Program Visits Port of Stockton

The 2025 Class of the Delta Leadership Program at the Port of Stockton on Feb. 7, 2025

STOCKTON, Calif. (Feb. 9, 2025) – The 2025 Class of the Delta Leadership Program spent Friday at the Port of Stockton interacting with state and regional water policy leaders and touring the port.

The tour included a sighting of agricultural wood waste being unloaded from big rigs, not the kind of thing most people see every day, or ever at all, with the entire trucks raised on hydraulics to let material fall out the back (video on Facebook). The port tour was led by Jeff Wingfield, himself an alumni of the first class of the DLP (2016).

The program is a joint effort by the Delta Protection Commission and the Delta Leadership Foundation to support sustained leadership development in the region.

A man at a conference table laughs and gestures — DLP participant Josh McMillon of Walnut Grove

A woman smiles as she looks at a fellow panelist — DLP participant Josh McMillon of Walnut Grove

Delta Happenings – Jan. 28, 2025

Tunnel Appeal, Angler Survey, Bridge Work, Big Break All Abilities Day

NEWS

ONGOING EVENTS/OPPORTUNITIES

Community Events: Meet the Author, Webb Tract Meeting, Chinese New Year

Apply for the openings here.

Two men, one speaking at a microphone, the other posing with a US flag in the background — New DPC Members

Delta Protection Advisory Committee Openings (Deadline: March 14, 2025)

Montage of four men and a woman with text about an application deadline WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Jan. 28, 2025) – Applications to fill five seats on the Delta Protection Advisory Committee (DPAC) opened today. The application deadline is 5 p.m. March 14, and the Delta Protection Commission is scheduled to make the appointments May 15.

Five Committee members’ terms expire in May 2025:

Delta Business (Seat 1) – Arron Pellarin, Village West Marina
Delta General Public (Seat 1) – Anna Swenson – Clarksburg
Delta Flood Entity – Chris Elias
Delta Conservation/Habitat NGO Entity – Jim Cox, CA Striped Bass Association
Delta Water Exporter – Russ Ryan, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California

All are eligible to reapply.

DPAC provides recommendations to the Delta Protection Commission on diverse interests within the Delta. Committee members are expected to attend six meetings per year. DPAC typically meets on the first Tuesday of even-numbered months (February, April, June, August, October, and December), though meeting dates may occasionally shift. Meetings are held in the Delta at rotating locations.

Committee member terms are three years, so these terms will expire in 2028.

If you have questions, please contact Delta Protection Commission Interim Executive Director Dan Ray at dan.ray@delta.ca.gov.

Delta National Heritage Area Management Plan Approved by Department of Interior

UPDATE: The final Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta National Heritage Area Management Plan (26MB PDF) is now available.

West Sacramento, Calif. (Jan. 16, 2025) – The U.S. Department of Interior today approved the Management Plan for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta National Heritage Area (Delta NHA).

“The Delta Protection Commission developed a plan that promotes the continued appreciation and protection of the natural, historic, and cultural resources associated with the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta National Heritage Area, a place important to our nation’s history and heritage,” wrote Charles F. Sams III, Director of the National Park Service.

“We commend you for completing this well-conceived plan and for involving the interested Tribes, citizens, and organizations in the five counties of the Delta region.”

The Delta NHA, created by Congress in 2019 (PDF), is California’s first and only National Heritage Area. The Delta Protection Commission, a California state agency, was designated the local coordinating entity for the Delta NHA.

“We are grateful to Interior for its approval,” said DPC Executive Director Bruce Blodgett. “The Management Plan is critical for the success of the NHA, because it serves as a guide for the DPC and the NHA partnership network going forward.”

Diane Burgis, Chair of the Delta Protection Commission, also lauded Interior’s action. “The Delta is precious and fragile,” she said. “It is a national treasure, worthy of recognition, celebration, and protection. The approval of the Management Plan acknowledges that and assures us that we are on the right path.”

The NHA

The NHA’s boundary extends from Sacramento to Stockton to Vallejo with the junction of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers at its heart (see map below).

The Management Plan outlines five broad themes that will be celebrated as implementation moves forward:

Water: Precious Lifeblood for the Delta and California – The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is California’s oasis, located at the center of the state’s water challenges and opportunities, and a water passage between the Pacific Ocean and inland California.
The Beating Heart of Natural California – The Delta lies at the center of California’s biological and physical environment, supporting numerous biologically diverse species and connecting California’s freshwater resources to the Pacific Ocean.
Abundance, Diversity, Resistance, and Survival – Native Americans in the Delta – Native Americans thrived in the Delta prior to European settlement, developing complex and diverse societies, deeply rooted in the landscape, that have endured despite existential threats such as disease and genocide.
The Delta Becomes California’s Cornucopia – Through capital, human labor, and technology, the Delta became one of the nation’s most productive agricultural regions, with the ability to grow a large variety of crops, farmed by large and small operations.
Cultural Influences of the Delta – Enduring Legacies of American, Asian, European, and Latin American Immigrants: Bringing their own ambition and skills to the Delta, cultural and ethnic communities from Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the United States shaped the region’s agriculture and industry during the late 19th Century and early 20th Century and continue to leave an indelible imprint on the landscape.

Next Steps

The Management Plan will go to the Commission for final approval in March.

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Media contact: Bruce Blodgett, Executive Director, Delta Protection Commission, (530) 650-6811 or bruce.blodgett@delta.ca.gov.

The Management Plan:

Map of Delta National Heritage Area

Delta Happenings – Jan. 14, 2025

Delta Leaders, Clarksburg Trail, Ferryboat Master, Boater ID Card

NEWS

ONGOING EVENTS/OPPORTUNITIES

Community Events: Brannan Island Meeting, MLK Day of Service, Chinese New Year in Locke