| Stewards is a nonprofit environmental organization that works
in cooperation with the California Department of Parks and Recreation in the Russian
River Sector to provide the public with opportunities for personal inspiration,
satisfaction, and nurturing of spirit and intellect through environmental stewardship
programs. |
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| During 1985 Dian Hardy began one of the first Stewards supported
programs, Seal Watch. She and other local activists from Jenner discovered that
the harbor seals at Goat Rock State Beach were in greater danger from beach visitors
and unleased dogs than from the pollution of a recent sewage spill into the Russian
river. In response to these concerns, local residents organized and set up four-hour
shifts on the beach at the river mouth where they asked visitors to abide by the
Marine Mammal Protection Act and stay at least 50 feet from the harbor seals.
Today, Stewards supported volunteers assist the public in safeguarding this local
harbor seal habitat, the largest on the Sonoma Coast.
Volunteers are available on weekends during the annual pupping season (March
through Labor Day weekend) when the seals are most vulnerable to public interactions. |
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