1910-
1983 |
Adobe Creek in Petaluma, California is deemed "dead" by community and state officials as a result of city water diversions which take 100% of Adobe Creek water. All downstream life dies. |
1984 |
Students form the group, United Anglers of Casa Grande High School, and officially adopt Adobe Creek in an effort to see if they can really make a diffeence in its environmental condition. |
1984 |
Massive creek cleanup begins: over 30 truckloads of illegally dumped waste is hauled out of Adobe Creek (e.g., stoves, refrigerators, tires, old engines and car parts, etc.). |
1985 |
Student tree planting project begins and continues through today, averaging 1,200 trees annually. |
1986 |
Fund raiser nets $6,000 to convert abandoned on-campus green house into a student operated fish hatchery. |
1987 |
Approximately 2,000 baby Steelhead Trout are rescued from drying summer pools. |
1987 |
City rejects students request to release water diversions blocking Adobe Creek. |
1988 |
Fish Hatchery building closed and condemned after failing earthquake standards. |
1988 |
Graduates fill seats in local Natural Resource and Environmental college programs throughout the state. |
1989 |
Students line the creek in February, as 21 of their fish return to spawn. |
1989 |
County works project bulldozes 200 three-year-old redwoods planted by students, valuable shade area lost. |
1989 |
Students begin stocking the Petaluma River with striped bass, also involves elementary school and local business groups. |
1990 |
FIVE King Salmon return to spawn in Adobe Creek: first time documented this century. |
1991 |
Students begin massive fund raising, over two-hundred students apply for one of the twenty spots in UACG. |
1992 |
Oldest Redwoods, planted in 1985, are stolen. |
1992 |
Due in part to unrelenting pressure from students, the city of Petaluma announces it's plan to abandon all water diversions on Adobe Creek, giving it back to nature and the United Anglers of Casa Grande High School. |
1992 |
Students reach goal of $510,000, enabling the completion of our new conservation fish hatchery by Spring 1993. |
1993 |
Past and present members of the United Anglers of Casa Grande High School show their pride at the grand opening if their state-of-the-art on-campus fish hatchery, April 25, 1993. |
1994 |
Federal Government grants the Casa Grande fish hatchery a permit to raise Winter Run Chinook Salmon from the Sacramento River, a registered endangered species; becoming one of three nationally selected hatcheries to participate in the project, and the only student group. |
1995 |
Students rescue thirty-eight adult Chinook Salmon from warm water conditions in Petaluma River. |
1996 |
"ESPN Outdoors" with Jerry McKinnis airs forth documentary on our project. |
1997 |
Director of Fish and Game, Jacquelin Schafer, spends over four hours visiting creek, hatchery, and individual talks with students. |
1998 |
Main electrical transformer on school grounds explodes, causing power outage at the school and fish hatchery. Our back-up generation performs well for seventy-two hours, then QUITS. Repair costs exceed $25,000 for generator and over $15,000 for related electrical equipment. Power outage lasts for forty-three days and causes students to monitor system twenty-four hours a day for all forty-three days. Fundraisers still underway to repair equipment. |
1998 |
World renowned primatologist and environmentalist Dr. Jane Goodall visits to honor students for their sixteen years of hard restoration work leading to the savior of Adobe Creek Steelhead Trout from extinction. |
1999 |
A developers 'By Pass Channel' on Adobe Creek fails (as predicted by student studies) and over 12 "Threatened Steelhead" are killed and over 4 feet of siltation as dumped in Adobe Creek - covering over three miles of Restored Rearing habitat. Student's cry for help falls on deaf ears. Who is supposed to be held responsible for killing a threatened species? |
2000 |
Students return to school full of spirit! Once again the battle over the by-pass channel rears its ugly head. Unable to afford legal council students continue to document the deadly trap now in place. Light rain proves good for steelhead as over 35 adults return to spawn. |
2001 |
Studying low summer flows students find that Steelhead Fry are spending the summer in the creek substrate; re-emerging when flows become reestablished, an incredible scientific discovery. |
2002 |
A record 74 Chinook Salmon return at Adobe Creek - including a "Lost female Chum Salmon". Nine steelhead arrive late into April. |
2003 |
Our 20 Year Celebration! |
Jane Goodall