Restore the Delta’s Delta Science Program, led by Delta Science Program Manager Spencer Fern, received the Outstanding Environmental Projects Award on behalf of the Friends of the San Francisco Estuary Board.
The award, presented at this year’s Bay-Delta Science Conference, recognized the program’s work under this year’s theme, “The Opportunity of Change: Building and Being the Future Together.”
In the summer of 2021, Restore the Delta learned of a strong, unpleasant odor coming from the downtown waterfront in Stockton, CA. The water was dark, green, and filled with Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs), with no signs warning the public of their toxicity or an active public monitoring procedure in place.
With training from San Francisco Baykeeper and the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, our team spent that summer testing local Delta waterways for HABs while sharing our findings on social media to raise public awareness.
That work five years ago, became the foundation for what is now known as our Climate Water Advocates internship, a program that continues to train the next generation to monitor HABs throughout the Delta’s hottest months.
We are incredibly proud to see this work recognized and will continue to prioritize science-based water quality management for Delta communities, Tribes, and the entire Delta estuary.
