The Tomales Bay Foundation (Foundation) was incorporated in 2004 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation to fund activities of the Tomales Bay Watershed Council (Council), a related entity that did water quality testing at tributary streams of Tomales Bay, and provided an important forum for agencies and other organizations active in the watershed. The Council developed a Watershed Stewardship Plan in 2003, and the Integrated Coastal Watershed Management Plan in 2007, important guidance for stewardship of coastal watersheds. Under a 2021 Fiscal Sponsorship Agreement between the two entities, the Foundation supported the Council and continued to implement projects of habitat restoration, education, scholarships, community development, research and improvements around the Bay. In 2022 the Council ceased to exist and interested persons and agency partners are being invited to become members of the Tomales Bay Foundation Advisory Committee, thus consolidating the two organizations into a single non-profit organization.
The Council and Foundation jointly sponsored various activities including “State of Tomales Bay” conferences and field trips, usually well attended, and often hosted at the Inverness Yacht Club. A “State of Tomales Bay” conference is scheduled for September 2023 and will be hosted by the Foundation Board and its Advisory Committee. The Foundation is soon to update its watershed Stewardship Plan.
With support from the Marin Community Foundation and private contributions, the Council and Foundation have jointly provided grants for graduate students’ science research projects here in Tomales Bay, and the Foundation has set up an endowment for future program funding. Recent grants have been awarded in 2021 and 2022, to Bodega Marine Lab (BML UC Davis) students researching algae and eel grass interactions, and wave/sand contributions to the ecology of the bay. Other recent grants have gone to a UC Santa Cruz researcher, other research projects at BML, and the Foundation has ongoing relationships with UC’s Point Reyes Field Station.
A major project that the Foundation and Marin County Parks are pursuing is a reduction of the high bacteria levels at Chicken Ranch Beach “Channel B”. The completed “60% design” recommends realignment of a ditch and creation of wetlands behind the beach. The Foundation was granted funds in 2022 and 2024 to complete design planning, further environmental studies, tribal consultation, CEQA, agency permitting. These efforts are underway and we will soon be pursuing further funding to implement this project.
The Foundation is an all-volunteer organization that depends on tax deductible contributions to support its activities.
For more information or to make a tax-deductible donation please see our new website at www.tomalesbayfoundation.org .
Our email address is:
steward@tomalesbayfoundation.org .
Or you can send a check to:
Tomales Bay Foundation, PO Box 447, Point Reyes Station, CA 94956.