Tuolumne River Preservation Trust.

Organization History

The Tuolumne River Preservation Trust was formed in 1982 to mount a campaign for Congressional designation of the Tuolumne River as Wild and Scenic to meet the immediate crisis of the river's loss of legal protection in October of that year. Based in San Francisco, the Trust grew out of the Tuolumne River Coalition, which was built on the Citizens Action Project, an energy conservation group that coordinated the efforts of the Sierra Club, Friends of the River, and fishing and boating groups to oppose the City of San Francisco's continued involvement with the Clavey-Wards Ferry Dam project. The Trust was formed to act on the recommendations of the Tuolumne Study Team, whose 1979 proposal urged Wild and Scenic River status for the undeveloped portions of the Tuolumne.

The campaign to preserve the Tuolumne from further commercial and hydroelectric development followed almost immediately on the unsuccessful campaign to protect the Stanislaus River under the federal Wild and Scenic program. Learning from the failure of that campaign, the Trust worked to establish broader public, media, and legislative support, and to develop a sophisticated legal expertise. The Trust drew its own leadership from established environmental organizations such as the National Audubon Society, the Sierra Club, and the Friends of the River.

In its efforts to gain Wild and Scenic status for the Tuolumne River, the Trust made its public campaign a strong state and national issue through the use of direct mail and a broadly based grass roots environmental strategy. It established political networks, media outreach channels, and county-based environmental canvasses. The Trust organized rafting trips on the Tuolumne as a way to build public outreach and held raffles and dinners that combined publicity with fund raising. It developed extensive political mailing lists and used direct mail publicity to expand the donor network and to engage a broad cross section of the public in the issue. Richard Chamberlain lent his celebrity name for higher issue recognition, and played an active role in the Congressional hearing in May 1984.

The campaign culminated during the 1984 congressional hearings and the passage of the Congressional bill gave Wild and Scenic status to the Tuolumne River in September of that year. After the initial round of celebrations, the Trust decided to continue its existence to oversee the drafting of the Management Plan for the Tuolumne River.

In 1987, the Trust began a campaign to make the Clavey River dam-free. In March 1995, after an eight year battle, the Turlock Irrigation District withdrew its proposal for a $700 million, five dam, power project. The Trust promoted the dam project's impact on the environment, as well as the poor economics, and with the help of the Central Valley agricultural community and industrial interests, was able to force the Irrigation District to cancel the project.

A settlement agreement was reached in January 1996 that commited $7 million and increased flows in the Lower Tuolumne, a plan that over the next ten years would aid in the recovery and protection of the salmon population. In its' efforts to continue public education and outreach, the Trust opened the Tuolumne Watershed Visitors Center in Groveland in June 1996. In August of the same year, the Trust established a collaborative project to design a management plan for the Clavey watershed. Working with the Forest Service, Department of Fish and Game, and environmental groups, the Trust will facilitate the plan to insure protection of the Clavey water quality and wildlife populations.

From the guide to the Tuolumne River Preservation Trust Records, 1968-[on-going], (bulk 1981-1997), (The Bancroft Library.)