From the California Water Quality Monitoring Council:
OPC is pleased to partner with the San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) to develop a first-of-its-kind comprehensive Statewide Plastics Monitoring Strategy and Plan to track the state’s progress and to support future efforts to reduce plastic pollution. The Statewide Plastics Monitoring Strategy and Plan aims to meet information needs to protect California’s communities, coast, and aquatic environments by developing a phased, multi-year plastics monitoring plan.
We invite members of the public and community leaders concerned about plastic pollution throughout California’s coastal and statewide regions to share information regarding their plastic pollution priorities and concerns to inform the development of this strategy. There are several ways to provide feedback:
Request for Information: Information can be submitted through an online form at SFEI’s website from March 4 to April 3, 2024.
Public meetings: OPC and SFEI will hold statewide and regionally focused public meetings to present an overview of the project and gather feedback at the early stages of this project. While members of the public are welcome to join any of these meetings, please note that the presented material and facilitated discussion will be consistent across all meetings. Regional meetings will be grouped by county as listed below, and members of the public are welcome to select the group(s) most relevant to their communities and work.
- Northern Region: Register for March 27, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Del Norte, Siskiyou, Modoc, Humboldt, Trinity, Shasta, Lassen, Tehama, Plumas, Mendocino, Lake, Glenn, Butte, Colusa, Yolo, Yuba, Sutter, Sierra, Nevada, Placer, El Dorado Counties
- San Francisco/Central Region: Register for March 28, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Sonoma, Marin, Napa, Solano, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Contra Costa, Alameda, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Benito, Monterey Counties
- Central Valley (Upstream Watersheds): Register for April 2, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Amador, Alpine, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Stanislaus, Merced, Mariposa, Mono, Madera, Fresno, Kings, Tulare, Inyo, Kern Counties
- Southern Region: Register for April 3, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, Imperial Counties
Please visit SFEI’s website for more details about the monitoring plan and community engagement. All questions should be directed to plastics@sfei.org.
