Preserve and Protect the San Lorenzo River?

The Coastal Watershed Council hatched a "Pop-up Museum" Saturday in San Lorenzo Park, to further its goal of allowing personal watercraft on the river. The coordinator at the Museum of Art and History (MAH) for "Pop Up Museums" revealed that the event was originally suggested to the MAH by CWC's Greg Pepping.

According to the MAH web site: "This Pop Up Museum, held in collaboration with the Coastal Watershed Council, invites you to share your ideas, stories, and objects about the river, and contribute to a community wide conversation about the river’s place in Santa Cruz culture."

The presence of a large poster for the San Lorenzo River Alliance showing the river occupied by paddlers and kayakers, plus a large banner for the Coastal Watershed Council in front of the exhibit : "Preserving and Protecting Coastal Watersheds," dominated the scene and called to question whether this event was collaboration or merely the MAH being used to promote a political campaign by a favored local non profit.

In reality, the "Pop-up" had little to do with museums and everything to do with making a case for allowing recreational stand-up paddle boards, kayaks and canoes onto the San Lorenzo River. Representatives of MAH and CWC talked only about human "use" of the river. No information was offered about the life that already lives on and in the river, the birds, fish, arthropods and plants, the life that can live nowhere else, the life that is the living river, the life that is disturbed and disrupted by human intrusion. It was a decidedly one-sided presentation, in favor of the CWC/SLR Alliance agenda.

In this current focus on recreational use of the river, the CWC has turned away from its stated mission: "To preserve and protect coastal watersheds through community stewardship, education and monitoring." Through the false front of the San Lorenzo River Alliance, now wants: "to create a thriving Santa Cruz riverfront … to restore the river, renew community pride and support sustainable economic development surrounding this important waterway."

Since when did "preservation and protection, community stewardship, education and monitoring" embrace economic development and recreational watercraft? And am I the only one who has noticed that the CWC campaign to allow personal watercraft on the San Lorenzo River, for free, came right on the heels of the Santa Cruz Harbor's launch fees for paddle boards and kayaks?