News Release Archive

Media Advisory: Reclamation celebrates America’s Great Outdoors Rivers Initiative on Sacramento River at Red Bluff, California

Media Contact: Pete Lucero, MP Region Public Affairs Officer, 916-978-5100, 07/17/2012 12:52

For Release: July 17, 2012

RED BLUFF, Calif. - Department of the Interior Assistant Secretary for Water and Science Anne Castle will join students and volunteers in a habitat restoration project sponsored by the Bureau of Reclamation, the Tehama Colusa Canal Authority and the Sacramento River Discovery Center along the Sacramento River at Red Bluff.

This restoration effort is part of a larger project to enhance and restore approximately 23 acres of open water, riparian and wetland habitat in East Sand Slough along the Sacramento River as mitigation for the construction of the Red Bluff Pumping Plant and Fish Screen directly across the Sacramento River from the restoration area.

The Red Bluff Fish Passage Improvement Project was selected by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar in May 2012 to serve as a model for the America’s Great Outdoors Rivers Initiative. The goal of the initiative is to conserve and restore key rivers across the nation and expand outdoor recreational opportunities. The project, a partnership between Reclamation and TCCA, provides unimpeded access to prime habitat for Sacramento River salmon and green sturgeon, while assuring the continued delivery of water to 150,000 acres of productive farmland.

http://www.usbr.gov/newsroom/newsrelease/detail.cfm?RecordID=39929.  http://www.doi.gov/news/pressreleases/Salazar-Highlights-10-Projects-in-Pacific-Northwest-and-Western-States-as-Americas-Great-Outdoors-Rivers.cfm.
Media are welcome to attend.

Who:      Anne Castle, Department of the Interior Assistant Secretary for Water and Science
               Pablo Arroyave, Mid-Pacific Deputy Regional Director
Kenneth LaGrande, Chairman, Tehama Colusa Canal Authority

What:     Acknowledge and celebrate the beginning of restoration of a functioning, native, riparian community along the Sacramento River.
               Volunteers, including children, will plant native grass and plants along the river in the mitigation              project area.

When:    10 a.m., Friday, July 20, 2012

Where:  Sacramento River Discovery Center, along the Sacramento River, 1000 Sale Lane, Red Bluff,   Calif. 96019

Tour:     Following the restoration tour, the media are invited to tour the Red Bluff Fish Passage                Improvement Project, located on Diamond Avenue, Red Bluff, across the river from the            restoration location.

If you have questions or are interested in attending the restoration project or tour, please contact Donna Potter, Public Affairs Office, at 916-978-5103 or lpotter@usbr.gov by Wednesday, July 18, 2012, COB.

This effort will promote the area’s connection with President Obama’s America's Great Outdoors initiative (http://americasgreatoutdoors.gov) which focuses on reconnecting Americans to their natural environments. Recreation at these areas also supports the Department of the Interior’s efforts to support First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move Outside!” initiativeand DOI’s Youth in the Great Outdoors efforts. To learn more about these initiatives, please visit http://youthgo.gov and http://www.letsmove.gov/lets-move-outside.

Directions to restoration location

From Sacramento:
Take I-5, use Exit 649 for Antelope Blvd/CA-36 toward Central Red Bluff, keep right at the fork, turn right onto CA-36 E/Antelope Blvd., turn right onto Sale Lane, proceed to restoration location on the right.

From Redding:
Take I-5, use Exit 649 for CA-36/Antelope Blvd toward Central Red Bluff/CA-99/Chico/Fair Ground/Lassen National Park), keep left at the fork, follow signs to Chico/Lassen, turn left onto Antelope Blvd., turn right onto Sale Lane, proceed to restoration location on the right.

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The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.