Over the last twenty years, Sierra Streams Institute’s water quality monitoring program has used citizen science to assess the health of the Deer Creek Watershed and engage community members in their local ecosystems. Historically, dedicated volunteers conducted monthly monitoring along eighteen sites spread strategically throughout the watershed. Volunteers measure pH, […]
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The “snowmageddon” storm of December 2021 was one to remember. Just ask the trees. Some lost branches. Some were bent over—sometimes seemingly permanently—by the weight of the snow. Many many more were uprooted, leading to the power and transportation issues we lived with for days or weeks after the storm. […]
Read More >The California Naturalist Program seeks to foster a committed group of volunteer naturalists and citizen scientists trained and ready to take an active role in natural resource conservation, education, and restoration. The California Naturalist course will introduce you to the wonders of our local ecology and engage you in the […]
Read More >Life of the Bottom-Feeders in the Shallows and Deeps of Streams Are you interested in learning more about the insects who inhabit our waterways? Join Sierra Streams Institute with guest speaker Dave Herbst on Tuesday March 1st at 6 PM for our latest Virtual Science Speaker Talk. Dave has been […]
Read More >When: January 8, from 10AM- 12PM, rain delay date January 9 Where: Pioneer Park Picnic Area (See map below) Questions or for more information contact Emma Walker, River Scientist, emma@sierrastreamsinstitute.org We are looking for more volunteer monitors specifically for the Bear River. Learn more about our Bear River Monitoring Here. […]
Read More >Background and History: The Bear River, flowing from its headwaters to the confluence with the Feather River, spans 73 miles. Its waters are heavily managed through dams and diversions. Though it is one of the more degraded watersheds in the area, the Bear River is one of the least monitored. […]
Read More >Sierra Streams Institute’s water quality monitoring program is not only our longest-running program but the beginning of our non-profit story! We started when a group of concerned community members began monitoring the creek’s water quality during the construction of the Pine St. bridge over Deer Creek. We now have over […]
Read More >Dear Friends, Community Members, and Nevada County Family, I write to you with excitement, gratitude, and humility with an announcement (in case you haven’t heard): We’re back, and we’re more excited than ever to work with YOU. As we approach the new year, we here at Sierra Streams Institute are […]
Read More >Saturday, October 23, 3-6PM More than one year after losing our office and laboratory to the Jones Bar Fire, Sierra Streams Institute (SSI) has a new place to call “home” again. We want to show you how we rose from those ashes. So, we invite you to come to celebrate […]
Read More >Youth-focused Community and Citizen Science in Nevada County What makes a forest healthy? Are our local forests healthy? Those are the questions that 3rd-5th graders from around the area are attempting to answer with the help of Sierra Stream’s Institute’s education team. Students will be working throughout the year to […]
Read More >As we reach the first anniversary of the Jones Fire, there is a lot to reflect on both the landscape and organization. Much like a forest is renewed by low severity while simultaneously being forever changed by high severity fire, by losing our office to the blaze, we were given […]
Read More >Our heart goes out to all in our community who were affected by the River Fire. This fast-moving fire took the community by surprise, and we are grateful to all the firefighters and community members who helped defend our communities. Unfortunately, there was still an immense loss. We want to […]
Read More >I was lucky enough to spend my youth exploring the Sierra Nevada along with all of the National Parks and natural areas of the West. Through these explorations, I learned, fairly early on, the unique and powerful beautify and ecological power of the Sierra Nevada. After years of hiking and […]
Read More >Are you interested in engaging the local community in water quality monitoring and vegetation management? Are you excited by an opportunity to work in the field to eradicate invasive species or help collect water quality data from our local streams? Sierra Streams Institute is excited to announce we are hiring […]
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Sierra Streams Institute is excited to announce we are working and collaborating with Bear Yuba Land Trust on their Garden Bar Preserve Wetland Restoration and Riparian Enhancement Project which was awarded funding from the Wildlife Conservation Board. The Garden Bar Preserve is a 652-acre working cattle ranch that connect of […]
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Sierra Streams Institute (SSI) is excited to announce we have begun work, in partnership with the Yuba Watershed Institute (YWI), on the Little Deer Creek Landscape Resilience Project. This Sierra Nevada Conservancy-funded project is located on 260 acres of public and private land in the Little Deer Creek watershed about […]
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Public health and safety have been at the forefront of many peoples’ minds this year as we are all dealing with a worldwide pandemic. There are a myriad of components that contribute to one’s health. One major factor is water. Water is one of the most critical elements to all […]
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We are so excited to welcome our new AmeriCorps member, Alex Carey! Alex will be helping coordinate restoration at Deer Creek Ranch, monitor water quality on Deer Creek and Bear River, create and share social media content, dive into our climate change study, and so much more! We’ll let Alex […]
Read More >This week was the last week of Wes and Dorothy’s AmeriCorps term. We can’t believe it’s already been 11 months since they started! Between PSPS’s, COVID-19, and our office burning down last month, Wes and Dorothy have truly had a unique AmeriCorps experience. But even with all of that disruption […]
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This week some of our staff were able to visit the Woolman property and see what’s left of our office building. While much of Woolman campus was spared heavy damage, the area around our building was completely burned. Beneath the twisted metal of what was our roof, we were able […]
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