Mission Statement:

To preserve and protect coastal watersheds through community stewardship, education and monitoring.

Formed in April 1995, the Coastal Watershed Council (CWC) is a public education 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation. CWC advocates for the preservation and protection of coastal watersheds through the establishment of community-based watershed stewardship programs and works in partnerships with schools, community organizations and local government. The Coastal Watershed Council emphasizes hands-on learning— getting community members out into the watershed to learn about water quality, riparian and wetland ecosystems and the problems impacting our watersheds.

Programs of CWC focus on three areas:

• Stewardship Programs: The Stewardship Programs of CWC focus on the Clean Streams Program.
• Education and Community Outreach: CWC provides information and outreach to community groups, teachers, students, and citizens. 
• Watershed Advocacy: CWC works with agencies on water quality and monitoring issues.

Achievements and Accomplishments

• Manages ten volunteer water quality monitoring programs in Santa Cruz, San Mateo and Monterey Counties , providing water quality monitoring data for over 80 miles of creeks and streams. The data is provided to agencies and is used in assessing the health of our waterways and identifying water pollution sources and restoration opportunities.
• Engages in and supports restoration efforts in local urban watersheds.
• Initiated the Central Coast 's first urban runoff monitoring program in partnership with the City of Monterey .  Urban Watch programs have now been adopted by the City of Pacific Grove and the City of Capitola .
• Provides our community with the resources to assess the health of our watersheds and advocate for their protection.
• Produced the award-winning video WE ALL LIVE DOWNSTREAM , used in school curriculum throughout the State of California .
• Publishes the quarterly newsletter, WATERMARK , which includes
• informative articles about the issues, activities, and species critical to our watershed health.