Nevada City, CA –The South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) released the results of the survey they conducted in October that assessed concerns locals had about increased visitation to the Yuba.
More than 500 people responded to the survey, which asked respondents questions about the activities they support at the river, their concerns related to increased visitation, and the measures they would like to see put into place in order to address the ever-growing numbers of people visiting the Yuba.
“The results reinforced how important efforts to protect the Yuba are, and will inform future initiatives and collaborations,” said Melinda Booth, SYRCL’s Executive Director. “We shared the results with the Yuba River Public Safety Cohort along with our initial recommendations for adding infrastructure at the major crossings—like restrooms and trash service—and increased enforcement of existing safety regulations.”
Survey results indicate that community members have high levels of concern regarding increased trash, fire danger, overcrowding, traffic, and degraded water quality. The results also made evident that significant support exists for increased enforcement of rules meant to mitigate these impacts.
Many respondents shared that their response to increased visitation is to go to the Yuba less or not at all.
“While we understand why some people are choosing to stay away from the river, we also know that community involvement is critical now more than ever,” said Booth. “We need people to volunteer as River Ambassadors and cleanup crews to help teach newcomers how to respect the river because we know this kind of outreach works.”
Those interested in reading more about the results can visit yubariver.org.