Board of Directors

Organizational Agreement for Bear Creek Watershed Group

Name:

Bear Creek Watershed Group (BCWG)

Area:

All lands within the watersheds of Bear Creek and Ash Creek located incentral Shasta County, including all tributaries of both creeks.

Purpose:

The Bear Creek Watershed Group seeks to promotea sustainable community, both human and biological, within the Bear Creekand Ash Creek watersheds.

Goals:

A. Help willing landowners implement measures to conserve resources within the Bear Creek and Ash Creek watersheds.

B. Sustain and enhance the economic and biological resources in the watersheds including water rights, water quality and quantity, general property rights, ranching, agriculture, hydropower, forestry, fishing, hunting, recreation, botanical diversity and both terrestrial and aquatic animal diversity.

C. Maintain liaison with stakeholders, regulatory and resource agencies.

D.  Share information and offer encouragement to further goals A, B, and C.

Membership:

Any owner of real property or resident within the watersheds may be a member of the BCWG. An owner is defined as the individual, group, partnership, corporation, trust or other entity holding title to one or more parcels within the watershed. Where title to a parcel or parcels is held in different names, but is owned or controlled by the individuals or legal entity, only one membership will be allowed. Regulatory and resource agencies withmanagement interest and activities in the watersheds shall have one membership each.

Officers:

The BCWG shall have a minimum of three officers: a president or chairperson, a vice-president or vice-chairperson, and a secretary/treasurer. These officers shall come from within the membership of the BCWG.  Other officers may be added as the BCWG determines necessary. The officers’ duties shall be those usually given to the title for each office. The election of officers shall be done annually at a regularly scheduled BCWG meeting. A nominating committee shall be selected at the regularly scheduled meeting prior to the election. They shall send out to all active members a list of nominees at least one week before the election. An active member is defined as anyone attending at least one half of the meetings during the previous year.

Meetings:

For now there will be monthly meetings as currently scheduled. If future meeting demands lessen or increase, the BCWG officers may change the schedule as necessary, but there shall be a minimum of six meetings per year.  The BCWG may hold additional public meetings.

Western Shasta Resource Conservation District (WSRCD):

The BCWG will continue to work closely with the WSRCD. BCWG appreciates the WSRCD’s excellent work in obtaining funding and overseeing preparation of our watershedassessment. The BCWG will continue to coordinate with the WSRCD on major projects and meeting facilitation.

Finances:

Financial management for large projects and funding from grants shall be coordinated through the WSRCD. The WSRCD shall report to the BCWG treasurer about these expenditures, as deemed appropriate. The BCWG may have its own account for smaller projects and educational efforts. This account shall be managed by the treasurer, who will report on its activities at all BCWG meetings. If the treasurer is absent, he shall file a written report through the president or the WSRCD representative.

Approval and Amendment:

The purpose of this agreement is to establish a structure for the BearCreek Watershed Group.  This group has been meeting as an ad hoc group for more than three years before today's date of October 6, 2005. This Organizational Agreement may be approved at a regular meeting of the BCWG by all members present at that meeting. Future amendments or revisions of this agreement may be made by the active voting members, as defined within the Officers Section, after one months notice of the proposed change has been presented to the voting members.