Petaluma environmentalists continue wetlands mission

A longstanding Petaluma conservation group is looking to the future under new leadership, aiming for continued growth after the recent loss of two of its most prominent luminaries.

It’s been a little more than a year since the Petaluma Wetlands Alliance, which focuses on education, advocacy and conservation, sought to redefine itself as an independent nonprofit after operating as a committee of Santa Rosa-based Madrone Audubon Society since 2001.

Since it was awarded nonprofit status in February, the alliance has lost founding member Gerald Moore and longtime senior docent Bob Dyer, who was also involved in the genesis of the alliance and compiled an extensive photographic portfolio that provided a window into Petaluma’s diverse marshlands.

The wetlands alliance coalesced in the 1990s as citizens championed for the inclusion of the Gray’s Marsh area as a component of the Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility. It became a strong voice in opposing the Dutra asphalt plant across the Petaluma River from Shollenberger Park.

Over the years since its founding, members have tackled maintenance and restoration projects, led tours and brought 10,000 third-graders to the wetlands for educational programs.

Moore, who was instrumental in the creation of the organization and later became its longtime president, passed away in late December after a battle with cancer.

He worked tirelessly to preserve native species in the wetlands and organize opposition to the asphalt plant. His legacy will live on through the nonprofit’s continued efforts, said his wife Mary Edith Moore.

Dyer, whose death early last month was the second to rock the close-knit community, trained docents and led generations of Petalumans on tours of his beloved wetlands, where he spent countless hours observing and caring for the myriad avian species. He was involved in the organization until his death.

Gerald Moore and Mary Edith Moore left the alliance last summer, tapping Al Hesla to helm the organization after careful consideration, Mary Edith Moore said. Hesla, who was formally elected president last year, is now charged with working with the newly-established board of directors and various subcommittees to shape the future of the organization.

“We’re in growth mode,” Hesla, 64, said of the organization, which currently has 60 docents and members.

Efforts include attracting new, young members, seeking funding to implement a broad range projects and bolstering efforts to market the organization.

“A long term goal is to develop a brand for PWA that’s recognizable and something that sets us apart from other like-minded organizations,” he said.

A focal point in coming months will be a project to install an interpretive kiosk at the mouth of Adobe Creek in Shollenberger Park in partnership with the United Anglers of Casa Grande High School, he said. A second phase will include increasing access to a small beach and habitat restoration, Hesla said.

The work at Adobe Creek is identified in the Petaluma Water Ways plan, a document that maps out projects for river access and will help bolster the relationship between the two organizations, Hesla said.

“It’s just a perfect kind of thing to happen with Petaluma Water Ways,” said Susan Starbird, an advocate and spokeswoman of the riverfront plan. “It’s a very specially focused local nonprofit that wants to take ownership of one of those projects.”

Hesla is also in the process of applying for a grant that would fund efforts including the kiosk and amphitheaters for programs at Shollenberger Park and Ellis Creek, he said.

Ron DiNicola, Petaluma’s director of parks and maintenance, praised the alliance’s role in helping boost awareness about the wetlands while bringing an ecologically-minded focus to maintenance projects in the city’s unique parks.

“They’ve been great partners,” he said. “They’ve helped us tremendously.”

Mary Edith Moore said the organization will continue to grow and thrive under Hesla’s leadership.

“I think PWA will be expanded,” she said. “We’re getting some younger people in there which is needed and Al’s doing a real good job ... the organization will be around for some time.”

(Contact Hannah Beausang at hannah.beausang@arguscourier.com.)