The Refugio Creek Mouth restoration project is located at the mouth of the creek at Refugio State Beach, on State Parks property. The goal of the project is to increase the habitat and ecological value of the mouth of Refugio Creek by removing non-native flora and through the planting of native flora along the banks. The project will allow volunteers and visitors of the State Beach to learn about habitat restoration and the importance of the Refugio Creek Watershed.

Monday, September 22, 2014

Upcoming Events!

It’s Creek Week in Santa Barbara!  Join SCHR and our partners at Channel Islands Restoration (CIR) as we celebrate Santa Barbara’s 15th Annual Creek Week. We will be hosting events to help build awareness and stewardship of the natural treasures in our local area.  On Thursday, September 25th from 6:30-7:30pm we are hosting a free presentation on “Watershed Restoration,” featuring CIR Executive Director, Ken Owen at the Watershed Resource Center.  Come learn what is involved in restoring our local watersheds, and in particular, hear about our recent restoration efforts at Refugio State Beach where we worked together to restore native vegetation along the banks of Refugio Creek Mouth. Then, on Saturday, September 27th from 10:00am-12:00pm, join CIR and  SCHR for our Refugio Creek Mouth Field Tour and Restoration event!  Come stroll along the beautified banks of Refugio Creek for a guided field tour of this newly restored habitat.  Then, grab some gloves and help us nurture the native plantings by removing non-native weeds from within the project site. We will meet on the west side of the creek within the State Park, parking passes for the event will be provided. Please contact us to RSVP or with any questions info@schabitatrestoration.org.



Monday, May 5, 2014

Thank you to our volunteers!

This last Saturday we hosted another volunteer event at which we planted the last 40 native container plants and weeded out non-native plants from the site. Thanks to our 12 very hard working volunteers all of the native plants were watered and the site is looking great.



Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Volunteer at Refugio State Beach Saturday May 3rd

Please join us for what will be a weeding and watering event at Refugio State Beach on Saturday May 3rd from 9:00 am -12:30 pm. Since January over 2500 plants have been planted with the help of volunteers. On Saturday May 3rd volunteers will help with watering, weeding, and mulching around the native plants. We hope to see you there. RSVPs to the event are not required but appreciated. Please contact Erin Brown at erinbrown@schabitatrestoration.org if you would like to attend or have any questions.

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Refugio Project Update

Thank you to the dedicated volunteers that helped out at the Refugio Creek Mouth Restoration site this last Saturday. We are also so thankful for this much needed rain! The project site is looking great. Check out the growth on our native plants. The sunflowers, lupine and morning glory were all flowering this last weekend. Stay tuned for our next volunteer weeding event which will be sometime in early May. 





Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Storm Surge Damage at Refugio Creek Mouth

A few photos taken today showing the after math of Saturday's storm at Refugio State Beach. The lower portion of the project site was inundated with salt water for roughly 45 minutes on Saturday morning. Debris including seaweed, trash and driftwood were left behind as high tides receded. Native container plants that were stored on site waiting to be planted this coming Saturday were inundated with a mixture of fresh and salt water. A new low flow channel has been formed with in the creek banks. State Park staff have been working to clear the day use parking area  on the west side of the creek of sand and debris that were washed ashore. As of late morning the park was once again open to day use visitors. The beach lost most of it's sand and palm trees lining the beach took quite a beating. 






Monday, March 3, 2014

Volunteer this Saturday at Refugio State Beach!

Please join us for what will be our last planting event at Refugio State Beach on Saturday March 8th from 9:00 am -12:30 pm. Since January over 2000 plants have been planted with the help of volunteers. This weekend volunteers will help with planting, mulching around the plants and installing cages on some of the native plants. We hope to see you there. RSVPs to the event are not required but appreciated. Please contact Erin Brown at erinbrown@schabitatrestoration.org if you would like to attend or have any questions.



Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Volunteer Planting Events at Refugio State Beach!

Planting at Refugio State Beach continues! Please join us this Saturday February 15th from 9:00 am -12:30 pm at the mouth of Refugio Creek. RSVPs to the event are not required but appreciated. Please contact Erin Brown at erinbrown@schabitatrestoration.org if you would like to attend or have any questions.

An additional event has been scheduled for March 8th, from 9:00am - 12:30pm at which time we hope to complete the planting portion of the project. Thank you to all the volunteers that have helped with the project to date. We hope to see more of you this weekend.


Tuesday, February 4, 2014

King Tides at Refugio

Photos taken on January 30th out at the Refugio project site show King Tides flowing over the sand berm and inundating the creek mouth and a few of our Marsh Baccharis. A few minutes later the sand berm breached and water levels rapidly receded. 





Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Volunteer planting events continue!

Thank you to all the volunteers that came out this last Saturday! We planted close to 600 plants along the east bank of Refugio Creek. We had a great turn out with over 40 volunteers and beautiful weather. Only two scheduled planting days left. We hope you will join us on Saturday February 15th and Saturday March 8th from 9:00 am -12:30 pm. Email us at info@schabitatrestoration.org to RSVP 




Monday, January 13, 2014

Volunteer Planting Events at Refugio State Beach!

Thank you to all of the volunteers that came out to Refugio State Beach this last weekend to help plant 465 native plants along the banks of Refugio Creek. It was a beautiful day and successful event.



We have more volunteer opportunities planned for this coming Saturday the 18th and Monday the 20th. We hope that you will join us for the MLK National Day of Service. The volunteer events will run from 9:00 am - 1:00 pm. If you are interested in volunteering please wear appropriate attire. Tools, gloves, water and snacks will be provided. RSVPs to the event is not required but appreciated. Please contact Erin Brown at erinbrown@schabitatrestoration.org if you would like to attend or have any questions.

Monday, January 6, 2014

Upcoming Volunteer Planting Events at Refugio State Beach!

Upcoming volunteer events have been  scheduled at the mouth of Refugio Creek. South Coast Habitat Restoration, Channel Islands Restoration and the Watershed Stewards Project will host native planting events on Saturday January 11th, Saturday January 18th, Monday January 20th and Saturday January 25th from 9:00am-12:30pm at the mouth of Refugio Creek. Volunteers are need to help plant native riparian and coastal sage scrub species along the banks of Refugio Creek. If you are interested in volunteering please wear appropriate attire. Tools, gloves, water and snacks will be provided. RSVPs to the event is not required but appreciated. Please contact Erin Brown at erinbrown@schabitatrestoration.org if you would like to attend or have any questions. If you are under 18 years of age and plan to attend the event without your parent or guardian please contact us.