San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail

Updated February 24, 2012

The State Coastal Conservancy is leading the implementation of the San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail Plan (Water Trail Plan), a new regional access project. The Water Trail will be a network of access sites (or “trailheads”) that will enable people using non-motorized, small boats or other beachable sailcraft, such as kayaks, canoes, dragon boats, stand up paddle and windsurf boards, to safely enjoy single and multiple-day trips around San Francisco Bay. This regional trail has the potential to enhance Bay Area communities’ connections to the Bay and create new linkages to existing shoreline open space and other regional trails, such as the Bay Trail. The Water Trail will include educational, stewardship, and outreach components. Meetings at which trailhead designation decisions will be made are open to the public. The first public meeting of the Advisory Committee and the Project Management Team took place on September 15, 2011; the second Water Trail Implementation Meeting took place at the Coastal Conservancy on November 30, 2011. The next implementation meeting will take place at the Coastal Conservancy on March 6, 2012.

You may download summaries of the first meeting and second meeting, along with the Project Implementation Charter.

Planning and California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)

The final draft San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail Plan (Water Trail Plan) for the Water Trail (WT) was completed by the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) in 2007 in cooperation with the Conservancy and other public agencies and organizations. The Conservancy released a Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) on the WT Plan for public review in the summer of 2008. That 2008 DEIR was revised for clarity and to add a newly required section on the evaluation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions potentially associated with implementation of the project. The resulting 2010 Draft Revised Environmental Impact Report (DREIR) was circulated for public review August 3, 2010 – September 21, 2010. The San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) was certified by the Coastal Conservancy on March 17, 2011 at its scheduled public hearing.

For more information about the Water Trail project, contact Ann Buell, Project Manager, at (510) 286-0752 or abuell@scc.ca.gov, or visit BCDC’s website , where background information on the planning phase, including meeting summaries and planning documents may be found.

Documents and Links

Owners and managers of potential Water Trail sites interested in joining the Water Trail may contact Water Trail staff at any time. Download the Water Trail Site Designation Description for Site Owners and Managers for more details.

The San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail Enhanced Water Trail Plan (2011) (Enhanced Water Trail Plan) was adopted by the Coastal Conservancy on March 17, 2011. It includes changes made to the draft Water Trail Plan (2007) developed by the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC). Download the Enhanced Water Trail Plan, including all figures, or download the text and maps separately if the file size of the integrated document is too large.

The maps (Figures 8.1.a. – 8.1.g) may be downloaded, below:

-- Figure 8.1.a. - San Pablo Bay
-- Figure 8.1.b. - Carquinez Strait
-- Figure 8.1.c. - Suisun Bay and Marsh
-- Figure 8.1.d. - North Central Bay
-- Figure 8.1.e. - Central Bay
-- Figure 8.1.f. - South Central Bay
-- Figure 8.1.g. - South Bay

The San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail Plan Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) was certified by the Conservancy board on March 17, 2011. The FEIR is a two-volume document. The DREIR, with links found below, is now Volume II. Download FEIR Water Trail Volume I, which includes an introduction, the responses to comments on the DREIR, the comments themselves, and the Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program, to have the complete FEIR.

If you would prefer to download the Draft Revised EIR in smaller file sizes, you may use the following links to download the document in sections:
-- Cover Page through Chapter 1 - Introduction (Includes Executive Summary)
-- Chapter 2 - Project Description (1.6 MB)
-- Chapter 3 - Environmental Settings, Impacts and Mitigation Measures (3.5 MB)
-- Chapters 4-6: Cumulative Impacts, Project Alternatives, and Report Preparers, References and Definitions
-- Appendices (1.5 MB)