Wild & Scenic at 25: Interview with JOHN REGAN on How SYRCL Won Protection for the South Yuba River 

This is PART ONE of our Interview Series

Starting on January 1, 2026, and lasting throughout the year, SYRCL will be celebrating the 25th anniversary of the South Yuba River’s Wild & Scenic designation, a milestone that represents far more than legal protection. It represents proof that ordinary people, united by love of place, can accomplish the extraordinary. 

After nearly two decades of tireless organizing, late-night strategy sessions, and countless hours spent in legislative offices and along the banks of the river, 39 miles of the South Yuba officially became protected as a State Wild & Scenic River on January 1, 2001. 

That designation didn’t just protect the river from dams and development. It affirmed something even bigger: people can save a river. 

Voices of the Movement 

To celebrate this anniversary, the South Yuba River Citizens League has been interviewing some of the key figures who made Wild & Scenic designation possible — the organizers, advocates, lawmakers, and community members who refused to give up on the Yuba. Their stories reveal the determination, collaboration, and persistence required to achieve what once seemed impossible. 

Throughout 2026, we will be sharing these interviews to honor their legacy and inspire the next generation of river defenders. 

Below, you’ll find the first in our series of interviews, featuring SYRCL’s Executive Director, Dr. Aaron Zettler-Mann talking to JOHN REGAN, who was the Wild & Scenic Campaign manager during that time. 

Thank you to Michael West from BobbieMoon Video for editing this video. 

A River Worth Fighting For 

The story begins in the early 1980s, when proposals to build new dams on the South Yuba River threatened to flood canyons, silence rapids, and forever alter one of California’s most beautiful waterways. But the people who called the Yuba home — swimmers, anglers, families, and activists — refused to let that happen. 

Out of this grassroots movement rose a new organization with a big vision: the South Yuba River Citizens League. Its rallying cry was simple but profound: “People can save a river.” 

For the next 16 years, volunteers and advocates worked relentlessly to turn that vision into reality. They wrote letters, testified before lawmakers, and built alliances with local leaders who believed, as they did, that the Yuba’s free-flowing character was worth protecting. 

The Road to Wild & Scenic 

Among those allies were then Nevada County Supervisor Izzy Martin and State Senator Byron Sher, who became instrumental in carrying the community’s voice to Sacramento. Together with SYRCL, they drafted and championed Senate Bill 496, a measure to include the South Yuba in California’s growing system of Wild & Scenic Rivers. 

The bill’s passage in 1999 marked a momentous victory. When Governor Gray Davis signed it into law on October 10 of that year, cheers echoed from Nevada City to the Yuba canyons. 

A companion bill delayed the designation’s effective date until January 1, 2001 — giving the community more time to celebrate what they had accomplished together and help support additional non-dam flood protection for communities in the lower Yuba River. This kind of win-win solution established the creative problem solving SYRCL is still known for today. 

After years of uncertainty, the Yuba River had finally been granted the permanent protection it deserved. 

What Wild & Scenic Protection Means 

The California Wild & Scenic Rivers Act, modeled after the national act passed in 1968 during the Johnson administration, was created to protect rivers with extraordinary scenic, recreational, fishery, or wildlife values. It prohibits dams, diversions, and other destructive development, ensuring that the waters remain free-flowing for generations to come. 

The South Yuba joined an elite group of California rivers, including the Smith, Klamath, Eel, and American — rivers whose wild beauty reflects the soul of the state itself. 

For SYRCL, the designation wasn’t the end of the story. It was the beginning of a lifelong commitment. What started as a small band of river defenders has grown into one of the most active single-watershed organizations in the country, employing more than 30 staff and coordinating hundreds of volunteers each year. 

The Work Continues 

Twenty-five years later, the fight to protect the Yuba continues in new ways. 

The river faces challenges those early advocates could hardly have imagined: climate change warming waters and reducing snowpack, catastrophic wildfires reshaping the landscape, declining salmon and steelhead populations, and increased recreational pressure on beloved swimming holes and trails. 

SYRCL is meeting these challenges head-on through science-based restoration, education, and community engagement: 

• Restoring salmon spawning habitat in the lower Yuba to help threatened populations recover and thrive. 
• Revitalizing meadows in the upper watershed to store water, capture carbon, and increase fire and drought resilience. 
• Collaborating with partners to improve forest health and reduce the risk of megafires that threaten communities, water quality, and infrastructure. 
• Monitoring water quality year-round to track the river’s health and strengthen advocacy with science-based data. 
• Connecting thousands of people to the river through education, volunteer events, and hands-on stewardship that builds the next generation of river defenders.
• Inspiring activism through storytelling at SYRCL’s Wild & Scenic Film Festival, where powerful environmental films spark conversations, build community, and motivate people to take action for rivers and wild places. 

Because being Wild & Scenic isn’t just about legal protection — it’s about active, ongoing responsibility. 

Celebrate With Us 

Throughout 2026, join SYRCL as we celebrate this 25th anniversary and honor the movement that made it possible: 

• Wild & Scenic Film Festival (February 19-23) – Be inspired by environmental storytelling 
• State of the Yuba Event (April) – Learn about current watershed conditions and SYRCL’s work 
• Wild for the Yuba Gala (June) – Celebrate with the community that protects this river 
• Annual Yuba River Cleanup (September) – Take direct action to keep the river pristine 
• Public Salmon Expeditions (November) – Witness salmon spawning and learn about recovery efforts 

The South Yuba remains a living symbol of what’s possible when people come together to defend the places they love. And just as the river’s waters keep flowing, so too does the community’s commitment to its protection. 

Join the Movement 

The people who won Wild & Scenic protection 25 years ago didn’t do it alone. They built coalitions, mobilized communities, and persisted through setbacks because they believed the South Yuba was worth fighting for. 

Today, that same spirit continues. Every restored meadow, every monitoring data point, every student inspired, every volunteer hour, they all represent the living legacy of those early advocates. 

Become a SYRCL member and join the community that has protected this river for 25 years—and will protect it for the next 25. 

Make a donation to support the restoration, education, and advocacy work that keeps the South Yuba wild, scenic, and resilient. 

Sign up for our newsletter to stay connected throughout this anniversary year and learn more about the people who made Wild & Scenic protection possible. 

Together, we can ensure the South Yuba remains proof that people can save a river. 

Happy 25th Anniversary to the Wild & Scenic South Yuba River and to the unstoppable community that protects it.