Marin County launched the Coastal Communities Working Group (CCWG) in early 2020 and invited representatives from West Marin Village Associations, and other stakeholders including environmental and youth representatives. Participants in the CCWG are tasked with reviewing, providing input, and sharing information about key adaptation planning efforts in West Marin.

The work of the CCWG is to build off the County’s prior effort, Collaboration: Sea-Level Marin Adaptation Response Team (C-SMART) , an effort to understand potential impacts of sea level rise on Marin's ocean coast and work together with communities to prepare for a more resilient future.

In February, the CCWG met twice to review two projects that are underway in Marin County, the Stinson Beach Nature-Based Adaptation Feasibility Study, and Tomales Bay Nature-Based Adaptation Study.

At the close of 2019, Recology Sonoma Marin (Recology), West Marin’s waste hauler, proposed a 30% rate increase that once approved in 2020 increased the cost of a 32-gallon can in West Marin from $9 to $41/month. Recology, who took over the contract from the prior waste hauler, the Ratto Group, justified the increase to bring rates in West Marin up to standard market-rates.

EAC took notice of the dramatic rate increase, as we have been monitoring the rule-making and implementation of the 2016 California Senate Bill 1383 (SB 1383) and understand that rate increases and changes to the way we sort and manage our trash are about to significantly change. The goal of SB 1383 is to reduce short-lived climate pollutants or greenhouse gases (GHG), like methane, from entering our atmosphere from dairy, livestock, and organic waste in our landfills.

EAC supports SB 1383's ambitious goals to achieve a 75% reduction in organic waste by 2025, and we took the Recology rate increase as an opportunity to raise awareness about this key move towards zero waste and other concerns when it was considered and approved by the Board of Supervisors last month.

Sea Level Rise Adaptation for Tomales Bay including Living Shorelines

Methane and Food Waste