Save the Bay

Nonprofit organization in California, US

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Oakland, California, US

Area served

San Francisco Bay Area

Members

25,000^[2]

Key people

Executive Director David Lewis^[3]Websitesavesfbay.org

Formerly called

Save San Francisco Bay Association

Save The Bay is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving San Francisco Bay and its related estuarine habitat areas. It was founded by Catherine Kerr, Sylvia McLaughlin, and Esther Gulick in 1961.

The organization aims to protect the bay from development and landfill and to oppose redevelopment of salt flats; it instead encourages their restoration to a natural state.

History

The organization was founded in 1961 as the Save San Francisco Bay Association by three women, Sylvia McLaughlin, Kay Kerr, and Esther Gulick. It began as a lobby group.

In 1965, state legislation established the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission as a state agency, which the organization deemed a grave success.

The organization works to protect the wildlife of the Bay Area and quality of the large inland body of water.^[1]^[4] Save The Bay worked to prevent the destruction of San Bruno Mountain to fill 27 miles (44km) of the San Mateo County shoreline.^[1] This work has been noted as the first successful conservation efforts in an urban area.^[1]

The organization's work led to the creation of the Bay Conservation and Development Commission, which was later used as the blueprint and inspiration for other government commissions such as the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, California Coastal Commission, and Delta Stewardship Council.^[1]

Plastic bag bans

The organization has also pushed for plastic bag bans throughout the entire region. It includes strong support for strengthening the San Francisco plastic bag ban in 2011, which banned all retailers from giving out bags made out of non-biodegradable materials.^[5] Save The Bay supported the 2012 San Jose, California, ban on plastic bags.^[6]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Taugher, Mike (2011-11-05). "A pioneer remembers how she and friends saved the bay". Contra Costa Times. Archived from the original on 2011-12-09. Retrieved 2012-01-10.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Our History". Save The Bay. 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-01-25. Retrieved 2012-01-16.
^ Lewis, David; Russ Juskalian (2012). "Message from the Executive Director". Save The Bay. Archived from the original on 2012-01-26. Retrieved 2012-01-16.
^ Sylvia McLaughlin, Save the Bay founder, fights on, Peter Fimrite, San Francisco Chronicle, 31-10-2011, access date 10-01-2012
^ Let's make all S.F. retailers comply with bag ban, David Lewis, San Francisco Chronicle, 05-12-2011, access date 10-01-2012
^ Attention, shoppers: Get ready to BYOB (bring your own bag) in San Jose stores, Tracy Seipel, San Jose Mercury News, 25-12-2011, access date 08-01-2012