Cannabis Watershed Protection Program
About Us
The Cannabis Watershed Protection Program is a multidisciplinary team dedicated to restoring watersheds affected by illegal cannabis cultivation. State Parks created the program in 2019 with funding from Proposition 64 (The Control, Regulate, and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act), to repair the damages done by decades of illicit growing activities throughout California State Parks. Unique to California, this multifaceted team brings a holistic approach to the complex work of protecting parks from cannabis cultivation and restoring degraded watersheds back to their natural state.
To learn about the State Parks Special Enforcement Team's interagency efforts to eradicate grow sites on public lands, check out the video below.
The Cannabis Watershed Protection Program Vision
Cannabis-impacted watersheds are operated and stewarded to:
- restore and adaptively manage ecosystem functions;
- protect and interpret natural and cultural resources;
- ensure improved public access is safe and enriching;
- and discourage, quickly identify, remediate, and prevent incompatible activities.
Given the challenges of accessing cultivation sites hidden in remote areas of parks, growers often return to the same watershed year after year, causing tremendous environmental damage from clearing the land, diverting water from its natural course, and using toxic herbicides and pesticides that kill native plants and wildlife. With funding available from Proposition 64 tax revenue, State Parks is able to address large scale protection of natural and cultural resources in watershed impacts by illegal cannabis cultivation.
Explore current restoration projects across the state by clicking the button below:
In the News
- California State Parks Removes More Than 25,000 Illegal Cannabis Plants This Season
- Attorney General Bonta, Together with Local, State, and Federal Law Enforcement Partners, Announces Eradication of 774,829 Cannabis Plants and 106,141 Pounds of Illegally-Grown Cannabis Worth over $353 Million
- California Law Enforcement Agencies Seize Thousands of Pounds of Illegal Cannabis Near State Parks | Governor of California
- California State Parks’ Cannabis Watershed Protection Program Cleans Up Illegal Grow Sites Across the State
- Cannabis Watershed Protection Program Cultural Staff Surveys Tataviam Cultural Preserve in Hungry Valley State Vehicular Recreation Area
- State Parks Cannabis Watershed Protection Program Cleans Former Cannabis Grows at Robert Louis Stevenson State Park
- State Park Peace Officers Uncover Illegal Cannabis Grow at Sonoma Coast State Park
Report a Grow Site
What should I do if I see suspicious cannabis-related activity in a State Park?
- Your safe exit is our first priority: quietly leave the site as quickly as possible.
- If you are safely able to use a mobile phone, record your GPS location and/or take a photo.
- When it is safe to do so, call 1-888-PRK-TIPS (888-775-8477) or email watershed@parks.ca.gov to report your observations.
Learn More
For current job opportunities, visit parks.ca.gov/jobs
Contact us: watershed@parks.ca.gov