Marin Chapter Meeting “Our Uninvited Watershed Ally” Guest Speaker: Heidi Perryman, Ph.D. Monday, July 8 @ 7:30 pm Heidi Perryman, a child psychologist, became an accidental beaver advocate in 2006 when a beaver family moved into her town of Martinez, California. She started the organization Worth A Dam dedicated to maintaining beavers in Alhambra Creek. Through her advocacy for responsible stewardship, creative problem solving, community involvement, and education, Martinez became the first city in California to utilize flow devices enabling beavers to coexist in an urban environment. Beavers and their dams have a dramatic positive impact on wildlife by creating wetlands which store and filter water thereby augmenting fish and bird populations. Beaver occupied streams are three times more resistant to wildfire. Beaver dams create micro habitats with cooler air and water and slow floods which help to mitigate our changing climate. Heidi joined a team of experts in researching and publishing a report on the historic population of beavers in California. With Sonoma State University she organized the first beaver summit in California resulting in changes to state beaver policy. Heidi believes that helping people coexist with beavers will have beneficial impacts on the environment, especially native plants. Beaver Conservation