Cole Creek Flooding | Lake County residents demand action

Who We Are

We're a community of neighbors in Green Acres, Kelseyville, California. Many of us have lived here for decades, witnessing the situation worsen significantly in recent years. Floodwaters now remain on our properties for more than 6 months each year, damaging homes, roads, and severely impacting daily life and the local ecosystem.

Decades of Neglect

Cole Creek was rerouted and channelized in the late 1950s. Since then, Lake County has performed almost no maintenance, allowing sediment and debris to accumulate. This negligence has turned Cole Creek into a flooded disaster, trapping residents and wildlife alike.

Horse awaiting evacuation from flooded pen

Endangered Fish, Ongoing Crisis

Cole Creek is vital for the survival of the endangered Clear Lake Hitch, yet thousands of fish still die every spring in stagnant floodwaters. Despite recognizing this crisis for years, Lake County authorities delayed crucial action. Through ongoing community collaboration (monthly meetings, detailed documentation, and consistent communication about the issues), the county published a comprehensive planning RFP in September 2025 and is now working to finalize a contract, marking the first concrete step toward long-term restoration.

Stranded Clear Lake Hitch juveniles in stagnant floodwaters

Dead Clear Lake Hitch adults in field after water evaporated in June 2024

Recent Updates

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April 7, 2026

Public comment on the Lake County 2050 General Plan

The draft [Lake County 2050 General Plan](https://lakecounty2050.org/) is out for public review. This is the county's blueprint for the next 25 years. It decides where funding goes and which projects get built. The drafts name Cole Creek as a "primary source of flooding," but stop there. They don't recognize the Cole Creek Collaborative's work or mandate the fixes we need. We submitted a [public comment](/lake-county-2050-comment.pdf) pushing for concrete changes: priority funding for Green Acres, mandated channel maintenance, evacuation-constrained mapping for our flooded roads, and the Collaborative as the county's template for restoring channelized creeks.

Clear Lake hitch spotted spawning in Cole Creek during community survey

We counted about 50 Clear Lake hitch in Cole Creek on March 10 during a community survey for the county. The spawning run kicked off around the same time, which is great to see after years of channel problems.

Center for Biological Diversity moves to sue over Clear Lake hitch protections

The Center for Biological Diversity notified U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that it intends to sue over stalled Endangered Species Act protections for the Clear Lake hitch. The federal agency proposed listing the hitch as threatened back in January 2025 but never finalized the rule. If the agency doesn't act within 60 days, the Center plans to take them to court.

Progress and Continued Need

While long-term planning moves forward, recent cleanup efforts have made a difference. California Conservation Corps crews cleared vegetation from the channel in December 2025, and county workers separately removed vegetation and sediment upstream of Clark Drive Bridge in August 2025. Yet much of the creek remains clogged. Consistent maintenance (cutting vegetation, removing debris, and keeping the channel open) is essential to protect homes, roads, and wildlife while the multi-year restoration project develops.

Get Involved

Cole Creek Flooding Crisis