Stewards of Monterey County’s environment are begging the governor for mercy.

“Due to the impasse in state budget negotiations, local environmental protection and conservation programs – and the jobs that support them – are tipping into a freefall the likes of which we have not experienced in the Monterey Bay area,” states a Jan. 22 letter to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, signed by the leaders of 21 Central Coast agencies and nonprofits. “We urge immediate action to end the budget crisis, put people back to work, and resume the critical work being done to protect California’s environment.”

The state’s December decision to withhold funds until the Legislature passes a budget has frozen roughly $116 million for Monterey County projects.

Three bond-funded projects of the Monterey County Resource Conservation District – two helping livestock managers and farmers improve water quality, and another linking conservation agencies with permits and funding – were killed before they could get off the ground. Next month the RCD may begin shifting employees to part-time, with potential layoffs in the summer.

“WE’RE KEEPING OUR FINGERS CROSSED AND TRYING TO REALLOCATE FUNDS TO KEEP GOING.”

“We’re not sleeping well,” Executive Director Paul Robins says. “We all have that deer-in-the-headlights look. I’ve been doing this for 14 years, and this is the first time it’s been like this.”

Big Sur Land Trust, meanwhile, is missing $7 million in land acquisition and grant funding. The nonprofit is now unable to complete purchases of key parcels for the Carmel River Parkway project, according to spokeswoman Rachel Saunders.

The land trust is also waiting for reimbursements from state and county parks for private-to-public property transfers in Sand City and Toro Park, she says. The state Coastal Conservancy owes it about $200,000 for the Carmel River floodplain restoration design, and the state resource agency another $100,000 for Carmel Valley trail projects,

“Like many organizations, we’ve had to shuffle funds around to keep staff going,” Saunders says. “We’re just keeping our fingers crossed and trying to reallocate funds to keep going until this is resolved.”

In addition to owing the land trust about $750,000 for Carmel Valley restoration work and acquisitions, the California Coastal Conservancy has suspended at least four other Monterey County projects: the San Clemente Dam removal on the Carmel River, two wetland restorations at Elkhorn Slough, and planning of a 75-mile trail along the Big Sur coast.

“In general, the delays can cost money,” conservancy Project Manager Trish Chapman says.

Workers at the Watsonville office of Community Alliance with Family Farmers have been reduced to two days per week, according to Regional Program Coordinator Sam Earnshaw. CAFF has also halted its biological agriculture program, which promotes conservation plantings on farms. The program was largely funded by state enterprises including the Water Board and the Conservation Corps.

The funding freeze prevented CAFF from paying its bills to nursery growers and other creditors. “It affects our relationships with them too,” Earnshaw says. “They’re understanding, but when you buy something from somebody, no matter how many excuses you have, you still owe that debt.”

Like many state agencies, California State Parks is now closing its offices on the first and third Fridays of every month. Bond-funded park projects, including a renovation of the Pfeiffer Big Sur campground, are also on pause.

“Anything that involves putting money out is basically on hold,” says Monterey District Superintendent Matt Fuzie. “Our parks are going to remain open, and services in the field should remain there.”

Without state grant funding, Monterey County Parks is left in a lurch on restoration projects at Lake San Antonio and Lake Nacimiento.

“The state has frozen the money, and basically tells us to go it alone,” says Parks Director John Pinio. “We’ve got our fingers crossed that in the summertime people will continue to recreate, and hopefully stay closer to home.”

The Department of Fish and Game, meanwhile, has halted the Thorn Bridge replacement project on the Arroyo Seco River, according to DFG spokeswoman Jordan Traverso.

The state has been without a budget since the July 1 start of the fiscal year, but it wasn’t until December that the state Pooled Money Investment Board decided to turn off the funding spigot. The board typically issues an average of $660 million in loans each month, most of it from voter-approved state bonds.

The board continues to fund almost 300 projects that would cost too much to halt, including the $10 million second phase of the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District’s Integrated Regional Water Management project.

But even that might face the axe if legislators don’t fix the budget soon. “We’re poised to go into a no-exemption policy,” says H.D. Palmer, external affairs director for the California Department of Finance. “We don’t want to do that.”

State legislators are meeting almost daily to close the state’s 18-month $42 billion budget gap. Until they do, Palmer says, the state can’t get back into the credit market to sell California bonds.

“It’s our hope,” he adds, “that they’re making progress.”