About the Mountains Recreation & Conservation Authority

The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority is a local public park agency dedicated to the preservation and management of open space, urban parkland, watershed lands, trails, and wildlife habitat. Established in 1985 pursuant to the Joint Powers Act, the MRCA is a local partnership between the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, which is a state agency that was established by the Legislature, the Conejo Recreation and Park District, and the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District, which are local park agencies established by the vote of the people.  The MRCA manages more than 75,000 acres of public parkland and provides natural resources and scientific expertise, critical regional planning services, operations, fire prevention and ranger services, as well as education and leadership programs for thousands of youth each year. It is one of the lead agencies revitalizing the Los Angeles River and its tributaries.

The MRCA has been working on the Los Angeles River for more than 25 years together with the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, the City of Los Angeles, the County of Los Angeles, the Army Corps of Engineers, and many community groups and nonprofit organizations.  The goal is to create a continuous 51-mile greenway from the headwaters of the river in the San Fernando Valley, to its terminus in the Pacific Ocean at Long Beach.  The MRCA ran its first Los Angeles River Kayak program as a partner with the Los Angeles Conservation Corps in the highly successful Paddle the L.A. River Program in the Sepulveda Basin in 2011.