By Anne Bremer We all live in a watershed. When it rains, water flows downward from hills and mountains, through forests and streets, to creeks, rivers, bays and oceans. But what happens when a watershed doesn’t function in the way it should? This is the situation faced by residents in the Rollingwood neighborhood, which borders Rheem Creek just upstream of Contra Costa College. For over 20 years, this community has suffered from flooding related to creek overflows. The Rollingwood reach of Rheem Creek has long been neglected and is choked with invasive vegetation, leading to sediment build …
Getting past grass: How to replace your lawn in 3 months
By Paula White and Paula Urtecho I grew up in West Virginia with a big yard and a lawn that required a riding lawn mower to maintain. Lawns make sense in many parts of the country where there is plenty of rain year round, but not so much here in the Bay Area where water bills can soar from watering the lawn during our long dry season. A great alternative to a boring, homogenous lawn is a native plant garden. Native plant gardens are far more interesting to look at than a lawn, (particularly a brown, weed-infested one), and they attract beneficial insects such as bees and butterflies - a plus. …
What’s in Your Watershed: California and Steller Sea Lions
By Nikki Muench The California Sea Lion is an iconic species along the West Coast, from Vancouver Island, B.C. down to Baja California in Mexico, and famously spotted at Pier 39 in San Francisco and the Monterey Coast Guard jetty in Monterey Bay. The often chocolatey brown California sea lions are one of several pinnipeds (aquatic carnivorous mammals, including seals, sea lions, and walruses) that can be found in the San Francisco Bay Area, so here are three easy ways to distinguish a sea lion from a seal when you’re at the coast or along the bay shoreline. Ears. Sea lions have external …
From Rails to Swales: Managing Stormwater Naturally on the Richmond Greenway
By Kat Sawyer Did you know that the Richmond Greenway is part of the Rails-to-Trails network, where old railway land is converted to greenspace across the country? What was once a right-of-way for the Santa Fe Railroad is now a pedestrian and bike trail for Richmond residents. Local nonprofits have adopted parts of the Richmond Greenway to create gardens and parks that provide an urban oasis where people can walk and ride bikes through the city apart from busy streets. The Watershed Project has played a role in the transformation of the greenway over the years creating swales and rain …
Reducing Trash in our Watersheds Starts Here
By Sarah Haselton The Watershed Project organizes and engages in clean-ups and trash assessments around Contra Costa County. Collecting data frequently from the same sites allows for us to grasp general trends and hopefully identify the effects of waste management legislation. We have conducted trash assessments at many sites in the area but have consistent data from four sites in particular; Wildcat Creek at Verde Elementary (WC01), San Pablo Creek at El Sobrante Library (SANP01), San Pablo Creek at Parr Blvd (SANP02) and Creek at Pacific (BAYPC). Our most robust data from these sites …
A Warning to Sun Lovers
By Calvin Abbott With summer now in full swing many people are preparing for or experiencing the quintessential summer experiences we dream about all winter. With people doing all sorts of activities in the bright summer sun, the plethora of opportunities for summer fun have very few common factors. But one step before almost all summer activities is the slathering on of copious amounts of sunscreen. Sunscreen is a necessity, the protective barrier between our skin and the harsh UV rays produced by the sun. But not all sunscreen is made the same, and not all sunscreen is as harmless as it …
The Western Snowy Plover
By Nikki Muench Summertime in the Bay Area: tourists visiting from other states and countries flock to San Francisco and Point Reyes National Seashore, bundled in newly purchased fleece jackets from The North Face, and questioning why the Northern California beaches are foggy, cold and windy. As a volunteer Snowy Plover Docent at Point Reyes, I answer many visitor questions all summer long during my shifts, in addition to talking about a petite, federally threatened shorebird that inhabits the large beaches of the park. The Western Snowy Plover, a small, sand-colored, sparrow-sized …
What Difference Does One Field Trip Make?
By Anne Bremer It’s lunchtime on a crisp, clear January day. Ivonne, a 5th grade student, has spent her morning exploring Wildcat Creek on a field trip to Alvarado Park, and now she approaches us brimming with excitement. Normally shy in class, she tells us that she feels so much more confident speaking up here in the outdoors than in class! As Ivonne returns to her friends, her teacher chimes in. “This is awesome,” she tells us. “I’m so grateful to have you leading the field trip. I don’t have any of the training to be able to lead something like this on my own, even if we had the budget for …
