Day

November 13, 2017
13
Nov

A wedge of gravel, mud, and grasses irrigated by treated wastewater outperforms all expectations as a prototype for climate change adaptation.

Experts monitoring 16 months of plant growth on a humpbacked levee experiment on the San Leandro shore, a project led by the Oro Loma Sanitary District, found early weed colonization followed by rapid dominance of target native perennial vegetation. “Native vegetation outcompeted weeds,” says Peter Baye, who designed the planting palette for this multi-benefit infrastructure project. The results were apparent during an October 2017 tour for international design teams looking at homegrown innovations in sea level rise adaptation as part of the Resilient By Design Bay Area Challenge (see photo). With so much of the Bay shoreline in need of protection from increased flooding, as well as habitat for wetland species at risk and new wastewater infrastructure, progress on this experimental levee is being...
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13
Nov

The number of Chinook salmon returning to Central Valley rivers is near record lows as a result of water management decisions made during the recent drought.

Returns of endangered winter-run Chinook salmon this year will be the second lowest this century—according to the Bay Institute’s Jonathan Rosenfield, the final 2017 estimate is likely to be less than 1,000 fish total, of which more than 80% were hatchery-spawned. Returning fish represent the survivors of the 2014 incubation period, when the US Bureau of Reclamation did not provide adequate cold water, and poor juvenile outmigration conditions during winter-spring 2015 resulting from reduced Delta inflow and outflow standards. Despite all this, salmon continue to return to Northern California’s rivers; fall is the best time to witness this migration as water levels are at their lowest and the salmon are easiest to see. The Bay Institute, together with The Nature Conservancy and...
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13
Nov

“Sometimes doing nothing is the best option” is just one of the sometimes counterintuitive tips for post-fire restoration compiled by the Napa County Resource Conservation District in the wake of October’s North Bay firestorm.

A new web page simply titled “Fire” contains a suite of online resources for land owners and managers. From finding sources of invasive-free native plant seed to recommending that burned soils be left undisturbed wherever possible (so as to maintain their natural hydrophobic properties, which help prevent erosion), the website offers a trove of tips to help maximize the recovery of a healthy landscape in a series of “After the Fire” fact sheets that include titles such as Dos and Don’ts, Preparing for Winter, and Some Notes About Seeding Grasses. JC
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13
Nov

A former Japanese-American-owned nursery/brownfield in Richmond is being transformed into a green infill development that includes affordable senior housing, a four-acre greenbelt with a daylighted creek, an urban forest, and easy connections to transit via the Richmond Central Greenway.

Tucked into a corner of the city next to the I-80 freeway and BART tracks, the “Miraflores” site was the heart of the Japanese-American nursery industry in the East Bay. From the early 1900s to 2006, three Japanese-American families operated a rose and carnation nursery there, one of about a dozen such nurseries in the Richmond-El Cerrito area, according to Bay Area historian Donna Graves. During World War II, the families were sent out of state to camps but returned to operate their nurseries after the war; the redevelopment will preserve some homes, water towers, and greenhouses to honor the families. In 2006, the Richmond Redevelopment Agency purchased the property and began cleaning up contaminants on the site, which included...
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13
Nov

Broad buy-in is the hoped for result of a proposed new landscape-level vision for conservation of the Delta.

For decades, government agencies, stakeholders, scientists, and planners have tried to develop a common vision for the future Delta, only to be stymied by environmental and economic politics. A new paradigm developed by diverse interests, however, proposes six regional conservation strategies to be achieved through collaborative, phased projects tailored to the needs of each sub-region, with a priority on improving public lands first. Proponents of the new framework say long-term conservation of the Delta is not a choice but an urgent necessity that will benefit people as much as natural communities. “It is a call to work together to improve ecosystem function, bolster ecosystem services for people, support Delta wildlife, and grow our science capacity so we can keep learning conservation lessons,” says...
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13
Nov

For the first time, the San Francisco Estuary has been mapped out for non-motorized watercraft.

From the Palo Alto Sailing Station to the Petaluma Creek Marina, the San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail program has established five maps that unify a network of “trailheads,” allowing boaters to access the entire Estuary. “The goal of the project is to improve and enhance access for non-motorized craft,” says Ben Botkin, Water Trail Planner. The back of each map provides information on the specific ecosystems of each region, serving to inform and inspire boaters to explore the varied waterscapes. “There are so many amazing places to see,” says Botkin, “And we want to educate people on how to do it safely.” The maps are available for download at the new Water Trail website, which also provides up-to-date water condition...
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13
Nov

In hot water due to climate change, many ocean fish are moving to higher latitudes or deeper waters to find the conditions they need to survive.

These include lobster, black bass, and Atlantic cod, all of which have supported iconic fisheries along the Eastern seaboard of the United States. “Ocean animals are moving ten times faster than animals fleeing climate change on land,” says Rutgers University marine biologist Malin Pinsky, whose Rutgers OceanAdapt website enables visitors to explore changes in marine species distributions over recent decades. These range shifts are causing headaches for fishing fleets, which are forced to head farther out to sea or hundreds of miles further from home ports. But fishes moving north face a catch-22: Water absorbs carbon dioxide more readily when cold, meaning rising greenhouse gas concentrations are causing the oceans to acidify much faster at the poles. KMW
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13
Nov

The California Legislature has made state history by passing SB-5, which acknowledges the importance of parks and climate-change resiliency for some of California’s most disadvantaged communities.

“Park access should not be considered a luxury. It is a right,” says Mary Creasman, California Director of Public Affairs for The Trust for Public Land. The bill—known as the California Drought, Water, Parks, Climate, Coastal Protection, and Outdoor Access for All Act of 2018—recognizes the importance parks play in a community’s quality of life as well as the lack of access to them in urban and disadvantaged communities. The bill provides definitions of “disadvantaged” and “severely disadvantaged” communities and provides them with guaranteed funding. SB-5 also includes funding to improve climate change and sea level rise resiliency in at-risk areas. “With existing funding sources disappearing, SB-5 comes at a critical moment to demonstrate California’s renewed commitment to conservation and parks...
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13
Nov

The digital light is finally filtering into the dark recesses of ESTUARY News magazine’s archives.

For readers who may have tried to search our magazine web site for a favorite article or information on a specific topic, we have good news: ESTUARY’s featured online articles are now searchable back to the start of 2014. Take a look — browse by key words and tags, scan enlarged magazine covers in the archives, or just deploy the simple Q function. It’s a trove of good references, histories, voices, and stories of efforts to protect and restore our waterways over the years.
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