Fight Over Bayshore Power Plant
Opponents Consider Appeal of Hayward Plant Proposal

by Kris Vann

A long-running controversy over a power plant proposed for the Bayshore in Hayward is heating up as opponents consider whether to appeal recent permits granted to Calpine, the company that wants to build a 600-megawatt plant in an area that has a sometimes uneasy mix of industry and important wildlife habitat.

Published March 19, 2010
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The Pinnacles' First Condor Nest in 100 Years

by Aaron Freifeld

For the first time in a century, condors are nesting in Pinnacles National Monument, a park of towering cliffs in the Gavilan Mountains east of Monterey Bay. The discovery is thrilling news for park biologists, who have coordinated a condor reestablishment program here since 2003.

Published March 19, 2010
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Helping Kids Discover the Wonder of Nature
SF's Tree Frog Treks Gets Kids Outdoors

by Aaron Freifeld

You might think that 5-year-old Rosa might be hesitant to return to her teacher after sneaking off to smear gray mud all over her face and arms. Instead, she runs right up to teacher Chris Giorni with a smile on her round, blackened face....

Published March 08, 2010
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Have Your Say in 50 Years of Restoration
New Plan for Bay Wetlands

by Aaron Freifeld

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will be hosting two public workshops in March to explain and hear comments on a 50-year plan for restoring the San Francisco and Suisun Bays, which have lost 90 percent of their wetlands. Find out how you can take part in the restoration...

Published February 26, 2010
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Pinole Academy Connects Creeks, Students, and Teachers

by Donna Whitmarsh

Since 1999, students at Pinole Valley High School's Environmental Studies Academy have been taking their college prep program through an environmental lens and getting a crash course in community action along the way. They're partnering with other groups to provide environmental services that affect their whole human and biotic community.

Published February 15, 2010
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Two Land Deals Protect Redwoods, Murrelets, and the Skyline Trail

by Kris Vann

In just one conversation with Reed Holderman, it's easy to tell that he loves his job. And why shouldn't he? As executive director of the Sempervirens Fund, he gets to help save landscapes for generations to come. With two recent land deals, the fund has come a step closer to its goal of connecting all the major parks on the Santa Cruz coast.

Published February 02, 2010
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Development Threatens San Bruno Mountain Butterflies

by Donna Whitmarsh

It's an old story. Another species that once flourished is being pushed to extinction by modern human encroachment. The callippe silverspot has been gradually pushed into a few remaining islands of habitat, including San Bruno Mountain south of San Francisco. Critics say a long-simmering development proposal threatens that habitat.

Published January 25, 2010
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California Coho Salmon In Dire Straits
New Report Predicts Collapse

by Donna Whitmarsh

The collapse of Central California Coast coho salmon population is imminent, according to a report by the National Marine Fisheries in late December 2009. Numbers of returning coho may be too low to support a viable population.

Published January 07, 2010
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Protesting Burrowing Owl Eviction

by Donna Whitmarsh

An ongoing controversy over the displacement of burrowing owls in Antioch brought out 40 local residents and others from across the Bay Area on Sunday for a march to protest the eviction and push for better protections for the owls across the state.

Published January 06, 2010
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Antioch Developer Evicts Burrowing Owls

by Donna Whitmarsh

Scott and Heather Artis of Antioch have adopted a local community of burrowing owls as their own stewardship project and were looking forward to this year's nesting season, but in November 2009 the state handed the owls an eviction notice, to make way for a housing development...

Published December 21, 2009
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California's Big Kahuna

by Kris Vann

Winter might not be beach season for most of us, but for big wave surfers, now is the time to be out on the water. What makes winter the time for big waves? And why do a few spots, like Mavericks, get such tall waves?

Published December 18, 2009
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California Indians and Their Environment: An Introduction

Reviewed by Alan Kaplan

Published December 11, 2009
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Chevron Gives Ground
Progress for Richmond's Bay Trail

by Maria Vierra

After two years of negotiation with the East Bay Regional Park District, Chevron has agreed to allow access to two parcels of land on Chevron property that moves a step closer to extending the San Francisco Bay Trail along Richmond's Point San Pablo Peninsula. But there's a lot more work to do...

Published December 09, 2009
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Clear Skies Ahead
Why is there no haze in winter?

by Kate Brittain

Dig out the binoculars; it's clear skies ahead. In the Bay Area, the winter months are your best bet for a clear view of, well, anything you're trying to spy--be it bird, Big Dipper or sweeping vista.

Published December 04, 2009
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With Rain Comes Life, and Death
Rainy Winter May Be Deadly for Oaks

by Nicola DeRobertis-Theye

After three years of drought, the forecast for a wet El Nino winter this year is welcome news indeed. Unless you're an oak or tanoak tree. Researchers fear a wet year could mean an epidemic spread of sudden oak death (SOD). But a new preventive treatment and easy precautions could help contain the disease.

Published December 02, 2009
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Kids Learn the Landscape in San Rafael
PRBO Program Opens Marsh to Canal District Students

by Maria Vierra

On Veteran's Day, a day off when lots of kids might be home watching TV or playing video games, fourth and fifth graders from Bahia Vista Elementary School in San Rafael's Canal district guided parents and friends through the four distinct bird habitats of Pickleweed Park and explained what they had learned about each habitat and its particular bird life.

Published November 20, 2009
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State Park Heroes: The Volunteers
Volunteer Groups Keep Parks Open Despite Cuts

by Donna Whitmarsh

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently won an award form the National Park Trust (really), apparently for not closing the parks after all. But it's the hundreds of volunteers across the region who are helping remaining staff keep things together, while they also fight for a permanent funding solution.

Published November 19, 2009
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Review: Breeding Bird Atlas of Contra Costa County

reviewed by Matthew Bettelheim

On the heels of Santa Clara County's 2007 breeding bird atlas comes Contra Costa County's companion for north Bay Area birders. This year the Mount Diablo Audubon Society released the Breeding Bird Atlas of Contra Costa County.

Published October 29, 2009
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The Coho Are Back!
Salmon Return to Lagunitas

by Donna Whitmarsh

Yes, the silver and pink flashers are working their way up Marin County creeks to spawn. Paola Bouley, conservation director for the Salmon Protection and Watershed Network (SPAWN), reported seeing coho spawners on October 21, 2009. The group is beginning its tenth year of naturalist-led creek walks on what's now our state's largest remaining coho run, so now's the time to see the salmon migrating upstream.

Published October 28, 2009
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Saving Sonoma Mountain
Trails and Acquisition on Signature Peak

by Nicola DeRobertis-Theye

At 2,463 feet, Sonoma Mountain is not even close to our region's tallest peak. But its broad slopes hold a remarkable diversity of iconic Bay Area landscapes, from redwood groves to oak woodlands to ranchlands and vineyards. And at the summit, the views sweep from ocean to valley. With new acquisitions and trails in the works, public access to those views keeps getting better and better.

Published October 22, 2009
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