Bay Nature Local Heroes | Environmental Justice | Farming and Ranching | Health | Parks | Policy | Pollution | Stewardship

Planned Wilderness

October 6, 2011 •  by

In eastern Contra Costa and Alameda counties, an ambitious vision for protecting big pieces of remaining open space is taking shape: From Black Diamond Mines and Mount Diablo to Brushy Peak and Sunol, several major agreements promise to replace ad hoc mitigation projects with a broader canvas of protected and connected habitat.

Big Solar Coming to East Bay?

October 1, 2011 •  by

Alameda County is facing tough decisions that have until now been mostly debated in distant desert landscapes. The county is developing new regulations covering large-scale solar. Native plant advocates and farmers and ranchers aim to make sure the policies protect sensitive habitats and high-value ag lands.

Keeping it in the Family in Rio Vista

October 1, 2011 •  by

For more than a century, Jeanne McCormack’s family has grown grain and raised livestock on a few thousand acres near Rio Vista. But she and her husband Al Medvitz didn’t take a straight line to ranching. Instead, they detoured through Africa and Asia. Now, they’re in it for the long haul.

Cultivating Community in Santa Rosa

October 1, 2011 •  by

Bayer Farm brings open space and food security to a section of Santa Rosa that needs more of both. With help from the nonprofit Landpaths, people in the Roseland neighborhood are helping each other plant and harvest food, and community.

Getting to Market in Sunol

October 1, 2011 •  by

In the Sunol Valley, beyond the subdivisions of Pleasanton, Fred Hempel grows tomatoes alongside other farmers growing figs, strawberries, and more. It’s all part of an unusual experiment in micro-farming unfolding under the leadership of Sustainable Agriculture Education on land owned by the San Francisco water department.

Urban Farms to Open Range

October 1, 2011 •  by

Even though foodie culture is an ever-growing phenomenon in the Bay Area, it’s still surprising to many that nearly half the land in our region is dedicated to ranching or farming.

Endangered Antioch Butterfly Needs a Hand

September 26, 2011 •  by

On a 55-acre lot in Antioch, a few biologists and a crew of volunteers are waging a battle to protect a vanishing bit of the natural world. The cause isn’t easily seen: No whales are threatened and the public isn’t in danger of losing a grove of old-growth redwoods. Instead, an endangered and rapidly dwindling species of butterfly teeters on the brink of extinction. And this week, you can help.

Get in on National Public Lands Day, this Saturday

September 21, 2011 •  by

Even before Woodie Guthrie sang “This land is your land…,” Americans had a solid history of maintaining and sharing public lands. September 24 brings this value into sharp focus: The annual National Public Lands Day is the largest assembly of volunteer effort on behalf of public lands in history. We’ll help you get in on the action!

Reconnecting People with Nature: Rue Mapp, Outdoor Afro

September 15, 2011 •  by

Inspired by a childhood divided between urban Oakland and a Lake County working ranch, Rue Mapp founded Outdoor Afro, an online community and organization that reconnects African-Americans with natural spaces and one another through outdoor recreational activities.