The last fish barrier is falling on mainstem Alameda Creek. It took almost three decades—and changed the watershed and the people who steward it.
Tag: Alameda Creek
Winter Issue 2021
A Golden Eagle Alights in Sunol
An immersive sculpture of a golden eagle will honor the history and culture of the Muwekma Ohlone community.
History
Jeff Miller, Man on a Mission
Jeff Miller is a man on a mission: He is dedicated to being an effective voice for endangered species and preserving the Northern California habitats they depend on for survival. He currently pursues this mission as founding director of the Alameda Creek Alliance and as a conservation advocate for the Center for Biological Diversity.
The Bay
Controversial Niles Canyon Project Reopened for Comment
After months of protests from local environmental activists and some government officials, the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is reopening the public comment period for part of the controversial Niles Canyon Improvement Safety Project on Highway 84 east of Fremont. Comments will now be taken through July 7.
The Bay, Wildlife
Good News for Steelhead from SFPUC
Things are looking up for the steelhead trout of Alameda Creek. A revised plan to replace the Calaveras Dam includes several features that will benefit the federally threatened fish. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) approved the project on January 27, 2011, ending years of discussion with conservation groups and federal agencies.
Winter Issue 2011
Road vs. Stream in Niles Canyon
State Route 84 twists and turns along Alameda Creek through Niles Canyon between Fremont and Sunol. An effort by Caltrans to make the road safer has hit a roadblock: Environmental groups, local citizens, and the City of Fremont claim that widening and straightening the road will simply encourage drivers to go faster while harming a creek that has been the focus of steelhead trout restoration efforts.
Wildlife
Alameda Creek Dam Policies Could Decide Frogs’ Future
Sarah Kupferberg, a research scientist at UC Berkeley, is fascinated by foothill yellow-legged frogs, once common but now scarce in Alameda Creek. The SF Public Utilities Commission is rebuilding the Calavares Dam, and the way that dam gets managed may well determine the fate of these rare frogs.
Spring Issue 2010
Native Son
The Pacific Coast of North America has only one species of native turtle: the western pond turtle. Just 80 years ago, a naturalist found more than 100 of these creatures thriving along an unremarkable stretch of a local creek. Today, a similar survey turns up a fraction of that, as natives compete with plentiful escaped pet turtles and other exotics. But a new conservation plan could tip that balance, and public awareness, back in the western pond turtle’s favor.
Stewardship
Agreement Opens Way for Quarrying on Apperson Ridge
A long-running battle over a quarry proposed for Apperson Ridge adjacent to Sunol Regional Wilderness reached a new chapter last month when two environmental groups struck a deal with the quarry operator. The deal includes major funding for habitat protection and other concessions, but also clears the way for quarrying in an area that’s important habitat for tule elk and other species.
Summer Issue 2008
The Steelhead of Alameda Creek
Across the Bay from Pilarcitos, in the Alameda Creek watershed, SFPUC finds itself involved in another steelhead restoration discussion, centered around the utility’s Calaveras Dam near Sunol Regional Wilderness. The reservoir created by the dam can hold about 97,000 acre-feet … Read more
