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Become a Member of Nature in the City
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Poppies in Glen Canyon |
In order for our 3 half-time staff to organize, catalyze & activate a new cultural shift of local ecological stewardship, we need your membership!
Please renew or become a member of Nature in the City today! We need you!
Your contribution and membership empowers us in our unique role to advocate for and promote stewardship of San Francisco’s irreplaceable natural resources: Lake Merced, Sharp Park, Candlestick Point, McLaren Park, Twin Peaks, Laguna Honda, Mt. Sutro, Yerba Buena Island, the Presidio and Crissy Field!
Our top 2010 priorities include:
Promoting our vision for a Twin Peaks Bioregional Park · Expanding community-based restoration along the Green Hairstreak Corridor & in Golden Gate Park · Catalyzing backyard habitat restoration · and of course, being the leading guardian of the Natural Areas Program, San Francisco’s only entity dedicated to the management and stewardship of our natural heritage.
Make a contribution to Nature in the City today!
Golden Gate Park's Oak Woodlands
A 2009 Year-End Report from Steward Rob Bakewell
"The past year 2009 saw huge progress in the Oak Woodlands...
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Burt Meyer & NTC's Iris Clearwater Planting on Lick Hill - Photo by Rob Bakewell |
The area surrounding the Horseshoe Arena, between East Conservatory Dr. and Stanyan including Lick Hill is the 'hot' area right now... 'The SF Horseshoe Pitchers' and the members of the SF service organization, 'The Guardsmen' led by Ted Batlett, have taken on the restoration of the long neglected Horseshoe Arena.
This place was a nexus for trashing , illegal camping, drug nonsense ad nauseam, and had pretty much turned this region of the Park into a no go zone. Despite the periodic complaints of neighbors and Oak Woodland volunteers the 'authorities' efforts to grapple with this issue were ineffectual. This has now changed."
Read Rob's full report, view photos from the Oak Woodlands, and find upcoming work days on the SF Natural Areas website.
Dee Dee's San Francisco
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Mona Caron's Noe Valley Mural |
A New Blog From SF Beautiful's Former Executive Director
"I am delighted to report that I've started a blog called Dee Dee's San Francisco to connect exceptional public projects (gardens, parks, art, cool random stuff) with interested folks in hopes of giving them exposure to a wider audience and generating support for them in the bargain.
To date I've written about some of our best public artists, green medians, city hikes, learning gardens, transit options and urban farms (you may discover your own project in the mix). I've tried to give props where they're due so if I've missed anyone please let me know. If you'd like me to write about your favorite project please send me an email!
My consulting firm, Workman Associates San Francisco (WASF), recently opened an office at 3229 Mission Street in a beautifully restored 1906 Victorian that also houses Cafe SoCha... If you know someone who needs help navigating San Francisco's protocols and processes, advocating for (or against) a project, campaigning for a candidate or initiative, or effectively interacting with communities and/or city agencies, please have them give me a call. I reduce my rates for non-profits!"
Notice of Treasure Island/Yerba Buena Island Citizens Advisory Board (CAB) Meeting Cancellation
Please note that the February 2, 2010 meeting of the Treasure Island/ Yerba Buena Island Citizens Advisory Board (CAB) has been cancelled.
The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, February 16th, 2010, at 6:00pm at San Francisco City Hall, room 305. 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Pl, San Francisco, Ca, 94102
Comments received on the YBI Habitat Management Plan will be addressed at the February 16th meeting. The February 10th TIDA Board meeting will still include a presentation of the YBI Habitat Management Plan.
Please contact Michael Tymoff at (415) 554-7038 with any questions.
Discounted Rain Barrels Still In Stock!
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's (SFPUC) discounted rain barrel program is going strong! With the current string of storms sweeping through the Bay Area, now is the perfect time to begin harvesting the rain.
If you're a San Francisco resident, you can buy up to 10 rain barrels at steep discounts. Save $30 off your first barrel and $50 off each additional barrel - or apply your discounts towards a cistern! (Rain barrels retail for $119.)
This program is offered exclusively through The Urban Farmer Store in San Francisco. Learn more at: http://stormwater.sfwater.org
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
| WEDNESDAY, Feb 3 | SATURDAY, Feb 6 |
| Alcatraz Gardens Presidio Park Stewards Mission Blue Native Nursery California Native Plant Society @ Twin Peaks Presidio Nursery |
Mt. Sutro Stewards Muir Woods Earth Day Celebration Pier 94 Wetland Restoration Buena Vista Park Presidio Park Stewards Presidio Trail Work Fort Funston Nursery SBMW Weed Rangers Friends of Lake Merced Friends of Mt. Davidson Land's End Stewards Presidio Nursery San Bruno Mountain - Brisbane Acres |
| THURSDAY, Feb 4 | SUNDAY, Feb 7 |
| Crissy Field Landscape Lands End Stewardship |
Haight-Ashbury Native Plant Nursery Ocean Beach Cleanup |
| FRIDAY, Feb 5 | |
| Alcatraz Gardens Presidio Plant Patrol |
For more information about these or any other events, go to our online calendar!
MORE NEWS
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Yellow Starthistle Photo by Bob Case |
California Invasive Plant Council Receives Stimulus Funding
The California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC) recently received a chunk of stimulus money to fund 3 new positions - see below. The money is coming through the California Department of Food & Agriculture (CDFA) and the United States Forestry Service (USFS), with a piece also going to the Bay Area Early Detection Network (BAEDN) for on the ground work. This is great news for those in the fight against habitat-destroying invasive weeds!
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Burrowing Owl Photo by Tom Grey |
Help WildCare Save the Antioch Burrowing Owls!
"At last count, there were 11 Burrowing Owls (at least 4 breeding pairs) in residence at the Kiper Homes Blue Ridge Development site in Antioch, California. Burrowing Owls are officially classified as a Species of Special Concern in California, and their numbers are declining rapidly, primarily due to habitat loss...
The last Environmental Impact Report (EIR) done for the Blue Ridge Development site in Antioch was completed 12 years ago. Not only was this EIR commissioned by the previous developer, it was completed before any owls had taken up residence in the area...
Despite protests from wildlife advocates, Kiper Homes has decided to move forward and evict the 11 owls without any plans to relocate them or mitigate their loss of habitat... WildCare is asking for you to call, email or fax members of Antioch City Council and the CFO of Kiper, Ed Hobaugh to help these threatened birds!"
Go to WildCare's website for more info, contacts, and talking points!
Protect the Avenues of the Giants!
From the Bay Area Coalition for Headwaters
"There has been a Caltrans project working its way through the public agency process to widen highway 101, the state highway that winds its way up the coast of California through the redwoods. The segment of highway Caltrans wants to straighten and widen runs through Richardson Grove State Park in the Avenue of the Giants. 
Many people and organizations in Humboldt County have been fighting it based on not only ecological grounds, but issues of local economics, traffic congestion, pollution and the belief that it could be the beginning of the big box nation busting through the redwood curtain."
Visit the Save Richardson Grove website for more info and ways to help!
Butterflies Reeling from Impacts of Climate and Development
Science Daily
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Clodius Parnassian Photo by Heather Dwyer |
Jan. 12, 2010 - "California butterflies are reeling from a one-two punch of climate change and land development, says an unprecedented analysis led by UC Davis butterfly expert Arthur Shapiro...
'Butterflies are not only charismatic to the public, but also widely used as indicators of the health of the environment worldwide,' said Shapiro, a professor of evolution and ecology. 'We found many lowland species are being hit hard by the combination of warmer temperatures and habitat loss.'" Read the full article here.