Viansa Wetlands

Docents for Viansa

Thank You

General Meeting

President's Message

River Advocate Sought

Swifts at Healdsburg

Classroom Materials

Outings Reports

Observations

Chip Notes

Pee Wee Update

Related Activites

Plastic Corks Boycott

By Joannie Dranginis
Greetings,Everyone. It seems like a long time between newsletters! I hope you are as delighted as I am to see the September Leaves hot off the press. While it may appear as if the Madrone chapter took a vacation for two months, the truth is that local and regional issues have been keeping us pretty busy this summer.
Among those who worked overtime for the chapter this summer are our new treasurer, Eilzabeth Desmond; Field Trip coordinator Russell Agnew; Audubon Adventures coordinator Nancy Ryan; Pee Wee coordinator Janice Sinclaire; and Sylvan Eidelman, who is helping to shape Madrone's participation in ambitious, long-term effort to restore the wetlands of San Francisco Bay.
The Baylands project was enthusiastically endorsed this summer by the Bay Area Audubon Council (BAAC), of which Madrone is a member. It is based on the "San Francisco Baylands Ecosystem Habitat Goals Report," which was prepared by representatives from government agencies, academia, and the private sector.
Dan Taylor, Executive Director of Audubon California, has identified the SF Baylands project as a major campaign, comparable to the campaign to save the Everglades.
According to the report, released last spring, the San Francisco Bay Estuary is the largest and most important estuary on the west coast of North America, containing an amazing 90 percent of California's coastal wetlands. Three-quarters of all Pacific Flyway shorebirds feed or breed in the Estuary.
Development of the Bay Area for its 7 million human inhabitants has adversely affected nearly all the region's natural habitats. Over time, nearly 200,000 acres of baylands have been diked or filled.
Restoration efforts will focus on reclaiming and protecting some of the historic tidal marshes for the 500 fish and wildlife species most closely associated with these tidal lands.
The BAAC chapters are jump-starting the project with a $25,000 publicity campaign to alert the public about the importance of restoring and protecting the Baylands. Our representative, Sylvan Eidelman, will work with BAAC's publicist to launch the media campaign. Watch for articles in local and regional news media.
The Bayland habitats that fall within our region include areas such as Skaggs Island, the Petaluma River and its marshlands, and Sonoma Creek. Preserving the North Bay tidal marshes before this habitat succumbs to development interests is a timely issue for all of us to get behind. For a copy of the Baylands report, phone 510-622-2454.
We have a role to play in many other local conservation issues; by bringing them to your attention we hope to spark your interest and help keep you informed. Please call us if you have an interest in a particular conservation issue.
Enjoy the Fall Birding Season!