FALL/WINTER 2018 a oolan an river protetion in pper osmnes atershe by lan hrgo, xecutie irecor, American Rier Conserancy

ast of Sacramento, in the Sierra Nevada foothills, the El Dorado Ranch fronts the Cosumnes River, one of the last Eundammed rivers on the west slope of the Sierra Nevada. Hiking across the ranch’s 7,800 acres of mature blue oak woodland is like taking a step back-in-time, before 150 years of California residential development. e undisturbed woodland stretches as far as

the eye can see, and the diversity of wildlife © D ou g l as P arks F i ne A rt P h ot og rap h y w w w . d ou g l as p arks . c om skyrockets at the main fork of the Cosumnes River to include an assemblage of native shes, bald and golden eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus and Aquila chrysaetos), bear, mountain lion (Puma concolor), and song birds. A protected future for this landscape was not always assured. In the 1950s the Bureau of Reclamation proposed the Nashville Project, a three-dam complex immediately east of Highway 49 on the Cosumnes River. But the Cosumnes is not a high-elevation watershed, and as such, a hydroelectric complex on the river would have limited capacity. us the proposal died with more intensive nancial analysis. In the mid-1990s, McCuen Proper- ties proposed a subdivision of 569 rural lots over the 7,800 acre ranch. is project was Cosum nes R iver Canyon later abandoned when neighboring residents, the quality of water owing into the Sacra- the City of Plymouth, and Foothill Conser- mento Valley and Bay–Delta. e Cosumnes Pages 2-5 vancy challenged it based on impacts to serves as a rare model of a free-owing river California Oaks Coalition Reports existing transportation routes, and to natural because there are no signicant dams on its and Resources and cultural resources. North, Middle, South or Main Forks. e Fire; Oaks as Management Indicator is fall American River Conservancy acquisition of El Dorado Ranch and conser- Species in the Los Padres National Forest; (ARC) will complete its third phase acquisi- vation of this extensive blue oak woodland Mudslides; Ice Age oak tion, protecting a total of 3,157 acres of El will protect the Cosumnes River from its Pages 6-7 Dorado Ranch and over 2.5 miles of river headwaters to its conuence with the Mokel- California Wildlife Foundation Partner canyon immediately west of Highway 49. umne River. Reports Acquired and protected lands will make up Over the past ten years, ARC has Carrizo Plain; South Bay Salt Pond Rest- 40 percent of the entire ranch and will completed the purchase of thirteen proper- oration; Mokelumne River; Napa County provide habitat for a future State Wildlife ties fronting the Cosumnes River, protecting Update; Paci c Herring Management Area, as well as the rst public trail in the 7,000 acres of riparian habitat benecial to Page 8 Upper Cosumnes watershed. native shes, including rainbow trout Proposition 3 on November ballot ARC’s goals include protecting the native –– continued on page 8 sheries, the extensive wildlife corridor, and

1 e article below is adapted from a presentation Carol Rice made at a technical session on oak woodlands during California Native Plant Society’s Conservation Conference held in Los Angeles earlier this year. Tom Gaman chaired the session and presented statewide trends in oak California Oaks woodlands. Coalition California Oaks Coalition brings together state, Oak woodlands and fire regional, and local organizations to conserve by Carol R ice, G en eral M an ager Bark thickness and branching habits are and perpetuate the state’s primary old growth W ild lan d R es M gt an d T om G am an, resource. Members of California Oaks Coalition also adaptations that protect oaks from re R egistered P rof ession al F orester an d Ad v isor, are united by the vital role of oaks in providing damage, but sprouting is what provides a California Wildlife Foundation habitat, sustaining healthy watersheds, and competitive edge over conifers. Sprouting is sequestering carbon: Fire ecology in oak woodlands: Fire has especially advantageous when re frequency American River Watershed Institute always been a part of oak woodlands and is high. For example, during a Society of Butte Environmental Council forests. Oak woodlands persist because they American Foresters eld trip to the Rim Fire California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC) California Native Plant Society (CNPS) have adapted to live with re aer thousands site, the group concluded that much of the CNPS San Diego Restoration Committee of years of burning. most severely burned area is likely to become CNPS Sanhedrin Chapter e main adaptation is that most oaks oak woodland because the conifers could not Californians for Western Wilderness (CalUWild) sprout. Coast live oaks can survive crown withstand frequent high-intensity res, but California Wilderness Coalition (CalWild) scorch and then vigorously sprout from their oaks could. Carpe Diem West Clover Valley Foundation base. Deciduous oaks are not known for their One way to understand the role of re in Dumbarton Oaks Park Conservancy sprouting capability, although studies found oak woodlands is by looking at re regimes, Elder Creek Oak Sanctuary that only 3 percent of burned valley oaks died including how oen the area has burned, the Endangered Habitats Conservancy even when 85 percent of the trees were intensity of re, and the severity of the Endangered Habitats League completely top-killed (Holmes 2006). Environmental Defense Center –– continued on page 4 Environmental Protection Information Center (EPIC) Environmental Water Caucus Foothill Conservancy

Forests Forever © Tom G am an Friends of the Richmond Hills Friends of Spenceville Hills for Everyone Los Padres ForestWatch Lower Kings River Association Napa County Water, Forest and Oak Woodland Protection Committee Northern California Regional Land Trust Planning and Conservation League Redlands Conservancy Resource Conservation District of Santa Monica Mountains Rural Communities United Sacramento Tree Foundation Santa Clarita Organization for Planning and the Environment (SCOPE) Shasta Environmental Alliance Sierra Club Placer County Tejon Ranch Conservancy Tuleyome University of California Los Angeles Botanical Garden The four areas of support being developed for the Coalition are: 1) Research and advocacy updates (available at californiaoaks.org). 2) Information to educate and engage the public. 3) Tools for engaging in planning processes and educating opinion leaders. 4) Materials to inform local, regional, and state governmental agencies of the opportunities for and bene ts of protecting oak woodlands. Please contact Oaks Network Manager Angela Moskow, oaksta @californiaoaks.org, for more information.

2 FALL-WINTER 2018 Studying oaks to guide

RESOURCES management decisions

PUBLICATIONS: • The report, How can we save our native trees? Drought and Invasive Beetle © Bryant Baker impacts on Wildland Trees and Shrub- lands in the Santa Monica Mountains, by Oaks Coalition member Santa Monica Resource Conservation District and NASA DEVELOP, is available at: rcdsmm.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/ 04/Droughtand-Invasive-Beetle-impacts- RCDSMM-1.2.18.pdf • Debris Flow Fact Sheet, published by California Department of Conservation, describes conditions that contribute to debris ow, provides an overview of types of ows, and provides advice for residents in the path of a debris ow: conservation.ca.gov/index/ Documents/CGS-Debris-Flow-Fact- Sheet.pdf

INTERNET RESOURCES: • California Fire Science Consortium: Includes links to events and webinars, research and publications, data res- O aks on H appy Canyon graz ing allotm ent within the national forest. One such ources, and organizations: caresci.org/ by B ryant B aker, allotment is found in Happy Canyon, near • Center for Western Water and Water Conseration irecor, the spring-induced wild ower haven of Extremes, University of California, San os Padres ForesWac Figueroa Mountain. A 5,000-acre grazing Diego, Scripps Institution of Ocean- area has been used by nearby ranchers for ography: Includes a wide range of links, Los Padres National Forest—a nearly decades, and there has been substantial including peer reviewed articles, book two million-acre forest dominated by concern for the recruitment and viability of chapters, and public reports: chaparral and oak woodland along the the oaks. cw3e.ucsd.edu/ Central and South Coasts—is home to 11 of Several studies pointed to poor oak • Fire Adapted Communities Learning California’s 20 oak species. Four of these— recruitment in the grazed areas of the Network: Develops, innovates, and uses blue oak, black oak, Engelmann oak, and allotment compared to the surrounding a network approach to disseminate re valley oak—have been designated as “Man- un-grazed area. In 2016, the Forest Service adaptation practices to improve com- agement Indicator Species” by the Forest nished environmental review for a project munity wildre resilience: Service in accordance with the 1976 that would authorize commercial grazing readaptednetwork.org/ National Forest Management Act. Forest on the allotment for a new 10-year term, • Sonoma Resource Conservation ocials are required to make adjustments to nding that there would be no signicant how they manage an area when monitoring District’s Fire Recovery web resources impacts. However, California Oaks Coali- indicates that these oak populations are include a Natural Resources Recovery tion member Los Padres ForestWatch declining. Guide, Best Management Practices for (lpfw.org)—a nonprot conservation organ- Although various shrub oaks occur landowners preparing for winter weather, ization dedicated to ensuring plants and across nearly every acre of Los Padres, these wildlife, watersheds, and wilderness areas and many other links, many of which four tree species can in uence Forest have information that is applicable across the Los Padres National Forest are Service management activities. In addition, protected—objected to this decision, based beyond Sonoma County: several measures have been taken to protect sonomarcd.org/resources/re-recovery/ in part on data suggesting blue oaks and blue oaks, including the establishment of valley oaks were suering from grazing • United States Geological Survey (USGS) the Blue Oak Woodlands Area of High California Water Science Center: impacts. Ecological Signicance near Garcia Moun- e Forest Service agreed to conduct a Includes links to information about risks tain in Los Padres. Here grow some of the multi-year study on oak recruitment in and associated with wildfires and water (see: southernmost stands of blue oaks, which around the grazing allotment. ey set up ca.water.usgs.gov/wildfires/wildfires- occur at higher elevations than those found several plots, fencing o half of them to debris-flow.html), research projects, and farther north. keep out livestock. e rst data were hydrologic extremes: Attention has recently been on blue oaks ca.water.usgs.gov/index.html and valley oaks across grazing allotments –– continued on page 7

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–– continued from page 2 ment and current re-free intervals and Fire, rain, and mudslide risk found that it varied by location. Intervals impacts of re, as measured by crown between res are far longer than before e devastating and deadly mudslides in scorch, fuel consumption, and soil heating. European settlement in northern Califor- Santa Barbara County in January 2018 Fire frequency and severity: Frequent re nia and far shorter in southern California. originated in chaparral areas that had burned, owing through and uprooting trees in oak woodlands has in the past kept fuel Human ignitions are a primary factor for on downslopes. is deadly disaster volumes low. Increases in fuel accumula- the shorter intervals in southern Califor- highlighted the need to better understand tion lead to greater re intensity and sever- nia. Additionally, the higher frequency how rain and wildre interact to place ity of impacts. changes the fuels to ignitable annual hillsides and communities at risk. e size of res is an important grasses, thereby exacerbating re freq- A study by Professor Binod Tiwari of component of the re regime. Forest uency. California State University’s Department of Service data demonstrate that California’s Based on the spatial distribution of oak Civil and Environmental Engineering exam- recent res in oak landscapes have grown woodlands and re-return interval ined the intensity and duration threshold for larger and more severe. Fire size and measurements, blue and coast live oak, as triggering mudslides on slopes that had lost severity do not perfectly correlate. e well as canyon live oak are most impacted vegetation cover due to wildre. same re can be both damaging and by frequent res. Interior live, tan, and “We found that the risk of mudslides benecial. e Rim Fire was so big that drops signicantly on slopes that have good Oregon white oak are most impacted by entire trees were consumed, boles and all. vegetation cover,” Tiwari said. lack of re. In other places the burned area looked like In a February 2018 interview with the reats to oaks in coastal northern a prescribed burn. Where grass carries re, Orange County Register, Tiwari explained the which includes areas of deciduous oaks California are from overtopping by dierence between landslides and mudslides: with grassy understory, Douglas-r and bays and By understanding the role from overtopping by A landslide is the movement of soil or large res were the norm rock mass due to the loss of resistance pines in the Sierra. In before 1900. of re in oak woodlands, we against the force that is pushing the soil Stephens, Martin, and can do a better job of work- southern California, non- or rock downwards and outwards. Land- Clinton (2007) estimated ing with nature to let oaks native pests are devastat- slides involve a shallow or deep soil/rock acres burned annually continue to live with re. ing oak woodlands. mass, which could be dry or saturated prior to European settle- Additionally, non-native with water. As such, they are slides and ment by determining the number of acres annual grasses are fueling more frequent not a ow. res in the oak savannas of southern of each vegetation type in California, and A mudslide is generally a ow of saturated its typical re-return interval. Of the 13 California. soil mass that has water content high million acres of oak woodlands, a range of Vegetation management: More pre- enough for the soil to behave as liquid. 1.2 to 3.15 million acres of “oakwoods” scribed re would help perpetuate oaks in Mudslides happen very quickly with fast- burned each year, and for mixed northern California, even in the moving soil and water. Mudslides are caused by water saturation of the “evergreen forests” 112,000 to 335,000 wildland-urban interface. It makes sense acres burned annually. immediate topsoil layer from rainfall. to put re where and when we want it so Wildres are a triggering factor for mud- Patchiness and seasonality: Pattern or that future res devastate fewer homes and slides, usually due to vegetation loss. patchiness is important when considering vegetative communities. Where oak e risk of mudslides and debris ows is post-re transport of seeds or movement woodlands are vulnerable, it would help to have a cache of local seedlings and acorns strong when storms follow res, due to of wildlife. Good data are not available, but vegetation loss and soil exposure, according ready for restoration following wildre. it is likely res pre-European settlement to the U.S. Geological Survey (pubs.usgs. were patchy due to the paucity of fuel. Treating fuels around woodlands will aid gov/fs/2004/3072/fs-2004-3072.html), Native American burning seasons were re containment prior to it reaching oak which cautions: “Fast-moving, highly likely in the early spring (especially in woodlands. Ignition prevention programs destructive debris ows triggered by intense evergreen ecosystems where the leaf litter should target where and why res start. rainfall are one of the most dangerous burns when the grass is green) and fall, For example, because 80 percent of postre hazards.” especially in deciduous stands. In past wildres start within 10 feet of a road, and Tiwari noted that wildres burn the soil and can change their properties, specically decades, wildres have burned in the mechanical equipment causes most clays, making them brittle and less perme- summer and fall, but more recently they wildres, it is important that mowing is able: “Post-wildre ashes on that soil surface have occurred year-round due to drought, done properly and before ignitable fuels become tinder dry. It is also important to make the soil more impermeable and increased temperatures associated with slippery…As such, inltration capacity of the hold those who start wildres accountable. the changing climate, and large swaths of rainwater under the ground reduces signi- disease. Dr. Harold Biswell, one of cantly, which eventually increases the surface run-o to ease ash ooding in creeks in the Tale of two states: Hugh Saord and Kip California’s rst re ecologists, are a .” Van de Water (2014) investigated the admonishes us: Work with nature, –– continued on page 5 dierence between pre-European settle- not against it.

4 FALL-WINTER 2018 –– continued from page 4 The Kizh ancient Hurungna oak—the oldest Tiwari and his students are using a rain simulator system and slope model box to known living organism in California study the impact of vegetation loss in triggering mudslides. ey found that a rainfall intensity of half an inch per hour for the duration of 30 minutes is enough to trigger a mudslide in a post-wildre area, while it requires over 15 hours of rainfall of that intensity (half an inch per hour) to trigger a mudslide in an area that has good vegetation cover, although the soil on the slope is loose. Risks of damage from oods, landslides, and mudslides grow with re severity, California Wildlife Foundation Executive Ocer Janet Cobb cautions: “Keeping trees standing and managing re more eectively are of paramount © D ani el M ay esearcher Michael . May standing net to the oak, believed to be a relict of a importance to our state. is will require vanuished vegetation community. collaboration across sectors, such as that underway by signatories of the Fire by ary Stickel, Ph California counties, including the moun- Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), Kizh Tribal Archaeologist tains where the oak is growing. Oak trees were considered by the Kizh, the control of invasive species, and devel- e oldest known oak has been living for and all California tribes, to be the “sta of opment restrictions in areas of high re an estimated 13,000 years on land that is life.” e tribe nominated the site to r i s k .” part of the original Kizh tribal territory. e California’s Native American Heritage oak, composed of 70 stem clusters, is For more information on the Fire MOU, Commission’s Sacred Lands Inventory. In so believed to be a single asexually reproducing see “Restoring biodiversity a er re” in the doing, the tribe decided to name it the clone that dates to the Ice Age. Fall-Winter 2017 issue of this newsletter. Hurungna Oak, as the tree is living in the e Kizh (pronounced like teach) Jurupa Mountains and Jurupa is a corrup- Trees and mudslide risk Nation, also known as the Gabrieleño Band tion of Hurungna, the name of the ancient of Mission Indians, learned about the oak at Trees on slopes always help to reduce prominent Kizh village in the area. It is the a meeting held earlier this year to educate tribe’s hope that this designation, which has the amount of rainwater going directly participants from the City of Fontana about been granted by the commission, will assist to barren soil, specically by intercept- the area’s indigenous Indian tribe. A in eorts to preserve the tree and the vital ing it and through evapotranspiration. member of the city’s historical society land around it. e tribe is also collaborat- informed meeting participants about an oak Trees can signicantly reduce soil ing with California Wildlife Foundation and growing in the area that is believed to be the erosion and related mudslide risks. California Oaks Coalition member Endan- oldest in the world, the second-oldest living Moreover, tree roots reinforce the soil gered Habitats Conservancy to preserve this organism in North America, and oldest on slopes, signicantly helping to amazing survivor of the oaks. e Kizh see it organism in California. as a living metaphor for their people’s reduce problems associated with I had thought Methuselah, the 4,700 year- survival in the 21st century. landslides and mudslides. However, old Bristlecone pine in California’s White we must pay special attention in areas Mountains was the oldest. I had helped Oak is considered a medicine tree to of potential debris ow while design- radiocarbon date this ancient tree when I our Tribe, associated with strength and ing waterways for culverts and bridges was a lab technician at University of Califor- nia Los Angeles’s Institute of Geophysics protection. Individual oak trees of in areas where tree cover is dense. great size and longevity have o en Trees have the potential to move with and Planetary Physics. However, the histori- cal society member shared an article by a been considered sacred and used as large debris ows, where they can team of ve University of California (UC) spiritual and civic centers for impor- block waterways near bridges or biologists, which described the tree, a tant tribal gatherings such as culverts. We need to design structures Pleistocene era (Ice Age) clone of Palmer’s to trap those trees before they reach oak (Quercus palmeri) that is growing in the weddings, peace conferences and the bridges or Jurupa Mountains, south of Fontana in naming ceremonies. southern California.1 culverts to prevent them from washing Chief Ernest P. Salas, Kizh Nation away the bridges or diverting debris e UC researchers subsequently teamed up with Robert Przeklasa, PhD, to ows toward communities. 1May MR, Provance MC, Sanders AC, Ellstrand NC, explore opportunities to protect the oak. Ross-Ibarra J (2009) A Pleistocene Clone of Palmer’s Professor Binod Tiwari e tribe and California Oaks Coalition Oak Persisting in Southern California. PLoS ONE have now joined this eort. Original Kizh 4(12): e8346. Published: December 23, 2009. territory covered parts of six Southern doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0008346

5 C e landswithin and Plain beyond Carrizo concentrations of rare, threatened, and endan- National Monument support one of highest the 6 Plain. and as avenue for events on Carrizo focused propertyto the use to accommodate researchers, house and grounds to CPC.TNC and CPCplan its ownership Ranch historic in the Goodwin (TNC) is exploring transfer the Conservancy of and house grounds Ranch . e NatureGoodwin kit fox Plain. Carrizo northern inthe preserve Together, create properties these will a900-acre acres to adjacent lands already owned by CDFW. Wildlife (CDFW). e two properties add480 habitat, to Department California of Fish and San Joaquin kit fox (Vulpes mutica macrotis transferring two properties,considered excellent Creatingfox akit . CPCis acquiring preserve and other partners: tion with Wildlife California Foundation and recent accomplishments, out carried incollabora- Summer 2017issue of newsletter. this Beloware vation eorts since its Spring- article inthe vancy.org) has continued its collaborative conser- (CPC,visit: carrizoplainconser-Conservancy gered country. inthe species Plain Carrizo ealiinor thevision protetin anrestorin arrio Plain CWF are now delivering for ll Service approximatelyService $10million. PSand at BairIsland for USFWS, saving the yards of clean, tested to restore ll marsh tidal to bring inmore than one million cubic contractor, Pacic States Environmental (PS), restoration South inthe Bay, working with its inwetland apartner CWFhas been Bay Area voter-approved Measure AA. ProgramScience funds awarded through administerimpacts. CWFwill million $1.2 in andincorporate data on climate change grate regional data and collection sharing, answer key research questions, better inte- Restoration Project. is program help will Service’s (USFWS’s) South Bay Salt Pond itoring at United States Fish and Wildlife Complex San Francisco Wildlife BayNational Refuge AffairsPublic Officer, by DougCordell, Partnership expands scienti c monitoring scienti c expands forWestPartnership alifornia State Coastal Conservancy alifornia State Conservancy Coastal and Wildlife California Foundation (CWF) are expanding scientic mon- Coast’s tidalwetland largest restoration project FALL-WINTER 2018 threatened western snowy plover (Charadrius mauri westernsandpiper (Calidris other areas by development, including the shorebirds and waterfowl crowded out of have become important also habitat for pansalt pond open ponds levees, and dry ( mouse obsoletus obsoletus gered Ridgway’s species, (Rallus Rail habitatvide for twofederally-listed endan- reational opportunities. and expanding outdoor rec- wildlife habitat, mitigating risk, ood increasing thereby ringed San Francisco Bay, thriving marsh lands that once commercial salt ponds to returningCoast—is former land restoration on West the eort—the largest wet- tidal Menlo Park and Alviso. is National Wildlife in Refuge Edwards San Francisco Bay repairslevee on Don the ) Don Edwards marshes pro- Reithrodontomys raviventris). Former ) and salt marsh harvest Western plover snowy (hararis nivoss nivosschick ) and ) and the nivosus nivosus nivosus for more information. Restoration Project over the last decade. John Bourgeois for his leadership of the California Wildlife Foundation thanks California important South Bay Salt Pond Salt Bay South important Janet Cobb, Executive O cer ). Visit southbayrestoration.org

© Jenny Erbes, Point Blue Conservation Science Mokelumne Pacific Herring Fishery Management designated as a Plan nearing completion California Wild and A Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for provides research and data collection proto- Scenic River the imperiled Paci c herring (Clupea cols. e FMP proposes a management pallasii), initiated by California Department strategy for San Francisco Bay herring, irty-seven miles of the Mokelumne of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and Fish and which includes the use of a predictive model River, which include irreplaceable oak Game Commission in the spring of 2016, is to estimate spawning stock biomass, a riparian habitat, were entered into nearing its completion. CDFW, California Harvest Control Rule to set quotas based on California’s Wild and Scenic River system Wildlife Foundation (CWF), and Paci c that biomass, and a decision matrix tool to with Governor Brown’s signing of Senate Herring Steering Committee (composed of incorporate ecosystem considerations into Bill 854 in June. e designation requires industry and conservation stakeholders) yearly quota decisions. It also describes the the state to protect the river's scenic and recruited and retained a Project Manage- process for collecting data and setting recreational values, prohibiting new or ment Team to dra the plan. quotas, should shing resume in the larger dams on the protected river reaches. CWF administered funds, which were management areas outside of San Francisco e Mokelumne River supports a provided by Audubon, through a grant from Bay. number of special status species, is poten- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and e dra FMP is undergoing peer tial spawning habitat for fall-run Chinook by National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. review, under the guidance of OST. e salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), and Substantial in-kind contributions were FMP Dra Scienti c Peer Review Final is included in a state-de ned critical provided by Audubon California, CDFW, Report is scheduled for fall 2018. is will be wildlife habitat block. e designation California Ocean Protection Council, followed by public comment and nal action followed California Natural Resources Oceana, the Ocean Science Trust (OST), and by the Fish and Game Commission. Visit Agency’s release of the Mokelumne River by the Paci c herring industry. www.wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing/Commercial/ Wild and Scenic River Study Report e dra FMP follows the Marine Life Herring/FMP for further information and (http://resources.ca.gov/ programs-projects/ Management Act Master Plan. It describes to review the timeline, and wildlife.ca.gov/ wildandscenic/), which recommended the biology, ecology, and habitat of herring; Fishing/Commercial/Herring to learn more adding the North Fork and Main Stem of the shery and its management history; and about the fishery. the Mokelumne, between Salt Springs Dam and Pardee Reservoir, to the Califor- nia Wild and Scenic Rivers system.

Visit California Oaks Coalition Brake © Tony member Foothill Conservancy’s website to learn more about their 30-year effort to protect the Mokelumne River: foothill- conservancy.org/pages/statewild.cgi.

Napa County initiative update e Napa County Watershed and Oak Woodland Protection Initiative of 2018, voted on in the June election, lost by a narrow margin. e initiative was devel- oped by proponents of a similar measure (from 2016), in collaboration with Napa Valley Vintners. However, the vintners changed their position shortly aer the Slaty and glacous-winged gulls fight over herring roe, a key winter food source for dozens of 2018 measure was introduced. species of waterbirds in San Francisco Bay. e 2016 measure never made it to the ballot because of actions by the Napa –– continued from page 3 e public was able to point to the unique Registrar of Voters, which are reported protection of these species as a reason for on in the Fall-Winter 2016 and Spring- collected in 2017, and will serve as a the Forest Service to examine its decision Summer 2017 issues of this newsletter. baseline as the study continues. e results with a ner lens. Hopefully, the agency will Reecting on all of these setbacks, propo- of the study will help the Forest Service give more consideration to oaks during the nent Jim Wilson noted: a growing determine how grazing is impacting Happy decision-making process for future projects segment of the wine industry recognizes Canyon’s blue oaks and valley oaks, and will as a result of the work being done today. the value of oak woodlands in protecting inform subsequent management practices. Visit the Oaks of the Los Padres Forest Napa's Agricultural Preserve, established While such a study was overdue, it webpage to learn more: lpfw.org/ 50 years ago. highlights the importance of the Manage- ourregion/wildlife/oaks/. ment Indicator Species status of these oaks.

7 –– continued from page 1 Board of Supervisors, El Dorado County Planning Director Roger Trout stated, “In my (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and federally personal and professional opinion, I have endangered winter-run Chinook salmon never seen a better oak woodland conserva- (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), as well as other tion project.” amphibian, mammal, and bird populations. • Donate to California Wildlife Purchase funding has been provided by a Foundation/California Oaks. diverse partnership, including California American River Conservancy celebrates 30 years A secure donation can be Wildlife Foundation/California Oaks, Wild- made from our website: life Conservation Board, California Natural Resources Agency River Parkways Program, American River Conservancy is celebrat- californiaoaks.org. El Dorado County, RBC Wealth Manage- ing its 30th anniversary, the completion ment, and several hundred private support- of 83 conservation projects, and the • Spend time in an oak woodland ers of the American River Conservancy. We protection of 25,000 acres of native or forest. Click on california also acknowledge the generous $500,000 sheries, endangered species habitat, and oaks.org/resources for a summary discount in the purchase price provided by recreational lands within the upper of oak landscapes around the Angelo Tsakopoulos as a donation to ARC. American and Cosumnes River water- state that have public access. Funds provided by El Dorado County sheds. ARC provides interpretive hikes, come from the Oak Woodland Preservation educational programs to schools, and • Please consider including oak Account, with mitigation fees collected from volunteer opportunities to the greater developers to purchase and protect priority Sacramento metropolitan region. Visit conservation in your financial areas identi ed in its Oak Woodland Conser- arconservancy.org for more information. and estate planning efforts. vation Plan. In public testimony before the Additional information can be found at californiaoaks.org/ donate. Proposition 3 on the November ballot • Be vigilant about threats to oak Known as the Water Supply and Water woodlands and oak-forested lands Quality Act of 2018, this measure will autho- in your community and email rize more funds to be invested in watershed California Oaks for information: conservation than any measure ever oakstaff@californiaoaks.org. presented to the voters of any state. It also includes billions of dollars for water conser- • Sign up for the Oaks e-newsletter vation, wastewater recycling, groundwater remediation, and restoration of existing at www.californiaoaks.org. storage and conveyance facilities. ere is no allocation to new reservoirs or for Delta • Support local and statewide tunnel(s). Visit waterbond.org for more measures to protect natural information. resources.

Gerald H. Meral, PhD, Director of the Califor- • Hold decision-makers account- nia Water Program at Natural Heritage able for protecting our green Institute, is the proponent of Proposition 3. infrastructure.

California Wildlife Foundation/California California Oaks is a fund within Oaks is supporting an upcoming statewide bond measure that will provide essential California Wildlife Foundation, funding to sustain land and water conserva- federal tax identification number tion programs in California. Proposition 3, 68-0234744. Contributions of cash, Water Infrastructure and Water Conserva- stocks, and bonds are tax deduct- tion Bond Initiative, scheduled for the ible. November 2018 ballot, includes more than $3 billion dollars for watersheds and riparian corridors, with $50 million speci cally for Click on the Newsletters link of oak woodland conservation. If approved, this californiaoaks.org to download prior measure will replenish depleted Oak Wood- newsletters. land Conservation Program funds at Wildlife Latin names are used for species with desig- Conservation Board and provide other tel 510.763.0282 nated state or federal conservation status. critical funding for the stewardship of fax 510.268.9948 2018 California’s natural resources.

8 FALL–WINTER 2018