From our blogs

14 Aug 2018

Accessible trails are everyone’s trails

by Ceal Craig

I had the opportunity to participate in a focus group organized by the state of California’s Coastal Conservancy to discuss how we can improve access to public lands for individuals who might need extra support such as facilities and trails that meet American with Disabilities Act standards, commonly known as ADA. One challenge is effectively communicating information about what already exists. This website, http://www.wheelingcalscoast.org, is filled with helpful information for those who have mobility challenges and want to access the California coast including our Bay Area lands.

On May 4, 2018, the Coastal Conservancy hosted a webinar for grantees and partners on Designing Outdoor Environments that Work for Everybody. A recording of the webinar can be found at https://vimeo.com/268101779. The slides and notes from the webinar are online at http://scc.ca.gov/webmaster/pdfs/CoastalConservancyWebinar_05042018_fina....

07 Aug 2018

Changes Coming to Weekend Support and Society Programs

by Ceal Craig

In 1992, the Society with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service worked with two partners to build and deliver two programs: Living Wetlands (formerly known as Slow the Flow) and Watershed Watchers. For 20 years, Living Wetlands and Watershed Watchers educated hundreds of thousands of students and adults about watershed health, wetlands, and habitat preservation through personal and hands-on programming.

The good news is that Watershed Watchers was renewed for this coming year (July to June). Thus, this program funded by the Urban Runoff Pollution Prevention Program will continue working to prevent runoff pollution, increase the surrounding communities’ knowledge of such pollution, and reduce its harmful effects through personal behavior.

The not so good news is that the City of San Jose declined to renew the Living Wetlands program contract. Our long-term partnership was a fruitful one and will be missed. Recent changes to priorities, grant program requirements, and outreach strategies at the City of San Jose and the Regional Wastewater Facility have resulted in the city’s decision to end the program. Read more here: http://sfbws.com/blog/2018/03/21/farewell-living-wetlands.

31 Jul 2018

2018 Annual Volunteer Appreciation Banquet

by Mary Deschene

In April 2018 I joined the staff of the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge and the San Francisco Bay Wildlife Society to welcome and thank a large number of refuge volunteers at the annual volunteer appreciation luncheon in Fremont.

The San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex Volunteers of the Year were Mary and Gene Bobik, the creators of the refuge's most popular program, Twilight Marsh Walk. Mary and Gene started the program way back in 1996 and are still doing the walk more than two decades later.

Mary and Gene Bobik were recognized as 2018 Volunteers of the Year at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

Mary and Gene Bobik were recognized as 2018 Volunteers of the Year at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

24 Jul 2018

Drawbridge book “Sinking Underwater” now available for purchase

Sinking Underwater: A Ghost Town's Amazing Legacy by Anita Goldwasser and Cecilia D. Craig, Ph. D.

Sinking Underwater: A Ghost Town's Amazing Legacy by Anita Goldwasser and Cecilia D. Craig, Ph. D.

A book on Drawbridge, California, Sinking Underwater: A Ghost Town's Amazing Legacy by Anita Goldwasser and Cecilia D. Craig, Ph. D. and published by the San Francisco Bay Wildlife Society is now available for purchase.

Anita is a writer who explored the once-vibrant ghost town of Drawbridge in the San Francisco Bay Area and photographed its buildings more than 30 years ago—before most of them sank into the marsh or succumbed to fire.

Cecilia (Ceal) Craig is a long-time member of the San Francisco Bay Wildlife Society and volunteer tour guide for Drawbridge.

You can buy the book in person at our Nature Stores at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. You can also have us mail you a copy by sending us a check or making an online payment.

All proceeds from the book sale benefit the San Francisco Bay Wildlife Society.

17 Jul 2018

How Drawbridge is drowning — and what it means for our future

Aerial view of Drawbridge, California

Aerial view of Drawbridge, California. Credit video / drone footage by Jane Tyska for The Mercury News / East Bay Times

Lisa M. Krieger, a science writer covering research, scientific policy and environmental news, writes in today's Mercury News:

From birth, Drawbridge was an unlikely community on an impossible site, just feet above sea level. A century ago, the island town held 90 homes, hotels and cabins, with hunting so bountiful that dead ducks served as currency at its gambling tables. Now — in a rare act of reverse colonization — civilization is ceding to the elements in this windswept marsh. “It’s drowning… a memorial to past human aspirations and a memorial to failure,” said Glen MacDonald, a UCLA professor of geography.

Read on to find out how rising seas and sinking muds have doomed the once-vibrant ghost town of Drawbridge in the San Francisco Bay Area.

02 Jul 2018

Donate whenever you shop on Amazon

Amazon Prime Day is just around the corner! Support us by starting your shopping at smile.amazon.com/ch/94-3039253.

Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to San Francisco Bay Wildlife Society whenever you shop on AmazonSmile.

San Francisco Bay Wildlife Society Donation Form

10 Jun 2018

2018 Marsh-In Summer Day Camp • July 30 - August 3, 2018

A FREE summer camp filled with fun activities, games, crafts, and adventures.

Date and Time
  • July 30 - August 3, 2018
  • Grades 1-6: Monday - Wednesday 9:15 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
    • Monday - Bird Day
    • Tuesday - Fish Day
    • Wednesday - Mammal Day
  • Grades 4-6 only: Overnight 6:00 p.m. Thursday - 9:30 a.m. Friday
    • Overnight - Night hikes, star gazing, sleeping under the stars and ice cream making!
Location

Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge
Environmental Education Center
1751 Grand Blvd, Alviso, CA 95002

02 Jun 2018

National Fishing & Boating Week • June 2 - 10, 2018

National Fishing & Boating Week - June 2 - 10, 2018

Learn how to fish on the Dumbarton Fishing Pier in Fremont!

Saturday, June 9, 2018 9:00 a.m. – noon

Have you ever wanted to try fishing but didn’t know how to begin? Learn the fundamental basics of catch-and- release fishing at the Dumbarton fishing pier! Discover the types of wildlife living in the San Francisco Bay, learn the safety and ethics of fishing, and then try your luck out on the pier with our fishing poles.

This event is free! Space is limited to 50 people. All equipment will be provided. Please come on time. Register at donedwardsfishing.eventbrite.com or call 510-792-0222 ext. 476 for reservations.

30 May 2018

Volunteer Opportunities: Summer 2018

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Volunteer Opportunities: Summer 2018 at the Environmental Education Center (Alviso, California).

If you have an interest in wildlife and their conservation, enjoy working with people, and are enthusiastic and dependable, the Environmental Education Center’s Volunteer Program is for you! As a volunteer, you’ll receive on-the-job training from staff and other volunteers in the project area you choose.

Project areas are: restoration projects, information desk on weekends, interpretive programs, school field trips, and citizen science/community service.

Prior to volunteering at the Environmental Education Center, you must attend a Volunteer Orientation. You can also attend the orientation just to see what opportunities there are, and if it is the right fit for you.

29 May 2018

Much of paper and plastic meant for recycling is ending up in landfills

A recycling facility in Seattle, Washington fills up as waste managers are struggling to find plants to process their recyclables. Credit Wiqan Ang/New York Times.

A recycling facility in Seattle, Washington fills up as waste managers are struggling to find plants to process their recyclables. Credit Wiqan Ang/New York Times.

Livia Albeck-Ripka, a freelance journalist covering the environment, writes in today's New York Times Business section:

Plastics and papers from dozens of American cities and towns are being dumped in landfills after China stopped recycling most “foreign garbage.”

Read on to find out more about how, because of a far-reaching rule change in China, some of the recyclables are ending up in the local dump anyway.

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