Page 43 - Sonoma County Gazette Oct. 2019
P. 43

   Happy Fall! It seems like the Seasons turned overnight, with the Coastal Redwoods shedding massive amounts of their needles seemingly all at once. The distant Cazadero hills have entire stands of dead and dying Tan Bark Oaks and Firs, obvious brown swaths of tinder-dry forest, reminding us of the extended drought of not-too-long-ago, and its long-term damaging effects.
Fire Prevention week is Oct 6 – 12 Our friends at the National Fire Protection Association conduct a national campaign every year. This year’s campaign is, “Not every hero wears a cape. Plan and practice your escape!” works to educate everyone about the small but important actions they can take to keep themselves and those around them safe.
Most of our local Osprey population have raised their young and moved-on for the Winter. Missing is their always interesting tree- top chatter. Deer seem to be everywhere, wandering out into traffic, oblivious of the dangers.
Did you know? In a typical home fire, you may have as little as one to two minutes to escape safely from the time the smoke alarm sounds. Escape planning and practice can help you make the most of the time you have, giving everyone enough time to get out.
Logging trucks are hauling Redwood trees down the Coast and through River Rd, on to Hwy 101 to mills, probably in Cloverdale. In the past they would have delivered the logs to Berry’s Saw Mill in Cazadero, which has been shuttered and is up for sale.
Plan ahead for your escape. Make your home escape plan and practice today.
It was shocking to see how small the logs were. Hopefully, they are thinning ‘suckers’ somewhere to enhance the growth of the larger trees left to grow. Seeing logging trucks seems rare these days. They are having to drive farther to the disappearing log mills, with their loads of increasingly smaller and smaller trees. Sad, indeed. When will they see that leaving the older trees actually benefits our personal well-being and the well-being of the Planet.
Be a hero How do you define a hero? Is it...a person who is courageous and performs good deeds? Someone who comes to the aid of others, even at personal risk?
Our rivers are showing the end-of-Summer symptoms; low flows and questionable water quality. The Gualala River is nothing but puddles upstream from the Hwy 1 bridge, a stark reminder of the mega-wineries who purchased vast land holdings in the watershed, who have been sequestering class-2 and 3 streams (small swales & ditches) into their own holding ponds
for vine irrigation. It seems innocent enough, but the cumulative effect is devastating to the scarce water supplies for any fish that might survive in these gravel-puddles.
A hero can be all of those things. A hero can also be...someone who takes small, but important actions to keep themselves and those around them safe from fire. When it comes to fire safety, maybe you’re already a hero in your household or community. If not, maybe you’re feeling inspired to become one. It’s easy to take that first step - make your home escape plan!
The Russian River is faring a bit better, but is having troubles of its own. The lower river Estuary from Austin Creek to the ocean is virtually level, so when the tide is high and the river-mouth open, this part of the river has water pushing upstream for a ways. This is great news for the few Estuary-perched streams (Sheephouse, Jenner and Willow Creek) and the fish that call them home, usually, as they can count on getting home to their spawning grounds in spite of low-flows.
Historically, logging and over-logging in these sensitive watersheds pushed the native fish populations to the brink of extinction. But, recent efforts at restoration and because of the exhaustive efforts of a few true Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods, fish numbers are increasing – slowly. The Setting aside of the lands of the Jenner Headlands Preserve was a giant step in the right direction, as the headwaters of Sheephouse Creek are within the park.
event. We hope to see you here.
Unfortunately for the fish of Sheephouse Creek, a ‘wing-wall’ (part of the highway culvert) where the creek meets the river, fell into the streambed before last winter’s storms. Incredible amounts of gravel built-up behind this concrete slab, hindering migration of native fish species.
Thanks to all who purchased raffle tickets for Forestville Fire Association’s annual raffle. It was another success raising a little over $18,000.00, with some very happy winners! The money will be used to purchase new radios and a new defibrillator for the engine.
Sebastopol FD
OCT 8: Sebastopol Fire Department Blood Drive, Experience the awe. Life-saving blood offers second chances and many tomorrows to those who depend on it. The process only takes about an hour and is one of the easiest ways to give back to your community. If you’ve never donated blood before, we encourage you to try. Make your appointment. (707) 823-8061 or pmurphy@cityofsebastopol.org - 7425 Bodega Ave, Sebastopol.
OCT 13: Annual “Free” Pancake Breakfast starting at 7:30am until 11:30am. Did I forget to mention ITS FREE as a thank you to the community.
JOIN US for our most delicious fundraiser of the year! Saturday, October 5, from 5 to 8 p.m. is the Polenta and Beef Stew Dinner. Located at McCaughey Hall, downtown Bodega. Full meal of polenta, beef stew, cheese, salad and roll. Dinners can be to-go as well. Tickets at the door, $10/children, $15/adults. Soda, water, beer and wine sold separately. Hope to see some of you there!
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Cal-Trans and NOAA had a plan to repair the problem (remove and replace the concrete culvert) and were geared-up to do it last Summer, but postponed
it when the river Estuary level increased due to the river mouth closing for a period, flooding the work area. They put it off for this season, but have recently come up with more excuses not to clean-up this environmental hazard.
Other projects are getting priority and funding, oObviously fixing roads for tourists is a higher priority than opening the fish channels for the stranded endangered young Salmon.
Bodega Volunteer Fire Department
Pampas Grass has come back with a vengeance along Hwy 1 around the mouth of the River, despite a massive eradication effort a couple of years ago. This amazingly tough plant will even grow in the grey Serpentine soils that Nothing will grow in. The only way to contain its spread is to cut off and bag the seed-fronds off before the seeds become air born. Not an easy task, as the plants are in hard-to reach areas, mostly. Perhaps a Herculean Volunteer Effort could contain further spreading.
Get out and enjoy these gorgeous Fall days! The beaches at the
river mouth have thousands of shorebirds, Pelicans, Egrets, Gulls and Eagles enjoying this biologically diverse habitat. Grab your kayak and cruise amongst them. Magical.
As we officially enter Fall, please remember to be very aware as this is the most critical time of the year for wildland fires, be extra careful!
Bodega Bay Fire is proud to announce the swearing of Firefighter/ Paramedic David Tuttle during our lasts regular Board meeting on September 10, 2019. FF/Paramedic Tuttle represents the final step as he is the final person hired to fill our fourth Full Time position. Again, we are grateful to Supervisor Hopkins and the Board of Supervisors who made this possible.
Please join us at our Annual Night at the Fire House, October
4th, 5pm to 8pm. This is our annual Pre-Fire Prevention Week
Bodega Bay FPD
Don’t forget to look us up at www.bbfpd.org or on Facebook.
Forestville FPD
 VOTE for our VOLUNTEER FIRE FIGHTERS this Special Election. Mail-in Ballots arrive Oct 7.































































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