Conservation Corner

The Newts of Alma Bridge Road On December 8th over 100 community members provided public comment urging Midpen to prioritize protection of the newt population on Alma Bridge Rd by Lexington Reservoir, Los Gatos. Many comments came from our own SCVAS members! Midpen has prioritized newt conservation, let's hope Santa Clara County follows suit! Watch for alerts and help us advocate for the newts in 2022! To sign up to volunteer with the Newt Patrol, see https://www.bioblitz.club/newts.

Coyote Valley in 2022 On December 14th, the County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve a climate resilience district in Coyote Valley! This, along with San Jose City Council’s November decision, will ensure Coyote Valley is protected as open space, habitat and agriculture into the future. We hope that landowners will have resources to protect water and enhance habitat on their lands - for example - plant crops and harvest in ways that allow the endangered tri-colored blackbirds to breed successfully, plant hedgerows for songbirds and milkweed for monarch butterflies, and create habitat for burrowing owls. We’ll be asking all of you to help us speak for birds and butterflies in Coyote Valley!

Trails on Valley Water properties In December, following 7 years of advocacy by SCVAS and other environmental groups, the Valley Water Board of Directors established guidelines for public trails along creeks. These new guidelines will help protect riparian and aquatic ecosystems and help balance human access to nature with healthy habitats. We have been urging Valley Water to add habitat protection guidelines to their public trails since 2015 and are encouraged by the decision!

Plastic Turf: Giulianna’s Op-ed Published in the Los Gatan On December 8th, the Los Gatan published our very own Environmental Advocacy Assistant Giulianna Pendleton’s op-ed on the dangers of installing artificial turf in elementary schools. Please take a moment to read this opinion on what artificial turf would mean for birds and wildlife, children’s health, and plastic pollution.