June 2009

East Molera green again

East Molera is green again! On a hike last fall it was black and ugly, burnt bush stubs sticking out from a uniform gray ash covering the slopes. So when Anneliese Suter invited me on a May wildflower hike there I was a bit dubious—how much would be restored? Thankfully, we found grass and flowers covering the ground, even across the fire road which had been a fine powder last fall. Colors abounded—blues, reds, yellows, and greens of all hues. Waves of wind could be seen parting the fields of grass. Difference scents were in the air. Pico Blanco shone above us.

Fire damage was more evident where trees had been—a sycamore which had once provided some shade along the upward climb was thoroughly burned and a copse of oak trees had mostly burned, though green shoots sprang up from many of the burned bases. The taller redwoods fared better, a few being torched but most only singed.

The trail itself was in good condition, easily passable though not always flat underfoot. In fact, while we were there, a Cal Fire work party was clearing more brush to widen the trail. If you have not been down to Big Sur since the fire, I encourage you to see for yourself the changes that have taken place since last fall.

—Jack Glendening

Salinas Water article all wet

I have been a member of the Sierra Club, a resident of Santa Cruz, and a member of the UCSC faculty for 30 years. I support the Sierra Club because it generally does a fair and thorough analysis of environmental issues. The recent article “WATER the Santa Cruz side of the Bay” [Volume 48, No. 2, 2009] does not meet the usual Sierra Club standards.

The article presents a highly selective set of facts to argue that UCSC is about to consume all of Santa Cruz’s remaining water capacity. There is no doubt that UCSC is a major consumer and needs to cooperate with the city, but a slightly deeper analysis shows that this total focus on the university will do little to help solve our water problems. With 16,000 students and thousands of employees we might expect the university to use a lot of water—maybe 20% or 30% of the City’s total? The article quotes the number 132 million gallons. This allocation constitutes only 3.6% of the city’s water supply per the city’s own calculations.

The city allocates almost as much, 106 million gallons, to golf courses, another 116 million gallons to irrigation. On a per person basis the university uses far less water than the average Santa Cruz resident. The water article also states that the water is “for expansion into its north campus area, now largely a natural resource reserve.” In fact the development plan increases the natural reserve area, compared to the plan put forth in 1988.

There are many development projects happening in our city—the Tannery Arts projects, new condominiums, a hotel, and the huge project on Delaware Avenue. We can’t solve the city’s water problems by ignoring the users that consume over 95% of the water. We use 4% of our water to provide a university education to 16,000 students, to support research (much of which is focused on the environment), and to sustain the city’s largest employer. This is good social policy and good for the long-term health of our environment.

—Barry Bowman
Santa Cruz

Increased diversity

On a recent visit to Yosemite NP I was delighted to notice what appeared to me to be a large increase in the number of “minority” visitors. On a hike part way up the Yosemite Falls Trail, we said hi to, had conversations with, or just passed 6-9 African Americans and more Asian and Latino Americans, I hope it is a trend. It was wonderful to see more human diversity enjoying Yosemite. On most past visits it has always seemed I was sharing the trail with white Americans and Europeans.

—Erica Crawford
Soquel

A bucket a day

On a recent trip to Oaxaca, Mexico, we learned that Oaxacan hotels provide buckets inside the shower stall for guests to collect shower water while waiting for it to warm up. The water is then used to clean the room! A very clever idea for a drought-stricken region that we have adopted at home in Santa Cruz. We save a bucketful a day, that we then use to water our indoor and outdoor plants.

—Brenda Barcelo
Santa Cruz

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