Fishman, K. (2023, May 8). Navarro River, two more Mendocino coast watersheds to see Salmon Habitat Restoration • The Mendocino Voice: Mendocino County, CA. The Mendocino Voice | Mendocino County, CA. https://mendovoice.com/2023/05/navarro-river-two-more-mendocino-coast-watersheds-to-see-salmon-habitat-restoration/
The Mendocino County Conservation District (MCRCD) is spearheading an effort to reconnect the Navarro River with the rest of the floodplain (which became disconnected due to human activity). The county has already had many successful restoration projects in the area, namely at the Ten Mile and Garcia watersheds. If all goes to plan, this connection project will allow for the California Coast Coho and Chinook salmon to repopulate (thanks to all the new space), rest as they migrate, and the floodplains will be able to retain water more efficiently to prevent flooding in the future.
This article is related to environmental science because it describes how humans have threatened the Chinook and Coho salmon populations by disrupting the floodplains and rivers of Mendocino County in which they live. In a similar vein, it also describes how the county seeks to restore the complex ecosystem through an approach guided by environmental science. This article makes me really pleased. It’s a nice reminder that there are lots of people who want to undo the damage we have done to the environment, and because the area is already showing improvement I have hope that similar projects can be applied all across California. It makes me wonder what exactly the work they are doing consists of. What does the day to day work of these sorts of projects consist of? How can someone get involved? It makes me wonder how people like me may pursue habitat restoration as a career path. It also makes me wonder how often Californian counties rely on private grants like the one provided by the Nature Conservancy that allowed for this project to happen.
This article also makes me really pleased, and helps me restore my hope in humanity to heal its damage on earth we have caused. I also wonder what the work involved in this project daily is. My question for you is, do you think we could push for more projects like this around the world? Or even make it a legal requirement? Let me know what you think.
Hey Ethan, thanks a ton for commenting on my post! I definitely think we should push for more projects like this around the world. Many people think that we’re diverting too many resources into these projects with little tangible benefits to us humans, but thats not entirely true. These restoration projects improve the surrounding area’s air quality, water quality, and the land’s ability to protect us against floods in the future. I hope that governments in the future require particularly unsustainable businesses to invest in projects like this. This would discourage their unhealthy practices and to repair some of their damage as well.