Mendocino County RCD News & Updates
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In the Fall 2019 Newsletter:
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- Upcoming Events
- Recent Events
- Highlighted Project
- Helpful Resources
- Welcome to Mendocino County
- Willits News
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Road Improvement Workshop
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Please join us at the
Unpaved Road Improvement Workshop
for Road Associations, Landowners, & Equipment Operators.
Attendees to the free classroom presentation, discussion, and field trips will receive a free copy of the Handbook for Rural, Ranch, and Forest Roads (2015) and the Cannabis BMP Guide (2018).
When: Friday, October 18,
9:00 am to 4:00 pm
Where: Willits Grange
Price: FREE!
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MCRCD and Audubon Bird Tour of Little Lake Valley
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October is the time to see raptor migration all over Mendocino County. Come join the
Peregrine Audubon Society
as they explore parts of the CalTrans Mitigation Property in Little Lake Valley. Bring lunch, water, a hat, comfortable shoes, and binoculars!
When: Saturday, October 19,
8:30 am to 1:30 pm
Where: See the website for more
details
Price: FREE!
RSVP: Marisela@mcrcd.org
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2019 Ukiah Valley Russian River Cleanup a Huge Success
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The 2019 Ukiah Valley Russian River Cleanup exceeded all expectations! The theme this year was The River Starts Here to emphasize the connectedness of trash on land to impacts in the water. The cleanup had 152 volunteers, a new record for Ukiah, and picked up 2,500 pounds (1.25 tons) of trash and recycling. Every item we collected is a piece of trash that won’t pollute drinking water and won’t harm wildlife. Thank you to our wonderful volunteers, the event co-sponsors—the County of Mendocino and MendoRecycle, to the dedicated group of event organizers, and our many partners, including Pinoleville Pomo Nation, Russian Riverkeeper, Russian River Watershed Association, Pac Out Green Team, South Ukiah Rotary, Schat’s Bakery, Slam Dunk Pizza, and the students and teachers from Ukiah High, Frank Zeek, and the Instilling Goodness/ Developing Virtue schools.
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Elk Tour on the Willits Bypass Mitigation Lands
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Fall was in the air as Marisela led a hike in search of elk. Click below to read more about their adventure!
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Drought Response Outreach Program for Schools (DROPS)
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MCRCD partnered with t
he Anderson Valley Unified School District (AVUSD) to implement low impact development stormwater retrofit projects at local schools through a State Water Resources Control Board Prop 13 grant, Drought Response Outreach Program for Schools (DROPS). Click below to learn more about this project!
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Coming Soon: Updated Spanish Edition of Cannabis BMP Guide
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MCRCD’s very popular
Watershed Best Management Practices for Cannabis Growers and Other Rural Gardeners
has now been updated in Spanish! The updated versions of the guide in both Spanish and English will be available October 25th at
www.mcrcd.org/publications.
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Illegal Dumping Assistance Opportunity
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MCRCD and MendoRecycle are seeking applicants for CalRecycle’s Farm and Ranch Solid Waste Cleanup and Abatement Grant Program to assist farm and ranch cleanup related to illegal garbage dumping on agricultural properties. Funds are available for both current cleanup needs and reimbursement for prior cleanup.
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If you have issues with illegal dumping and would like to participate in this program, contact Deborah Edelman at
deborah.edelman@mcrcd.org
to receive information about eligibility.
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Welcome to Mendocino County
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New in Willits: Robert
Robert Kunicki joined the MCRCD in the summer of 2019 as an Assistant Project Manager for the Willits Bypass Mitigation Project. After graduating with a Fisheries and Wildlife degree from the University of Minnesota in 2006, Rob has worked on a wide array of wildlife and natural resource projects across the country from Vermont to California. Before joining the MCRCD, Rob gained valuable experience working for a variety of agencies including the Army Corps of Engineers, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the United States Forest Service, the United States Geological Survey, a private consulting business, and the California Department of Parks and Recreation. Rob loves living and working in the Pacific Northwest. He has worked with the threatened Spotted Owl in California for twelve seasons. In addition, he has more wildlife survey experience working with marbled murrelets, western snowy plovers, desert tortoises, song birds, bats, small mammals, butterflies, reptiles, and amphibians.
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New in Ukiah: Katy
Katy also joined the MCRCD in the summer of 2019. She is a Certified Professional Soil Scientist (CPSS) and the new Soils Program Manager for the MCRCD. She is currently assisting landowners and managers with LandSmart Carbon Farm Plans, writing soil health assessments, and supporting grant management relating to soil health. Originally from the southeast, Katy graduated from Hendrix College with a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies and from the University of Arkansas with a master’s degree in Crop, Soil, and Environmental Sciences. Prior to joining the RCD, she worked for an environmental consulting company for over four years on projects spanning from Superfund cleanup sites, revegetation studies, phytoremediation projects, and environmental site assessments.
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Livestock Grazing on Public Lands?
By: Christopher Bartow, Land Manager Willits Bypass Mitigation Project
Public lands are all around us. From our National and State parks to BLM and local holdings, it’s not hard to find public lands in and around our communities. These lands have many uses including recreation, transportation, and conservation. Sometimes these public lands allow grazing of livestock by private interests. So, one might ask as they pass by or through these public lands, “why do we need to have livestock grazing out there at all?” The answer is management. Most grazing leases for public lands identify livestock as a “management tool” to achieve some predetermined objective. These objectives can be as basic as reducing the accumulated dry matter or “thatch” to mitigate the risk of fire, or to maintain a pastoral landscape some find beautiful. More complex objectives like maintaining a very specific component of an ecosystem that relies on the impacts of large herbivores may be identified. Either way, these objectives are well defined and attached to performance standards that are monitored for success. So, the next time you see a cow, sheep, or goat out on your local public lands, thank it for working hard to improve and maintain the landscape.
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Check out the Elk Friendly Fencing Blog Post
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Wildlife friendly escape ramps are being installed on watering troughs throughout the project
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Learn more about our programs:
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