| F5C February update: No Codornices meeting or volunteering, join us with sister groups in February |
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Apologies for another update instead of our full e-news. Too much going on! |
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Leptospirosis halts Codornices meeting & volunteering; path visits safeAgencies have canceled their planned Feb. 4 annual Codornices Creek meeting with the public while Berkeley, Albany, and UC Berkeley, and Alameda County Vector Control seek ways to deal with the November outbreak of dangerous Leptospirosis in the crowded nearby homeless camps. |
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| F5C has suspended volunteering on lower Codornices Creek indefinitely. The disease, carried by droppings and urine of rats, mice, and dogs, can persist and spread in water, mud, and damp places including vegetation, making our ordinary work a risk. A Berkeleyside article on Leptospirosis and its risks is here. |
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The creek (above), our area's only trout stream, where we have worked for more than 25 years, looks lovely! We encourage strolling or cycling the creekside trail, completed only a year ago. Authorities have provided no useful guidance that we know of on use of the adjacent sports fields while they are damp. Background and opinion: Berkeley struggles with an unfair burden from our society's decades of failure to deal with homelessness, mental illness, and addiction. However, Friends of Five Creeks has long argued that allowing camps, garbage, and flammables packed closely together is negligence, not kindness. In October, campers fled screaming from a huge fire in large camps edging the creek. They could easily have been killed. In late October we led dozens of volunteers doing emergency erosion control on the bared banks after those camps were cleared. UC Berkeley led a big volunteer group upstream. Private veterinarians discovered the Leptospirosis in November. Our volunteer work seems likely to have been unsafe. On nearby streets, camps grew denser than ever and Berkeley posted several pages of dense, detailed, small-type instructions that appear to have had little effect. No one posted signs along the creek regarding a health risk, notified us, or issued useful news announcements until mid-January, after word of the outbreak began to spread and we demanded posting. Climate change is forecast to bring returns of disease and public-health challenges that seemed behind us. Political actions may do the same. Berkeley and Albany residents should make sure that their cities and county health authorities enforce basic public-health and safety measures as they prepare to deal with this and future outbreaks. |
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Join us helping sister groups in February |
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| Our MLK-day partnering with Friends of Hillside Natural Area was a huge success, with well over 30 volunteers, mostly families with kids, enjoying nature and removing fire-prone French broom. Thanks to all! F5C has a large private work party Feb. 1 and work parties with three school classes in early March. So we are again partnering with sister groups with whom we have long worked together. Join us showing love to the environment! |
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Sun., Feb. 15, join F5C with Shark Stewards at their cleanup 10 am - 1 pm. We may add some work on invasives and iNaturalist observations to Shark Stewards' regular and much needed cleanups and monitoring. Head for the South Parking lot, 2925 Bolivar Drive (via Emeryville if by car, or walk or bicycle from the north end). Meet at the table behind the gate to the road between the main and middle lagoons. Map here. Coffee, snacks, and cleanup supplies provided, but bring bucket, tongs, and gloves if you have them. RSVP to shark...@gmail.com appreciated! Or Sun., Feb. 15. join Friends of Hillside Natural Area for another relaxed, family-oriented outing enjoying and learning about nature, while also curbing invasives. Look for details on their web site. Looking for something this weekend? There is a last-Saturday event clearing invasives this weekend on Albany Hill, 9-11 AM with Tending the Ancient Shoreline Hill, meeting on the south side of Cerrito Creek. Please contact Margot Cunnningham at the email above for details. Join F5C board member and longtime volunteeer Anne Ogonowski at Baxter Creek on El Cerrito's north border for a cleanup and maybe also wildflower seeding this Sunday, Feb. 1. Info here. F5C's Weed Warriors group continues, Tuesdays 10 AM - noon. Please email f5cr...@gmail.com for information or to get on the list to be notified of locations. |
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Thanks for reading! Please forward this update to others who might be interested. Susan Schwartz, President, Friends of Five Creeks
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