What better way to end Creek Week than with tours of two of our Goleta Creeks.
Approximately 25 people attended the Devereux Creek tour on September 28 led by City of Goleta’s Parks and Open Space Manager George Thomson. Participants learned about the Devereux Creek watershed, got an up-close look at transitional wetland habitats, examined why some invasive plants are able to negatively impact biodiversity, deciphered what monarch butterfly overwintering sites need to function, and more.
Another 20+ people attended the San Jose Creek tour on September 29. The tour, led by the City’s Environmental Services Manager Melissa Nelson and Brian Trautwein of the Environmental Defense Center, also served as a great opportunity for community members to find out more about upcoming projects for the creek. Topics included the current bike path project, learning about the native habitat around the creek, the San Jose Creek Fish Passage project, the new “Clean Creeks Green Streets” initiative, as well as some potential locations for water capture and filtration features such as modular wetlands.
We appreciate the engagement of our community members who help us protect our creeks!
SB Creek Week 2023 was a great success all-around. Here in Goleta, our highlights included Coastal Cleanup Day, the Goleta Valley Library’s Creek Week Art Contest, tours of the Devereux and San Jose Creeks, and giving out over 1,000 bilingual coloring books and creek giveaways during the Lemon Festival. The City of Santa Barbara also coordinated many other events County-wide, each of the other events led by our neighboring jurisdictions.
Let’s keep the momentum going and continue to show our love for our precious creeks year-round! Don’t forget to mark your calendars for our community cleanup of Devereux Creek this Saturday, October 7th from 9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.! We keep up creek stewardship throughout the year and there are many opportunities to get involved. If you are interested in other events throughout the year, there are many more to come that you can find on our Beautify Goleta website.
If you’d like to learn more about the City’s Creek and Watersheds Management Program, join us for a special City Council meeting on December 5th. More information about this will be posted on the City’s Council Meetings web page as it gets closer.
Pictured above: George Thomson leading the Devereux Creek Tour
Devereux Creek Tour
Melissa Nelson and Brian Trautwein leading the San Jose Creek Tour
San Jose Creek Tour