Friday, July 16, 2010

Carpinteria Creek Mouth Restoration Beginning Soon

Currently the mouth of Carpinteria Creek is lined with approximately 350 feet of rocks on both of its banks confining it from its natural meandering state. Few native plant species are present on the banks of the creek mouth, nor in the surrounding area. The majority of the vegetation on the banks is non-native, consisting of iceplant and myoporum. Here are a few pictures of the Carpinteria Creek Mouth prior to the project‘s start.






The goal of the project is to increase the habitat and ecological value of the mouth of Carpinteria Creek by removing non-native flora and planting of native flora along the banks. The existing non-native plants will be removed via a combination of solarization, hand removal and treatment with herbicide. The iceplant will be removed by solarization with black plastic and hand removal. Native plants will be installed through the dead iceplant using volunteers during the rainy season to facilitate establishment.