FOCL's January Email

Click on the graphic below to see FOCL's January email

FOCL Email

New Nature Walks (for the over 50 Crowd!)

NEW!!

FRIENDS OF COLORADO LAGOON

(Last Sunday of the Month Nature Walks)

NOVEMBER 25, 2012 8:30 – 10:30 AM

Meet at the Wetlands & Marine Science Center on Appian Way

SPECIAL THANKSGIVING WALK

EASY PACED NATURE AND BIRD WALK

(For the Over 50 Crowd)

The winter migration has begun and the ducks and shorebirds have found Colorado Lagoon’s clean water to their liking.  With the dredging completed, many more creatures are making Colorado Lagoon their home.  Find out more about the next restoration phase as we view the pelicans, grebes, coots, ducks and shore birds.  If we are lucky, perhaps we will see a hawk!  Bring binoculars (available to borrow-call to reserve a pair- if you have none), sunscreen, hat, water and comfy walking shoes.   No charge.  Led by Harriet Bennish, FOCL volunteer.  (562) 621-9734 alinkletter@yahoo.com  Rain cancels

FOCL Newsletter October 2012

Check out the new FOCL Points Newsletter:

http://issuu.com/FOCL/docs/focl_newlsetter_october__2012_final/1

Tidal Influence and FOCL volunteers have been working on setting up the new Western Arm Reserve at Colorado Lagoon.  Here is a short timelapse video of us building a split rail fence designed to separate the Little Rec Golf Course from the Lagoon.

And here is another timelapse video of us planting salt marsh habitat in the Western Arm. We had to get these plants in before the 7th tee reopened and bad golfers started bombing us with their shanks.

 

Our first big public restoration event in the Western Arm will be on Saturday October 13th from 10am-12pm. Come join us!

Colorado Lagoon Grand Re-opening

Colorado Lagoon Grand Re-opening

 Let’s Celebrate!

Please join the City of Long Beach and the Friends of Colorado Lagoon (FOCL) to celebrate the reopening of Colorado Lagoon on Saturday, August 25th! Approximately 63,000 cubic yards of mud later, we are thrilled to be one step closer to a healthy lagoon with the completion of the dredging. Details are below:

When: Saturday, August 25, 2012

Where: Colorado Lagoon, near the Wetland and Marine Science Education Center on Apian Way

When: 10 am – 2 pm

What: community celebration with music, lagoon tours, food trucks, booths, and activities for the whole family

The dredging of Colorado Lagoon is coming to a close, at last check more than 50,000 cubic yards of sediment has been hauled to the Port of Long Beach to be used in the Middle Harbor project (Big thanks to our friends at the LB Port!). This polluted sediment has built up in the lagoon (mainly from the stormdrains) over the last ~80 years, and its removal was mandated when the State Water Board (SWB) set strict new limits for pollutants in Colorado Lagoon. The sediment, while not classified as toxic, has lead and other pollutants above limits set by the SWB.

Sediment from the lagoon, including an old car chassis, before being hauled away.

In addition to the sediment removal, 3 storm drain outfalls have been demolished and hauled away, including the infamous Termino Ave Drain, which was the trigger for tremendous community involvement at the lagoon. But the most noticeable change visitors see when peering through the tattered green fence is the land at the western end of the lagoon has been re-contoured to increase intertidal habitat. This area will be replanted by FOCL and the community over the next 18-24 months thanks to a grant from the Rivers and Mountains Conservancy (RMC). Stay tuned for more info on how you can get involved in this effort.

View of the re-contoured western end of Colorado Lagoon - No more Termino Ave Drain!

The contractor, AIS, is still measuring and touching up the bottom of the lagoon to make sure it meets the project specifications. This should be complete within a week or two and then the dredge equipment will be removed.

Next steps for AIS include removing the abandoned bathroom and the parking lot on the north shore, filling the hole left by the parking lot removal (using piles of clean dirt from the west lagoon re-contouring) and grading the site. When this is complete, most of the fences will come down and the lagoon will be open to visitors again. Originally scheduled for the end of July, it now looks like mid to late August for the re-opening.

Tough Commute - An excavator moves itself around the lagoon with its bucket

The tide gates are still not completely opened yet, but the water clarity has improved dramatically in the last few weeks as the dredging has tapered off. We are very excited for the temporary tide gates to be removed and the tide to return to pre-project ranges, the water should look better than ever!

As we approach another milestone in the restoration of the lagoon, FOCL wishes to thank all of the lagoon's neighbors for their patience during this major construction project. Thanks for all your continued support!

FOCL Updates

We here at FOCL are trying to sync all of our Social Media (Check out our Facebook Group page when you have a chance!)  with our website (ColoradoLagoon.org) and our blog and Emails to our members. We will get it worked out so that you can be fully up to date on all FOCL happenings at the Lagoon. In the meantime, check out this update that we sent to members last week (it doesn't come out super clear so click on the pic)...

http://p0.vresp.com/HGOuHT

Summer Activities!

Check out the new FOCL Event Flier showing events the end of the year! Pay special attention to the Science Shack Summer event that will occur every Saturday and Sunday starting July 7th and ending September 2nd. More information to come....

Friends of Colorado Lagoon have a couple of events this Saturday June 9th 2012:

Estuary Exploration from 8am-10am

and then, right after,

Habitat Restoration from 10am-Noon

Join the Lagoon education and restoration team to help fix and explore the Colorado Lagoon!
Email: Education@ColoradoLagoon.org for more information

On March 19th, 2012 the Friends of Colorado Lagoon  were awarded a competitive grant from the San Gabriel & Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy for $500,000 to revegetate the Western Arm of the Colorado Lagoon. In addition to restoring the salt marsh and adjacent habitat, FOCL will develop interpretive signage, improve the surrounding trails, and conduct monitoring of the project. The awarded funding comes from Proposition 84 and in coordination with the City of Long Beach, this new project will begin after the current dredging project, which is expected to be completed by August of this year.

FOCL is very grateful to the RMC for this funding as it is an integral piece of the restoration puzzle. This recent award adds to FOCL’s history of receiving competitive grant funds for community-based habitat restoration of the Colorado Lagoon. In 2008, FOCL was awarded $29,800 from the Southern California Wetland Recovery Project and $73,400 from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service’s Coastal Program to restore the Lagoon’s eastern shoreline.

FOCL works with many community partners and local schools to raise awareness and provide education for our valuable coastal habitats while offering opportunities for the general public to help restore Colorado Lagoon.  Involvement from local citizens will make FOCL’s efforts most successful. Those interested in participating should contact FOCL’s education program.

Working in the Wetlands!!

Somethings Creative, Tidal Influence and the Pike Restaurant are teaming up to clebrate the wetlands on February 25th. The 3rd Annual Wetlands Day Celebration will be held at the Pike Gallery near 4th st and Hermosa in Long Beach, California. This is a nature inspired art show to share with our community the Work being done in the local Wetlands. We want you there to share in the celebration.

For more information, email: info@tidalinfluence.com

Momentum and Passion

Passion is what drives us and Momentum is what keeps us driving. Any grass roots effort needs a strong and consistent dose of both of these ingredients. When one is lost, the other usually suffers as a result. And there are so many hurdles that can derail your Passion and Momentum.

After being affiliated and/or involved with numerous non-profit environmental groups I have seen many organizations that could not piece together the puzzle to truly achieve their missions in a cooperative and effective manner. Often ONE individual bears the burden, or personality flaws & irreconcilable differences in visions form rifts between group members. Power struggles are far too common as well...and to be honest...all of this is understandable because this stuff is HARD!!

Its hard to be a part of something that is bigger than you. Something that doesn't necessarily need you in order to exist. Something that one day you will leave behind for others to lead. Something that doesn't pay your bills. Something that you care dearly about, but ultimately do not have control over. This is how large scale conservation efforts generally are for 'Friends' organizations.

I personally have parted ways with groups with amazing missions, that I just could no longer work with for one reason or another (Many of my colleagues can sympathize)...and then it becomes hard to find another group with an open door and a worthy mission to get involved with.

However, this was not the case for me in 2006 with Friends of Colorado Lagoon. Open door policy is an understatement...it was more like an open flood gate. Without hesitation they invited me - an unproven,naive, but excited 25 year old salt marsh ecologist - to be a part of their family. Nobody felt threatened by my credentials or youthfulness...they were all just sooo jazzed to have someone NEW interested in their project. This invitation for involvement changed the trajectory of my life dramatically and I think it also led to a Renaissance for FOCL because once I realized the gate was open, I flooded their board and volunteer roster with my friends and colleagues and students. This change in personnel was welcomed and that welcoming attitude has led to the success FOCL is experiencing today.

Colorado Lagoon is realizing its potential to be restored into a full functioning, multiple-use facility for wildlife and recreation...all because of a well organized community group that has tenacity, a willingness to learn, and a bunch of supporters who make it their goal to be well educated about the ins-and-outs of a complicated Conservation effort.

Last night at City Council I saw the Passion FOCL still has and I also saw the Momentum build like a tidal wave when the votes for an open channel were unanimously supportive. What comes next in order to implement this project is yet to be seen, but I know that FOCL will be involved every step of the way...even if I one day get distracted by life and lose involvement...FOCL will still be there as Champions of Colorado Lagoon.

When is the flock capable without the Shepard?
When there is NO Shepard and the Flock is full of leaders that know where to climb in order to find greener pastures.

Congratulations to Friends of Colorado Lagoon for being a Flock Of Passionate Leaders with the Momentum to create a Culture of Conservation!

August 11th Public Meeting on the Phase 2 (Open Channel)

We need butts in the seats on August 11th at 7pm at the Bruin's Den at Little Rec to support the Colorado Lagoon's Phase 2 Restoration Design for a Tidal Creek to fully restore the connection to Alamitos Bay. The Design Alternative that creates an awesome Tidal Creek is Alternative 4A. We want 4A!Go to our website (coloradolagoon.org) and check our press release and our restoration page (coloradolagoon.org/focl/restoration.html) for more details. And you can always email me (Taylor@coloradolagoon.org) for more info. Thanks everyone, hope to see you there!

Post Acoustic Tidal Artwalk

Greetings Everyone!

Wow, Acoustic Tidal Artwalk was a wonderful event and great success! Many thanks to all our volunteers who made it possible. We had a strong group of dedicated folks who put in a lot of creative energy, time and love into making ATA 2010 a special weekend at the Colorado Lagoon.

Here's some numbers for 2010:

Artist- 7

Bands- 10

Volunteers- 17

2 Nights- 6-10pm

Attendance- 500+-

Sponsoring Partners- 7

Volunteered Hours- 300+

Gallons of Hot Chocolate/Coffee/Tea served- 25

Check out the Photos Below. Watch the progression of the Set up, the event, beautiful skies, art, bands and lots of folks enjoying the Lagoon!

Set up.....

Lots of signs!

Lots of hole digging...

We can do it!!!

The Event...

The Tea Room- Sponsored by Viento Y Agua. Haley's beautiful idea under the tree!

The sky put on quite the show!

Margie Darrow spent Friday night painting for us next to the stage. Thanks Margie

Helpers...

A little Lagoon History

The evening glow

Taylor Parker having fun as always

Studio 1021- a local art studio who specialize in kid & adult art lessons.

The Tails!

Master Emcee- Eric Zahn

It was an evening for the family

Bike Valet

The tide came up and created the Tidal Artwalk- People kicked off their shoes and waded through the tide

Timothy Dunham - Nature in Windows

Danny Zapalac

Shane Bowman

Whitney Graves

Dave Pirazzi

If you are interested in getting involved next year get in contact with our Education deptartment at ColoradoLagoon.Org or go to SomeThingsCreative.com

Thanks for another great year!

~Timothy

Acoustic Tidal Artwalk 2010!!!

Greetings!!

Friends of Colorado Lagoon in cooperation with Some Things Creative and Tidal Influence are proud to present:




Grab the kids, tell your neighbors and friends and come on down to South Beach of the Colorado Lagoon for the Coolest event of the summer. Be sure to bring a blanket, an appetite and be ready for some Fun!

July 9th & 10th, 6-10pm. Enter event from Colorado & Nieto. Bike Valet available

Weekly Bird Counts

Incredibly there is still some wildlife down at the lagoon right now despite the large-scale construction efforts that are almost completely encircling this little wetlands right now. One of our dedicated volunteers and spring 2010 innovatorship award winners Sarah Thomas has been leading the way in developing a method for scientifically monitoring the bird species at the Lagoon. We have been recording the species abundance, species behaviors, and species habitat use for the past 3 Monday mornings and plan to continue this effort as we develop a protocal for citizen-based bird monitoring at Colorado Lagoon. Here are the abundance numbers for those counts:

May 24th

Species Name		Quantity
1	Ring-billed Gull	1
2	Killdeer	1
3	Western Blue Bird	2
4	Snowy Egret	2
5	Forster's Turn	1
6	American Crow	2
7	Lesser Scaup	1
8	Cassin's Kingbird	1
9	Black Phoebe	2
10	Barn Swallow	2
11	Western Gull	1
12	House Finch	5
13	Mallard hybrid	4
14	Pied-billed Grebe	1
15	Spotted Sandpiper	1
16	American Coot	1

May 31st

Species Name		Quantity
1	Forster's Turn	2
2	Snowy Egret	6
3	American Crow	8
4	Western Gull	2
5	Great Blue Heron	1
6	Western Blue Bird	1
7	Double Crested Cormorant	1
8	House Finch	2
9	Cliff Swallow	5
10	Pied-Billed Grebe	1
11	American Coot	1
12	Lesser Scaup	1
13	Cassin's Kingbird	1
14	Black Phoebe	3
15	Mourning Dove	2
16	Rock Pigeon	3
17	Mallard Hybrid	5

June 7th

Species Name		Quantity
1	Double Crested Cormorant	2
2	Barn Swallow	1
3	Lesser Scaup	1
4	House Finch	8
5	Black Phoebe	1
6	Hummingbird spp.	3
7	American Coot	1
8	Snowy Egret	2
9	Hybrid Mallard	5
10	Great Blue Heron	1

Our full datasheets will soon be available on coloradolagoon.org. This bird monitoring program is all part of FOCL's strides to develop a comprehensive environmental monitoring program in partnership with CSU Long Beach. The results will help quantify the success of this multi-million dollar restoration project and allow for the project to be adaptively managed...making a better Lagoon for all creatures! If you want to get involved just contact us at education@coloradolagoon.org

I also want to express how much we miss Rich Sonnenberg down at the Lagoon. His passion and dedication to birding is what inspires us to continue studying the avian populations at Colorado Lagoon, which he has done for many years. His guidance is missed and we look forward to him returning back to the Lagoon's perimeters very soon.

Beach Bummer Again...

This week’s release of Heal the Bay’s annual Beach Report Card shows modest improvements in Long Beach water quality, with one notable exception – Colorado Lagoon. The lagoon received straight Fs across the board. Rain or shine, winter or summer, year after year, the story is the same.

Heal the Bay gathers water quality data from 450 locations throughout California and, once again, Colorado Lagoon features prominently in their Beach Bummer top ten list, this year moving from 4th to 6th place. This dubious distinction reflects the lagoon’s dismal water quality during summer dry weather months, when swimming and other recreational uses are at their peak. This news comes on the eve of the Memorial Day holiday weekend, traditionally seen as the start of our summer recreation season. This weekend hundreds of Long Beach children will be swimming in Colorado Lagoon, a place their parents consider safe because of the gentle sloping beach and lack of waves.

Water quality in Colorado Lagoon remains a serious health and safety issue. Despite significant progress towards cleaning up the lagoon, bacteria and algae blooms continue because the lagoon has been isolated from the rest of the bay, and the Pacific Ocean, by an ill-conceived underground culvert. This culvert restricts the tidal circulation that the lagoon needs to be clean and healthy. Tidal circulation is the life blood of an estuary like Colorado Lagoon. Restricting this life blood, while pouring more and more urban runoff each year into the lagoon has gotten us where we are today. A good analogy is asking an athlete to run in a race with the blood circulation to their legs restricted. It is a recipe for disaster.

The storm drain work being done around the lagoon this year will reduce the amount of trash and urban runoff entering the lagoon during the dry season, and this is an important step forward. But unless full tidal circulation is restored, the lagoon will continue to have bacteria and algae problems each year. The existing underground culvert will be cleaned this summer, at a cost to the city of more than $400k (paid for through a grant secured by the city and FOCL). This will lead to marginally better tidal circulation, but in a relatively short period of time the culvert will again clog with silt and marine growth. This is not cost effective and certainly not a long term solution.

The only long term solution to this health issue, and the one recommended by the EIR, is restoring the original tidal creek that used to connect the lagoon to Alamitos bay. This original connection was filled in back in the 60s to make way for a “cross town freeway” which thankfully never happened. The city, Port of LB, along with resource agencies such as National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and US Fish and Wildlife have been studying options to restore circulation to the lagoon, and the results will be released by the city in a few weeks. This data, along with public input, will help the city decide on the best way forward for restoring full circulation, also know as Phase II of the lagoon restoration.

We look forward to hearing your input on this important health and safety issue. If we make the right decisions now, Colorado Lagoon will no longer be known as one the 10 most polluted beaches in California, but instead as a safe and clean recreational asset that the citizens of Long Beach can be proud of.

Dave Pirazzi, Friends of Colorado Lagoon

PS. Thanks to Lenny Arkinstall for the use of his photos, and more importantly for his and LCWS work to remove the rafts of algae. Most of the algae seen in these photos has been removed as I post this.