The April Digest
What's On Tap?
Bay Area Water Sources — Past and Present
Volume 102 | April 2023 | By Meghan Boyle
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WALKING WATERHOODS TOUR- LAKE TEMESCAL |
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When: Saturday, April 8th, 2023
Time: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Where: Lake Temescal, North Parking Lot, 6500 Broadway Oakland, CA 94618
Join Wholly H2O in exploring the fascinating history of Lake Temescal! We will dive into the lake's human history, including that of the Ohlone Native Americans, Anthony Chabot's damming of Temescal Creek, Chinese immigrant work on the Lake Temescal Dam, and the Bohemian artists that once camped on its shores. We will also learn about industrial developments in surrounding areas, such as the Hayward Fault, Highways 13 and 24, Caldecott Tunnel, and interurban electric train, 'The Comet.' Along the way, you'll discover a variety of flora, fauna, and local landmarks!
To sign up for this event, use this link or the "Register" button above.
Note: Anyone in need of a free ticket can reach out directly to info@whollyh2o.org
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CITY NATURE CHALLENGE 2023: LAKE CHABOT BIOBLITZ (WITH EBMUD) |
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When: Saturday, April 29th, 2023
Time: 10:00AM-12:00PM
Where: Chabot Park Parking Lot, 1781 Estudillo Avenue, San Leandro, CA, 94577
This event is brought to you by Wholly H2O and the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD), which is celebrating its 100-year anniversary! Check our EBMUD's celebratory page about its history providing the Bay with water from the Mokelumne River for the last century.
Explore Lake Chabot with Wholly H2O and EBMUD in a fun-filled morning BioBlitz as part of the annual Cal Academy of Science's City Nature Challenge! We'll be documenting local flora and fauna and observing what it's like living at Lake Chabot. A BioBlitz is an event that focuses on finding and identifying as many species as possible in a specific area over a short period of time. This event is part of the City Nature Challenge, an yearly competition sponsored by the Academy of Sciences in San Francisco and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.
To sign up for this event, use this link or the "Register" button above. (This event is free.)
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CITY NATURE CHALLENGE 2023: LAKE MERRITT BIOBLITZ |
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When: Sunday, April 30th, 2023
Time: 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Where: Lake Merritt 600 Bellevue Ave Oakland, CA 94610
Organized by the Oakland Museum, this event is an exciting way to learn about the thousands of organisms that call Lake Merritt home and help document them as part of the 2023 City Nature Challenge. Local naturalists will be on deck to help you find and identify organisms. There will be stations around the lake focusing on different habitats and organisms, along with some short guided walks. You can drop in at any point during BioBlitz and find a marked area leader to learn from.
To sign up for this event, use this link or the "Register" button above. (This event is free.)
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On Tap: Bay Area Water Sources — Past and Present |
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Explore the history of local water sources and how current events are affecting them today! |
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Amid a rainy spring ahead of Wholly H2O partner EBMUD’s centennial anniversary, it’s time to celebrate our water! This April, we’re focusing on the history and current outlooks of two local bodies of water: Lake Temescal and the Mokelumne River. Get ready to dive in! |
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Lake Temescal: The History |
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Lake Temescal / East Bay Regional Park District |
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Nestled among the Berkeley Hills near the Highway 24/Highway 13 interchange, Lake Temescal sits peacefully as the remnant of a 19th-century project to bring clean drinking water to Oakland. Built by the Contra Costa Water Company, Lake Temescal is a roughly mile-long artificial reservoir, created from the damming of the Temescal Creek and is located directly over the Hayward Fault, part of the San Andreas fault system.
The Contra Costa Water Company was founded by Bay Area businessman, Anthony Chabot. Famous for his contributions to hydraulic mining during the Gold Rush, Chabot used his water engineering expertise to create a reservoir to supply the burgeoning city of Oakland with clean water. But this process was not easy by any means. After blasting the Temescal Creek walls with high-pressure water canons, workers, most of whom immigrated from China to work on railroads, helped build the dam wall and clear the lakebed of soil and vegetation. Many of these workers lived in the area for several years and would take loose dirt from upstream areas and pack it into the dam wall. To create a concrete-like lakebed, Mustang horses and mule-drawn carts were used to “puddle” or firmly press the earth down. The lake was initially 80' deep but ongoing siltation has made the lake increasingly shallower over time.
After the lake was completed in 1868, it briefly served as a water source for early Oakland residents. However, the city grew exponentially during this time, and within a few short years, the small lake proved insufficient. So, Chabot and the Contra Costa Water Company began constructing a second reservoir, now known as the Lake Chabot Reservoir, all the while competing with other small water companies for dominance.
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Artist William Wendt painting by the lake c. 1880 / PocketSights |
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In the late 1800s, the lake was popular with artists and writers, who often camped on its sunny shores and used the area as inspiration for their art. A few figures include Bohemian Club founder Ambrose Bierce, writer George Sterling, and painters JHE Partington and William Wendt.
Even Lake Chabot was quickly outgrown as a water supply. With the demonstration that more water was needed in the East Bay, made clear by both a severe drought and a devastating fire in Berkeley in the 1920s, the state of California passed the MUD Act and the East Bay Municipal Water District (EBMUD) was born. With the focus on water supply turned toward the Mokelumne River, over a hundred miles away in the Sierra Nevada, former lands devoted to water supply were turned over to the East Bay Regional Park District, a newly formed entity that turned Lake Temescal and several other hilltop zones into public parks and the Lake Temescal Regional Recreation Area was born. The iconic stone building (aka Beach House) sitting along the lake shore was built by the Works Progress Administration in the 1940s.
Today, the lake is a beautiful recreational site that boasts picturesque trails stretching the lake’s perimeter, brilliant blue waters where fishermen find plenty of sport and swimmers enjoy cool waters, and quaint picnic areas where locals can spend a pleasant afternoon in nature. It’s also a popular spot among naturalists for its diverse flora and fauna. If you’d like to join the Lake Temescal fun, sign up for Wholly H2O’s Lake Temescal tour using this link. We will explore more of its history and walk you through the lake’s stunning landscape while documenting the area’s amazing biodiversity!
There are other fascinating Temescal Creek Watershed tours that you can find by downloading the app PocketSights and looking for Walking aWaterhoods, Temescal Creek Tours. Use the QR codes below - both Andriod and Apple - to download the app.
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Mokelumne River: The History |
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Mokelumne River / Calaveras Visitors Bureau |
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Venturing outside the East Bay , the Mokelumne River, a 95-mile river that stretches across the Central Valley into the Sierras, holds great importance to Bay Area residents. This stunning river supplies East Bay locals with clean running tap water, courtesy of the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD). The watershed that houses the river is known as the Mokelumne Watershed, which flaunts lush forests, sundry wildlife, and of course, fresh, sparkling water.
The river gets its name from the Plains Miwok, who, along with other Indigenous tribes, lived in the Mokelumne Watershed region for thousands of years before colonization. In the early 1800s, European settlers began calling the Mokelumne Watershed region home, building settlements near present-day Happy Valley and Mokelumne Hill, one of the wealthiest mining towns in the state. The river contained a large quantity of gold, which was heavily exploited during the Gold Rush.
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EBMUD Water Supply / EBMUD |
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In the second half of the 19th century, the river played a role in the development of hydraulic mining where it was used to scour hillsides to harvest gold. By 1929, EBMUD finished the construction of the Pardee Reservoir as a storage place and diversion point for rerouted water. Later in the 1960s, a second reservoir, the Camanche Dam, was built to capture additional runoff.
These reservoirs are still in use today. The diverted water flows from the Pardee or Camanche Dam Reservoirs through open-air aqueducts into East Bay Reservoirs for municipal distribution. Thanks to EBMUD and California’s beautiful rivers, Bay Area residents can enjoy crisp, high-quality water straight from the tap! Every time you use the faucet, that water has made the journey from the Sierras and the Mokelumne headwaters to reservoirs and aqueducts, all the way to your sink or shower!
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Besides serving as a primary water source for the Bay Area, the Mokelumne River houses a wide variety of fish species, including Pacific and Chinook salmon and steelhead trout. It also is a popular place for whitewater kayaking, fishing, camping, and wilderness exploration.
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Lake Temescal and Mokelumne River: Current Outlooks |
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With global warming and climate change on the rise, how have these bodies of water fared?
Lake Temescal: In recent years, Lake Temescal has faced an onslaught of algae bloom-related problems because of warming temperatures. In 2014, East Bay Regional Park District closed the lake to swimmers after toxic green blue algae, a type of cyanobacteria, was reported in the waters for the first time. The following summer, the lake was closed again. The algae are common enough in warm weather. But, when combined with warming temperatures and drought conditions, these toxic blooms become even more pervasive. Lake Temescal has also been negatively affected by heavy storms. The Alameda County Grand Jury found in 2018 that the lake is occasionally contaminated by sewage, most likely due to sewer lines damaged during large storms.
Mokelumne River: Drought conditions in recent years have had several ill effects on the Mokelumne River. In 2021, EBMUD officials had to draw water from the Sacramento River to supplement its Mokelumne supply because of the ongoing drought. Although the recent downpours have boosted the EBMUD water supply, extreme drought conditions are still likely to happen as the earth continues to heat up.
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More than ever, it is imperative that we continue to educate ourselves about all that our water does for us. By learning about and understanding the effects of human development on our local watersheds, rivers, and lakes, we are taking a step toward saving our water from further destruction. Plus, it helps us appreciate the world around us more, changing our water usage habits for the better!
You can see why it is so important to use this river wisely in your "end use". Consider installing rainwater harvesting and greywater systems to reduce your dependence on "The Moke", especially when it comes to caring for your garden which often accounts for half of residential water use. Check out your bill from EBMUD to see how much water you are using daily so you know when the water-saving strategies you are employing are resulting in a reduction of your water use.
If you want to show gratitude for your water sources and support Wholly H2O in our journey to spread knowledge about them, consider purchasing our super cool What’s on Tap? stickers! Check them out using this link and order them here. We are grateful for your continued support!
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What else are we up to? Wholly H2O regularly plans exciting environmental events throughout the year, including beach cleanups, walking tours, art projects, and nature observations (aka BioBlitzes). To view our future events, click the link here, or use the button below. If you'd like to stay tuned and get notifications about our events, feel free to use that same link to follow us on EventBrite!
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Our lives depend on healthy watersheds, and Wholly H2O depends on YOU!
Support Wholly H2O as we plan many more exciting events over the next year!
We create educational content that connects YOU to the watersheds you live in, and we love doing what we do! No matter how much you decide to donate, you will make an impact on what we can accomplish. Click the button above to contribute a tax-deductible donation or check out our fundraiser on our Facebook page!
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Want to Give Back to Your Watershed? Join our Board of Advisors! |
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During the last 100 years, California has been in on-and off drought conditions. We also have one of the five most important delta systems in the world, yet, most Californians do not know where their water comes from, how much they use a day, or what watershed they live in. At Wholly H2O, we are creating deep connections with watershed ecosystems in order to inspire people to take long-range personal and political action, while still having fun. And our Board of Advisors is a crucial part of how Wholly H2O functions. We ask for a solid commitment to:
- Join a 1.5 hour board meeting every four months.
- Put the word out about at least 3 Wholly H2O events a year
- Attend at least 3 Wholly H2O events per year
- Assist us in making connections for program content, partners, funding, and growth.
We're looking for experts in Bay Area creek and marine ecosystems, East Bay BIPOC history, citizen science, curriculum development, East Bay K-12 schools, art, marketing, or outreach. If this sounds like something you'd be interested in, apply using this link. Also, be sure to check out our current Board of Advisors to learn more about our current members!
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Wholly H2O couldn't run without the work of our talented volunteers. We have a bunch of unique opportunities throughout the year, such as podcast producing, accounting, and content editing! Take a look at our Volunteer Match to learn more!
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Our Interns Do Really Cool Stuff. |
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We always have a pod of 10-15 interns researching creek histories, creating wildlife guides, editing livestreams, writing copies for our watershed tours, and more. We promise you will never be bored - lend your skills or add your curiosity to our work!
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Wholly H2O catalyzes dynamic, informed connections between people and their watersheds that yield proactive and appropriate water management through conservation and reuse. Our watershed-positive educational programs engage Californians in community , citizen science, art, and green infrastructure education.
Our activities: waterhood tours, BioBlitzes, Moth nights, and art events are bringing waterhoods to life for hundreds of water-users around the San Francisco Bay area! Join us for an event, follow us on social media, volunteer or intern, or donate to support our fun and innovative work. (We also love matched donations from your workplace!)
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