Navarro River still faces eco-woes
Community notes
First, a couple of corrections: The bookmobile is in Elk every other Thursday from 1:15 to 1:45 p.m. This is a slight change of time from last year. Its next visit is Jan. 21. Also, EVFD will be complying with SB 85 when it embarks on its ISO assessment starting this month — not SB 1205.
From the desk of Cindy Johnson: The annual Elk town meeting is tonight!
The Greenwood Community Center Board invites you to attend, via a Zoom webinar, the annual Town Meeting at 6:30 p.m. tonight, Thursday, Jan. 14. Hear from residents and frequent guests about issues and activities that impact you and enrich your lives, such as the schools, parks, public safety, the environment, and local community organizations. This is also an opportunity to find out how you can serve the community. Attendees are “view-only” participants, but will be able to ask questions of the presenters.
Sadly, you will have to prepare your own soup, bread, and brownies this year! But load up your TV trays — or desk — and tune in. Here is the address to join the
webinar: https://zoom. us/j/91325254719. You can also find the link at elkweb.org. If you have any questions or need more information, please contact Rio Russell at riorussell@mcn.org.
Navarro River still stressed by eco-woes
After the concerning blue-green algae bloom over the summer, we were all hopeful the rains would wash the river clean by opening up the month and cooling it down. Elise Ferrarese reported on her Instagram account last week seeing juvenile salmon and steelhead in the river, as she used waders to access the beach where she walked quite alone because, despite the rain, the mouth remains closed.
She wrote: “I thought about the salmon in the ocean, waiting to catch
the scent of their natal river in the salty currents so they can return and spawn in the tributaries before dying … I await the rain-swollen river bursting through the sandbar and the return of the salmon, and the road to clear, so we can once again watch our children dodge the waves with salty hair, numb toes and wild shrieking.”
The river now has a new bloom, which is likely duckweed (also known as Azolla), and is considered invasive, fast-growing and can affect the biodiversity of an aquatic ecosystem dramatically. This week, after the most current rains, the river has taken on a greenish-gray hue, the likes of which I have never seen before. Usually, after a big rain, it has a good muddy look.
According to Elise, the real issue is the low flow conditions caused by prolonged drought. She added that flow issues are complex as are water rights laws. In order to see some of the river’s stress relieved, we need more rain — and lots of it!