Spring Newsletter 2012 Volume 19, Number 1
Open Spaces
A River Will Run Through It
by Ojai Valley Land Conservancy’s Conservation Director Brian Stark
sons. First, re-watering the stream in its natural route will reconnect the stream to the Ventura River in a natural confluence. These wetted stream channels act as thoroughfares for migrating wildlife. When we re-create connections, we are uniting ecological connections between the lower floodplains of the river and the hillside habitats. Nature is all about connections. Replacing the stream will also create new habitats for birds and wildlife. The artificial route of the stream flowed through a narrow drainage ditch and then through the rocky substrates of the Ventura River floodplain. The soil conditions along that route did not support the same lush vegetation as the deeper and more nutrient rich soil along the historic route. The difference in
habitat quality is substantial. Aligning the stream with its historic route continued on back cover...
Spring flowers on the Kennedy Ridge Trail at the Ventura River Preserve. Guided hike of Kennedy Ridge Trail offered April 7th. See event calendar on page 3 for details.
Visitors to the historic orange grove at the OVLC’s Ventura River Preserve may have seen a lot of colored flags out there over the past few months. While at first glance one might figure this was Christo’s latest environmental art installation, but it is actually the latest installation by the slightly less well known OVLC field crew. However, far from being just an art project, each flag marks the location of a brand new native plant placed along the future route of Rice Creek, a tributary to the Ventura River. In the past few months, the field crew has planted 4,500 new plants at the project site as part of the restoration of Rice Creek, a project that will involve the relocation of the seasonal stream. Historically, Rice Creek flowed out of Rice Canyon and traversed the upper bench that once was home to the mighty Ventura River. In the 1920s, however, Rice Creek was placed behind artificial levees and shot off a cliff into the current Ventura River floodplain. The channelization of the stream severed its hydrologic connection to the Ventura River and de-watered 3,700 feet of the historic
stream. More than half of the remaining stream corridor was removed for the existing orange orchard. Later this summer, however, Rice Creek will be re-routed back to its historic route. Placing the stream back into its historic route is important for several rea-
Ojai Valley Land Conservancy P.O. Box 1092 • Ojai, CA 93024 370 W. Baldwin Rd, A-4 805.649.6852 * info@ovlc.org
www.ovlc.org Board of Directors Roger Essick, President Don Reed, Vice President Stefanie Coeler, Secretary Cari Guerrero, Treasurer Mary Bergen Margot Griswold Brian Holly Allan Jacobs Cricket Twichell Nathan Wallace Barbara Washburn Deborah Whorf
Staff
An aerial shot of the newly planted Rice Creek route.
Greg Gamble, Executive Director Rick Bisaccia, Preserve Manager Todd Bertola, Restoration Technician Brad Meiners, Restoration Technician Darcy Gamble, Development Director Marti Reid, Office Manager Brian Stark, Conservation Director Lorraine Walter, Watershed Coordinator Lauren Ward, Restoration Technician