Project Proposal

Project Proposal Link

Mentor Report

My group, Nate, Sri, and Sonia, and I interviewed Dr. Blueford on Saturday December 6th at Tule Ponds at around 9:30 A.M. Dr. Blueford informed us that Tule Ponds serves our community in many ways but it is mainly used for "flood control and as a wild life sanctuary for the many species" in our community. She needs our help in restoring the native flora in the empty spaces surrounding the lake. She also encourages schools to take field trips to the pond so they can learn about about their environment. For our project we have decided to go to Tule Ponds every other Saturday to help plant native trees and plants so that we can restore our community's environment and provide a nurturing habitat for the wild life. 
We weren't able to take picture with Dr. Blueford.
One can contact Dr.Blueford at 1999 Walnut Ave, Fremont

Article Annotation and Rhetorical Précis

The link to the annotated article can be found here

Author Jeff L. Brown in his article,  "A Natural Approach" gives the research from his Everglades Restoration Project (ECP) and states their objectives to increase the quantity of water entering the Everglades, improve the timing and distribution of water, control floods and most importantly improve water quality. He develops his claim by first defining the purposes of the ECP project, then explaining some of the preparations they take to avoid common problems, and finally giving a detailed analysis of the experiment and it's results. Brown's purpose is to inform others how they brought about change in the everglades environment in order to educate others about their project and tell them how they can conduct their own environmental restoration projects. He creates an informative tone intended for anyone interested in environmental restoration.

Research 4

http://www.pointblue.org/our-science-and-services/conservation-science/conservation-training/straw-program
Article Link^

This article is written about a project called STRAW in which adults and children get together to restore watersheds. They are "facilitating professionally designed riparian and wetland restoration projects in the North Bay." In other words they work to restore vegetation to wetland habitats that are critical to the ecosystem and the wildlife. They do this by planting  native plants that are beneficial to endangered species and the water quality. They promote long term growth by controlling weed growth and irrigation so young plants will adapt to the habitat more easily. The project is a very good opportunity for the kids to become involved in their community and help their environment.

Research 3

http://www.ser.org/resources/resources-detail-view/ecological-restoration-a-means-of-conserving-biodiversity-and-sustaining-livelihoods
Article link^

This article defines environmental restoration and gives ideas about how to go about it. The author suggests  growing biodiversity, empowering local people, and improving ecosystem production. By doing these things structure will be restored so that "Balance exists between ecological processes and human activities such that human activities reinforce ecological health and vice versa." Next the author elaborates on his/her suggestions and gives examples of ways to help through gardening, educating communities about helping, and creating healthy environments for wildlife. Most of these solutions/suggestions involved doing prior research to get the best results.

Research 2

http://crssa.rutgers.edu/courses/lse/Web_scale/Web%20project/PHicks_FinRestor.htm (Polly Hicks)
http://ecowatch.com/2015/05/18/clearcut-half-million-trees/ (Gescheidt) 
Article Links^

These articles are addressing the need for environmental restoration. They mention various areas in need of help such as: deforestation, decreasing biodiversity, less vegetation, and pollution. These various issues are causing a lack of structure in the ecosystem. Today fewer people are monitoring the change in our environment so the slower we recognize problems the worse they will get. As forests are being cut down nobody is making plans to support restoration. In the process of deforestation chemicals are harming the wildlife. For example, "These toxic chemicals will leach into land, groundwater, mammals (like rodents who live in stumps), birds (like raptors who eat rodents) and humans who use the park lands."( Gescheidt) In conclusion,  deforestation causes fire hazards that lead to numerous negative effects on the environment. 

Research 1

http://www.cnps.org/cnps/grownative/why_native.phphttp://www.cnps.org/cnps/grownative/why_native.php
article link^

This article is focused on why native plants should be conserved. The author states that there are many benefits that result from growing California's native species rather than allowing invasive ones to  take over. A few of these benefits include: saving water, lower maintenance, a reduce of pesticides, more wildlife and support for the ecosystem. Native plants save water because they need "minimal irrigation". They require less fertilizer since they are better suited to California's environment and they have additional defenses against pests and diseases. Also, wildlife prefers native plants because they are better suited to each other. According to the article " hummingbirds, butterflies, and other beneficial insects...keep your landscape free of mosquitoes and plant-eating bugs."Finally the article states that native plants are a way of maintaining a connection to wildlife.

My new Big Idea

For our Big Ideas project we are going to be working on environment restoration at Tule Ponds. This project is important because not only will we be restoring the beauty of the Ponds, but we will also be researching on how to maintain it. Our ideas for this project are planting and weeding to promote the growth of native plants, making pathways to prevent the children from harming the plants, and planning to prevent future littering. Environment restoration is a growing need because our ecosystems are not as biodiverse as they used to be. In our situation invasive species are preventing the growth of other native ones. So our goals are to conserve biodiversity and influence others to give back to their environments.

Ideas for the Project

For this project, I will most likely help the community by restoring the wildlife in the area near Bart, inside Tule Ponds. It is barren and covered with scattered trash and it is detracting from the beauty of the Pond. I will start by researching and planting trees that will benefit the environment. My goal is to promote environment restoration and prevent littering in our community.  Although I am interested in this project, I am still considering other options as well.