[Roll Call] [00:00:05] ALL RIGHT. GOOD MORNING ONE AND ALL, THIS IS THE MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS NATURAL AND CULTURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE. WE'RE MEETING ON WEDNESDAY, JULY 31, STARTING AT 10:39. AND THE MEETING IS NOW OPEN. MADAM CLERK, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL OF THE COMMITTEE? THANK YOU. DIRECTOR MERCURIO. HERE. DIRECTOR WAESPI. HERE. CHAIR COFFEY. HERE. AND TODAY'S MEETING IS BEING HELD PURSUANT TO THE BROWN ACT. AND STAFF IS PROVIDING. I NEED TO, ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER KEN WYSOCKI. HERE. ASSISTANT GENERAL COUNSEL JASON ROSENBERG. HERE. YEAH. YOU SEE, I KNEW THEY WERE HERE, SO I JUST JUMPED RIGHT AHEAD. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YEAH. TODAY'S MEETING IS BEING HELD PURSUANT TO THE BROWN ACT. STAFF IS PROVIDING LIVE AUDIO AND VIDEO STREAMING. MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO MAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT MAY DO SO BY SUBMITTING AN EMAIL, LEAVING A VOICEMAIL, OR JOINING LIVE VIA ZOOM WITH THE LINK PROVIDED ON THE AGENDA LOCATED ON THE DISTRICT WEBSITE. IF THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS ABOUT THE MEETING PROCEDURES, WE WILL BEGIN. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. AND FIRST ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS TO A APPROVAL OF MINUTES. [Approval of Minutes] I BELIEVE DIRECTOR WAESPI HAD A CORRECTION. JUST A MINOR ONE. IT STATES IN THE MINUTES THAT I WOULD HOPE THAT WE COULD MAKE SWIMMING VIABLE AGAIN IN LAKE TEMESCAL AND JEWEL LAKE. I DON'T WANT, HAVE NO DESIRE TO SWIM IN JEWEL LAKE. SO IF WE COULD STRIKE JEWEL LAKE FROM THAT SENTENCE, I'D APPRECIATE IT. ANYWAY, HAVE YOU THOUGHT THIS THROUGH? I MEAN, IT'S POSSIBLE. [LAUGHTER] I THINK I HAVE SWAM IN JEWEL LAKE, BUT I WOULDN'T RECOMMEND ANYONE ELSE TO. YOU KNOW ANOTHER LAGOON. OH. OH, WELL, OKAY. WE DON'T WANT TO HEAR THAT STORY. [LAUGHTER] PUBLIC COMMENT. WE'LL MOVE TO PUBLIC. OH, NO, I DIDN'T TAKE A VOTE. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? SO MOVED. SECOND. PLEASE TAKE THE ROLL. OH, I'LL TAKE IT. OKAY. I HAVEN'T DONE THIS IN A WHILE. SORRY. ALL IN FAVOR, SAY AYE. AYE. ANY OPPOSED? UNANIMOUS. SO THAT MOVES US TO PUBLIC COMMENTS. DO WE HAVE ANY MEMBERS OF THE AUDIENCE WISHING TO SPEAK ON ITEMS NOT ON OUR AGENDA THIS MORNING? WE DO HAVE ONE PERSON IN THE ZOOM WEBINAR, AND I'M GOING TO LET HIM IN. OKAY. WILLIAM YAGGERY. I'VE PROMOTED YOU TO PANELIST, IF YOU DON'T MIND ACCEPTING. GOOD MORNING. WILLIAM. I APOLOGIZE. I'M ACTUALLY GOING TO SPEAK ON THE ISSUE OF GRAZING. OH, OKAY. WE'LL COME BACK TO YOU THEN. IT'S ON THE AGENDA. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. APPRECIATE IT. THANKS FOR BEING HERE. OF COURSE. ANY OTHER REQUESTS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT? NO, NOT AT THE MOMENT. OKAY. WILLIAM IS ON AN AGENDA ITEM, NO ONE IN THE AUDIENCE. SO WE WILL MOVE TO INFORMATIONAL ITEMS. [Informational Items] NUMBER FOUR ON OUR AGENDA. THE FIRST IS CONSERVATION GRAZING OVERVIEW AND ECOLOGICAL IMPORTANCE OF POND MANAGEMENT. WELCOME. GOOD MORNING MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. GOOD MORNING. GOOD MORNING. MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. AGMS ROSENBERG AND WYSOCKI. GOOD MORNING. WE ARE WORKING ON PULLING UP THIS POWERPOINT. [00:05:03] I'M JUST GOING TO HAND OUT STICKER IN OUR NEW THANK YOU BROCHURE THAT WE JUST PRINTED LAST MONTH. OH, I ALWAYS WANT MORE STICKERS. DO I JUST HAVE TO KEEP PUSHING IT? WELL THIS ONE'S COOL. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. MY NAME IS DINA ROBERTSON. I'M THE WILDLAND VEGETATION PROGRAM MANAGER FOR THE PARK DISTRICT. AND I'M JUST GOING TO TALK FOR A FEW MINUTES AND THEN TURN IT OVER TO ALLISON ROFE FOR RANGELAND SPECIALIST. I WANTED TO PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT OF CONTEXT FOR THE GRAZING PROGRAM. OKAY, SO I'VE HIGHLIGHTED IN YELLOW. SO THIS IS THE STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT. AND WITHIN THAT WE HAVE THE WILDLAND VEGETATION MANAGEMENT PROGRAM. AND THEN ALSO HIGHLIGHTED IN YELLOW ARE OUR GRAZING TEAM, THE RANGELAND TEAM, WHICH INCLUDES ALLISON AND PETER HOPKINSON AND ATALIE BROWN, AND ALLISON, IS GOING TO PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY ABOUT THE GRAZING PROGRAM. SO KEEP THIS IN MIND RELATIVE TO WHAT SHE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT, ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THIS PROGRAM. SO, THE GRAZING TEAM, AS I SAID. SO IT'S ALLISON, MYSELF ATALIE BROWN AND PETER HOPKINSON, AND WE ALSO HAVE SUPPORT FROM ALL OF STEWARDSHIP ACTUALLY TO SUPPORT THE MANAGEMENT OF VEGETATION IN THE PARKS. THE WORLD IS VERY COMPLEX RIGHT NOW. ANYTHING THAT YOU DEAL WITH IS HIGHLY COMPLEX. AND THE MANAGEMENT OF OUR VEGETATION IN THE PARK DISTRICT IS NO EXCEPTION TO THAT. IT SEEMS LIKE EVERY YEAR WE HAVE A NEW CHALLENGE TO RESPOND TO. AND THE LAND HAS GREATLY CHANGED, ESPECIALLY SINCE COLONIZATION WHERE WHAT YOU SEE ON THE LANDSCAPE NOW IS NOT WHAT WAS THERE BEFORE. AND AS YOU CAN IMAGINE THEN, TRYING TO MANAGE FOR A NEW SUITE OF SPECIES AND CLIMATE AND EVERYTHING THAT INFLUENCES VEGETATION IS VERY COMPLEX. SO I'M REALLY EXCITED TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY FOR ALLISON TO TALK ABOUT THE GRAZING PROGRAM. ALLISON IS AN EXTREMELY COMPETENT MANAGER OF THE GRAZING PROGRAM AND WORKING WITH OUR MANY TENANTS. SO I JUST WANTED TO SAY A LITTLE INTRODUCTION AND TURN IT OVER TO ALLISON. HI. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME. I LITERALLY NEED TO BE ON MY TIPPY TOES. OH. IS THERE. OH. THANK YOU. JUST FOR SHORT PEOPLE. PERFECT. SO THANK YOU, DINA, FOR THE INTRODUCTION. AND I WILL DO MY BEST TO KEEP THIS TO 30 MINUTES, BECAUSE I COULD REALLY RAMBLE ON. SO FIRST AND FOREMOST, LET'S DIVE INTO THE THE GRAZING HISTORY OF THE PARK DISTRICT. OUR FIRST PARK WITH GRAZING WAS IN 1962 WITH SUNOL. BY 1970 WE HAD FIVE PARKS WITH GRAZING, AND THE PRIMARY FOCUS WAS FIRE PREVENTION, AND THAT WAS UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF LANDS. IN THE 1970S IT WAS STILL UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF LANDS, BUT THE FOCUS JUST WASN'T ON FIRE PREVENTION. IT WAS ALSO ON GRASSLAND MANAGEMENT. AND THEN IN THE 1980S, THE STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT WAS CREATED, AND THAT WAS OUR FIRST DESIGNATED VEGETATION MANAGER, AND THE GRAZING WAS THEN OVERSEEN WITHIN STEWARDSHIP AND UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF THAT THE VEGETATION MANAGER. AND THEN IN 2006, WE ALREADY HAD OVER 60,000 GRAZING ACRES. AND IT WASN'T JUST THE VEGETATION MANAGER. WE HIRED ALSO A VEGETATION ECOLOGIST AT THE TIME. SO HE HAD TWO DEDICATED STAFF TO THE GRAZING PROGRAM. AND THEN IN 2019 WITH OVER 80,000 GRAZING ACRES, WE HAD A VEGETATION MANAGER AND THEN THE FIRST RANGELAND SPECIALIST WHO'S MYSELF, I MADE DISTRICT HISTORY AND CURRENTLY WE HAVE FOUR STAFF DEDICATED TO OVERSEEING THE GRAZING PROGRAM. THAT WOULD BE DINA, MYSELF AND TWO VEGETATION ECOLOGISTS, LIKE SHE MENTIONED, PETER HOPKINSON AND NATALIE BROWN. WE HAVE OVER 87,000 GRAZED ACRES THAT COVERS 35 PARKS, 48 GRAZING TENANTS AND 71 GRAZING LICENSES. AND AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THIS MAP, EVERYTHING IN ORANGE IS A GRAZING UNIT. AND AS YOU CAN SEE, SOME OF OUR PARKS THAT ARE MORE HISTORICAL DO NOT HAVE GRAZING OR SHORELINES. BUT MAJORITY OF THE REST OF THE TWO COUNTIES. AND HOW DO WE COMPARE TO OUR SISTER AGENCIES? WELL, WE DO HAVE THE MOST PUBLIC LANDS ACREAGE, BUT WE ALSO HAVE BY FAR THE LARGEST GRAZED ACREAGE. WE'RE BY FAR THE LARGEST. [00:10:03] WE HAVE THE LARGEST GRAZING PROGRAM IN THE BAY AREA COMPARED TO OUR SISTER AGENCIES. WE ALSO HAVE THE MOST AMOUNT OF GRAZING LICENSES. YOU KNOW, MOST OF THESE AGENCIES, THEY HAVE LESS ACREAGE, WHICH MEANS LESS TENANTS, WHICH MEANS LESS LICENSES. WHEREAS US, WE HAVE 71 SO FAR. AND THAT ALSO MAKES US A ROLE MODEL AND THE LEADING AGENCY YOU KNOW, SOME OF OUR SISTER AGENCIES COME TO US FOR ADVICE ON WHAT TO DO WITH THEIR PROGRAMS, AND WE'RE LUCKY BECAUSE WE HAVE SOME DEDICATED STAFF. AND, YOU KNOW, AS WE ACQUIRE MORE LANDS, WE ALSO ARE ACQUIRING MORE GRAZED ACREAGE. SO SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE SINCE 2019, WE'VE ACQUIRED OVER 4300 ACRES OF GRAZED PROPERTY. AND THAT CONTRIBUTED TO FIVE MORE GRAZING LICENSES, FIVE NEW TENANTS, FIVE NEW GRAZING LICENSES. AND THEN IN 2025 YOU KNOW, WE'RE PROJECTING THAT WE'LL PROBABLY GET ANOTHER 2500 ACRES. DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT THAT RESULTS IN TERMS OF NEW TENANTS. AND WHAT MAKES THIS A LITTLE UNUSUAL IS THAT WE DON'T ONLY GET THESE PROPERTIES, BUT THEY ALSO HAVE ASSOCIATED CONSERVATION EASEMENTS ON THEM, WHICH, YOU KNOW, JUST REQUIRES MORE COMPLEXITY TO OUR WORK. AND THIS IS JUST A PICTURE OF FINLEY ROAD. SO WHAT IS CONSERVATION GRAZING AND WHY IS THE PARK DISTRICT INTERESTED? WELL, YOU KNOW, TRADITIONALLY WHEN WE THINK OF RANGELAND MANAGEMENT OR GRASSLAND MANAGEMENT, WE THINK OF FORAGE PRODUCTION, RIGHT. HOW MUCH GRASS DO YOU HAVE ON THE GROUND AND HOW THAT IS TRANSITIONED INTO POUNDS PER ACRE OF YOUR COWS? WELL, FOR THE PARK DISTRICT, WE USE LIVESTOCK GRAZING TO PROMOTE BIODIVERSITY IN OUR CONSERVATION OUTCOMES. THAT MEANS WE LOOK AT THINGS WITH AN ECOSYSTEM MANAGEMENT APPROACH. WE'RE LOOKING AT THE LANDSCAPE, NOT JUST FATTEN UP THE COWS. WE'RE LOOKING AT THE LANDSCAPE LIKE, HOW ARE WE USING THE COWS OR THE SHEEP AS A TOOL FOR LIKE WILDLIFE HABITAT MANAGEMENT? WHAT MAKES US UNUSUAL IS THAT WE ALSO HAVE TO LOOK AT THINGS UNDER WITH A RECREATIONAL LENS AND RECREATIONAL SENSITIVITY. WE HAVE TO SAY, WELL, WE NEED LIVESTOCK INFRASTRUCTURE, BUT WE CAN'T JUST PUT IT ANYWHERE. WE HAVE TO THINK ABOUT HOW IT AFFECTS OUR TRAILS OR MINIMIZE TRAIL DAMAGE, OR JUST MINIMIZE PUBLIC SAFETY, YOU KNOW, CONFLICTS. AND HERE ARE SOME OF OUR MANAGEMENT GOALS OR OBJECTIVES THAT ARE STATED IN OUR GRAZING LICENSE. FIRST AND FOREMOST, IT'S REDUCING FINE FUEL LOADS TO MINIMIZE WILDFIRE POTENTIAL AND SHRUB ENCROACHMENT. THAT REALLY PLAYS INTO HOW WE MAINTAIN OUR GRASSLAND COMMUNITIES. WE USE GRAZING TO CONTROL AND MANAGE INVASIVE, WEEDY VEGETATION, WHICH IT WORKS, HELPS, YOU KNOW. OTHERWISE WE MIGHT HAVE FIELDS AND FIELDS OF MUSTARD AND THISTLES AND LESS BIODIVERSITY. AND IT ENHANCES AND SUPPORTS OUR WILDLIFE HABITAT, WHICH I WILL TALK MORE EXTENSIVELY ABOUT WHEN WE GET INTO THE PONDS. AND WE ALSO CONTROL AND MINIMIZE EROSION. AND HERE'S A PHOTO OF WHAT I WOULD CONSIDER A HEALTHY GRASSLAND. THIS IS A PICTURE ON THE BACKSIDE OF MISSION PEAK. WE'RE LOOKING FROM THE MILL CREEK SIDE AND YOU SEE SOME SHRUBS IN THE FOREGROUND. YOU SEE SOME LUPINES, YOU SEE GREEN HILLS. THIS IS HEALTHY. IT'S FUNCTIONING. IT'S SUPPORTING THE, YOU KNOW, THE WATERSHED. AND THERE'S, YOU KNOW, PLENTY OF GRASS AND IT'S OPEN, CONTIGUOUS LANDSCAPE. THIS IS THIS IS HEALTHY. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE FIND LOTS AND LOTS OF FLORA. RIGHT. AND HERE'S JUST AN EXAMPLE OF SOME OF THE POLLEN POLLINATOR SUPPORTING PLANTS THAT WE FIND WITHIN OUR GRAZED LANDSCAPES. AND I THINK REALLY MOST IMPORTANTLY IS REDUCING THESE FINE FUEL LOADS ALONG THESE URBAN EDGES. YOU KNOW, A LOT OF OUR PARKS ARE NESTED IN AND AROUND HIGHLY DENSELY POPULATED AREAS. AND, YOU KNOW, GRAZING IS REALLY OUR NUMBER ONE TOOL FOR REDUCING GRASS, GRASS FUEL LOADS. AND OUR NEIGHBORS ARE REALLY THANKFUL FOR THIS TOO. AND IT'S ALSO BEEN RECOGNIZED, YOU KNOW, THROUGHOUT HISTORY THAT, YOU KNOW, CATTLE PLAY AN ESSENTIAL ROLE IN REDUCING THESE FUEL LOADS. THIS IS A POSTER FROM CAL FIRE THAT SAYS THIS FAMILY COULD SAVE YOUR FAMILY FROM THE 90S. WE HAD OUR PUP PRO CAMPAIGN THAT, YOU KNOW, SUPPORT YOUR HOOFED FIREFIGHTERS. SO THERE'S RECOGNITION THAT LIVESTOCK ARE PLAY A MAJOR ROLE IN REDUCING FUELS AND FIRE RISK. WE ALSO CAN'T BE A MESS THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE LANDSCAPES ARE ALSO SUPPORTING AGRICULTURE. [00:15:01] YOU KNOW, OUR GRAZING TENANTS, THEY'RE IN THE MEAT PRODUCTION BUSINESS AND OUR LANDSCAPES SUPPORT THAT BUSINESS. BUT WITH THIS WHOLE CONSERVATION LENS, WHICH MAKES IT VERY UNIQUE. AND ON TOP OF THAT, RECREATION. JUST TO TALK ABOUT OUR RANCHERS A LITTLE BIT, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE REALLY IMPORTANT. THEY'RE REALLY IMPORTANT PEOPLE. THEY'RE MEMBERS OF OUR LOCAL COMMUNITY. MOST OF OUR RANCHERS ARE FROM CONTRA COSTA AND ALAMEDA COUNTY. I THINK OUR FURTHEST ONE LIVES IN MODESTO. THEY KNOW THESE LANDS INTIMATELY. THEY KNOW THE ROADS. THEY KNOW THE WILDLIFE. THEY PICK UP ON SUBTLE CHANGES AND THEY HAVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR PARK USERS. YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE SOME PARK USERS, PHONE NUMBERS. YOU KNOW, THEY COMMUNICATE WITH THEM LIKE, HEY, WHAT DID YOU SEE TODAY? YOU KNOW, THEY KNOW THEM BY NAME. AND THIS IS JUST AN INTERESTING YOU KNOW, I GET LOTS OF FUNNY TEXTS, ACTUALLY, AND PICTURES FROM TENANTS. AND THIS IS JUST ONE FROM RONNIE SEAVER WHERE HE'S LIKE, HEY, SOMEBODY TIED OPEN THE GATE WITH THE POOP BAGS, YOU KNOW? SO IT'S JUST A FUNNY INFORMATION THAT THAT WE GET FROM THEM. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, OUR RANCHERS ARE ALSO FIRST RESPONDERS. I'M ACTUALLY GOING TO PLAY A VIDEO FOR YOU. HERE WE ARE. THIS IS THIS IS A VIDEO OF THE CREEK FIRE. THIS JUST HAPPENED IN SUNOL PARK. ONE OF OUR RANCHERS WAS A VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER AND WAS THERE ON THE GROUND AND, YOU KNOW, SHOWED ME THIS, SHOWED ME, SHARED THIS VIDEO WITH ME. AND AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S BURNING IN THE THE GRASSLANDS. THERE'S A MAJORITY OF THE GRASSLAND FIRE. SO, YOU KNOW, THEY HELP WITH ACCESS. THEY HELP THE FIREFIGHTERS FIND WHERE THE ROADS ARE BECAUSE THEY KNOW THE LAND, THEY KNOW THE ROADS, THEY KNOW HOW TO NETWORK. THEY KNOW HOW THE NETWORKS WORK. AND, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES, LIKE I SAID, THEY'RE VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS. AND THE REASON THAT THEY MAY BE ON THE GROUND IS BECAUSE THEIR ANIMALS ARE THERE. LIKE THIS PICTURE OF RON [INAUDIBLE], THIS WAS IN MORGAN TERRITORY IN 2020. YOU KNOW, HE WAS THERE BECAUSE HE HAD TO GET HIS ANIMALS TO SAFETY. WHAT DID I DO? THANK YOU. AND JUST TRANSITIONING TO WHAT WE DO, THE BULK OF OUR WORK. WE DO A LOT OF DIFFERENT WORK. IT'S VERY VERSATILE. BUT I'M GOING TO FOCUS NOW ON JUST OUR LIVESTOCK INFRASTRUCTURE. PROJECT PLANNING IS WHAT WE DO. WE DO A NUMBER OF PROJECTS THAT WOULD INCLUDE AND I WILL GIVE SOME EXAMPLES OF LIVESTOCK, WATER INFRASTRUCTURE. WHAT I MEAN BY THAT IS TANKS AND TROUGHS AND PIPELINE SYSTEMS TO SUPPORT ADEQUATE LIVESTOCK, WATER ON THE LANDSCAPES CORRALS. THERE'S ALWAYS FENCING AND SOME POND RESTORATION. AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE VERY METHODICAL ABOUT THE WORK THAT WE DO. WE TAKE IT VERY SERIOUSLY BECAUSE THESE FEATURES, THEY LAST BEYOND MY LIFETIME. RIGHT. WE'RE TALKING 20, 40, 50, SOMETIMES 60 YEARS. I MEAN, WE THERE'S LIVESTOCK INFRASTRUCTURE THERE NOW THAT'S 80 YEARS OLD, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'VE JUST ACQUIRED ON OUR LAND. SO WE'RE VERY METHODICAL AND IT'S A TEAM. IT'S TEAM EXERCISING. WE WORK WITH THE PARK OPERATIONS VERY CLOSELY ON ALL THE WORK THAT WE DO. WE MAYBE WORK WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS LIKE PLANNING GIS, WE WORK WITH OUR GRAZING TENANTS, WE WORK AS STEWARDSHIP. AND ALSO WE HAVE MULTIPLE PARTNERS THAT OUTSIDE PARTNERS THAT WE WORK WITH ON THESE PROJECTS AS WELL. SO HERE'S JUST AN EXAMPLE OF INFRASTRUCTURE THAT HASN'T BEEN UPDATED BECAUSE IT DOES EXIST. AND YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TROUGHS IN THE MIDDLE OF TRAILS LIKE YOU SEE ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE OF MISSION PEAK. WE HAVE TROUGHS NEXT TO RIPARIAN AREAS LIKE WE DO HERE IN AND BRUSHY. SORRY. MISSION PEAK ON THE RIGHT. BRUSHY PEAK ON THE LEFT. DON'T WORRY. THESE ARE BEING PLANNED AND WE'RE GOING TO UPDATE THEM NEXT YEAR. AND HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF SOME PROJECTS THAT WE JUST COMPLETED LAST YEAR IN 2023. AND THIS WAS A NEW TROUGH AND TANK SYSTEM AT BRIONES REGIONAL PARK, WHICH I REFERRED TO AS THE DEER CREEK PASTURE OR THE DEER CREEK SIDE. THAT WOULD BE THE WESTERN SIDE OF BRIONES. THAT'S CLOSER TO THE BEAR CREEK ROAD. AND WE INSTALLED EIGHT DIFFERENT TROUGHS AND WITH STORAGE. AND AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THIS PICTURE, ALL THE RED LINES SYMBOLIZE THE PIPELINE. IT'S A PRETTY EXTENSIVE PROJECT. THIS IS PART OF OUR CONSERVATION GRAZING APPROACH. THERE WAS NO WATER IN THIS PASTURE. THERE WAS ONLY STOCK PONDS THAT WERE SEASONAL. AND AS YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, BRIONES IS ONE OF OUR MOST POPULATED PARKS. [00:20:03] AND EVERY YEAR WE HAVE ISSUES WITH THE CALVING SEASON. YOU KNOW, SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE SINCE 2019, I THINK THERE'S PROBABLY 4 OR 5 INSTANCES WHERE THERE'S A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC HAS TAKEN A COW OR A CALF HOME WITH THEM. SO WHAT WE'RE DOING IS WE INSTALLED THIS WATER TO HAVE THE CALVING SEASON TAKE PLACE ON THIS LESS POPULATED PART OF THE PARK, WHICH IS HAPPENING NOW. CALVING SEASON IS NOW UNTIL OCTOBER, SO WE'LL SEE HOW WELL THIS REALLY WORKS, BECAUSE ORIGINALLY, YOU KNOW, THEY'D BE CALVING IN THE ALHAMBRA VALLEY AREA OR THE BEAR CREEK AREA, AND IT'S VERY POPULATED. SO THIS IS A WAY FOR US TO INSTALL WATER, BE ABLE TO MOVE THE CATTLE, LOCK THEM IN THEIR LESS POPULATED. THAT MEANS LESS STRESS FOR THE ANIMALS. AND BUT IT ALSO HELPS WITH THEIR GRAZING DISTRIBUTION BECAUSE THIS PASTURE HAD LESS ANIMAL IMPACT, BECAUSE THERE WASN'T EVER ADEQUATE WATER. SO NOW WE CAN ADDRESS THE STAR THISTLE ISSUES THAT ARE THERE AND ALSO ADDRESS THE FINE FUEL LOADS THAT HAVE ACCUMULATED OVER TIME. WE ALSO HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFUL IN ACQUIRING A COUPLE OF WATER METERS, AND WE'RE CONTINUING TO DO SO THAT ARE DEDICATED FOR LIVESTOCK WATER. THIS WAS A PROJECT THAT WE DID AT CARQUINEZ REGIONAL SHORELINE, WHERE WE WORKED WITH THE CITY OF MARTINEZ, DID TAKE FIVE YEARS, BUT WE DID GET WATER AND WE WERE ABLE TO INSTALL TROUGHS WITHIN THAT GRAZING UNIT. THAT HAS BEEN A DESIGNATED HIGH RISK FIRE SEVERITY AREA BY CAL FIRE. SO NOW WE HAVE DEDICATED WATER TO REDUCE THOSE FUEL LOADS THAT ARE BEHIND THE CITY OF MARTINEZ. WE ALSO JUST GOT A WATER METER, BRUSHY PEAK, AND WE PLAN ON DOING A WATER PROJECT THERE THIS YEAR. THERE IS AN ERROR THAT'S TOO BAD. UNFORTUNATELY, YOU CAN'T SEE AND I WONDER WHAT THE REST OF MY SLIDES LOOK LIKE. BUT THERE'S AN OLD CORRAL. SO WE'VE DONE SOME CORRAL WORK WHERE WE HAD AN OLD WOODEN CORRAL, AND IT WAS VERY DETERIORATED AND DYSFUNCTIONAL AND NOT SAFE. AND THEN THIS IS A PICTURE HERE ON THE RIGHT THAT SHOWS THE NEW CORRAL. AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S WELDED PANELS. IT'S A VERY SAFE FOR ANIMAL HANDLING. AND I JUST WANT TO MAKE THE POINT THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE CORRALS ARE ESSENTIAL TO ANIMAL. HAVING ANIMAL FACILITIES IN OUR PARKS ARE ESSENTIAL FOR PROCESSING AND SHIPPING AND DOCTORING LIVESTOCK. AND, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T ACTUALLY OWN THE MAJORITY OF IN OUR PARK. SO WHEN WE DO PROJECTS LIKE THIS, WE'RE ENSURING THAT WE HAVE THESE FACILITIES ON HAND. BUT WE DO NOT OWN MOST OF THESE. THEY'RE OWNED BY THE GRAZING TENANTS. AND THIS IS JUST A REALLY BUSY SLIDE WITH THE BUDGET. AND I JUST WANT TO KIND OF TOUCH ON THE FUNDING SOURCES THAT WE'VE USED OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS AND WHAT WE PROJECT TO DO. SO IN 2019, WHEN I AGAIN, WHEN DINA AND I FIRST WERE WITH THE PARK DISTRICT, YOU KNOW, WE JUST REALLY RELIED ON THE GENERAL FUNDS. THAT'S OUR 101 FUNDS. AND GOT, YOU KNOW, MAYBE 20 PROJECTS DONE. AND THE MAJORITY OF THOSE WERE FENCING. IN 2021, WE STARTED TO ACQUIRE THESE ONE TIME FUNDS. THAT WOULD BE SOME THAT WERE RELATED DIRECTLY TO FIRE DAMAGE. THAT WAS THE CSU COMPLEX FIRE, WHERE WE HAD MILES OF FENCE THAT WAS DESTROYED, AND THEN DROUGHT RECOVERY FUNDING THAT WE PROCURED FROM ANA ALVAREZ. THAT WAS USED FOR DEDICATED FOR LIVESTOCK, WATER AND POND RESTORATION. AND THIS IS THE SAME WITH THIS GRAZING INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT. AGAIN, THESE WERE ONE TIME FUNDS. WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO USE THOSE SINCE 2021 TILL CURRENTLY. AND THEN WE WILL EXHAUST THOSE FUNDS THIS YEAR. SO THIS YEAR WE WILL EXHAUST THE DROUGHT RECOVERY AND THE GRAZING INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT. AND AS YOU CAN SEE, WE ALSO HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFUL IN ACQUIRING A BASE INCREASE WITH OUR DEPARTMENT FUNDS, WHICH HAS BEEN WONDERFUL BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO ADDRESS A LOT OF DEFERRED MAINTENANCE IN THE PARK BY UPDATING OUR INFRASTRUCTURE AND MAKING IT SAFER AND BEING, AGAIN, MORE METHODICAL AND, BEING ABLE TO REALLY ADDRESS PROPER GRAZING MANAGEMENT AND BETTER GRAZING MANAGEMENT. OH, I'M SO BUMMED OUT. ANYWAY SO THIS IS THE COST SHARE TOTALS. COST SHARE IS WITH OUR PARTNERS. SO WE GET THIS WORK DONE WITH AGENCIES THAT'S FEDERAL AGENCIES. THAT'S THROUGH OUR GRAZING TENANTS. THEY APPLY FOR CONSERVATION FUNDING THROUGH FEDERAL AGENCIES. SO THAT WOULD BE THE NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE, OR IT COULD BE THE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT, WHICH IS LOCAL. [00:25:03] AND WE WORK WITH OUR TENANTS AND OUR TENANTS GET THIS COST SHARE FUNDING. AND WE USE THIS COST SHARE FUNDING INTO THESE WATER PROJECTS THAT WE DO. AND IT'S UPON RESTORATION OR SOMETIMES WITH CROSS FENCING. SO YOU CAN SEE WE, YOU KNOW, WE GET PRETTY GOOD MATCHING FUNDS FOR THIS WORK THAT WE ALSO DO. AND, YOU KNOW, WE ALSO CHARGE OUR TENANTS GRAZING RENT. AND THIS IS JUST THE GRAZING RENT SINCE 2019. THIS IS IT. IT FLUCTUATES YEAR TO YEAR. IT'S REALLY DEPENDENT ON, LIKE, CATTLE SALES, THE JUNE CATTLE MARKET. THAT'S HOW WE BASE OUR ANNUAL RENT. AND YOU CAN SEE IN TIMES OF DROUGHT WE JUST HAVE LESS REVENUE. RIGHT. AND THEN IN TIMES OF WHEN THERE'S A GOOD CATTLE MARKET LIKE THERE IS RIGHT NOW WE ACQUIRE MORE RENT. AND THIS YEAR IT'S ESTIMATED THAT WE'LL MAKE $1.1 MILLION FROM OUR GRAZING PROGRAM. AND THAT MONEY ALL GOES INTO THE GENERAL FUND WHERE IT SAYS PROPERTY USAGE. THAT'S WHERE THAT REVENUE IS, IS IT GOES TO. BUT THIS IS AN AI, AN AI GENERATED PICTURE HERE. BUT, YOU KNOW, THIS IS THERE'S GOING TO BE A TIPPING POINT WITH THIS CURRENT MODEL BECAUSE GRAZING REVENUE FOR OUR PRODUCERS IS PRETTY SLIM. THEY'RE NOT IN IT FOR THE MONEY, THEY'RE IN IT FOR THE CULTURE AND THE COMMUNITY AND LIFESTYLE. AND, YOU KNOW, AS WE CONTINUE TO FACE CLIMATE CHANGE AND WE WANT MORE OF A GRAZING, A CONSERVATION GRAZING APPROACH TO THINGS, THAT MEANS WE HAVE TO ASK OUR TENANTS FOR MORE TIME, MORE OF THEIR TIME AND MORE OF OUR STAFF TIME TO MEET OUR OBJECTIVES. AND I THINK AT SOME POINT THERE'LL BE A TRANSITION WHERE WE'LL HAVE TO GIVE SOME SORT OF REDUCTION TO RENT IN EXCHANGE FOR THESE SERVICES, YOU KNOW IT'S ALSO GOING TO BECOME MORE AND MORE DIFFICULT TO RETAIN AND KEEP LIVESTOCK OPERATION IN THE BAY AREA JUST FROM THE COST OF LIVING AND ALSO AS A VOLATILE MARKET BECAUSE THEY'RE DEPENDING ON NATURE. AND AS YOU KNOW, NATURE DOESN'T COOPERATE. AND WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO I'M GOING TO SWITCH OVER TO POND CREATION. SO PONDS IS WHAT THEY WERE REFERRING TO AS WATER HOLES BACK IN THE 1940S, WERE THEY WERE CREATED IN BOTH COUNTIES AND THEY WERE REFERRED TO AS STOCK PONDS BECAUSE THEY WERE PROVIDING WATER IN THESE UPLANDS, LIKE, AS YOU CAN SEE IN THE PICTURE ON THE RIGHT. YOU KNOW, THESE ARE THERE'S SOME SPRINGS AND STUFF, BUT THEY REALLY MADE THESE PONDS TO GET THEIR COWS TO GRAZE IN THESE UPLANDS AND MAKE USE OF THE GRASS UP THERE, AS OPPOSED TO STAYING IN THE LOWLANDS BY THE CREEKS AND WHATNOT. AND, YOU KNOW, WITH URBAN ENCROACHMENT, WITH POPULATIONS AND, YOU KNOW, WALNUT CREEK, LIVERMORE VALLEY AND THINGS LIKE THAT. WE'VE THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF WETLAND, A LOT OF LOSS OF WETLAND HABITAT OVER TIME. AND WITH THAT THESE PONDS HAVE REALLY BECOME THIS ESSENTIAL BREEDING HABITAT FOR AMPHIBIANS, FOR NATIVE AMPHIBIANS AND CATTLE ACTUALLY PLAY AN ESSENTIAL ROLE WITH THESE PONDS AND WITH THE PREFERRED, HABITAT THAT THESE SPECIES LIKE, THEY LIKE TURBIDITY, LIKE THAT MUDDY WATER THAT YOU SEE THAT HELPS THEM AVERT PREY. OUR AMPHIBIANS, AND THEY LIKE OPEN WATER. THEY DON'T LIKE A LOT OF AQUATIC VEGETATION. THE CATTLE REALLY HELP WITH THAT. THERE'S LOTS OF FOOD. THERE'S LOTS OF DAMSELFLY AND DRAGONFLY LARVAE AND BEETLES THAT, YOU KNOW, AMPHIBIANS FEED ON THE SEASONALITY. YOU KNOW, THESE PONDS MOSTLY GO DRY. THERE'S ONLY 10% OF OUR PONDS THAT ARE ACTUALLY PERENNIAL. WE WANT THEM TO GO DRY BECAUSE WHAT WE WANT IS FOR THEM TO GO INTO THE UPLAND HABITAT, WHICH IS REALLY THE PRIME HABITAT FOR OUR AMPHIBIANS TO GO TO GO SEEK SHELTER AND BURROWS OR IN, YOU KNOW, CRACK SOIL CRACKS OR WHATNOT. THIS TIME OF YEAR, THEY REALLY SPEND A LIMITED TIME IN THE PONDS. THE ADULTS DO. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THEIR LARVAE CONTINUE TO THRIVE. AND, YOU KNOW, SO THESE ARTIFICIAL PONDS HAVE BECOME THESE ESSENTIAL BREEDING HABITATS. AND NOBODY WOULD HAVE THOUGHT THAT EVEN IN THE 1980S. RIGHT. BUT IT'S BECOMING MORE AND MORE IMPORTANT. WE, THE PARK DISTRICT, WE HAVE OVER 600 PONDS WE'RE THE KEEPERS OF THIS HABITAT. AND HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF CALIFORNIA TIGER [INAUDIBLE] CALIFORNIA TIGER SALAMANDER POND. [00:30:07] THIS AMPHIBIAN WAS, YOU KNOW, SURVEYED IN THIS POND, WHICH IS REALLY MUDDY. AND LIKE I SAID, IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE IT SUPPORTS MUCH LIFE. BUT THESE CRITTERS LOVE IT. AND THAT'S THE UPLAND WE'RE REFERRING TO. HERE'S ANOTHER POND THAT IS JUST WAS FULL OF WESTERN TOADS. THEY WERE JUST ALL AROUND THIS POND EDGE. IT WAS JUST LOVELY. AND HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF A CALIFORNIA RED LEGGED FROG PONDS. THIS ONE HAS A LITTLE BIT MORE VEGETATION. THIS IS IN MORGAN TERRITORY. THERE WAS PROBABLY 60 ADULTS IN THIS POND. SO AGAIN. AND THEY'RE ALL OPEN TO LIVESTOCK GRAZING AND LIVESTOCK WATER. RIGHT. THESE PONDS ARE ALSO ESSENTIAL FOR LIVESTOCK WATER. WE CAN'T ALWAYS RELY ON TROUGHS. WE NEED MORE WATER TO DISPERSE THE COWS TO GO, YOU KNOW, FURTHER ALONG THE LANDSCAPE. BUT THESE PONDS HAVE LIFESPANS AND THEY'RE REALLY HAVE BEEN TESTED MORE RECENTLY WITH OUR EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS LIKE WE HAD IN 2023. THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF A BERM FAILURE OVER ON THE LEFT FROM CONTRA LOMA. AND THERE'S BEEN MULTIPLE EXAMPLES OF OUR PONDS FILLING UP WITH SEDIMENT FROM UPSTREAM, MAYBE A ROAD OR A CULVERT COLLAPSE OR A LANDSLIDE. THEY'VE JUST FILLED IN WITH SEDIMENT AND WE'RE LOSING THIS HABITAT. SO THESE PONDS DO NEED MAINTENANCE. THEY'VE NEVER BEEN ENGINEERED. I SHOULDN'T SAY THAT. WE'VE HAD PONDS THAT HAVE BEEN ENGINEERED. WE'VE RESTORED 25 PONDS SINCE 2015. BUT, YOU KNOW, WHEN THESE RANCHERS CREATED THESE PONDS, THEY WEREN'T DESIGNED IN A WAY TO, YOU KNOW SUPPORT A 100 YEAR FLOOD EVENT, YOU KNOW, SO, THEY REQUIRE MAINTENANCE, THEY REQUIRE TO BE CLEAN, THEY REQUIRED NEW STRUCTURAL WORK. AND HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF A POND RESTORATION WE DID LAST YEAR. THIS IS A PLEASANTON RIDGE. ACTUALLY IT'S IN THE TYLER AREA. SO THE NEW PART OF THE PARK THAT JUST OPENED. THIS IS AS YOU CAN SEE ON THE RIGHT, IT'S FULL OF CATTAILS. THERE'S HARDLY ANY BERM. IT'S A, YOU KNOW, A SPILLWAYS RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE. AND THEN ON THE RIGHT YOU CAN SEE THE POND. PROBABLY SIX MONTHS AFTER RESTORATION. IT'S LIKE A LITTLE BLUE LAGOON. THERE'S A REALLY NICE BERM. THERE'S A SPILLWAY, AND THE COWS ARE REALLY HAPPY. AND IT'S ALSO FULL OF RED LEGGED FROGS. BUT YOU KNOW, THIS WORK. THIS IS NOT SIMPLE WORK. YOU NEED LARGE EQUIPMENT. YOU NEED TO HAVE SEASONED CONTRACTORS THAT KNOW WHAT THEY'RE DOING. WE NEED PERMITTING. WE HAVE A VERY LIMITED TIME WINDOW. IT TAKES PROBABLY A YEAR TO THREE YEARS OF PLANNING FOR THESE PONDS. SO, YOU KNOW, WE WE DO WHAT WE CAN, BUT THIS IS JUST AN EXAMPLE THAT THERE'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S THERE'S WORK INVOLVED AND IT DOES FLUCTUATE. YOU MAY JUST HAVE A POND THAT NEEDS SEDIMENT TAKEN OUT. THAT'S MUCH EASIER THAN A POND LIKE THIS. THAT NEEDS STRUCTURAL WORK, LIKE A NEW BERM AND A NEW SPILLWAY. HERE'S JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE. THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE PONDS. ON THE TOP LEFT YOU CAN SEE IT'S JUST FULL OF SEDIMENT AGAIN, A BREACHED EMBANKMENT. THIS IS THE PICTURE FROM LAST YEAR OF IT, YOU KNOW, LOOKING GOOD HOLDING WATER. AND THEN HERE'S JUST AN AERIAL OF THAT POND. AND THIS IS ALSO IN PLEASANTON RIDGE. AND HERE'S OUR THREE YEAR AVERAGE OF POND RESTORATION COSTS. SO IN 2021 WE DID THREE PONDS. WE DID FIVE PONDS IN 2022 2023 WE DID ANOTHER THREE PONDS. THIS YEAR WE'RE DOING FIVE. NEXT YEAR WE HAVE SIX. AS YOU CAN SEE THESE PONDS ARE DONE IN AGAIN, PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR GRAZING TENANTS AND ARE ELIGIBLE UNDER THIS. IT'S CALLED THE LIVESTOCK FRIENDLY POND RESTORATION PROGRAM. AND THAT'S WHERE WE GET THESE MATCHING FUNDS FROM THE NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE AND THEN ALSO THE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICTS. THEY RECEIVE GRANTS, BUT THEY HAVE TO APPLY FOR GRANTS. SO THIS IS NOT GUARANTEED FUNDING THAT THEY CAN USE AS MATCHING FUNDS TOWARDS THEIR POND PROJECTS. AND THEN YOU CAN SEE OUR CONTRIBUTION. AND I REALLY JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT HERE THAT YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO PAY FOR THIS POND WORK WITH THOSE ONE TIME FUNDS THAT I TALKED TO YOU ABOUT EARLIER, THE DROUGHT RECOVERY AND ALSO THAT THE GRAZING INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT. WE HAVE NOT BEEN TAPPING INTO OUR GRAZING PROGRAM FUND BUDGET FOR THIS WORK, THAT THAT MONEY'S ALREADY BEEN DEDICATED TO THE [00:35:05] CORRALS AND THE FENCING AND THE LIVESTOCK WATER PROJECTS. AND FOR NEXT YEAR, WE DON'T REALLY HAVE A SECURE FUNDING. SO THIS IS JUST SOMETHING I WANT TO BRING UP AND THEN ALSO THIS, YOU KNOW, THESE COSTS, THESE TOTAL COSTS, THEY DON'T REFLECT THE PERMITTING AND THE AGENCY HOURS THAT WE PUT IN FOR COORDINATING CONSTRUCTION OR RANCHER TIME. RIGHT. BECAUSE OUR RANCHERS ARE OUT THERE WITH US AS WELL WHEN WE YOU KNOW, ARE THEY'RE PART OF THE PROCESS, THEY'RE PART OF THE PLANNING PROCESS. AND SO WITH THAT YOU KNOW, I THINK WE'RE ASKING JUST FOR SOME SORT OF DEDICATED FUNDING TO, FOR OUR POND RESTORATION PROGRAM. AGAIN, WE ARE THE KEEPERS OF THIS ESSENTIAL HABITAT. AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S REALLY OUR DUTY AS LAND STEWARDS, TO HELP WITH THE SUCCESS OF THESE THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES. AND NOT JUST THREATENED AND ENDANGERED I MEAN, WE REALLY CELEBRATE THE TIGER SALAMANDER AND THE RED LEGGED FROG, BUT IT'S REALLY ABOUT THE NEWTS AND IT'S REALLY ABOUT THE BIRDS AND IT'S REALLY ABOUT EVERYTHING. SO THAT'S REALLY OUR I FIND IT TO BE SOME OF THE MOST REWARDING WORK IN THE PARK DISTRICT BECAUSE IT'S TANGIBLE. WE FIX IT, WE SEE IT, WE SEE THE RESULTS. THEY'RE SURVEYED EVERY YEAR. WE'RE GETTING RESULTS. AND, YOU KNOW, IT FEELS REALLY GOOD TO KNOW THAT WE'RE DOING POND WORK AND THAT WE'RE BEING DROUGHT RESILIENT. RIGHT? IT'S MORE RESILIENT TO FLOODING. IT'S MORE RESILIENT TO CLIMATE CHANGE. SO WITH THAT, I JUST WANTED TO, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT ALL OF US HERE IN STEWARDSHIP ARE REALLY PASSIONATE ABOUT THIS. AND TO JUST HAVE SOME SORT OF DEDICATED FUNDS TO RECOGNIZE THE WORK AND, YOU KNOW, AND IT REALLY FEEDS INTO THE DISTRICT GOALS FOR THE SECOND CENTURY PLAN, YOU KNOW. SO WITH THAT, I HOPE I LEFT YOU SOME TIME FOR QUESTIONS. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. VERY INTERESTING BACKGROUND. I HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS, BUT I'LL GO TO THE COMMITTEE FIRST. DIRECTOR MERCURIO. YEAH. YOU KNOW, I'M GOING TO GIVE A LOT MORE ATTENTION TO THESE THINGS WHEN I WALK BY THEM NOW IN THE PARKS, YOU KNOW, I YOU KNOW, UNFORTUNATELY, WHAT WE NOTICED IS THE DAMAGE, YOU KNOW, I KNOW I'VE SEEN THOSE BLOWOUTS THAT YOU'VE SEEN THERE WHERE, YOU KNOW, DURING THE ATMOSPHERIC RIVERS, I GUESS MAYBE SOME OF THOSE, SOME OF THOSE THE DAM OR BERM, I GUESS YOU CALL IT WAS OVERTOPPED AND IT'S JUST ALL MESSED UP. SO I SEE THE NEED THERE. AND I ALSO SEE SOMETIMES WHEN THEY ARE SILTED UP, YOU KNOW, AND THERE'S NOT THAT MUCH CAPACITY LEFT. SO I WAS JUST KIND OF THINKING ABOUT. SO WHEN YOU GO IN THERE AND YOU CLEAN THOSE OUT, I MEAN, DO YOU, DO YOU BASICALLY REDEPOSIT THE MATERIAL YOU TAKE OUT ON SITE SOMEWHERE AROUND THERE? YOU DON'T GO HAULING IT OFF ANYWHERE. WE DO. YEAH. WE REFER TO THOSE AS SPOIL PILES AND WE TYPICALLY KEEP THEM ON SITE, BUT IN AN AREA WHERE IT DOESN'T SLUFF BACK INTO THE POND OR A LOCAL WATERSHED. OKAY. AND SO THE RESULT OF DOING THAT WORK ON A POND MEANS THAT THERE'S MORE WATER IN THE POND, RIGHT? I MEAN, YOU CAN STORE MORE WATER. DOES THAT AFFECT THE NUMBER OF ANIMALS THAT ARE ABLE TO BE SUPPORTED ON ON THAT PARCEL THAT'S DEPENDING ON THAT POND, OR IS IT JUST EXTRA WATER FOR SECURITY REASONS? YEAH, THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. SO IT DOES WHAT WE REFER TO AS INCREASE THE HYDRO PERIOD BY BECAUSE IT WILL HOLD MORE WATER. THAT DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN OR TRANSLATE THAT WE CAN HAVE MORE ANIMALS ON THE LANDSCAPE. THAT'S REALLY BASED ON HOW MUCH VEGETATION THERE IS. AND THAT'S A DECISION THAT'S MADE EVERY YEAR. WHAT IT DOES MEAN, THOUGH, IS IT EXTENDS THE BREEDING SEASON FOR OUR AMPHIBIANS. SO IT'S ACTUALLY IMPORTANT FOR THEM BECAUSE IF THE PONDS DRY OUT IN MAY THEN THEY WON'T HAVE A SUCCESSFUL BREEDING VERSUS IF WE CLEAN THEM AND WE DO JUST CLEAN THEM TO THEIR ORIGINAL EXTENT. WE DON'T MAKE THESE PONDS DEEPER THAN THEY WERE. AND, YOU KNOW, ORIGINALLY CREATED THAT MEANS THAT THEY WILL HAVE WATER UNTIL LIKE MAYBE JULY OR AUGUST OR SEPTEMBER, WHICH IS MEANS THAT THEY'LL HAVE A SUCCESSFUL TRANSITION FROM LARVAE TO BEING AN ADULT. I WILL SAY, THOUGH, IT DOES HELP IN TIMES OF DROUGHT TO HAVE THESE PONDS HOLD WATER. AND I WILL ALSO MENTION THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY ALSO HAVE BEEN USED AS FIRE PREVENTION FIRE. YOU KNOW, THEY WERE USING PONDS IN SUNOL JUST LAST WEEK TO HELP WITH FIRE ABATEMENT. YEAH. AND THEN SO YOU MENTIONED THAT I PICKED UP ON THE CORRALS BEING [00:40:07] BASICALLY THE PROPERTY OF THE GRAZERS. IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE THAT'S THE PROPERTY OF THE GRAZERS? IN SOME CASES THEY MAY OWN TROUGHS AND TANKS AS WELL. SO THAT HAS HAPPENED WHEN WE HAVE I MEAN, SOME OF THIS IS REALLY LEGACY. YOU KNOW, A LOT OF OUR TENANTS HAVE BEEN AROUND FOR DECADES. AND IF THEY MOVE, THEY MAY. AND WE NEVER BOUGHT THAT INFRASTRUCTURE FROM THEM. THEY MAY REMOVE IT WITH THEM. THAT HAS BEEN MORE LIMITED, BUT IT'S DEFINITELY A LOT OF PANELS THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE CORRALS THAT ARE OWNED BY THE TENANTS. BUT THEN THE GATES AND THE FENCES ARE OURS. THEY ARE. AND WE PAY FOR ALL THAT. WHATEVER NEEDS TO BE DONE, WE'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING AND FUNDING ALL THAT. YES, FENCING IS AN ONGOING MAINTENANCE ISSUE. IT WILL BE FOR AS LONG AS WE HAVE LIVESTOCK GRAZING. WE HAVE MILES AND MILES OF FENCE. THAT'S MOSTLY WHERE A LOT OF OUR DEDICATED FUNDS GO IS TO JUST. AND THAT'S MORE FOR WHEN WE DO FENCE REPLACEMENT. IF IT'S JUST LIKE A BREAK IN THE FENCE, YOU KNOW, THAT'S ON THE TENANT, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, THAT'S MORE OF A DAILY MAINTENANCE THING. MAYBE A FENCE GOT CUT OR A WIRE BROKE. BUT WHEN IT COMES TO REPLACEMENT, YES, WE REIMBURSE OUR TENANTS FOR THAT. SO SO THAT LEADS ME TO THE FUNCTIONALITY OF GATES VARIES ALL OVER THE MAP. SOME ARE REALLY GREAT. THOSE ARE THE NEWER ONES. THE OLD ONES, THEY DON'T ALWAYS LOOK GOOD OR FUNCTION VERY WELL. THEY'RE KIND OF HARD TO OPEN AND CLOSE. SO THOSE ARE AND THOSE ARE OUR GATES. SO DO WE HAVE ANY KIND OF A IS THERE A DATABASE OF ALL THE GATES THAT SAYS, YOU KNOW, THIS ONE'S BEEN IN FOR 20 YEARS. THIS ONE SHOULD WE SHOULD LOOK AT THIS ONE BECAUSE IT'S BEEN IN SO LONG, NOBODY'S EVER DONE ANYTHING. WE NEED TO GO AND DO SOME MAINTENANCE ON IT. IS THERE ANYTHING LIKE THAT, ANY KIND OF, YOU KNOW, LIKE YOU DO FOR FOR A PAVEMENT, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE A CYCLE OF, MAINTENANCE. DO WE HAVE THAT FOR, THE GATES OR IT'S JUST KIND OF LIKE AS NEEDED COMPLAINTS. IT'S A LITTLE BIT OF BOTH. SO WE HAVE THE IPADS, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE HAVE OUR WE USE OUR IPADS THAT HAVE FIELD MAPS, WHICH IS BASICALLY OUR INVENTORY OF OUR INFRASTRUCTURE. SO WHEN WE'RE IN THE FIELDS, WE'LL UPDATE IN THE IPADS WHERE THE GATES ARE AND MAYBE WHAT KIND OF CONDITION THEY'RE IN. BUT THEN REALLY IT IS ON A REACTIVE BASIS. YOU KNOW, IT'S LIKE A GATE KEEPS PULLING OPEN OR THE HINGE KEEPS BREAKING. AND THEN THAT'S NOTICE FROM OUR TENANTS OR CONSULTANTS OR PARK OPERATIONS. AND THEN THAT'S WHERE WE ADDRESS OR CONCENTRATE OUR EFFORTS IN REPAIRING THAT GATE. AND SOMETIMES IT'S NOT IN OUR TENANTS. SOMETIMES OUR PARK OPERATIONS STAFF ALSO HAS GATES. AND THEY'RE ABLE TO SWITCH THEM OUT. SO IT'S A LITTLE BIT OF BOTH IF WE'RE DOING A FULL FENCE REPLACEMENT THAT INCLUDES GATES AND ACCESS GATES AND PET GATES, IF IT'S MAYBE SOMETHING THAT IS A GATE THAT'S NOT REALLY USED, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, THE LATCH IS BROKEN. MAYBE STAFF HAS SOMETHING IN THEIR YARD THAT THEY CAN REPLACE IT WITH. IS IT VERY COMMON FOR A PARK USER TO CONTACT THE DISTRICT AND SAY, THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG ON THIS TRAIL WITH THIS GATE. CAN YOU GUYS LOOK AT IT? YES, YES WE DO. WE SOMETIMES WE DO HAVE PARK USERS THAT WILL NOTIFY US ABOUT A BREAKAGE IN THE FENCE. ALL RIGHT. OKAY, GOOD. THAT WAS A REALLY GREAT PRESENTATION YOU GAVE US. I THINK IT HELPS US TO REALLY SEE FOR OURSELVES HOW THINGS ARE. AND I APPRECIATE WHAT YOU DID. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YEAH. DIRECTOR WAESPI. THANK YOU, ALLISON, FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. IT'S GREAT. I WATCHED THE WHOLE THIS WHOLE PROCESS EVOLVE OF THE STEWARDSHIP AND TAKING CARE OF OUR LAND AND CATTLE ON OUR LAND, AND IT'S YOU'VE DONE AN EXCELLENT JOB. A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. I WAS LOOKING AT THE SISTER CITY AGENCY GRAZING PROGRAM ACREAGES, AND IT'S AMAZING HOW MUCH WE DO, BUT. AND THEN I SAW A SLIDE THAT KEYED ME IN. WHAT DOES THE STATE PARK SYSTEM DO? YOU HAD A BEAUTIFUL PICTURE OF MOUNT DIABLO? I SORT OF THINK I KNOW ABOUT 20 YEARS AGO, BUT IS THAT STILL GOING ON THERE? THERE IS SOME GRAZING THAT'S STILL HAPPENING AT THE I THINK IT'S CALLED THE MACHADO RANCH. THAT'S ON THE I GUESS IT'S ON THE DANVILLE SIDE OF THE STATE PARK. SO THEY DO HAVE SOME GRAZING IN THE PARKS. AND THAT'S A THAT'S A REALLY GOOD POINT. I SHOULD I SHOULD INCLUDE THAT ACREAGE BECAUSE THE FEW PARKS THAT THEY DO GRAZE ACTUALLY ARE IN CONTRA COSTA COUNTY. THAT WOULD BE THE JOHN MUIR. THAT WOULD BE THE JOHN MARSH STATE PARK, WHICH HAS BEEN HISTORICALLY GRAZED, AND THEN ALSO PARTS OF MOUNT DIABLO, BUT AS A STATE AGENCY OVERALL. NO, THEY THEY DO NOT GRAZE MOST OF THEIR LANDS. [00:45:03] AND I'M NOT TRYING TO BE PROVOCATIVE HERE, BUT I'M INTERESTED. GO AHEAD. IN SUGGESTING THAT YOU KNOW, I'M SO I REMEMBER, I THINK 100 YEARS AGO THAT THEY VALIANTLY SAID, NO, WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO THIS. AND WE SAY IT PROVIDES IT PROMOTES BIODIVERSITY AND ALL THE GREAT THINGS THAT YOU'VE PROMOTED HERE. AND I AGREE WITH THEM. BUT WHAT DOES THE STATE SAY, ESPECIALLY WITH FIRE NOWADAYS? I DON'T REALLY KNOW. I THINK THAT IT'S KIND OF SOMETHING THAT'S UNRAVELED, RIGHT. WHEN YOU LIKE REMOVE WHEN YOU REMOVE LIVESTOCK GRAZING AS A, AS A LAND USE ACTIVITY FROM YOUR PROPERTY. LIKE JUST TAKE TILDEN FOR EXAMPLE. RIGHT. THERE'S CHANGES IN THE ECOSYSTEM. YOU SEE THAT IT BECOMES SHRUB ENCROACHMENT. RIGHT. SO THEN YOU'RE DEALING WITH A LOT OF SHRUB ENCROACHMENT. THEN YOU'RE DEALING WITH OTHER MAYBE WEED ISSUES, EUCALYPTUS GROVES, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT FUELS. NOW. NOW YOU'RE DEALING WITH DIFFERENT FUELS. YOU'RE NOT DEALING WITH THEIR [INAUDIBLE] FUELS. BUT THEN ALL YOUR INFRASTRUCTURE IS NOW PRETTY MUCH DISSOLVED OR DISINTEGRATED. SO TO GET A PROPERTY BACK INTO OPERATION IS EXTREMELY COSTLY TO, YOU KNOW, TO SAY YOU'RE GOING TO FENCE OUT A THOUSAND ACRES WOULD BE A LOT OF MONEY. THAT'D BE A LOT OF INVESTMENT. SO I JUST HAVE A FEELING THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE KIND OF MAYBE REMOVE THIS TOOL. AND IT'S REALLY HARD TO REINTRODUCE IN A LOT OF CASES BECAUSE OF COST. ALL RIGHT. AND REMIND ME AGAIN, I THINK I MISSED THE SLIDE OR THE SLIDE DIDN'T COME UP. SO THERE'S $1.1 MILLION OF REVENUE FROM CATTLE RAISING OR CATTLE GRAZING. THAT'S ESTIMATED FOR 2024. AND WHAT ARE THE EXPENDITURES? I THINK IT WAS 900 THIS YEAR. OKAY. AND YOU MENTIONED A LOT OF GRANTS COME IN FOR FOR AT LEAST POND RESTORATIONS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, AND SOME CATTLE WORK. HAVE WE EVER TRIED TO GO TO CAL FIRE GRANTS USING A GOOD EXAMPLE I MEAN, IT IS IN FACT TRUE IF YOU, REFURBISH A POND AND MAKE IT VIABLE AGAIN. IT'S A IT'S A WATER SOURCE. PEOPLE USE FLOATER PUMPS. CAL FIRE DOES ALL THE TIME, AND THEY USE WATER SOURCES. AND THAT'S A VALUE TO THEM, ESPECIALLY IN OUR WILDLANDS. DO WE EVER CONSIDER ASKING BECAUSE THEY DO HAVE PRE-FIRE MITIGATION GRANTS? THEY HAVE LOTS AND LOTS OF MONEY THAT. SO IT'S INTERESTING THAT YOU SAY THAT. SO THERE IS JUST AN ASSEMBLY BILL PASSED LIKE JUST A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO, A MONTH AGO. AND IT REALLY FOCUSES ON PRESCRIBED GRAZING, NOT PRESCRIBED GRAZING IS DIFFERENT THAN LIVESTOCK GRAZING. PRESCRIBED GRAZING IS WHAT WE USE WITH OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT WHERE WE PAY FOR GOAT AND SHEEP SERVICES TO TACKLE FUEL TREATMENT AREAS. RIGHT. IT'S A DIFFERENT MODEL. YOU KNOW, THERE'S NOT THEY'RE NOT IN THIS. THEY'RE NOT IN THE SAME AGRICULTURAL BUSINESSES IS MAYBE OUR CATTLE AND SHEEP OPERATORS. SO THEY'RE REALLY FOCUSED ON PRESCRIBED GRAZING AND NOT AS LIVESTOCK GRAZING AS A TOOL. SO IN SOME INSTANCES WE'RE NOT ELIGIBLE FOR THAT FUNDING NOW. WE ARE HOPING THAT THEY'RE MORE RECEPTIVE TO LIVESTOCK GRAZING AS ALSO A FUEL TOOL. AND IT WILL BE IT WILL REMAIN TO IT WILL BE. WE'LL WAIT AND SEE WHAT HOW THEY RESPOND. BUT WITH THIS PRESCRIBED GRAZING BILL, THERE ACTUALLY IS GOING TO BE STATE FUNDING FOR PERIMETER FENCING FOR WATER. THAT'S, YOU KNOW, BUT IT DOESN'T THERE'S STILL THIS, LIKE NOT A CLEAR DISTINCTION BETWEEN PRESCRIBED GRAZING AND OR CATTLE GRAZING. SO IF WE CAN. I MEAN, I UNDERSTAND GOATS ARE HIP AND COOL, BUT THE RESULT IS EXACTLY THE SAME. AND GOAT GRAZING FOR US IS A VERY SMALL PERCENTAGE OF WHAT CATTLE GRAZING IS. IT'S 1000 ACRES VERSUS 87. YES. SO IT'S A BIG DIFFERENCE. WE SHOULD GET OUR LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS FOLKS TO DEAL WITH IT. YEAH WE ARE. THE RESULT IS IN FACT THE SAME. YOU'RE PROVIDING FIRE PROTECTION AND. SO MAYBE WE CAN GET HELP BY INFLUENCING THE STATE, YOU KNOW, AS A PUBLIC AGENCY. AND AS YOU CAN SEE, OTHER LOTS OF OTHER PUBLIC AGENCIES ALSO USE CATTLE GRAZING AS A VEGETATION MANAGEMENT TOOL. AND MAKE THE CASE THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT FOR PUBLIC SAFETY. AND MAYBE THEY CAN OPEN THOSE OPPORTUNITIES UP FOR PROGRAMS LIKE OURS. OKAY. AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR GREAT INFORMATION. FINALLY, I HAVE TO ASK THIS. WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH DOGS AND PEOPLE AND COWS CHASING THEM AND RUNNING OVER THEM? I MEAN, IS THAT. THAT'S A WHOLE OTHER DISCUSSION. BUT, YEAH, I MEAN, RIGHT NOW, YOU KNOW, AS YOU KNOW, OUR RULE IS TO HAVE DOGS LEASHED WHEN CATTLE [00:50:06] GRAZING, WHEN GRAZING ANIMALS ARE PRESENT. RIGHT. SO IT'S VERY GRAY. I WILL SAY SINCE I HAVE YOU HERE, THAT WE HAD SUCH ISSUES AT SIBLEY THIS YEAR, THAT WE LIKELY WILL NOT BRING CATTLE BACK. AND I WILL SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, DOGS OFF LEASH PLAYED A REALLY BIG ROLE IN THAT DECISION, NOT JUST FOR US, BUT ALSO FOR OUR TENANT. SO. SO HAVE THERE BEEN ANY ALLEGED CATTLE ATTACKING PEOPLE LIKE I'VE SEEN IN THE PAST? CATTLE CAN GET DEFENSIVE. AND SO, NO, WE HAVEN'T HAD ANY ANIMAL INCIDENCES. ABOUT A CATTLE ACTUALLY TOUCHING PEOPLE RECENTLY. BUT, YOU KNOW, THEY WILL ACT IN A DEFENSIVE MANNER WHEN ESPECIALLY AROUND CALVING SEASON. AND IF PEOPLE GET TOO CLOSE. SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT THE PUBLIC SHOULD KNOW, WELL THERE'S SIGNAGE AND THERE'S INFORMATION IN OUR WEBSITE. AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE THE NATURALISTS COME OUT AND TABLE DURING CALVING SEASON TO JUST REITERATE HOW TO BEHAVE AROUND THE LARGE ANIMALS. AND ARE THERE IS THERE ANY STUDIES OF WHAT THE RELATIONSHIP WITH CATTLE AND NATIVE ANIMALS? COYOTES MOUNTAIN LIONS, THINGS LIKE THAT. THE CATTLE HAVE BEEN TAKEN BY. WHAT DO YOU MEAN PREDATION BY. YEAH, YEAH. YEAH. TAKEN. [LAUGHTER] NO, I THINK IT HAPPENS. I THINK THAT, LIKE, THE RANCHERS KNOW THAT THERE'S A POTENTIAL FOR LOSS AS BY OPERATING AND, YOU KNOW, LIKE OPEN LANDS. BUT NO, WE HAVEN'T HAD ANY ISSUES AT A PARTICULAR PARK OR WITH A PARTICULAR TENANT. ALL RIGHT. GREAT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. YEAH. THANK YOU. I SEE IT AS PART OF THE OVERALL COMPARISON OF QUALITY AND CARE THAT GOES INTO MAINTENANCE OF PARKS. AND WHEN WE LOOK AT MOUNT DIABLO AND THE LACK OF GRAZING PROGRAMS, IT TRANSLATES INTO BOTH, YOU KNOW, THE SHEER QUALITY OF THE PARKLAND EXPERIENCE THERE. AND ALSO FIREFIGHTERS WILL TELL YOU AFTER FIRES HAVE ARISEN WITHIN MOUNT DIABLO STATE PARK WHERE IT'S NOT GRAZED. AND THEN COMPARED TO THE BURN LEVELS THAT OCCUR ON OUR SURROUNDING GRAZED LAND, IT'S LIKE NIGHT AND DAY AND THE STATE IS JUST IN A POSITION WHERE IT DECIDES WE'RE NOT GOING TO DEVOTE THOSE RESOURCES TO IT BECAUSE IT AFFECTS TODAY'S BUDGET. AND THEY DON'T LOOK TO THE FUTURE, BUDGETS AND WE DO. AND WE LOOK TO A GRAZING PROGRAM THAT'S BECOME VERY INTEGRAL TO PARK OPERATIONS. IT JUST AMAZES ME THAT IT'S SO PERVASIVE IN OUR PARK OPERATIONS. WE EVEN SPEND A BIT OF TIME NOW WITHIN GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS IN OUR LOBBYING EFFORTS. I EXPERIENCED THIS UP IN SACRAMENTO AND IN DC THIS YEAR. PART OF OUR SPECIFIC LOBBYING EFFORTS IN SACRAMENTO AND DC INVOLVE GETTING STATE AND FEDERAL SUPPORT FOR POND MAINTENANCE AND POND FOR LACK OF BETTER TO SERVE CATTLE, TO SERVE GRAZERS BECAUSE BOTH THE STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT LOOK AT THESE PROGRAMS AS A VERY EFFECTIVE MEANS OF FIRE MITIGATION. AND, YOU KNOW, AT ALL LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT NOW WE'RE FOCUSING ON FIRE MITIGATION AND CATTLE. AND AS FOR REASONS YOU DESCRIBED, THE POND, THE EXISTENCE OF PONDS, THE EXISTENCE OF WATER SUPPLY IS CRUCIAL AND IT'S EXPENSIVE. AND THEREFORE WE ARE NOW DEVOTING SOME OF OUR LOBBYING EFFORTS TO THAT, TO THAT ISSUE. IT'S A VERY VERY INFORMATIVE THAT YOU BRING ALL OF THIS TO US. I HAVE EXPERIENCED COMPLAINTS BY OUR CUSTOMERS, OUR PARK USERS AND OVER THE YEARS I HAVE IN THE BACK OF MY MIND, I DON'T KEEP EXACT MATH OF TALLIES, BUT IF I WERE TO CHARACTERIZE THE VOLUME OF COMPLAINTS I GET AS A BOARD MEMBER FROM MY CONSTITUENTS UP IN THE HIGHER ECHELON OF THOSE NUMBERS, IN SHEER NUMBERS, IS OUR COMPLAINTS BY BICYCLISTS AND HIKERS OVER THE DAMAGE THAT THE COWS DO TO TRAILS, PARTICULARLY FOLLOWING STORMS. [00:55:03] AND, I'M WONDERING IF YOUR PROGRAMING, YOUR GRAZING PROGRAMING HAS EXISTING MECHANISMS, VEHICLES COMMUNICATE LINES OF COMMUNICATIONS WITH OPERATIONS THAT ARE DESIGNED TO MITIGATE THE IMPACT ON THE TRAILS, ESPECIALLY AFTER STORMS. WHAT I'VE BEEN INFORMED BY THE PARK RANGERS, IS THAT THEY HAVE PART OF PART OF THEIR JOB AFTER STORMS IS TO GO OUT AND FIX UP TRAILS THAT ARE DAMAGED BY COWS. BUT IS THERE A LARGER APPROACH TO HOW WE TRY TO MITIGATE THE IMPACT OF COWS ON OUR PARK USERS, PARTICULARLY ON TRAILS? JUST PROGRAMMATICALLY, HOW DOES THAT WORK? SO THERE SEEMS TO BE PARTICULAR PROBLEMATIC AREAS. SO IT'S YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A VERY EXTENSIVE LARGE NETWORK OF ROADS AND TRAILS, BUT THERE ARE SOME HOT SPOTS, AND THOSE HOT SPOTS ARE THE ONES THAT ARE OUR PRIORITY WHEN IT COMES TO TRAIL DAMAGE. LIKE THERE'S CERTAIN PARTS OF BRIONES IN PARTICULAR THAT, AND IT'S REALLY A SOIL COMPONENT. WHEN YOU HAVE THOSE REALLY HEAVY CLAYS LIKE YOU DO AT BLACK DIAMOND MINE, YOU KNOW, AND YOU HAVE 1,000 POUND ANIMAL WALKING OVER THAT. THEY DO MAKE IMPRINTS. SO IN SOME INSTANCES WE WILL BE ABLE TO FOCUS ON MOVING THE FENCING, YOU KNOW, TO KEEP THEM OFF THE TRAIL OR TO MOVE A WATER TROUGH SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO GO DOWN THAT WAY, YOU KNOW, SO THEY HAVE BETTER DISPERSAL. BUT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALSO JUST A TRADE OFF WHERE, YOU KNOW, WE CAN'T THERE'S SOME PLACES WE JUST WE CAN'T AVOID SOME OF THE IMPACTS OF THE CATTLE ON TRAILS. AND WE, I DON'T THERE'S CERTAIN SUPERVISORS THAT WE WORK ON WITH PARTICULAR TRAILS, BUT OVERALL IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT A VERY LARGE ASK ACTUALLY FROM THEM. SO THE PROGRAMMATICALLY AGAIN IT'S JUST REALLY FOCUSING ON THOSE PLACES THAT GET CONTINUAL ANNUAL CALLS ABOUT THE TRAIL, YOU KNOW, THE TRAIL DAMAGE AND US ADDRESSING THAT TRAIL DAMAGE. WE DID HAVE ONE SUCCESSFUL, WELL, RECENTLY SUCCESSFUL KIND OF CASE IN CROCKETT HILLS. WE'RE ABLE TO DO SOME MORE ROTATIONAL GRAZING THERE. AND SPECIFICALLY FOR THE SUGAR CITY BIKE TRAIL. YEAH, RIGHT. AND WE'LL ACTUALLY BE DOING SOME MORE ROTATIONAL GRAZING LIKE THAT UP AT PLEASANTON RIDGE WHEN THOSE PARKS COME LIVE, YOU KNOW, TO THE PUBLIC TOO. SO IN SOME AREAS WE CAN REALLY PRESCRIBE MANAGEMENT AND MOVEMENT OF THE ANIMALS. BUT IT'S REALLY KEY ON THE ACREAGE, THE PASTURES, THE WATER, THE LARGER WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE LARGER SCALE. I'M GLAD YOU MENTIONED CROCKETT HILLS, BECAUSE THAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF WHERE IT IN IN TERMS OF WHAT I HEAR ABOUT IT, WENT FROM COMPLAINTS TO COMPLIMENTS BECAUSE THE BICYCLE PEOPLE WERE CONCERNED THAT I DON'T KNOW WHICH SEASON IT WAS, BUT THERE WAS A PARTICULARLY HARSH IMPACT ON THE TRAILS THAT THE BICYCLISTS USE. AND THE COMPLIMENTS CAME AFTER A COMBINATION OF MEETINGS WITH THEM THAT DESCRIBED, I THINK, WHAT YOU'RE DESCRIBING, THE PROGRAMMATIC METHODS OF ROTATION. AND APPARENTLY IT HADN'T WORKED AT CROCKETT HILLS AS IT WAS SUPPOSED TO THAT YEAR. AND THEN JUST THE EFFORT OF THE PARK RANGERS TO FIX THE TRAILS AND BE RESPONSIVE TO OUR USERS. AND THAT RESULTED IN TURN TO MY GETTING A BUNCH OF COMPLIMENTS. AND ONE THING ABOUT THE BIKE, FOLKS IS WHEN THEY WANT TO, THEY'RE REALLY GOOD AT THAT. THEY'RE JUST, LET'S ALL SEND EMAILS OFF TO THEIR BOARD MEMBERS TALKING ABOUT THESE POSITIVE IMPACTS OF EFFORTS THAT ARE MADE BY STAFF. SO I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THAT, THAT DOES WORK. I'LL END I JUST WANT TO ASK, YOU'VE TOUCHED ON GOATS AND SHEEP A BIT. BUT I'M NOT SURE IF I'M PERCEIVING HOW GOATS AND SHEEP ARE INTEGRATED INTO THE GRAZING PROGRAM OR WHETHER THEY ARE MORE. AGAIN, I THINK YOU DESCRIBED BASICALLY GOATS ARE LIKE STAFF WE SEND THEM TO SPECIFIC SPOTS THEY NEED TO ADDRESS SPECIFIC PROBLEMS. HOW DO THOSE AND OH, I KNOW YOU MENTIONED SHEEP IN THE SAME CATEGORY OF COWS BUT NOT GOATS. SO DESCRIBE DESCRIBE THIS FOR ME. [01:00:02] YEAH. SO CURRENTLY OUT OF OUR 48 TENANTS WE HAVE ONE THAT'S A SHEEP OPERATOR. AND THAT'S ACTUALLY A LAMB EWE OPERATION. SO THAT WOULD BE LIKE OUR COW CALF OR STALKER. IT'S STILL PART OF THIS LIKE MEAT PRODUCTION SYSTEM VERSUS THE SHEEP AND GOATS THAT ARE DEDICATED FOR FUELS. THEY ARE NOT BRED FOR MEAT. THEY ARE THEY EXIST TO EAT WOODY VEGETATION. THAT'S THEIR JOB. THEY DON'T, YOU KNOW, GO TO PASTURES IN OREGON WHEN THEY'RE DONE, YOU KNOW, HERE AT THE PARK DISTRICT. SO THEY'RE DIFFERENT SERVICES. RIGHT. SO ONE OF THEM WHERE THAT'S WHY WE LEASE THE LAND SO THEY CAN, YOU KNOW, OUR OPERATORS PAY US SO THEY CAN GRAZE VERSUS PAY FOR. PAY FOR THAT. THEY HAVE A HERDER ON SITE 24 HOURS WITH DOGS, AND THEN THEY'RE MOVING THEM VERY QUICKLY. SO WE'RE TALKING MAYBE WITH THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WITH SOME OF THEIR CONTRACTORS. YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE A FIVE ACRE SITE THAT IS ONLY THE LIVESTOCK ONLY THERE FOR MAYBE TWO DAYS. AND THEN THEY MOVE TO A DIFFERENT LOCATION AND IT'S VERY SEASONAL AND VERY PRESCRIPTIVE. AND THEY'RE VERY THE GOATS ARE USED OPERATIONALLY. YEAH, YEAH. BY, BY PARK SUPERINTENDENTS. AND SOME SHEEP. SO SOME SHEEP ARE ALSO PART OF THAT OUTFIT. AND I KNOW THERE'S A SCIENCE TO THAT. AND WHEN YOU USE SHEEP AND WHEN YOU USE GOATS. AND I ALSO WANT TO JUST CONCLUDE WITH A COMMENT THAT IN TERMS OF THE COMMUNICATIONS I GET FROM OUR PARK USERS, COMPLAINTS, SOMETIMES ABOUT THE COWS, SOMETIMES IT'S JUST, WHY ARE YOU GRAZING? DON'T THEY MESS UP YOUR PARKS? AND SO I HAVE FOUND EXTRAORDINARILY USEFUL AND WOULD COMMEND TO YOU FOLKS TO KEEP KEEP AN EYE ON IT. WE HAVE TWO WEB PAGES DEVOTED TO GRAZING. ONE, I THINK OF THEM AS TWO BECAUSE I PREFER I COPY THE LINKS, AND I'M ALWAYS USING THOSE LINKS AND SENDING THEM TO CONSTITUENTS. AND ONE OF THEM ADDRESSES THE GRAZING PROGRAM, AS YOU'VE DESCRIBED IT, AND ITS BENEFITS, BOTH IN FIRE MITIGATION AND THE BIODIVERSITY CASE, WHICH IS WHAT PEOPLE DON'T KNOW OUT THERE. AND YOU'VE DESCRIBED TODAY AND THE WEBSITE DESCRIBES VERY WELL ANOTHER ONE INCLUDES ALL THE ACADEMIC STUDIES ON GRAZING AND BIODIVERSITY. UC DAVIS APPARENTLY HAS BEEN STUDYING OUR GRAZING PROGRAMS FOR DECADES AND COME TO CONCLUSIONS. AND THERE ARE THICK REPORTS ON IT. SO I REALLY ENJOY THAT YOU FOLKS DO THOSE WEBSITES AND THAT I'M ABLE TO SEND THESE LINKS TO PEOPLE WHO ARE JUST WIRED. WHY DO YOU GRAZE WHAT WHAT VALUE DO THE COWS BRING OTHER THAN FIRE MITIGATION, WHICH IS PRETTY OBVIOUS TO MOST PEOPLE. SO THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND I'LL CONCLUDE ON THAT POINT. ANY THING, ANY ADDED THOUGHTS? OF COURSE, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN REMINDED OF THINGS BY WHAT MY COLLEAGUES HAVE SAID. SO THE ONE SITUATION THAT ARISES ON A, IT'S PRETTY COMMON TO SEE YOU SEE IT'S A RANCH ROAD TRAIL. IT'S PRETTY CLOSE TO A WATER SOURCE. AND IT'S, IN THERE'S HEAVY ADOBE THERE AND IT'S IN THE SHADE. ALL RIGHT. SO THAT'S A RECIPE FOR LIKE A BIG MESS. AND SO IT'S NOT JUST AND IT'S NOT JUST THE MESS THAT OCCURS DURING THE RAINY SEASON. IT'S WHEN THE RAIN STOPS AND THEN YOU'VE GOT PETRIFIED HOOF PRINTS GOING ON FOR HUNDREDS OF FEET, YOU KNOW, IN EACH DIRECTION AWAY FROM THIS THING. SO I'M JUST KIND OF WONDERED IF WE COULD KIND OF MESS AROUND AND EXPERIMENT WITH ADDING SOME SOIL AMENDMENTS THERE TO AFFECT THE SOIL IN SUCH A WAY THAT IT WOULD BEHAVE IN A DIFFERENT MANNER. IN OTHER WORDS, IT WOULD DRAIN BETTER OR IT WOULD RESIST OR I DON'T KNOW, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE SCIENCE WOULD BE, BUT I KNOW THERE'S THINGS THAT YOU CAN DO TO TO SOIL TO CHANGE THE WAY THEY DEAL WITH WATER. AND THAT'S ONE THING. THE OTHER THING IS, I THINK WE REALLY NEED TO GO IN THERE AND DO SOME LIKE SPOT GRADING, YOU KNOW, IN THOSE PLACES WHERE IT'S REALLY BAD. AND LIKE YOU SAID, APPARENTLY WE KNOW WHERE THESE PLACES ARE. WE HAVE THESE, YOU CALL THEM HOT SPOTS. I MEAN, I THINK IF WE JUST DID THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU WOULDN'T HAVE TO GO AROUND MOVING FENCES AND STUFF. I MEAN, YOU COULD JUST FIX IT, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE THE RAIN STOPS IN MAY, AND AFTER THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT GOING TO RAIN AGAIN UNTIL NOVEMBER. SO THERE'S A WHOLE PERIOD OF TIME WHEN WE'VE GOT TO THE ONLY WAY WE CAN WE CAN ELIMINATE THOSE HOOF PRINTS IS, BY REPEATED USE AND REPEATED TWISTING OF ANKLES AND WHATEVER ELSE GOES ON BY THE USERS. YOU KNOW, IT'S REALLY AWFUL. SO I REALLY WOULD LIKE TO SEE SOME NOT, YOU KNOW, SOME PROACTIVE WAY. I MEAN, BIOCHAR, MAYBE BIOCHAR APPLIED TO THAT WOULD AFFECT HOW THAT SOIL BEHAVES, YOU KNOW? [01:05:06] SO JUST SOME IDEAS ABOUT THAT BECAUSE IT DOESN'T JUST AFFECT THE MOUNTAIN BIKERS, YOU KNOW, THEIR TEETH GET RATTLED MORE THAN, THAN MINE DO WHEN I WALK OVER THEM. BUT, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST REALLY HARD TO WALK ON THAT STUFF. AND THERE'S, I'M SURE THERE'S A BETTER WAY. SO THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THAT'S GOOD. OKAY. THANKS. ALL RIGHT. WE'LL GO TO DIRECTOR WAESPI, AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO GO TO WILLIAM. JUST ONE MORE. SO THE GOATS THERE, I THINK THERE ARE 3 OR 4 CONTRACTORS THAT WE USE. WHERE DO THEY OVERWINTER? THAT'S A GOOD, GOOD QUESTION AS WELL. SO THEY I'M NOT SURE WHERE THEY OVERWINTER. MAYBE THEY HAVE HOME RANCHES. I KNOW SOME OF THOSE GOATS GO TO THE HOME RANCHES, AND SOME OF THEM HAVE, LIKE OFF SEASON GRAZING AREAS SO THAT ARE NOT WITHIN THE PARK DISTRICT. REALLY. THERE'S A COUPLE, BUT MAJORITY. THEY ARE OFF SITE AND THEN PROBABLY BROUGHT TO A HOME RANCH UNTIL THEY'RE CONTRACTED OUT AGAIN, WHICH NORMALLY STARTS IN LIKE MARCH, APRIL. OKAY. SO I REMEMBER AT SOME POINT I REMEMBER GOATS R US BEING OUT IN BRIONES VERY REMOTE AREAS OF BRIONES. YEAH. OKAY. CAN ANNA, CAN WE GO TO OUR GUEST? HI, WILLIAM. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US. YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES. SO I HAVE BEEN MONITORING GRAZING AT MISSION PEAK FOR THE LAST APPROXIMATELY 12 YEARS. MULTIPLE MANAGERS, GRAZING MANAGERS MET WITH SEVERAL AND I UNDERSTAND THE GRAZING PROGRAM THAT THE PARK USES. AND I UNDERSTAND THAT MY FAMILY OWNS SIX OWNED 6000 ACRES IN IDAHO. WE RANCHED FOR OVER 60 YEARS. I'M PRETTY FAMILIAR WITH THE CATTLE BUSINESS, USING THE GRAZING AS A MEANS OF GETTING ACCESS TO OPEN SPACES MAKES TOTAL SENSE. RANCHERS OWN A LOT OF OPEN SPACE. POLITICALLY, IT MAKES A LOT OF SENSE TO BE SUPPORTIVE OF RANCHERS. PUT IT DOWN AS ONE OF YOUR GOALS. DON'T HIDE IT. LET'S KEEP IT SIMPLE. BUT GRAZING CONSERVATION, GRAZING THAT IS AN OXYMORON. CATTLE GRAZING IS NOT CONSERVATION. CATTLE BY THEIR VERY NATURE ARE DESTRUCTIVE. THEY'RE INVASIVE. THEY'RE NOT A NATIVE SPECIES TO THE UNITED STATES. THEY SPREAD THISTLE. THEY SPREAD OTHER INVASIVE SPECIES THEMSELVES. THE PROBLEM ISN'T CATTLE INHERENTLY. THE PROBLEM IS MANAGEMENT. YOU HAVE A VEHICLE. IT'S CALLED A GRAZING LEASE THAT IS USED, CAN BE USED BY THE PARK DISTRICT TO MANAGE CATTLE GRAZING AT MISSION PEAK, WHICH IS THE ONLY PARK THAT I REALLY PAY A LOT OF ATTENTION TO. I HIKE MORGAN, I HIKE ALL OVER. I'M ACTIVITIES CHAIR FOR THE SIERRA CLUB. WE RUN OVER 609 OUTINGS A YEAR, PREDOMINANTLY IN EAST BAY PUBLIC LANDS. I HAVE HIKED MOST OF THE PARKS IN THE LAST YEAR. I'VE BEEN IN DIABLO, MORGAN TERRITORY, MORGAN HILL, SUNOL RIDGE ,SIBLEY, REDWOOD, MISSION PEAK, VARGAS, COYOTE HILLS. I MEAN, MOST OF THEM. GRAZING AT MISSION PEAK. I'M VERY SPECIFIC TO THAT BECAUSE I'VE BEEN COLLECTING DATA FOR THE LAST 12 YEARS THROUGH PUBLIC RECORDS REQUESTS. MONITORING, RDM LEVELS, MONITORING THE SPREAD OF INVASIVE SPECIES. AND I HIKE THAT PARK AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK. THIS WAS ALLOWED TO GROW UP TO SIX FEET TALL ALONGSIDE THE TRAILS. THIS WAS AN INVASIVE SPECIES. THIS WAS SPREAD BY CATTLE SPECIFICALLY. THEY CLAMBER OR THEY CORRUGATE ON. THEY GET ON TOP OF KNOLLS THEY BED DOWN, THEY STOMP A THISTLE INTO THE GROUND AND THE SEEDS COME UP. AND THEN YOU HAVE, YOU KNOW, A KNOLL THAT'S COVERED IN THISTLE. IT HAS TO BE DESTROYED. THISTLE DOES. IT HAS TO BE REMOVED OR SPRAYED. IS THAT HAPPENING? NO. IF YOU GO INTO MISSION PEAK, YOU'LL FIND THAT THERE'S THISTLE ALONGSIDE THE TRAILS. THIS IS THISTLE THAT I'VE PHOTOGRAPHED AND SENT TO PARK RANGERS AND PARK SUPERVISORS. THEY DON'T REMOVE THE THISTLE. NOW MEDITERRANEAN THISTLE AT SIX FEET IS A PROBLEM. YELLOW STAR-THISTLE COVERING 60 TO 70% OF THE LOWER PASTURES AT MISSION PEAK, IS A REAL PROBLEM THAT'S DAMAGING AND DESTRUCTIVE TO THE PASTURES. YELLOW STAR-THISTLE IS EXACERBATED BY OVERGRAZING. OVERGRAZING OCCURS WHEN YOU ALLOW CATTLE TO STAY IN A PASTURE LONG AFTER THEY'RE DUE. SO THE OLD GRAZING LEASES HAD A DOCUMENT. THEY DOCUMENTED RDM LEVELS PER THE LEASE, AND IT SAID THAT THEY SHOULD BE BETWEEN 6 AND 10G OF RDM PER SQUARE FOOT OF PASTURE. THAT LANGUAGE HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM THE GRAZING LEASES. SO WHAT IS 6IN TO 8IN OF GRASS HEIGHT MEAN? [01:10:02] IT MEANS THAT YOUR PASTURE REMAINS BASICALLY IN A PRETTY GOOD CONDITION FOR THE FOLLOWING YEAR. YOU'VE GOT A LEVEL OF YOU'VE GOT A LEVEL OF MATERIAL THAT'S GOING TO HOLD WATER FOR THE NEXT SEASON. WHEN WE GRAZED IN IDAHO, WE MOVED THE CATTLE EVERY 6 TO 8 WEEKS. WE DID IT BECAUSE THERE WASN'T A LOT OF FORAGE AVAILABLE, AND WE WANTED THE CATTLE TO STAY HEALTHY. AT MISSION PEAK ON THE LOWER PASTURES. WHEN I SAY LOWER PASTURES, I'M TALKING THE STANFORD PASTURES SPECIFICALLY. THE CATTLE GRAZE THE FORAGE DOWN TO THE DIRT, AND I'VE SENT PHOTOGRAPHS OF CATTLE STANDING IN THE DIRT TO THE GRAZING MANAGERS, PARK SUPERVISORS AND BOARD MEMBERS. SO I'M NOT GOING TO BORE YOU WITH IT NOW, BUT IF YOU WANT, YOU CAN LOOK AT A PICTURE THAT WAS USED IN THIS PRESENTATION TODAY. AND IT'S A PICTURE THAT SAYS SHIFTS AND CHALLENGES OF THE GRAZING PROGRAM. AND IF YOU LOOK AT THAT PICTURE, YOU'LL SEE THAT ALL OF THE CATTLE ARE STANDING ON BARE GROUND. THERE IS NO GRASS UNDER THEM. THEIR FEET ARE CLEARLY VISIBLE. THIS IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE AT MISSION PEAK AT STANFORD AVENUE AT THE END OF THE GRAZING SEASON, THERE'S NO GRASS VISIBLE UNDER THE CATTLE. IT'S ALL DIRT. SO WHY IS THAT A PROBLEM? AND IT'S A PROBLEM BECAUSE YOU DENUDE THE PASTURES, YOU REDUCE THEIR CARRYING CAPACITY AND YOU CREATE AN OPPORTUNITY. THANK YOU SIR. YOUR TIME IS UP AND YOU CREATE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR INVASIVE SPECIES TO SPREAD. SO RDM LEVELS THIS YEAR WERE DOCUMENTED AS COMPLIANT. BUT I DON'T THINK THE RANGERS ACTUALLY KNOW HOW TO MEASURE RDM LEVELS BECAUSE PICTURES NORMALLY WERE PROVIDED. WE'RE NOT I UNDERSTAND. I WILL FINISH PICTURES THAT ARE NORMALLY PROVIDED WITH THE RDM LEVEL MEASUREMENTS WEREN'T PROVIDED. SO THERE'S NO VISIBLE CORRELATION BETWEEN RDM LEVELS AND THE DOCUMENTS PROVIDED. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YEAH. WILLIAM HAS BEEN CONSISTENT ON THESE POINTS HE'S MAKING, AND I GUESS WE'VE HEARD THEM AND CAN GET SOME FEEDBACK TO THE COMMITTEE ON IT IN THE FUTURE. WE'VE BEEN FAIRLY SUCCESSFUL WITH STAR THISTLE TREATMENT AT BRIONES BECAUSE YEARS AGO I HAD A REAL THERE WERE VAST SWATHS OF BRIONES BEING TAKEN OVER BY STAR THISTLE. AND AT THIS POINT WE'RE DOING PRETTY WELL FROM MY OBSERVATION WITH IT. SO I WOULD BE REALLY CURIOUS AT MAYBE WHETHER IF WE'VE DONE WELL WITH THAT AND CATTLE MANAGEMENT AND THISTLE MANAGEMENT AT BRIONES, WHETHER THAT CAN BE DONE ELSEWHERE. WITH THAT, WE HAVE ONE MORE SPEAKER IN THE ZOOM WEBINAR. KELLY. KELLY, I'LL BE ELEVATING YOU. MINUTES. OKAY. THANK YOU. YEAH. THE AUDIO VIDEO COMPLAINT FOR YOUR AUDIO VIDEO SPECIALIST. THE PODIUM MICROPHONE IS BEING SATURATED OR OVERLOADED. AND SO THAT YOU HEAR YOU KNOW, CUT OUTS, YOU HEAR DISTORTIONS. IT'S QUITE ANNOYING. THE MICROPHONE AT THE PODIUM. AND WE JUST HEARD THAT THE GRAZING REVENUE IS NOMINALLY AROUND $1.1 MILLION SPREAD OVER FIVE YEARS AND DIVIDED BY 87,000 ACRES. SO THAT WORKS OUT TO ABOUT 2 OR $3 PER ACRE PER YEAR. AND I DON'T CARE HOW YOU HOW YOU SLICE IT, 2 OR $3 PER ACRE PER YEAR IS NOT A LOT OF MONEY. AND THAT'S BEFORE COSTS. SO I'M TRYING TO RECONCILE THE GRAZING PRACTICES THAT I SEE AT MISSION PEAK, AT VARGAS PLATEAU AND SUNOL WILDERNESS WITH INDUSTRY BEST PRACTICES. NOW MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT UNIT ROTATION OR ROTATIONAL GRAZING IS CONSIDERED NECESSARY FOR EFFECTIVE GRAZING MANAGEMENT. THIS DIVIDES PASTURES INTO SMALLER PADDOCKS AND ALLOWS LIVESTOCK TO GRAZE ONE SECTION, WHILE OTHERS REST AND GROW. THIS METHOD PREVENTS OVERGRAZING, PROMOTES BETTER FORAGE UTILIZATION COMPARED TO CONTINUOUS GRAZING SYSTEMS BY ALLOWING PERIODS OF REST. ROTATIONAL GRAZING HELPS MAINTAIN THE VIGOR OF DESIRABLE PLANT SPECIES AND IMPROVES OVERALL PASTURE CONDITIONS. THE SYSTEM ALSO REDUCES SOIL EROSION CONSERVES WATER. ROTATIONAL GRAZING CAN LEAD TO HIGHER STOCKING RATES AND INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY PER ACRE. NOW, MULTIPLE GRAZING UNITS CAN SUPPORT ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT, WHICH IS CRUCIAL FOR ACHIEVING ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION AND HIGH LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION LEVELS TO ADJUST TO FORAGE AVAILABILITY AND SEASONAL CHANGES. [01:15:02] NOW, BUT ROTATIONAL GRAZING WOULD REQUIRE ADDITIONAL FENCING, DISTRIBUTED WATER SUPPLIES, INCREASED LABOR FOR MANAGEMENT, FOR MANAGING LIVESTOCK MOVEMENTS, AND THESE COSTS CAN BE A BARRIER TO ADOPTION FOR SOME PRODUCERS. NOW, I HAD HEARD THAT ROTATIONAL GRAZING YEARS AGO IT WAS IT WAS RUMORED TO BE A STANDARD PRACTICE AT THE PARK DISTRICT. BUT THAT'S NOT WHAT I SEE OUT ON THE FIELDS. AND YOUR GRAZING MANAGER JUST SAID THAT ROTATION, ROTATIONAL GRAZING IS CONSIDERED A SPECIAL PURPOSE TECHNIQUE THAT IS USED NARROWLY AND NOT A STANDARD PRACTICE THAT IS BEING USED ACROSS THE DISTRICT EVERYWHERE GENERALLY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY OTHERS IN OUR AUDIENCE WISHING TO COMMENT ON THE TOPIC? NO ADDITIONAL COMMENTS. THANK YOU. OKAY, WHILE WE'RE ON IT ISSUES, IT'S A DISADVANTAGE TO WHOEVER'S TRYING TO RUN A COMMITTEE MEETING THAT WE CAN'T SEE WHO'S IN THE AUDIENCE AND WHO'S IN THE ROOM. AND BECAUSE I DON'T CHAIR MANY MEETINGS ANYMORE, I'M RAISING IT BECAUSE IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO RAISE IT. I JUST THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD WORK ON FOR MEETING MANAGEMENT AND ACCESS TO THE FULL ZOOM ROOM UP HERE ON THE PODIUM. WITH THAT ITEM 4B. THANK YOU FOR, BY THE WAY, DINA AND ALLISON, IT'S VERY HELPFUL INFORMATION 4B 2024 ANNUAL REVIEW IMPLEMENTATION OF THE UPDATED FREE ROAMING CAT MANAGEMENT POLICY. WHO IS THAT? I HAVE TO LEAVE AT A LITTLE AFTER ONE. OKAY. I'M MEETING WITH KEN THAT'S GREAT. GOOD MORNING. WE'RE GETTING THE PRESENTATION SET UP. I'LL INTRODUCE MYSELF. MY NAME IS NATALIE REEDER, AND I'M A WILDLIFE BIOLOGIST IN THE STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT. I'VE BEEN WITH THE DISTRICT ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF, AND I'M REALLY GLAD TO BE JOINED TODAY BY TIFFANY LIAISON WITH OUR REGIONAL ANIMAL SHELTERS. AND TIFFANY WILL TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT HERSELF AND PRESENT LATER ON, BUT I'M THRILLED TO HAVE HER HERE. THIS PROGRAM WOULDN'T EXIST WITHOUT HER. AND HERE WE GO. OKAY. THANK YOU. SO WE'RE GOING TO TALK TODAY ABOUT THE ANNUAL UPDATE ON OUR UPDATED FREE ROAMING CAT MANAGEMENT POLICY. AND I REALLY WANT TO BRING HOME THE MESSAGE THAT THIS HAS BEEN A REALLY COMMUNITY EFFORT, NOT JUST BRINGING TOGETHER THE PARK DISTRICT, BUT ALSO THE LARGER BAY AREA COMMUNITY OR EAST BAY COMMUNITY TO IMPROVE OUR APPROACH TO FREE ROAMING CAT MANAGEMENT. AND WE'RE DOING THIS FOR THE BENEFIT OF WILDLIFE. THE CATS THEMSELVES AND PEOPLE ARE PARK USERS AND OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS. SO WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT HOW WE GO THROUGH IMPLEMENTING THE POLICY AND THE SUCCESSES AND OPPORTUNITIES WE'VE HAD THUS FAR. THIS ALL STARTED IN 2020, WHEN THE BOARD RECOGNIZED THAT WE NEEDED TO DO BETTER ON CAT MANAGEMENT AND REQUESTED AN UPDATE TO THE POLICY, AND MY COLLEAGUES IN THE STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT, ALONG WITH OPERATIONS, WORKED FOR YEARS TO DEVELOP A BETTER POLICY. AND WE'RE NOW IN THE THIRD YEAR OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THAT POLICY. SO AS I MENTIONED, WE'RE REALLY DOING THIS FOR WILDLIFE, CATS AND PEOPLE. WILDLIFE ARE WE HAVE MULTIPLE LISTED SPECIES IN THE PARKS. AND THEN OF COURSE, OUR ENTIRE ASSEMBLAGE OF NATIVE SPECIES THAT CAN BE NEGATIVELY IMPACTED BY CATS. PEOPLE ARE PRETTY FAMILIAR WITH CATS BEING INTERESTED IN CATCHING BIRDS AND MICE, AND WE DO HAVE THREATENED AND ENDANGERED BIRDS AND MICE IN THE PARK DISTRICT. SO ON SCREEN HERE ARE EXAMPLES OF SPECIES THAT CAN BE IMPACTED BY CAT PREDATION. [01:20:02] MANY BIRDS DO NEST ON THE GROUND, AND EVEN IF THEY DON'T, THEIR YOUNG MIGHT END UP ON THE GROUND FOR A SHORT PERIOD AS THEY'RE LEARNING TO FLY, AND IT'S A VERY VULNERABLE TIME FOR THEM. THE ADULTS AS WELL CAN BE VULNERABLE TO PREDATION. AND THEN IN THE EXAMPLE OF THE SALT MARSH HARVEST MOUSE, OF COURSE, IT'S A SMALL RODENT. YOU'VE PROBABLY SEEN CAT TOYS THAT LOOK SIMILAR TO THIS MOUSE, AND CATS WOULD CERTAINLY LOVE TO EAT THEM IF THEY CAN GET A HOLD OF THEM. CATS ARE ALSO DOCUMENTED TO KILL AND EAT ANYTHING FROM SNAKES AND LIZARDS TO INSECTS, BIRDS, MAMMALS, WHAT HAVE YOU. SO WE REALLY NEED TO MANAGE CATS TO PROTECT THESE SPECIES. THERE ARE ALSO MANY THREATS CURRENTLY FACING OUR NATIVE WILDLIFE, INCLUDING CLIMATE CHANGE, SEA LEVEL RISE THAT THREATENS TO CONSUME MUCH OF THE VERY ALREADY LIMITED HABITAT, FOR EXAMPLE, FOR THE SNOWY PLOVER THAT REQUIRES SANDY BEACHES TO NEST. AND BECAUSE THERE'S ALL OF THESE MANY THREATS TO WILDLIFE, THE CAT ISSUE IS EXACERBATED. IT THIS FITS IN WITH OUR OUR MISSION STATEMENT TO PRESERVE OUR NATURAL RESOURCES AND TO DO THAT FOR THE BENEFIT OF OUR COMMUNITIES WHO VALUE THESE SPECIES. AND THEN THERE ARE ALSO LOTS OF STATE AND FEDERAL LAWS THAT PROTECT OUR THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES THAT WE NEED TO COMPLY WITH. THEN IT'S ALSO FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE CATS THEMSELVES. CATS THAT ARE LEFT OUTDOORS HAVE SHORTENED LIFESPANS. THEY'RE EXPOSED TO INJURY AND ILLNESS AT A RATE HIGHER THAN AN OWNED CAT. THEY CAN ALSO REPRODUCE PRETTY DRAMATICALLY. A CAT CAN GET PREGNANT AS EARLY AS FOUR MONTHS OF AGE. AND THEN YOU CAN SEE IN THIS DIAGRAM, THIS ILLUSTRATION ON THE LEFT THAT THEY ONE CAT CAN PRODUCE A LOT OF OFFSPRING. AND THE MORE CATS ARE ALLOWED TO BREED, THE BIGGER THE PROBLEM IS AND THE HARDER IT IS TO TACKLE. SO WE ALSO RECOGNIZE THAT OUR COMMUNITY FINDS CATS IMPORTANT AND THEY VALUE CATS. IT'S UPSETTING TO PARK USERS TO SEE CATS IN THE PARKS WHERE THEY MIGHT BE INJURED OR ILL. AND THAT IS OFTEN WHY PEOPLE CHOOSE TO FEED CATS IN VIOLATION OF OUR POLICY, BECAUSE THEY'RE CONCERNED ABOUT THE CATS. SO WE WANT TO TRY TO FIND A WIN WIN WIN FOR EVERYBODY AND BRING EVERYONE TOGETHER TO MANAGE CATS. AND OUR PARKS IN GENERAL ARE NOT SAFE PLACES FOR CATS. WE HAVE COYOTES. A LOT OF OUR PARKS ARE IN VERY URBAN AREAS WHERE THERE ARE BUSY ROADS, AND THERE CAN BE EITHER NOT ENOUGH FOOD OR PLENTY OF FOOD. THAT'S ATTRACTING LOTS OF ANIMALS THAT CAN FIGHT WITH CATS AND INJURE THEM. SO WE DO A LOT TO WORK ON THE CAT ISSUE. WE PUT FORTH A LOT OF EFFORT TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC. WE HAVE IMPROVED SIGNAGE THROUGHOUT THE PARK DISTRICT. WE HAVE BROCHURES THAT EXPLAIN TO PEOPLE THE CAT ISSUE AND WHAT WE'RE DOING ABOUT IT. WE'VE UPDATED OUR WEBSITE AND WE'RE PLANNING A LOT MORE WITH OUR PUBLIC AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT ONCE WE GET OUR COOPERATION WITH THE ANIMAL SHELTERS FORMALIZED. WE DID ALSO IDENTIFY IN THE LAST YEAR OR MORE THAT MLK IN PARTICULAR IS A POPULAR PLACE FOR PEOPLE TO DUMP RABBITS, AND THEY'RE NOT CATS. BUT IT SHOWS THAT ONCE WE DEVELOPED THIS CLOSER PARTNERSHIP WITH OAKLAND ANIMAL SERVICES IN PARTICULAR MLK IS IN THEIR JURISDICTION. WE WERE ABLE TO IDENTIFY THIS RABBIT ISSUE AND WORKED WITH THEM TO DEVELOP SIGNAGE THAT WE POSTED OUT THERE. THEY ALSO SENT PEOPLE OUT TO TRAP RABBITS THAT OUR STAFF WAS IDENTIFYING. THE DOMESTIC RABBITS ARE PRETTY EASY TO TELL APART BECAUSE THEY COME IN, YOU KNOW, FANCY COLORS LIKE WHITE AND SPOTTED THAT YOU DON'T SEE IN WILD RABBITS. SO THIS IS JUST AN EXAMPLE OF HOW OUR COLLABORATION WITH THE ANIMAL SERVICES AGENCIES HAS EXPANDED EVEN BEYOND CATS. WE ALSO DO HAVE A LOT OF LONG TERM PROACTIVE EFFORTS THAT WE'RE WORKING ON. WE MAINTAIN FENCING, ESPECIALLY AROUND SENSITIVE BIRD NESTING SITES, TO DETER PREDATORS FROM ACCESS THAT CAN BE CATS, RACCOONS, FOXES, ETC. AND WE'RE ALSO VERY FOCUSED CURRENTLY ON WASTE MANAGEMENT. SO THERE OBVIOUSLY IS A LOT OF GARBAGE GENERATED IN THE PARK DISTRICT FROM OUR USERS PICNICS. AND WHEN THERE'S FOOD TRASH, IT CAN ATTRACT ALL KINDS OF PREDATORS, INCLUDING CATS. SO OUR FACILITIES AND MAST TEAMS ARE ALREADY DOING THIS FOR OTHER REASONS, FOR MORE OPERATIONAL REASONS. [01:25:04] BUT WE'RE COOPERATING WITH THEM TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING THE DOUBLE BENEFIT OF ALSO DETERRING ACCESS BY CATS AND OTHER PREDATORS. AND WE DO THIS ANNUAL REVIEW TO INFORM YOU AND THE PUBLIC OF HOW THE PROGRAM IS GOING AND WHAT PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE. WE PRODUCE AN ANNUAL REPORT. AND THEN ALL OF THIS IS DONE IN COORDINATION WITH OUR LOCAL ANIMAL SERVICES AGENCIES AND AT LEAST ONE NONPROFIT FERAL CHANGE, WHO WILL WHO IS NOW GOING BY THE NAME FULL CIRCLE CATS. AND THESE PARTNERS HAVE BEEN INVALUABLE. WE'VE REALLY COME TOGETHER TO FORM A PARTNERSHIP. WE ALL WORK TOGETHER IN REGULAR COMMUNICATION. WE HAVE BI MONTHLY MEETINGS, WE MEET EVERY OTHER MONTH AND ALMOST ALL OF THE SHELTERS ATTEND REGULARLY. TO UPDATE THEM ABOUT WHAT WE'RE CURRENTLY WORKING ON AND ANY ISSUES THAT THEY'RE SEEING AND ANYTHING THAT WE CAN IMPROVE ON. TIFFANY AND I MEET WEEKLY AND GO OUT REGULARLY INTO THE PARKS TO TALK TO STAFF AND WORK ON PARTICULAR CAT ISSUES. AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE A BI WEEKLY INTERNAL MEETING WITH STEWARDSHIP AND OPERATIONS STAFF TO COORDINATE AND DISCUSS ANY CURRENT ISSUES. WE ARE DEVELOPING A LONG TERM COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT THAT IS CURRENTLY GOING THROUGH THE SIGNATURE PROCESSES WITH OUR PARTNER AGENCIES, AND WE HOPE TO HAVE THAT COMPLETED SOON. AND WE'RE CURRENTLY MOSTLY SUPPORTED BY REGIONAL PARKS FOUNDATION FUNDING, WHICH HAS BEEN INSTRUMENTAL TO CREATING THIS PARTNERSHIP, TO GETTING TIFFANY ON BOARD AND, YOU KNOW, IS THE WHOLE BASIS FOR EVERYTHING THAT WE'RE DOING. AND I WILL SAY THAT, AS I MENTIONED AT THE BEGINNING, NONE OF THIS WOULD BE HAPPENING WITHOUT THE TIRELESS AND PASSIONATE WORK OF TIFFANY, WHO HAS BEEN REALLY INCREDIBLE AT MANAGING ALL SIDES OF THE CAT ISSUE, FROM THE PUBLIC TO THE CAT COLONY CARETAKERS TO THE SHELTERS THEMSELVES, AND THEN US AND OUR STAFF. SO I WILL HAND IT OVER TO TIFFANY TO TALK ABOUT SOME OF OUR SUCCESSES AND OPPORTUNITIES. GO AHEAD. HI. LIKE SHE SAID, I'M TIFFANY ASHBAKER. I WORK AT OAKLAND ANIMAL SERVICES AS THE COMMUNITY CAT COORDINATOR, AND I'M THE LIAISON FOR EAST BAY REGIONAL PARKS AND ALL THE SHELTERS. SO THIS IS A PHOTO OF OUR REALLY FUN AND INTERACTIVE TRAP TRAINING CLASS THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING YEARLY. WE'LL PROBABLY DO IT NEXT YEAR AS WELL, AND THEN MAYBE MOVE IT TO EVERY OTHER YEAR. AND LET'S SEE THE STAFF ALSO HAS A OR, I'M SORRY, A VIDEO TRAINING THAT IS MANDATORY AND THAT'S PARK STAFF. SO IT'S THE NATURALIST AND RANGERS. SO I'M ALSO I ALSO HELP WITH THE PUBLIC. SO I GO OUT AND I MEET ALL THE SORRY. I GET NERVOUS IN FRONT OF PEOPLE. SO ONCE WE IDENTIFY THE THE FEEDERS I GO OUT THERE AND I SPEAK WITH THEM, AND I GET THEM TO HELP TRAP ALL THE CATS. LET'S SEE. SORRY. CAN YOU HELP ME? OF COURSE. YOU'RE DOING GREAT. YEAH, I'LL JUST ADD TO THAT THAT A LOT OF THE PEOPLE WHO FEED CATS, WHO WE EITHER CALL FEEDERS OR COLONY CARETAKERS, THEY ARE GENERALLY AFRAID TO SPEAK TO PARK STAFF, ESPECIALLY PEOPLE IN UNIFORM. THEY KNOW THAT WHAT THEY'RE DOING MOST IN MOST CASES, THEY KNOW THAT WHAT THEY'RE DOING IS AGAINST PARK DISTRICT POLICY. SO HAVING SOMEBODY WHO'S A THIRD PARTY, WHO'S NOT A UNIFORMED PARK EMPLOYEE, WHO IS FOCUSED ON CAT WELFARE, REALLY OPENS THAT DOOR FOR THEM TO TALK TO US AND WORK WITH US. WHERE IN THE PAST, YOU KNOW, IN MANY CASES, THEY WOULD HIDE THEIR ACTIVITIES FROM US OR TRY TO GET AROUND BEING DETECTED BY PARK STAFF. RIGHT. ALL RIGHT, SO WE'RE AT 191 CATS THAT WE'VE TRAPPED SINCE 2021. 42 THROUGH THIS YEAR, WHICH IS GREAT. NO CATS HAVE BEEN LETHALLY REMOVED, AND ABSOLUTELY NO TNR IS ALLOWED. TNR, IF NOBODY KNOWS WHAT THAT IS, IT'S TRAP NEUTER RETURN. SO YOU TRAP THE CAT YOU GET IT FIXED, AND THEN TYPICALLY WE RETURN IT TO THE AREA WHERE IT CAME FROM. ALL RIGHT. THIS IS SWEET LITTLE KEVIN. HE CAME FROM ARDENWOOD. [01:30:03] SO HE WAS A CAT THAT WAS FOUND OUT THERE, A LITTLE KITTEN. AND NOW THERE'S KEVIN IN HIS NEW HOME DOING REALLY WELL. AND HERE'S A CAT THAT WAS TRAPPED OUT AT BIG BREAK. WE'VE HAD MANY CATS THAT WE'VE BEEN TRAPPING OUT THERE, AND THEN HERE HE IS IN HIS NEW WORKING CAT HOME. SO WHEN AFTER THEY'VE BEEN TRAPPED, THEY GO INTO THE SHELTER. AND THEY'RE KIND OF EVALUATED TO SEE IF THEY'RE FRIENDLY OR NOT FRIENDLY. IF THEY'RE NOT FRIENDLY, THEY GO IN WHAT WE CALL WORKING CAT HOMES. THAT'S WHERE HE IS THERE IN HIS CATIO. HE'S THERE FOR ABOUT 4 TO 6 WEEKS AND THEN HE'S RELEASED. HERE IS OUR THE CATS THAT WE'VE TRAPPED YEAR BY YEAR. AND SO YOU CAN SEE 60 IN 2021 AND THEN HERE IT IS THIS YEAR AND WE'RE AT 42. AND THEN THERE'S A MAP. YOU CAN SEE WHERE THE CATS HAVE BEEN TRAPPED. 41 IS IN HAYWARD, 56 IN MLK BIG BREAK WERE AT 20. SO THOSE THOSE ARE THE BIG PARKS THAT WE'VE BEEN TRAPPING AT. THANKS SO MUCH, TIFFANY. I WILL NOTE THAT THE NUMBERS ON SOME OF THE SLIDES ARE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT THAN WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE BEFORE YOU, BECAUSE WE JUST TRAPPED THREE, A MOTHER AND TWO KITTENS IN THE LAST WEEK. SO WE WANTED TO ADD UPDATED NUMBERS TO THE PRESENTATION. AND YOU CAN ALSO SEE HERE IN THE MAP THAT THE CATS THAT WE ARE TRAPPING AND TRANSFERRING FROM THE PARKS ARE DISTRIBUTED THROUGHOUT THE DISTRICT. BUT MUCH MORE CONCENTRATED IN THE HEAVILY POPULATED AREAS AND SHORELINE PARKS. THAT'S PARTLY BECAUSE THERE ARE MORE CATS THERE, BECAUSE THERE'S MORE PEOPLE WHO ARE PROVIDING FOOD AND CATS. WHILE THEY CAN LIVE IN WILD LAND AREAS, THEY'RE MUCH MORE LIKELY TO BE CONGREGATED AROUND URBAN AREAS WHERE THERE'S FOOD AVAILABLE. AND THEN I JUST WANTED TO CLOSE ON SOME PERSPECTIVES FROM OUR PARK STAFF, WHO ARE ALSO REALLY INSTRUMENTAL IN THIS PROGRAM. THERE ARE JUST TOO MANY PARKS FOR US, EITHER TIFFANY OR MYSELF OR ANYONE REALLY ANY INDIVIDUAL, TO GO OUT AND KNOW WHERE ALL OF THE ISSUES ARE. SO WE REALLY RELY ON PARK STAFF TO INFORM US ABOUT WHERE THEY'RE SEEING CATS, WHERE THEY'RE SEEING ISSUES, AND THEN THEY HAVE ALSO BEEN DOING A LOT OF THE TRAPPING. SO TIFFANY AND I WILL GO OUT AND SUPPLY THEM WITH THE EQUIPMENT THEY NEED AND MAKE SURE THEY KNOW HOW TO USE IT, BUT THEN THEY WILL BE THE ONES OUT THERE RUNNING THE TRAPS IN MANY CASES. SO HERE IS FROM LISA BRODTMANN, SUPERVISOR OF MLK. SHE STATED THAT THE PROGRAM HAS REALLY HELPED WITH THE REDUCE THE CAT POPULATION AT THE TWO PARKS, BEING MLK AND OYSTER BAY. SHE DID COMMENT THAT WE WEREN'T THAT GREAT AT COMMUNICATING THE OUTCOME, AND I INCLUDED THIS BECAUSE I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THAT WE'RE ALWAYS TRYING TO GET BETTER, AND WE'RE ALWAYS WORKING ON OUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH PARK STAFF AND WITH THE SHELTERS AND COMMUNITY CAT CARETAKERS. SO WE WERE HAPPY TO RECEIVE THIS FEEDBACK. HOPEFULLY WE'VE GOTTEN BETTER. THIS PARTICULAR INSTANCE MIGHT HAVE BEEN BECAUSE WE, THE PARK STAFF, TRAPPED A CAT. IT WAS FOUND TO HAVE A MICROCHIP, SO IT BELONGED ESSENTIALLY TO SOMEBODY NEARBY. SO THAT CAT WAS RETURNED TO THE AREA, AND WE DIDN'T NOTIFY PARK STAFF BEFORE THEY SAW THE CAT. AND SO THEY WERE KIND OF SURPRISED THAT THIS CAT THAT THEY THOUGHT THEY HAD REMOVED WAS BACK IN THE PARK. SO WE'VE GOTTEN A LOT BETTER ABOUT FOLLOWING UP WITH STAFF ABOUT THE OUTCOMES OF THEIR CATS, AND THAT'S A VERY RARE SITUATION. ALMOST NONE OF THE CATS WE TRAP HAVE MICROCHIPS OR ANY SORT OF IDENTIFYING IDENTIFIER ON THEM. IN REDWOOD, THIS IS THE OFFICE STAFF FROM THE LITTLE COTTAGE ON REDWOOD ROAD THERE. THEY HAD ONE CAT SHOW UP THIS YEAR. IT'S A PRETTY ISOLATED INCIDENT. PROBABLY SOMEBODY DUMPED AN ANIMAL OUT THERE BECAUSE IT'S RELATIVELY REMOTE. AND THE OFFICE STAFF THERE WAS ALL VERY CONCERNED FOR THE CAT. THEY UNDERSTOOD THAT THERE MIGHT BE EFFECTS ON WILDLIFE, BUT THEY ALSO CARED A LOT ABOUT THE CAT, AND THEY WERE VERY APPREHENSIVE TO WORK WITH US. SO WE TOOK A LOT OF TIME TO EXPLAIN TO THEM THE PROCESS. I WENT OUT THERE PERSONALLY, AND SET THEM UP WITH THEIR TRAP, AND THEY CAUGHT THE CAT PRETTY QUICKLY. AND THEN WE DID A LOT OF FOLLOW UP WITH THEM TO SAY, OKAY, NOW THE CAT'S AT THE SHELTER. TIFFANY HAS NOW TRANSFERRED THE CAT TO A WORKING CAT PLACEMENT. IT WENT TO A BARN ON THE PENINSULA, CORRECT? YEAH. SO? SO THAT STAFF WAS ABLE TO FIND OUT EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT CAT? THEY KNEW IT WASN'T A GOOD PLACE FOR THE CAT OR FOR THE WILDLIFE, BUT THEY ALSO DIDN'T WANT ANYTHING BAD TO HAPPEN TO THE CAT. SO THEY WERE THEY WERE HAPPY WITH THE RESULT. [01:35:03] AND THEN BIG BREAK. WYATT MOORE, THE SUPERVISING NATURALIST AT BIG BREAK WAS OUR NUMBER ONE CAT TRAPPER OF 2024. HE'S CAUGHT AT LEAST 25 CATS THIS YEAR. THEY HAD QUITE A BIG PROBLEM OUT THERE. THEY WERE FINDING WHOLE BAGS OF CAT FOOD BEING LEFT OUT ON THE TRAILS. AND THEY'RE GETTING COMPLAINTS FROM PARK USERS ABOUT THE SITUATION. THAT WAS JUST GETTING WORSE. AND I THINK AT FIRST THERE WAS APPREHENSION ABOUT PARTICIPATING IN THE PROGRAM BOTH BECAUSE OF POTENTIALLY THE PUBLIC VIEW OF THINGS AND THEN FEELING LIKE THERE MIGHT NOT BE THAT MUCH THAT THEY COULD DO. YOU CAN SEE THAT WYATT DESCRIBES FEELING HELPLESS AT THE BEGINNING. BUT ONCE WE STARTED WORKING WITH HIM, HE WAS ABLE TO EXPLAIN TO COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND PARK USERS WHAT WE WERE DOING. TIFFANY GOT IN CLOSE CONTACT WITH ONE OF THE FEEDERS OUT THERE WHO WAS HELPING IDENTIFY CATS, IDENTIFY WHERE THEY MIGHT BE WHEN THEY'RE GETTING FED, AND THEN WE CAN COORDINATE WITH THEM TO STOP THE FEEDING. SO THE CATS ARE HUNGRY AND THEY'RE MORE LIKELY TO ENTER THE TRAPS. AND YOU CAN YOU CAN SEE THAT WE WERE REALLY SUCCESSFUL, THAT WYATT WAS ABLE TO CATCH SO MANY CATS. AND THIS PICTURE IN THE BOTTOM CORNERS OF THE TWO, MORE RECENT KITTENS THAT HE THAT HE CAUGHT OUT THERE. SO HE SAYS OVERALL, WE'RE SEEING LESS CAT ACTIVITY. AND IN GENERAL, IT'S A VERY POSITIVE AND ENTHUSIASTIC RESPONSE TO THE PROGRAM. AND THAT'S ALL WE HAVE FOR YOU, AND WE'D BE HAPPY TO TAKE QUESTIONS. COULD WE HAVE YOU REPEAT YOUR NAME AGAIN FOR THE RECORD, WE WEREN'T ABLE TO CAPTURE IT IN THE BEGINNING. OH. I'M SORRY. YEAH, THE MIC MIGHT NOT HAVE BEEN ON. YES. SO I'M NATALIE REEDER, A WILDLIFE BIOLOGIST WITH THE STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. IF THERE ARE ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC THAT WANT TO PARTICIPATE, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HANDS IN THE ZOOM ROOM SO THAT WE KNOW AND I CAN ADJUST OUR TIME ACCORDINGLY. MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE. YEAH. SO, YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THERE ARE CATS OUT THERE IN OUR PARKS, BUT IT'S NOT FOR LACK OF TRYING. WE NOW KNOW THAT BECAUSE YOU JUST TOLD US ALL THE STUFF YOU'RE DOING AND WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT. MAYBE THERE'S SOMETHING UNKNOWABLE HERE, BUT I WANT TO KNOW IT. HOW MANY ARE OUT THERE? I MEAN, DO WE EVER. DO WE EVER DO SURVEYS OR COUNTS? OR DO WE HAVE A SENSE OF, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, MLK, YOU KNOW, HOW MANY ARE OUT THERE, YOU KNOW, AND IS THE NUMBER DROPPING BECAUSE OF THESE EFFORTS? I WILL SAY THAT WE KNOW VERY HYPER LOCALLY. SO FOR INSTANCE, AT BIG BREAK, WE YOU KNOW, WE THOUGHT THERE WERE SIX CATS INITIALLY AND THEN WE STARTED TRAPPING AND THERE WERE MORE AND MORE AND MORE AND MORE. AND NOW WE'VE CAUGHT OVER 25. BUT WITH COMMUNICATION WITH BOTH THE COMMUNITY CAT, SORRY, THE CAT CARETAKERS AND PARK STAFF, WE THINK THERE'S ONLY 5 OR 6 OUT THERE NOW CURRENTLY. MLK AS WELL, TIFFANY WILL KNOW REALLY WELL BECAUSE SHE DID A LOT OF THAT WORK IN THE FIRST YEAR OF THE PROGRAM. SO I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY ABOUT THE NUMBERS YOU WERE SEEING OUT THERE AND THEN WHAT YOU HAVE NOW. DEFINITELY. THE NUMBERS HAVE DECREASED. I'M NOT REALLY I'M OUT THERE A LOT AND I'M NOT SEEING CATS. WHEREAS AT THE BEGINNING YOU WOULD SEE CATS RUNNING AROUND. I ALSO HAD A FRIEND THAT SHE RUNS A LOT ON THE TRAILS, AND SHE WOULD TEXT ME PRETTY MUCH DAILY BACK AT THE BEGINNING, AND SHE WOULD TAKE ME PICTURES. SHE WOULD SEND ME PICTURES OF LOCATIONS AND THE CATS. AND NOW SHE'S LIKE, YOU GUYS MUST BE DOING A GREAT JOB BECAUSE I'M NOT FINDING ANY CATS ON THESE TRAILS. NOT TO SAY THAT THERE'S NO CATS, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT'S PROBABLY NOT IT, BUT THERE'S DEFINITELY LESS. IT'S NICE TO HAVE A SPOTTER OUT THERE FOR YOU. YES. YEAH. AND I WILL SAY ALSO THAT WE KNOW THAT WE'RE NOT GOING TO BE GETTING RID OF CATS ENTIRELY. THERE ARE ALWAYS MORE COMING IN FROM THE COMMUNITY. WE OBVIOUSLY LIVE IN A DENSE URBAN AREA, AND PEOPLE HAVE CATS OUTDOORS, AND SOME OF THEM ARE NOT SPAYED OR NEUTERED. SO WE ARE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO AFFECT THE POPULATION OVERALL IN THE BAY AREA, AND THERE WILL ALWAYS BE CATS COMING IN, BUT WE WERE ABLE TO TACKLE THESE LOCALIZED CAT COLONIES, AND OFTENTIMES WHEN WE START TRAPPING, WE'LL KIND OF IDENTIFY, OKAY, WE HAVE THREE BLACK CATS, A TABBY AND A CALICO, YOU KNOW. SO WE'LL ALMOST KNOW THE INDIVIDUAL CATS. AND THEN WE'LL KNOW WHEN WE CATCH THEM. AND OBVIOUSLY THEY'RE NO LONGER IN THE PARK. WE DID HAVE FEEDBACK FROM PARK STAFF DURING OUR TRAINING THAT THEY'RE ASKING, YOU KNOW, WOULDN'T IT BE BETTER FOR US TO ELIMINATE THE CATS ENTIRELY? AND WE HAVE TO EXPLAIN, YOU KNOW, WE'RE REALLY DOING THE BEST THAT WE CAN WITH THE RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE. [01:40:01] OUR COMMUNITY AT LARGE DOES NOT DEDICATE ENOUGH TO PROVIDING SPAY NEUTER SERVICES FOR THE COMMUNITY. A LOW COST SPAY NEUTER AT A SHELTER THAT I VOLUNTEER AT IS $150. AND FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE, THAT'S NOT ACCESSIBLE. THERE'S ALSO A SHORTAGE OF APPOINTMENTS. SO IT'S A LARGER COMMUNITY PROBLEM. AND WE'RE REALLY DOING YOU KNOW, IT'S VERY SUCCESSFUL FOR OUR THE PURPOSES OF THIS PROGRAM, FOR OUR LITTLE LOCALIZED AREAS. AND WE'RE AND WE ARE REALLY SEEING AN IMPACT. BUT IT'S NEVER GOING TO BE PERFECT. SO WE'RE HOPING WE CAN GET TO TO GOOD OR BETTER. WELL, YOU'VE PROVIDED A VERY COMPREHENSIVE REPORT FOR US. IT'S VERY HELPFUL. I ESPECIALLY WANT TO APPRECIATE THE GRAPHIC SHOWING ONE CAT AND THEN HOW MANY WAS IT, 40 CATS OR SOMETHING DOWN BELOW, YOU KNOW YOU KNOW, YOU CAN TELL US THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE CATS ARE DOING ALL THIS STUFF. BUT WHEN YOU SEE IT OUT THERE GRAPHICALLY AND THAT'S REALLY THE WAY IT IS, YOU KNOW? SO THANKS FOR USING YOUR SENSITIVITY AND YOUR IMAGINATION TO HELP US OUT. CERTAINLY. YEAH. DENNIS. YEAH. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. AND THANK YOU FOR TACKLING THIS. I REMEMBER THREE YEARS AGO WHAT AN EMOTIONAL ISSUE THIS WAS WITH EVERYBODY. AND IT SEEMS LIKE YOU'VE GOT A REALLY, REALLY GOOD PLAN. I GUESS I HAD THE SAME QUESTION THAT JOHN DID. I MEAN, YOU HAVE GREAT STATISTICS WHERE YOU'VE CAUGHT CATS OR HOW MANY CATS YOU'VE CAUGHT WHERE YOU'VE CAUGHT THEM. I CAN'T, BUT THERE'S NO I MEAN, I'M ALSO TOLD THAT BACK IN THE TNR DAYS, ONCE A CAT WAS CAUGHT, THAT WAS SMART ENOUGH TO GO I'M NOT WALKING IN THAT CAGE ANYMORE. I DON'T CARE WHERE THE FOOD IS. AND SO THAT MEANS THERE WILL BE CATS OUT THERE THAT ARE NOT CAUGHT. AND SO YOU DON'T HAVE THOSE NUMBERS. I KNOW IT'S DIFFICULT. BUT IT ALSO MUST MEAN THAT THE POPULATION HAS GONE DOWN A LITTLE BIT IN MY OPINION. SO I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT. BUT I'M INTERESTED. ARE THERE ANY STATISTICS ON BECAUSE WE'VE TAKEN THIS STANCE OF WELL, I WON'T EVEN MENTION THE STANCE THAT WE'VE TAKEN, BUT HAVE WE LOST ANY MORE GROUND BIRDS AND ALL THE ENDANGERED SPECIES YOU'VE SHOWN THERE? IS THERE ANY WAY OF CALCULATING THAT LOSS? IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO KNOW. WE HAVE GOOD DATA ON ESPECIALLY THE TERN TOWN BIRDS. SO OUR SNOWY PLOVERS AND LEAST TERNS THAT NEST ON THAT ISLAND. WE ALSO HAVE CONTRACTORS OUT THERE MONITORING CONTRACTORS AND VOLUNTEERS MONITORING THAT COLONY VERY THOROUGHLY. AND THERE HAVE BEEN LOSSES OF CHICKS OUT THERE, BUT IT'S UNLIKELY THAT THOSE WERE DUE TO CATS. WE DID. WE HAVE CAMERAS UP THAT HAVE NOT CAUGHT CATS ACTUALLY ON THE ISLAND WHERE THE BIRDS NEST. WE HAVE A USDA OUT THERE TRAPPING, AND THEY HAVE TRAPPED CATS AND TAKEN THEM TO THE SHELTER AS PER THE POLICY. THEY HAVE NOT SEEN CATS ACTUALLY ON THE ISLAND. AND THERE JUST AREN'T THAT MANY CATS OUT THERE. CURRENTLY, BECAUSE OF ALL THESE EFFORTS LEADING UP TO THIS, THAT THERE HAVE BEEN LOTS OF TRAPS AND REMOVALS BEFORE NOW. WE HAVE CERTAINLY CATS THAT ARE LIVING OUTSIDE ARE KILLING NATIVE WILDLIFE. AND THERE'S THERE ARE PAPERS AND RESEARCH OUT THERE SORT OF ESTIMATING HOW MANY ANIMALS EACH CAT WILL EAT AND SOME. AND THEY'VE DOCUMENTED PREFERENCES IN CATS. SOME CATS PREFER BIRDS, SOME CATS PREFER PREFER LIZARDS, AND SOME PREFER MAMMALS. SO EACH INDIVIDUAL CAT WILL HAVE ITS OWN KIND OF AREA OR PART OF THE NATIVE SPECIES STRUCTURE THAT IT CONSUMES OR KILLS. AND THEN ALSO, DEPENDING ON WHERE THEY LIVE, HOW MUCH FOOD THEY'RE GETTING. IT'S VERY COMPLEX AND IT'S HARD FOR US TO KNOW BUT WE CAN ASSUME THAT WHEN WE REDUCE THE DENSITY OF CATS IN A CONCENTRATED AREA, THERE'S GOING TO BE LESS PREDATION ON NATIVE WILDLIFE JUST BECAUSE THERE AREN'T AS MANY CATS. SO, FOR INSTANCE, AT BIG BREAK THIS YEAR, WE WENT FROM HAVING SOMETHING LIKE 30 CATS TO FIVE CATS, AND THAT'S 25 FEWER PREDATORS OUT THERE POTENTIALLY KILLING BIRDS. AND THEN I GUESS ALONG THE LINES OF IF I KNOW THERE'S SIGNAGE AND EDUCATION AND BROCHURES AND EVERYTHING. BUT FROM MY EXPERIENCE, FOLKS ARE PRETTY PASSIONATE ABOUT FEEDING CATS AND SOME OF THEM RETURNING CATS. SO IF SOMEBODY IS FEEDING AND IT SEEMS LIKE IN MY WORKING IN THE PARK DISTRICT, IT WAS THE SAME PERSON EVERY NIGHT. YEAH. SO IT'S NOT LIKE YOU HAVE TO CATCH THEM. [01:45:01] SO WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO ANYTHING, RIGHT? WE'RE NOT GOING TO CITE THEM. WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO ANYTHING. WE'RE JUST GOING TO BE COMPASSIONATE, WHICH I UNDERSTAND. BUT AND I GUESS I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S AN ANSWER TO THAT ONE. I BET THERE IS. BUT MY ANOTHER ONE WAS IS TNR NOT POPULAR ANYMORE? BECAUSE IT'S GREAT THAT WE SAY WE DON'T DO IT ANYMORE, BUT THERE'S A WHOLE LOT OF PEOPLE OUT THERE THAT PASSIONATELY CAME FOR OUR BOARD MEETINGS, SAY TNR, TNR, TNR, TNR, TNR. AND IT WAS INGRAINED. IT WAS LIKE TATTOOED ON THEM. [LAUGHTER] AND SO THAT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE IN MY OPINION BECAUSE IS THERE ANY STATISTICS ON THAT? YEAH. STILL PEOPLE RELEASING CATS IN THE PARK. AND DO WE DO ANYTHING? SURE. SO IT IS STILL A VIOLATION OF ORDINANCE 38 TO FEED OR ABANDON CATS IN THE PARKS. AND WHAT WE HAVE FOUND IS THAT IF WE SIMPLY COME AT PEOPLE WITH A CITATION, THEY WILL JUST DO THEIR ACTIVITY IN SECRET. THEY WILL CHANGE THEIR TIMING TO AVOID DETECTION. THEY'LL COME LATE AT NIGHT. THEY'LL COME EARLY IN THE MORNING. IT'S REALLY DIFFICULT TO STOP PEOPLE. AND THEY REALLY DO LIKE YOU SAID, THEY CARE A LOT ABOUT THE CATS. AND THEY KNOW THAT IF THEY DON'T GO THERE, THE CATS ARE EXPECTING THEM TO COME AND FEED THEM EVERY DAY. THEY FEEL THAT PERSONALLY THAT THOSE CATS ARE HUNGRY AND THAT THEY'RE NOT THERE FEEDING THEM. SO PEOPLE ARE VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT IT. I THINK THE APPROACH THAT WE'VE TAKEN IS WE TRY TO GET THEM TO WORK WITH US. SO MANY OF THEM. I THINK I DESCRIBED IT TO OUR PARK STAFF AND OUR TRAINING IS THERE'S A SPECTRUM. THERE ARE GOING TO BE PEOPLE WHO WANT THE CATS IN THE PARKS, AND THEY WILL DO REALLY ANYTHING THEY CAN TO MAINTAIN THAT. AND THOSE ARE NOT NECESSARILY PEOPLE WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO REACH. AND THEN YOU HAVE A SPECTRUM ALL THE WAY TO THE OTHER END WHERE THERE'S, YOU KNOW, VERY REASONABLE PEOPLE WHO WE WANT TO WORK WITH. THEY DON'T WANT THE CATS IN THE PARKS BECAUSE THEY KNOW IT'S NOT A SAFE PLACE FOR THEM. WE WOULD ALL PREFER IF EACH OF THESE CATS HAD BEEN BORN INTO A HOME AND LIVED INSIDE, PROTECTED, MAYBE WITH A CATIO, MAYBE GOING OUT ON A LEASH. BUT THAT'S UNFORTUNATELY NOT THE REALITY. BUT WE WANT TO REALLY CATCH THOSE PEOPLE AND GET THEM TO WORK WITH US. AND WHEN WE'RE APPROACHING IT FROM WE'RE TAKING THESE CATS, WE HAVE THIS GREAT ALTERNATIVE THAT TIFFANY HAS DEVELOPED AND WORKED SO HARD ON TO GET THESE CATS INTO WORKING CAT PLACEMENTS, RATHER THAN RETURNING THEM TO OPEN SPACE. SO THAT'S BETTER THAN TNR FOR THE CATS. IT'S BETTER THAN TNR FOR WILDLIFE. THERE IS STILL A LOT OF TNR HAPPENING ALL OVER THE WORLD, AND A LOT OF TIMES IT'S JUST THE BEST OPTION AMONG A LOT OF BAD OPTIONS. THERE ARE ALSO DIFFERENT CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE IF YOU HAVE LIKE A BACKYARD COLONY OR A PARKING LOT COLONY THAT'S NOT REALLY CLOSE TO OPEN SPACE, TNR CAN BE A GREAT TOOL THERE BECAUSE THEY'VE GOT A REGULAR CARETAKER. THERE'S SOMEBODY WATCHING OUT FOR THEM. YOU TRAP THOSE CATS, GET THEM FIXED, VACCINATED, RETURN THEM, AND SOMEBODY TAKES CARE OF THEM, EVEN THOUGH THEY'RE STILL MOSTLY WILD CATS. FERAL CATS. AND THEY CAN LIVE OUT THEIR LIVES THERE. WE DON'T DO THAT IN THE PARKS BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT EVEN A FIXED CAT, EVEN A SPAYED OR NEUTERED CAT, WILL STILL PURSUE AND KILL NATIVE WILDLIFE. SO THIS IS AN EXCELLENT ALTERNATIVE THAT HAS BEEN WORKING REALLY WELL FOR US. I DON'T KNOW IF YOU WANT TO ADD ANYTHING ON THAT POINT. YEAH, I MEAN, TNR IS DEFINITELY STILL VERY POPULAR OUT THERE. WE'RE DOING TONS OF IT. IT'S JUST NOT IN THE PARKS. IN TERMS OF SPEAKING WITH PEOPLE INSIDE THE PARKS. YEAH. LIKE NATALIE SAID, THERE'S THAT THAT SPECTRUM OF PEOPLE THAT DON'T WANT THE CATS IN THERE. THEY'RE JUST TRYING TO DO THE RIGHT THING BY FEEDING THEM. AND THEN THERE'S THE MORE DIFFICULT PEOPLE THAT ARE HARD TO REACH, AND WE MAY NOT REACH THEM AT ALL, BUT I ALSO TRY TO GO IN THE WAY OF SAYING, YOU KNOW, NOTHING, BECAUSE A LOT OF TIMES THESE PEOPLE ARE JUST WORRIED THAT SOMETHING BAD IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO THE CATS. THEY'RE GOING TO GO INTO THE SHELTER, THEY'RE GOING TO BE EUTHANIZED. AND SO I TRY TO EXPLAIN TO THEM THAT THEY'RE ACTUALLY GOING INTO A PROGRAM. AND A LOT OF TIMES I CAN GET THEM SWAYED THAT WAY. I DID FORGET TO MENTION ALSO THAT OUR NONPROFIT PARTNER, FERAL CHANGE, WHO IS NOW FULL CIRCLE CATS. THEY ARE TAKING A VERY SCIENCE BASED APPROACH TO TNR SO THEY DON'T HAVE THE CAPACITY TO TAKE ALL OF THE CATS THAT THEY CATCH THROUGHOUT THE URBAN AREAS TO WORKING CAT HOMES, ALTHOUGH THEY DO DO THAT, BUT THEY THEY KNOW THE SCIENCE BEHIND IT. YOU HAVE TO GET OVER 70% OF THE CATS IN AN AREA SPAYED AND NEUTERED TO HAVE ANY IMPACT ON DECREASING THE CAT POPULATION. SO A LOT OF TIMES WHEN PEOPLE DO TNR, THEY'RE NOT GETTING ANYWHERE NEAR THOSE NUMBERS. AND FERAL CHANGE FULL CIRCLE CATS IS DOING A GREAT JOB OF OF REALLY TRYING TO TO REACH THOSE NUMBERS AND GET TO A SCIENTIFICALLY [01:50:07] BASED TNR PROGRAM THAT SHOULD ACTUALLY HAVE AN EFFECT ON THE POPULATION OF THE CATS. THANKS VERY MUCH. I JUST THINK OF THEY ARE BEING RELOCATED OR REHOMED NOW RATHER THAN RETURNING TO PARKS. SO WE'RE STILL, I STILL THINK OF IT AS TNR, JUST NOT RETURNING TO PARKS. WE HAVE A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC WANTS TO COMMENT. YES WE DO. I WILL ELEVATE HIM. HANG OUT FOR A MINUTE. SURE. THANK YOU. THE JUST WANT TO POINT AT THE GIVE A BRIEF MENTION OF THE POLITICAL NATURE OF THE CAT ISSUE. THERE'S A WACKY AND RECKLESS POLITICIAN WHO SAID A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO THAT THE COUNTRY IS EFFECTIVELY RUN BY A BUNCH OF CHILDLESS CAT LADIES WHO ARE MISERABLE AT THEIR OWN LIVES AND THE CHOICES THAT THEY'VE MADE. AND SO THEY WANT TO MAKE THE REST OF THE COUNTRY MISERABLE, TOO. AND THIS IS IT'S WACKY AND RECKLESS. BECAUSE WHAT I'VE LEARNED, WHAT I'VE LEARNED IS WHEN YOU GOT INTO CATS, IT'S VERY POLITICAL. AND YOU GET INTO A LOT OF TROUBLE IF YOU SAY STUFF LIKE THIS, A LOT OF TROUBLE. AND THEN I WILL ALSO POINT OUT THAT IN FREMONT WHAT I'VE SEEN THE WILD AND MORE WILD PARKS THAT ARE RUN BY THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. I DON'T SEE TOO MANY CATS OUT THERE. I DON'T SEE. I SEE COYOTES, I DON'T SEE CATS. BUT I DO SEE IN FREMONT, CITY OF FREMONT PARKS THAT ARE YOU WALK DOWN A TRAIL NEXT TO A RAILROAD TRACK OR WHATEVER, AND YOU CAN SEE IN THE BUSHES, YOU CAN SMELL THE CAT FOOD, YOU CAN SEE THE STACKS OF LITTLE CANS OF CAT FOOD HERE, THERE AND EVERYWHERE AND THEN MIXED IN WITH THE GARBAGE AND EVERYTHING ELSE. AND SO SOMEBODY IS IT'S JUST IT'S NOT VERY SANITARY AND IT'S A LOT OF CAT FOOD AND FOR THAT MANY CANS OF CAT FOOD TO GET OUT THERE, THAT'S A LOT OF, A LOT OF CAT FOOD. THANKS. THANK YOU, THANK YOU KELLY. I WANT ONE I WANT TO SAY THAT THE WORK THAT YOU FOLKS ARE DOING IS ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE. AND, YOU KNOW, I KNOW WHAT TIFFANY WENT THROUGH OVER THOSE THREE YEARS TO THE POINT WHERE YOU WERE HANGING OUT AT VERY LATE EVENINGS TRAPPING CATS, AND YOU WERE TAKING A LOT OF GRIEF FOR SIMPLY WORKING WITH THE PARK DISTRICT. I MEAN, THERE WERE YOU KNOW, THAT'S TALK ABOUT POLITICAL. THAT COMMUNITY WAS QUITE HARSH ON US AND PEOPLE HELPING US, AND WE'VE WORKED THROUGH IT. I THINK WHAT WE'VE PUT INTO THIS IN TERMS OF BUDGETING FOR IT, FOR THIS PROGRAM YOU FOLKS HAVE DESCRIBED IS VERY VALUABLE, VERY WORTH IT. AND I WANTED ON THAT POINT, JUST TO ASK MATT QUICKLY, THIS WAS A THREE YEAR PROGRAM WHEN WE FIRST CAME UP WITH THE BUDGET TO PROMOTE CAT MANAGEMENT. AND I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THAT THIS WAS DONE NOT ONLY BECAUSE WE NEEDED TO WE HAD TO PROTECT ENDANGERED SPECIES, BUT WE WERE CONFRONTED WITH OUR CUSTOMERS, OUR TAXPAYERS, OUR USERS, ALL DEMANDING THAT WE HAVE A POLICY THAT DIDN'T INCLUDE LETHAL REMOVAL. SO HOW DO YOU DO THAT? AND I THINK THIS HAS BEEN IMMENSELY SUCCESSFUL. I JUST WANT TO PREFACE THE QUESTION WITH THIS HAS BEEN INCREDIBLY SUCCESSFUL FOR US, AND WHERE ARE WE WITH THE BUDGET FOR IT? BECAUSE I REMEMBER IT BEING A THREE YEAR PROGRAM. YEAH. THANKS FOR THE QUESTION, DIRECTOR COFFEY. SO, YEAH, WE'RE JUST IN THIS WITH THE THIRD YEAR OF FUNDING WILL BE DISTRIBUTED SOON THIS FALL, BECAUSE WHEN WE STARTED THE PROGRAM, WE DIDN'T GET IT ALL UP AND RUNNING UNTIL SUMMER AND FALL. SO WE STILL HAVE ONE MORE YEAR OF FUNDING DEDICATED. AND THEN WE'LL NEED TO THINK ABOUT WHO FUNDS THE ONGOING OPERATION. RIGHT NOW THE REGIONAL PARKS FOUNDATION COMMITTED THE FIRST THREE YEARS OF $25,000 A YEAR. AND SO WE'LL BE LOOKING WE'LL BE UTILIZING THAT MONEY FOR THE NEXT YEAR. BUT THEN IN 2026, WE'RE GOING TO REALLY NEED TO LOOK AT LONG TERM FUNDING. AND DOES THE FOUNDATION CONTINUE, OR DOES THE PARK DISTRICT UNDER OUR GENERAL FUND ESTABLISH A BUDGET FOR THIS ONGOING PROGRAM? ALL RIGHT. WELL, I FOR ONE, I SUSPECT THE BOARD WILL BE VERY SUPPORTIVE OF WHATEVER BUDGET NEEDS WITHIN REASON THAT YOU COME [01:55:01] UP WITH BECAUSE AGAIN, IT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR OUR CUSTOMERS THAT WE DO THIS AND CONTINUE TO DO IT SUCCESSFULLY. YEAH, I WOULD CERTAINLY HOPE SO. I MEAN, I THINK THEY CLEARLY WITH THE PRESENTATION TODAY AND THE PRESENTATION OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, WE'VE REALLY MADE A LOT OF PROGRESS AND THINGS HAVE GOTTEN TO A REALLY IT'S A GOOD, GOOD PLACE AS I MEAN, JUST AS WHEN, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT HAPPEN IN THE MEETINGS WITH THE ANIMAL SHELTERS, WE HAVE A LOT OF COMMON AREA OF OVERLAP THAT WE MAY NOT BE AWARE OF, JUST LIKE THE RABBIT PROGRAM THAT WAS HIGHLIGHTED IN THE PRESENTATION. SO THERE'S IT'S JUST BEEN A VERY BENEFICIAL PARTNERSHIP FOR BOTH SIDES. AND SO IT'S JUST SOMETHING WE'RE DEFINITELY GOING TO WANT TO CONTINUE. AND IT'S JUST BEEN REALLY REWARDING FOR EVERYONE INVOLVED. ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU NATALIE AND TIFFANY. ANY LAST QUESTIONS COMMENTS ON THE TOPIC. THANKS SO MUCH. GOOD TO SEE YOU. ALL RIGHT. ITEM 4C ANNUAL REPORT ON THE IPM. AND THIS IS GOING TO GO TO THE FULL BOARD CORRECT. DO WE TAKE THE IPM REPORT TO THE FULL BOARD. HELLO. HELLO. TESTING 123. A FULL REPORT IS FORTHCOMING. IT'S ALMOST DONE. WE'RE IN FORMATTING THAT WILL BE RELEASED TO THE ENTIRE BOARD AS WELL AS THE PUBLIC. IT WILL BE ON OUR WEBSITE. OKAY. DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION? YES OKAY. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR WAESPI, COFFEY, MERCURIO. SHOULD I WAIT? NO. HAD A POTTY BREAK? NO. HE'LL BE RIGHT BACK. EXCELLENT. ALL RIGHT, SO MY NAME IS PAMELA BEITZ. I'M THE IPM SPECIALIST IN THE STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT. THIS IS OUR ANNUAL REVIEW, SO BEAR WITH ME. I KNOW YOU'VE ALL HEARD ME SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS OF INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT. SO HERE WE ARE AGAIN. WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT IS IPM OR INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT. WE'LL TALK SPECIFICALLY ABOUT SOME OF OUR TRAINING UPDATES PROGRAMS. WE'LL GO INTO 2023 HERBICIDE USE TRENDS AND THEN WE'LL TALK ABOUT SPECIFIC GOALS AND CASE STUDIES THAT ILLUSTRATE THOSE GOALS. I'LL BE HERE TALKING WITH YOU TODAY. AND THEN I HAVE SOME OF OUR STAFF, OUR IPM AND VEGETATION ECOLOGISTS. THEY'LL EACH TAKE A SLIDE AND THEY'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SOME OF THE ONE OF THE PROJECTS THAT THEY RUN IN MORE IN DEPTH. AND I'LL INTRODUCE THEM WHEN IT'S THEIR TURN. SO IPM PHILOSOPHY AND PRACTICE. YOU'VE PROBABLY ALL SEEN THIS BY NOW. THIS IS THE IPM TRIANGLE. AND THIS HELPS ILLUSTRATE JUST CONCEPTUALLY, NOT JUST THE SPECIFIC METHODS THAT MAKE UP INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT, BUT ALSO THEIR RELEVANCY, THEIR RELEVANT IMPORTANCE. AND YOU'LL NOTICE AT THE VERY BOTTOM IN THE GREEN OR CULTURAL CATEGORY IS PREVENTION AND EDUCATION AND DESIGN. SO CULTURAL PRACTICES IN THE INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT PARADIGM ARE THINGS THAT CHANGE THE ENVIRONMENT WITHIN WHICH A PEST BECOMES PROBLEMATIC. AND THAT BEGS THE QUESTION WHAT IS A PEST? A PEST IS ANYTHING THAT IS INJURIOUS TO SOMETHING THAT IS IMPORTANT TO US, LIKE A CROP, OUR NATURAL RESOURCES, ECOSYSTEM FUNCTIONING AS WELL AS RECREATIONAL SERVICES AND PUBLIC HEALTH. SO THOSE ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF EXPERIENCES OR COMMODITIES THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO US, THAT A PEST THEN CAN BECOME AN ISSUE. SO A CULTURAL METHOD IS SOMETHING THAT CHANGES THAT ENVIRONMENT WITHIN WHICH A PEST BECOMES PREVALENT. AND THE MOST IMPORTANT HANDS DOWN AND YOU'LL HEAR IT SEVERAL TIMES. JUST WARNING YOU NOW IS PREVENTION, RIGHT? SO WHY WORK ON SOMETHING MAKE SOMETHING BETTER WHILE YOU'RE TRAILING BEHIND ALL OF THE SEEDS FROM YELLOW STAR-THISTLE, RIGHT. SO WHEN WE WORK ON A YELLOW STAR-THISTLE PROJECT, FOR INSTANCE, OR ANY OTHER WEED, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE INCORPORATING PREVENTATIVE PRACTICES LIKE CLEAN EQUIPMENT, REQUIRING OUR CONTRACTORS TO HAVE CLEAN EQUIPMENT, ASKING PARK STAFF TO MAKE SURE THAT WHEN THEY COME INTO THEIR PARKS, THEY ARE DRIVING WITH CLEAN EQUIPMENT. SO THESE ARE ALL DIFFERENT PRACTICES THAT PREVENT THE THE INTRODUCTION AND ALSO THE SPREAD OF SOME OF THESE PESTS. WE ALSO EDUCATION IS A BIG PART OF THAT. SO PROVIDING THE PUBLIC WITH MORE INFORMATION ON OUR WEBSITE. SO IF YOU'VE BEEN TO OUR WEBSITE RECENTLY UNDER THE IPM TAB, YOU'LL SEE A LOT MORE INFORMATION BOTH ABOUT WEEDS AND ALSO ABOUT PLANT PATHOGENS. THAT'S A CRITICAL ASPECT OF OUR WORK. AND THEN ULTIMATELY DESIGN WHEN WE BUILD RECREATIONAL RESOURCES, TRAILS, BUILDINGS, VISITOR CENTERS WATER DEVELOPMENTS, WE WANT TO INCORPORATE ELEMENTS IN THAT DESIGN THAT CAN REDUCE PEST PRESSURE OR MAKE IT EASIER TO CONTROL THEM WHEN THEY DO BECOME AN ISSUE. SO THERE'S A LOT OF CONSTRUCTION PRACTICES THAT REALLY HELP HARDEN OFF THE ENVELOPE OF A BUILDING, SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE TO USE MORE INTENSE RODENT [02:00:08] TRAPPING, MONITORING AND TRAPPING AND KILLING ACTIVITIES AS AN EXAMPLE. THEN WE MOVE UP THE PYRAMID AND YOU'LL SEE PHYSICAL AND MECHANICAL. MOST OF WHAT WE DO IN THE PARKS IS PHYSICAL AND MECHANICAL. WE DO A LOT OF LINE TRIMMING, A LOT OF WEEDING, A LOT OF HAND PULLING, A LOT OF MULCHING. THIS IS THE BREAD AND BUTTER OF PARKS, PARK STAFF. AND THEN AS WE MOVE UP YOU'LL SEE BIOLOGICAL COMES NEXT. GENERALLY PRACTICE LESS BECAUSE THEY OFTEN THIS IS SOMETHING THAT REQUIRES PERMITS. WE HAVE THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE THAT RUNS A PROGRAM WHERE THEY WILL RELEASE PREDATORS OF PLANT SPECIES TO HELP CONTROL THEIR NUMBERS. SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE PARTNER WITH, BUT WE DON'T NECESSARILY RELEASE THOSE AGENTS. BUT WE ALSO DO, ON A STAFF LEVEL, PROMOTE THE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE OF NATIVE SPECIES AS WELL AS EXOTIC ANNUAL GRASSES. SO WE'LL WORK ON PROJECTS WITH GRAZING AND WITH OTHER AND PARK STAFF SPECIFICALLY TO HELP PROMOTE THOSE COMPETITIVE SPECIES. SO WHEN WE CONTROL ONE, WE WANT TO AUGMENT THE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE OF OTHERS SO THAT WE CAN HELP CONTROL THOSE SPECIES. THEY BECOME A PEST NO LONGER THEY'VE GONE BELOW THAT THRESHOLD WHERE THEY'RE DAMAGING SOMETHING. AND THEN FINALLY, AT THE VERY TOP IS THE CHEMICAL. THIS CAN BE ORGANIC CHEMICALS OR CONVENTIONAL CHEMICALS. WE OFTEN LOOK AT THAT TOP LITTLE CORNER AND THINK, OH, THAT'S THE LAST RESORT. BUT SOMETIMES IT'S THE FIRST STEP IN BRINGING A SYSTEM BACK INTO A CONTROL SO THAT WE CAN USE THINGS LIKE CULTURAL OR MECHANICAL AND PHYSICAL. AND YOU BROUGHT UP THE BRIONES PROJECT. THAT'S A CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF WHERE WE USED CHEMICAL AS A FIRST STEP TO REALLY DROP DOWN THAT SEED. THIS NOT ONLY THE PLANTS OF ONE SEASON, BUT THE SEED PRODUCTION OF ANOTHER, AND THEN THE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE OF SOME OF THOSE EXOTIC ANNUAL GRASSES AND A LOT OF THOSE NATIVE GRASSES AND ALSO BEAUTIFUL NATIVE FORBS PROVIDE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE AND REALLY REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF RECRUITMENT AND GERMINATION AND RECRUITMENT OF THAT YELLOW STAR-THISTLE. THAT'S A GREAT EXAMPLE OF HOW SOMETIMES WE HAVE TO START WITH ONE IN ORDER TO USE SUCCESSFULLY OTHER METHODS. SO TRAINING AND GUIDELINES EVERY YEAR WE TRAIN 150 TO 180 PARK STAFF, PARK RANGERS, PARK CRAFT SPECIALISTS AND GARDENERS IN HOW TO USE PESTICIDES IN A SAFE MANNER. THIS IS A LEGALLY REQUIRED TRAINING. STAFF GENERALLY DON'T HAVE THE LICENSES TO APPLY PESTICIDES, PRIMARILY HERBICIDES IN OUR INSTANCE. AND SO THEY DO THAT UNDER OUR LICENSES, MINE AND AS WELL AS OUR STAFF. AND THEN WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR TRAINING THEM. WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR GATHERING THEIR DATA AND REPORTING THAT TO THE COUNTIES. IN ADDITION, IN 2023, WE FINISHED THE PRODUCTION OF AN EDUCATIONAL VIDEO. YOU CAN SEE THAT ON OUR WEBSITE UNDER SOIL PATHOGEN PREVENTION. AND THIS IS DESIGNED TO BOTH EDUCATE AND INSPIRE FOLKS. AND YOU CAN SEE A LITTLE SNAPSHOT FROM THE VIDEO UP IN THE UPPER LEFT HAND CORNER, MY LEFT HAND CORNER. AND THIS IS DESIGNED TO INSPIRE AND EDUCATE BOTH PARK STAFF AND THE PUBLIC IN HOW TO STOP THE INTRODUCTION AND SPREAD OF SOIL BORNE PATHOGENS. SO YOU HAVE ALL HEARD ABOUT SUDDEN OAK DEATH. THIS IS A PHYTOPHTHORA, BUT IT'S AIRBORNE AND IT IS A TERRIBLE DISEASE. BUT WE ACTUALLY HAVE SOIL BORNE PHYTOPHTHORA THAT ARE MUCH MORE PREVALENT AND CAUSE DAMAGE. WE JUST DON'T SEE IT AS READILY. AND SO THIS IS DESIGNED TO HELP FOLKS BOTH KEEP THEIR EQUIPMENT CLEAN, THEIR SHOES CLEAN, BUT ALSO NOT INTRODUCE PLANTS FROM NURSERY STOCK THAT COULD BE INFECTED WITH PHYTOPHTHORA. THIS IS A VOLUNTARY VIDEO. WE ASK ALL PARK STAFF TO LOOK AT THAT, TO BECOME AWARE OF THAT, AND THEN WE ARE HAPPY TO COME INTO PARKS TO SHOW THEM, YOU KNOW, WAYS IN WHICH OR PROBLEM SOLVE WAYS IN WHICH THEY CAN KEEP THEIR EQUIPMENT CLEAN, EITHER ON A DAILY BASIS OR ON A PROJECT BY PROJECT BASIS. ADDITIONALLY, WE'VE WORKED WITH A CONTRACTOR TO PRODUCE BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES FOR THOSE PARTS THAT HAVE NURSERIES. SO MANY OF OUR PARKS ACTUALLY HAVE EITHER A PROPAGATING NURSERY OR THEY'LL HAVE A HOLDING NURSERY WHEN THEY BUY PLANTS, THEY'LL BRING THEM INTO AN AREA AND THEY'LL HOLD THEM THERE. THIS IS A GREAT PLACE FOR PHYTOPHTHORA TO GET INTRODUCED OR ONCE INTRODUCED, SPREAD INTO THE INTO OUR PARKS. SO THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR PARKS TO VOLUNTARILY FOLLOW THESE RECOMMENDATIONS IN ORDER TO REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF DISEASE THAT WE INTRODUCE. IN THE LONG RUN, THAT REDUCES THE AMOUNT OF WORK THEY HAVE TO DO. WE HAVE MANY NEW PLANTINGS AND MANY NEW DEVELOPMENTS THAT ARE FAILING, AND WE HAVE ALREADY DONE TESTING. WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO IDENTIFY PHYTOPHTHORA SPECIES THAT ARE TYPICAL FROM NURSERIES. THESE ARE AREAS THAT PARK STAFF WANT TO REPLANT. [02:05:01] RIGHT. SO WE WANT TO STOP THE INTRODUCTION AND THEN WE WANT TO HELP GUIDE THEM IN PLANT SELECTION THAT ARE WITH PLANTS THAT ARE MUCH MORE RESILIENT TO PHYTOPHTHORA SPECIES. SO WE CAN MAKE OUR STAGING AREAS AND OUR PARK ENTRANCES BEAUTIFUL AND INVITING AND ALSO EDUCATIONAL. AND THEN EVERY DAY WE PROVIDE SCIENCE BASED TECHNICAL SUPPORT. PARKS CALL US OUT TO DO TRAINING ON WEEDS, WEED ECOLOGY, WEED BIOLOGY, HOW TO USE SPRAY EQUIPMENT, HOW TO USE MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT, BEST WAYS TO DO CUTTING WITH LINE TRIMMERS AND MOWING LOW OR HIGH. ALL OF THESE THINGS WE COME OUT TO HELP PARK STAFF WITH AND VERY EXCITING WERE WE'VE BEEN IN DEVELOPMENT OF PARK PLANS PARK BY PARK BASIS AND INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT PLAN THAT IS DESIGNED TO BE EXPANDABLE, CONTRACTABLE ADJUSTABLE AND IT IS DRIVEN BY THE PARK STAFF, THE PEOPLE THAT KNOW THEIR PARKS THE BEST. THIS STARTS WITH DIGITIZING THE PARK MAINTENANCE AREAS. THESE ARE THE AREAS THAT ARE UNDER ANNUAL MAINTENANCE EVERY YEAR. THE PICNIC AREAS, THE AREAS WHERE WE HAVE INFESTATIONS OF ARTICHOKE THISTLE, YELLOW STAR-THISTLE, ETC. ALONG RECREATIONAL AND HABITAT ENHANCEMENT LINES. THESE PMAS BECOME DIGITIZED. WE MEMORIALIZE THE ACTUAL WORK THAT PARK STAFF DO EVERY DAY, EVERY MONTH, EVERY YEAR. AND THEN WE PUT THAT INTO A SYSTEM WHERE WE CAN HELP THEM PRIORITIZE THE WORK THEY DO. WE CAN GROUP PLANTS TOGETHER. WE CAN GROUP AREAS TOGETHER, HELP PRIORITIZE AND MAKE THEM MORE EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE. AND THEN SUPER EXCITING. WORKING WITH OUR GIS DEPARTMENT, WE THEY HAVE CREATED A DASHBOARD. SO THIS PLAN IS NOT A BOOK THAT SITS ON THE SHELF IN A THREE RING BINDER THAT GETS, THAT GATHERS DUST, RIGHT? THIS IS A DIGITAL DASHBOARD IN WHICH THEIR PLAN LIVES CAN BE UPDATED, ADJUSTED, AND REPORTED ON. SO I MANY OF YOU KNOW MECHANICAL PEST MANAGEMENT, VEGETATION MANAGEMENT TRULY IS THE BIGGEST JOB THAT WE DO OUT IN THE PARKS. WE CONTROL PESTS LIKE YELLOW JACKETS, GOPHERS, VOLES AND TO A GREAT DEGREE, VEGETATION, PRIMARILY THROUGH MECHANICAL PEST MANAGEMENT. BUT THAT'S A DIFFICULT THING TO TRACK, RIGHT? BECAUSE EACH PARK DOES MORE MOWING. ONE PARK WILL DO MORE MOWING, ONE PARK WILL DO MORE TRAPPING, ONE PARK WILL DO MORE HAND PULLING. IT'S DIFFICULT TO STANDARDIZE THAT DATA. WE TRIED AND GATHERED OUT ALL TOGETHER AND PUT IT INTO THE INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT ANNUAL REPORT, BECAUSE WE REALLY WANT THE PUBLIC AND YOU TO KNOW THAT THIS IS NOT A PESTICIDE REPORT. THIS IS A REPORT ON OUR INTEGRATED APPROACHES BECAUSE WE DO A GREAT DEAL OF THAT. HOWEVER, WE ARE LEGALLY REGULATED AND MANDATED TO REPORT OUR PESTICIDE USE AND THEREFORE THAT DATA IS EXTREMELY EASY TO GATHER MANAGE AND DISPLAY SO THAT WE CAN LOOK AT TRENDS AND PRACTICES. SO YOU'LL SEE THE BULK OF WHAT WE TALK ABOUT MAY BE HERBICIDE TRENDS, BUT WE TRY TO REALLY HIGHLIGHT THE INTEGRATED ASPECT OF EACH ONE OF OUR IPM GOALS, WHICH WE'LL GO THROUGH. I DO WANT TO CALL OUT THAT MY TWO PREVIOUS OUR TWO PREVIOUS PRESENTATIONS. THOSE ARE GOING TO BE TOUGH ACTS TO FOLLOW. THE GRAZING. WHAT A GREAT OVERVIEW. OUR BIGGEST VEGETATION MANAGEMENT TOOL IS GRAZING. 87,000 ACRES. AND SO AND THAT'S A CULTURAL PRACTICE. AND THEN WE WORK TOGETHER WITH OUR GRAZING COLLEAGUES TO ADD ADDITIONAL INTEGRATED METHODS, MECHANICAL, CHEMICAL, SO THAT WE CAN CREATE A MUCH MORE RESILIENT GRASSLAND OR GRASSLAND SHRUBLAND MOSAIC. SO LET'S JUMP INTO PESTICIDE TRENDS. AS I MENTIONED, IT'S CONTROLLED, REGULATED, MONITORED AND DOCUMENTED. SO WE GATHER ALL THAT DATA, BOTH FROM PARK STAFF, FROM OTHER BIOLOGISTS IN OUR DEPARTMENT, CONTRACTORS, THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION, ALL DEPARTMENTS WITHIN THE DISTRICT. WE GATHER THAT DATA AND WE COLLATE THAT TOGETHER AND WE REPORT ON THAT. IT'S A HUGE DATABASE. I THINK WE HAVE UPWARDS OF 2000 ENTRIES PER YEAR, MAYBE UPWARDS OF THREE. AND THEN WE PRODUCE THIS YEARLY REPORT IN ORDER TO BE TRANSPARENT WITH THE PUBLIC. THAT YEARLY REPORT IS DONE, BUT IT'S BEING IT'S BEING MADE PRETTY BECAUSE I'M NOT VERY GOOD AT THAT. SO IT'S WITH PUBLIC AFFAIRS AND THEY'RE GOING TO PUT IT INTO THAT BEAUTIFUL FORMAT THAT YOU SEE EVERY YEAR. AND WE LIKE TO TRACK ALL OF THIS USE BOTH FOR EFFECTIVENESS AND TRENDS. SO IN DON'T LOOK AT I MEAN LOOK AT THIS TABLE BUT DON'T GET LOST IN IT'S VERY BUSY. IT'S VERY BIG. THERE'S NOT A MESSAGE RIGHT NOW OTHER THAN THIS TABLE IS JUST ONE SNIPPET. AND THIS IS OUR OUR COMMITMENT TO TRANSPARENCY. SO WE CAPTURE ALL THAT DATA AND WE REPORT BY PARK. [02:10:03] SO YOU'LL SEE ON THE X AXIS OR THE VERTICAL AXIS, THE PARK ACROSS THE TOP ARE ALL OF THE DIFFERENT PRODUCTS THAT ARE USED BOTH HERBICIDE AND SURFACTANTS IN VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, THIS IS ALL IN PARKS. THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE GOLF COURSE, STRUCTURAL PEST CONTROL AND CONVENTIONAL FARMS. THOSE ARE IN SEPARATE TABLES, BUT THIS IS BY PARK. AND THEN IF YOU MOVE OVER A LITTLE BIT, YOU'LL SEE UNDER WHICH GOAL DID WE USE THAT PRODUCT. AND THEN FURTHER OVER YOU'LL SEE WHO DID IT. YOU'LL SEE WHETHER IT WAS A CONTRACTOR, WHETHER IT WAS IPM STAFF, FIRE STAFF, ETC.. WE ALSO PUT A BIG TABLE OF FIVE YEAR TRENDS ACROSS MULTIPLE ACROSS MULTIPLE SPECIFIC PRODUCTS. WE CAN'T ANALYZE ALL OF THE PRODUCTS THAT ARE POTENTIALLY USED OUT THERE, BUT WE DO TRY TO FOCUS ON THE BIGGEST ONES THAT WE UTILIZE. AND SO WE HAVE FIVE BINS OF DIFFERENT PRODUCT USE. AND THIS IS A BUSY SLIDE. IT'S HARD TO DIGEST ON IN THIS FORMAT. SO WE'RE GOING TO BREAK THOSE OUT INTO SMALLER GRAPHS SO WE CAN TALK SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THEM. FIRST IS TRICLOPYR WHICH IS THE ACTIVE INGREDIENT IN THE GARLON PRODUCTS. NOW THIS IS A BROADLEAF SELECTIVE HERBICIDE. IT DOES NOT AFFECT GRASSES FOR THE MOST PART, AND IT'S ALSO THE MOST EFFECTIVE WOODY TREATMENT PRODUCT. SO WHEN WE CUT A EUCALYPTUS DOWN OR A BAY TREE DOWN OR OTHER READILY STUMP SPROUTING SPECIES, WE CUT THAT DOWN AND WE USE THIS PRODUCT AROUND THE AND WE APPLY IT AROUND THE PERIMETER OF THAT TRUNK WHERE THE LIVING TISSUE IS. AND THAT'S HOW WE KILL THE RESOURCES UNDERGROUND. ALL OF THE ROOTS LATERAL AND BIG CHUNKS OF ROOTS. SO THIS IS A BIG TOOL THAT WE USE IN OUR FUELS REDUCTION OR OUR HEALTHY FORESTS. IT'S ALSO A POWERFUL HABITAT ENHANCEMENT TOOL. A GREAT DEAL OF OUR INVASIVE SPECIES ARE BROADLEAF WEEDS LIKE YELLOW STAR-THISTLE, PURPLE STAR THISTLE, ARTICHOKE THISTLE, [INAUDIBLE] THISTLES, YOU'VE SEEN THEM, ALL THE MUSTARDS. SO IT'S A POWERFUL HABITAT ENHANCEMENT TOOL. IT'S ALSO APPROVED FOR USE IN ENVIRONMENTS NEAR HUMANS AND WILDLIFE, OFTENTIMES EVEN NEAR WATER AND IN WATER. YOU'LL SEE A PICTURE THERE OF ANTHONY CHABOT. THIS IS 2023 FUELS REDUCTION OR THE THINNING PROJECT THAT OCCURRED IN THE RED GUM RIGHT ALONG [INAUDIBLE] ROAD. YOU CAN SEE BEFORE AND YOU CAN SEE AFTER WHERE WE'VE THINNED THAT WE'VE REDUCED A LOT OF THOSE POLES AND MULTIPLE STEMS THAT HAD BEEN CUT BEFORE AND NOT TREATED. THEY'VE BEEN TREATED. AND THEN WE ALSO CONTROL FOR THE WEEDS UNDERNEATH YOU CAN SEE A MUCH HEALTHIER, MORE RESILIENT FOREST THERE. SO BREAKING OUT THAT TRICLOPYR USE YOU CAN SEE WE USED 174 GALLONS. THIS IS UP SUBSTANTIALLY FROM LAST YEAR BY 76%. A BIG, BIG INCREASE, BUT NOT A SURPRISE BECAUSE WE KNEW THAT AFTER OUR 2019 DIEBACK. DO YOU RECALL THAT 2019 DIEBACK, IN WHICH 2020, WE MADE OUR FIRST PILOT ENTRY INTO THE HEAVILY AFFECTED EUCALYPTUS GROVES IN ANTHONY CHABOT? WE'VE DONE EVEN MORE WORK IN ANTHONY CHABOT. WE'VE DONE, WE'VE ENTERED INTO AND THINNED APPROXIMATELY THE SAME AMOUNT OF ACREAGE AS LAST YEAR. HOWEVER, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WORKED ON STANDS THAT WERE EVEN MORE DENSE. SO THERE WERE MANY MORE STEMS THAT NEEDED TO BE TREATED. SO WE KNEW THAT THERE WOULD BE AN INCREASE FROM 2022 TO 2023. ADDITIONALLY, WE DID MUCH MORE WORK ON INVASIVE GRASSLAND NOXIOUS RANGELAND WEEDS LIKE ARTICHOKE THISTLE. 2023 WE DID THE MOST ARTICHOKE THISTLE WORK WE'VE DONE IN FOREVER THAT I'VE KNOWN OF. AND WE DO THAT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH COUNTY AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENTS, BOTH CONTRA COSTA AND ALAMEDA COUNTY. CONTRA COSTA, THEY TREATED A MORE, MORE ACREAGE THAN THEY'VE EVER TREATED BEFORE, PARTLY DUE TO THE FACT THAT THEY HAD MORE SEASONALS ON STAFF, AND THEY ALSO HAD MORE TIME TO DEVOTE TO IT. AND THESE ARE THEY'RE TREATING AREAS THAT ARE RELATIVELY NEW PIECES OF PROPERTY THAT COME TO US WITH PRETTY SUBSTANTIAL ARTICHOKE THISTLE POPULATIONS, SUCH AS CONCORD NAVAL OR THURGOOD MARSHALL NOW THAT'S PROBABLY ONE OF OUR NEWEST PROPERTIES THAT HAD SUBSTANTIAL ARTICHOKE THISTLE. SO THIS INCREASE WAS NOT A BIG SURPRISE TO US. WE KNEW THAT THERE WOULD BE AN INCREASE. NEXT BIN THAT WE WANT TO LOOK AT IS GLYPHOSATE. AS YOU RECALL IN 2019, YOU, THE BOARD REDUCED THE AMOUNT OR THE PLACES WHERE WE COULD USE GLYPHOSATE. WE NO LONGER USE GLYPHOSATE IN DEVELOPED AREAS LIKE PICNIC AREAS, LAWNS, TRAILS, ETC. BUT WE DO MAINTAIN THIS PRODUCT. GLYPHOSATE, THE ACTIVE INGREDIENT IN ROUNDUP TO USE AS AN ECOLOGICAL TOOL BECAUSE WE DO HAVE PERENNIAL GRASSES AND [02:15:02] ANNUAL GRASSES AND EVEN SOME COASTAL OR TIDAL WETLAND WEEDS THAT REALLY RESPOND MUCH MORE READILY TO GLYPHOSATE AS AN ACTIVE INGREDIENT. SO WE USE THIS IN AREAS LIKE POINT PINOLE, WHERE WE'RE ACTIVELY CONTROLLING AND EXPANDING OUR CONTROL OF PERENNIAL PEPPERWEED IN SUPPORT OF A FEDERALLY ENDANGERED PLANT SPECIES. YOU'LL SEE ON THE RIGHT THERE'S THE THAT GRAPH THAT SHOWS OUR FIVE YEAR TREND. AND WE'VE STAYED ROUGHLY ON, ON IN LINE WITH THE AMOUNT OF WORK WE DID LAST YEAR. SO NO BIG INCREASE OR DECREASE IN GLYPHOSATE USE. IN THE WE YOU'VE GOT TWO BINS HERE. WE HAVE TWO PRODUCTS IN DASYPHYLLUM IS A PRE-EMERGENT AND THEN WE HAVE AN ORGANIC BURNDOWN. THIS THESE TWO PRODUCTS ARE USED IN CONJUNCTION PRIMARILY FOR OUR FIRE SAFETY APPLICATIONS. THIS IS IN AREAS WHERE WE WANT TO CONTROL ALL VEGETATION. WE WANT IT TO BE LESS THAN 5% AROUND BARBECUE PITS, ROADSIDE EDGES, PLACES WHERE THERE'S HIGH IGNITION. RIGHT. WE USE A HYBRID APPROACH. SO WE TAKE OUR PRE-EMERGENT, WHICH WHEN WE APPLY THAT ON THE GROUND, IT ADHERES TO CLAY MOLECULES AND IT WHILE SEEDS WILL EMERGE, THEY WILL NOT DEVELOP. RIGHT. SO WE CAN STOP VEGETATION FROM GROWING. TYPICALLY A PARK STAFF DON'T GET THEIR PRE-EMERGENCE DOWN EARLY ENOUGH. SO WHEN THE FIRST RAIN COMES AND ALL OF THE WEEDS GERMINATE IT'S TIME TO DO THIS. SO WE ADD A LITTLE ORGANIC BURNDOWN. SO WE WILL COMBINE THOSE TWO. WE'LL BE ABLE TO CONTINUE WITH THE PRE-EMERGENT CONTROL IN THOSE AREAS. AND THEN THE ORGANIC BURNDOWN WILL KILL EVERYTHING THAT HAS EMERGED. SO YOU CAN SEE IN THIS SLIDE HERE THE TIMING IS CRITICAL BECAUSE ORGANICS AREN'T TERRIBLY POWERFUL EXCEPT FOR AT THIS LIFE STAGE. SO TIMING IS REALLY CRITICAL AND CONSISTENCY SO THAT WE REDUCE THE SEED BANK IN THOSE AREAS. SO AGAIN THIS IS A HYBRID APPROACH. WE USE THIS PRIMARILY IN DEVELOPED AREAS WHERE WE HAVE HIGH FIRE RISK. AND OUR USE TENDS TO STAY PRETTY SIMILAR BECAUSE OUR PARK MAINTENANCE AREAS IN THOSE PLACES ARE THE SAME EVERY YEAR, SO WE DON'T EXPECT TO SEE BIG CHANGES UNTIL WE HAVE A NEW PARK, PARKING LOT, OR A NEW VISITOR CENTER OR SOME NEW THING COME ONLINE. UNDER SPECIAL USE HERBICIDES. THIS IS A BIG BIN. IT'S GOT A LOT OF DIFFERENT PRODUCTS IN IT. WE KIND OF PULL THEM ALL TOGETHER BECAUSE IT WOULD BE WE WOULD BE HERE FOR MAYBE ANOTHER TWO HOURS IF WE TALKED ABOUT EACH, EACH SPECIFIC PRODUCT. SO WE PULL THESE ALL TOGETHER. BUT THEY ARE HOWEVER USED IN VERY SIMILAR SITUATIONS, RESTORATION PROJECTS MITIGATION PROJECTS OR HABITAT ENHANCEMENT TO OFFSET THE IMPACTS OF RECREATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS. WHEN WE PUT A NEW TRAIL IN, WE OFTEN HAVE MITIGATION TO DO, AND THAT'S OUR JOB, RIGHT? SO WE TAKE A SPOT WHERE WE REALLY WANT TO ENHANCE HABITAT OR RESTORE HABITAT. AND WE'LL USE CONTRACTORS. AND WE OURSELVES ARE ALL APPLICATORS. AND WE WORK TO INCREASE THE PLANT NATIVE PLANT DIVERSITY WHILE DECREASING INVASIVE SPECIES IN ORDER TO BENEFIT ENDANGERED SPECIES LIKE THE ALAMEDA WHIPSNAKE. THIS IS A GREAT PICTURE OF OUT IN SUNOL FOR THE IN RESPONSE TO THE SCU FIRE COMPLEX, WE HAD SOME PRETTY GORGEOUS COASTAL SAGE SCRUB GET HIT PRETTY HARD. SO WE'RE IN HERE AND WE ARE CONTROLLING FOR YELLOW STAR-THISTLE AND OTHER BROADLEAF WEEDS IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE THAT THE ARTEMISIA THAT YOU SEE THE SAGEBRUSH HAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO RECRUIT, GROW, AND BECOME DOMINANT AGAIN. EVENTUALLY THIS WILL SHADE OUT MOST OF THOSE SPECIES AND WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT SITE, WHICH WE WILL NEED HELP. OH I'M SORRY, LOOKING AT THAT, YOU CAN SEE THERE'S A BIG JUMP FROM 2022 TO 2023. WE ARE ALSO NOT SURPRISED BECAUSE A GREAT DEAL OF THAT ADDITIONAL WORK AND PRODUCT WAS IN RESPONSE TO ADDITIONAL WEEDS THAT ARE IN FUELS AREAS. WHEN WE TREAT AN AREA AND WE REDUCE THE, STEM DENSITY, WE GET A LOT OF SUNSHINE AND THEN THE WEEDS TAKE OFF. RIGHT? SO IT'S OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DON'T CREATE MORE LADDER FUEL WITH FRENCH BROOM, FOR INSTANCE. AND WE'LL HEAR A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT AS WELL AS OTHER THISTLES. SO WE DO A LOT OF WEED TREATMENT TO REDUCE THE SEED BANK AND SOME OF THOSE AREAS. WE ALSO HAD A BIGGER PUSH TO DO MORE WORK WITH THE INVASIVE SPARTINA PROJECT. AND SO THAT INCREASE, WE KNEW THAT WOULD HAPPEN BECAUSE WE HAD NEW AREAS THAT WERE OPENED UP TO TREAT. LIKELY THAT WILL BE THE APEX OF THAT USE. IN 2024 WE'LL SEE THAT. I THINK WE'LL SEE A BIT OF A DIP. SO GROUND SQUIRRELS. OUR NEXT TOPIC IS RODENTICIDE. [02:20:03] GROUND SQUIRRELS, AS YOU'VE ALREADY HEARD, ARE THEY'RE A KEYSTONE SPECIES, AN ECOSYSTEM ENGINEER. YOU CAN SEE THAT FABULOUS BURROW SYSTEM WHERE LOTS OF ENDANGERED SPECIES ARE. FIND REFUGE AFTER THEIR PONDS HAVE DIED UP. WE DON'T CONTROL GROUND SQUIRRELS IN WILDLAND AREAS. THEY ARE NOT PESTS IN WILDLAND AREAS. THEY ARE ECOSYSTEM ENGINEERS. THEY ARE KEYSTONE SPECIES. WE NEED THEM. HOWEVER, WHEN WE BUILD A LOVELY NEW CONIX OR A LOVELY NEW STAGING AREA WITH A BATHROOM AND A NICE CONCRETE PAD AND WE PLANT BEAUTIFUL TREES. THEY LOVE TO BUILD UNDERNEATH THOSE CONCRETE PADS. THEY LOVE TO BUILD IN AND AROUND THOSE THE TREE ROOTS THEY NEED. WE LIVE IN EARTHQUAKE COUNTRY, RIGHT? THEY NEED A LITTLE EXTRA REINFORCEMENT FOR THEIR BURROWS. SO THEY ARE ATTRACTED TO THESE THINGS. SO THAT'S WHEN THEY BECOME A PEST, ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY UNDERMINE ROADSIDE EDGES, TRAILS, ETC. AND OTHER AND DEVELOPMENT. SO THAT'S WHEN WE HAVE TO FIND METHODS OF CONTROLLING THEM. AND TYPICALLY ONE OF OUR BEST TOOLS HAS BEEN A RODENTICIDE. BUT RODENTICIDES HAVE BEEN IMPLICATED IN SECONDARY POISONING. WE ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THAT. AND SO WE'VE BEEN PLAYING WITH AND FINDING DIFFERENT METHODS, INCLUDING ASPHYXIANTS AS WELL AS TRAPPING AND EUTHANASIA. TYPICALLY, ALL THREE OF THOSE CAN BE USED IN COMBINATION DURING CERTAIN IN ONE SEASON TO HELP CONTROL GROUND SQUIRRELS. THERE'S NO WAY WE'RE GOING TO EVER ELIMINATE GROUND SQUIRRELS BECAUSE OUR PARKS AND OUR DEVELOPMENTS ARE IN THEIR HABITAT, SURROUNDED BY THEIR HABITAT. RIGHT. SO YOU'LL SEE A HUGE DECREASE IN DIPHACINONE, WHICH IS A RODENTICIDE THAT'S THE RODENTICIDE TREATED OAT GROATS OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS, WE'VE REALLY MADE A CONCENTRATED EFFORT TO TRY DIFFERENT APPROACHES. SO WE'VE HAD A HUGE DROP OFF IN THE USE OF RODENTICIDES. WE DO FIND THAT IT'S STILL NECESSARY. NEXT YEAR WILL BE A NEW STORY. WE'VE HAD SOME MAJOR CHANGES IN CALIFORNIA STATE LAW, SUBSTANTIAL REDUCTIONS IN OUR ABILITY TO USE RODENTICIDE. AND WE ARE ALSO LOOKING MORE CLOSELY AT THE USE OF ASPHYXIANTS, BECAUSE THERE ARE PLACES WHERE WE COULD BE ASPHYXIATING SOME OF THOSE ENDANGERED SPECIES IN THOSE BURROWS. RIGHT. MANY OF OUR PARK DEVELOPMENTS ARE IN AREAS THAT ARE REFUGE FOR RED LEGGED FROG, ALAMEDA STRIPED RACER, OR I CAN'T REMEMBER WHAT IT'S CALLED NOW. WHAT? WHIPSNAKE. WE'RE BACK TO ALAMEDA WHIPSNAKE ANYWAY, SO YOU CAN SEE THAT IT'S A CONSTANT STRUGGLE TO FIND SOMETHING THAT'S GOING TO WORK. EACH PARK IS DIFFERENT. NOT ALL PARKS GET TO USE ASPHYXIANTS. NOT ALL PARKS GET TO USE RODENTICIDE. OVERALL, THIS GRAPH ILLUSTRATES HOW MUCH MECHANICAL WORK WE DO. NOW THIS IS JUST HERBICIDE, RIGHT? WE'RE NOT INCLUDING OTHER FORMS OF OTHER TYPES OF PESTICIDE. HERBICIDE IS THE BIGGEST CLASS OF PRODUCT THAT WE USE. BUT YOU CAN SEE IN GREEN THE ACREAGE OF THE PARK DISTRICT AS WE'VE GROWN FROM 2000 TO 2023. AND THEN I TAKE THE ACTUAL GALLON OR OUNCES OR GALLONS OF OR OUNCES OF HERBICIDE USED, AND I DIVIDE THAT BY THE ACREAGE. I NORMALIZE IT. RIGHT. SO WE CAN COMPARE FROM YEAR TO YEAR. BECAUSE AS YOU SAW IN THAT PREVIOUS GRAPH, RAIN GOES UP AND DOWN, VEGETATION GOES UP AND DOWN. SO WE HAVE A HUGE CHANGE IN POPULATIONS HERE. NORMALIZED YOU CAN SEE THAT OUR HERBICIDE USE HAS STAYED BETWEEN 0.1 AND 0.5 OUNCES PER ACRE OVER EXPONENTIAL GROWTH. IF WE WERE USING HERBICIDE TO THE DEGREE THAT WE INCREASED OUR ACREAGE MANAGED, THEN YOU WOULD ALSO SEE THAT CLIMB. SO I THINK THIS IS A COMPELLING STORY. YOU CAN SEE THAT WE DID USE MORE LAST YEAR AND YOU CAN SEE THAT INCREASE THERE. PROBABLY THAT WILL LEVEL OUT. I DON'T ANTICIPATE OR EXPECT ANY BIG USES IN THE FUTURE. SO WHY DO WE USE PESTICIDES? THESE ARE THE GOALS. THESE ARE WHY ROUGHLY COARSE BINS CERTAINLY. BUT THIS IS HOW WE CAPTURE OUR DATA. EACH PESTICIDE USE REPORT THAT WE GET IN IS IS CLASSIFIED BY ONE OF THESE FIVE GOALS. FIRST ONE PUBLIC HEALTH. THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF THESE ARE EXAMPLES OF PUBLIC HEALTH APPLICATIONS. HARMFUL ALGAL BLOOMS. SOMETIMES WE USE A HYDROGEN BASED, HYDROGEN PEROXIDE BASED ALGAECIDE. THAT'S A PESTICIDE. STRUCTURAL PEST CONTROL THE USE OF TRAPS AND THE USE OF RODENTICIDES AND THE USE OF ANT BAITS THAT WOULD BE STRUCTURAL PEST CONTROL. [02:25:08] STINGING INSECTS. WE DO A LOT OF WASP TRAPPING, BUT WE DO ALSO HAVE AN INSECTICIDE FOR WASPS. MOVING DOWN TO FIRE SAFETY. WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT. THAT'S WHERE WE STOP ANY AND ALL CONTROL OF VEGETATION AROUND AREAS OF HIGH IGNITION FIRE STRIPS, FIRE PITS, BARBECUES, RECREATION. WE COMMIT TO THE PUBLIC TO HAVE SAFE AND ACCESSIBLE RECREATION. RIGHT. YOU CAN'T REALLY ENJOY YOUR PICNIC IF IT'S FULL OF YELLOW STAR-THISTLE OR OTHER POKEY THISTLES. SO TRAIL ACCESS, HAZARDOUS TREE REMOVAL, LANDSCAPING, TURF MANAGEMENT, ANY KIND OF VEGETATION MANAGEMENT THAT OCCURS AROUND RECREATIONAL RESOURCES, ECOLOGICAL FUNCTION, BIG BIN HERE ALL OF OUR RESOURCE PROJECTS GET FILED UNDER HERE. ANY HABITAT ENHANCEMENT WORK OR WEED WORK THAT IS DONE OUTSIDE OF RECREATIONAL AREAS BY PARK STAFF AND PARK STAFF DO A LOT OF HABITAT ENHANCEMENT WORK AND THEN ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS, LARGE SCALE LANDSCAPE RESTORATION PROJECTS, AND THEN FINALLY OUR HEALTHY FORESTS BIN. THIS IS TRADITIONALLY THOUGHT OF AS FUELS REDUCTION, BUT IT INCLUDES IT'S NOT JUST THINNING OF EUCALYPT PLANTATION. WE DO A LOT OF BRUSH AND WEED CONTROL AS WELL. AND TYPICALLY WE'RE MOVING THINGS TOWARDS A MORE NATIVE PLANT COMMUNITY. SO FOLLOWING THIS WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT CASE STUDIES OF EACH ONE OF THESE GOALS. JUST TO GIVE YOU A SENSE OF WHAT THESE ARE. YELLOW JACKETS I DECIDED TO HIGHLIGHT YELLOW JACKETS I THINK LAST YEAR WE TALKED ABOUT HARMFUL ALGAL BLOOMS, YELLOW JACKETS EVERY YEAR YOU'LL SEE THESE CUTE LITTLE YELLOW TRAPS. AND THEN THEY JUST GET BIGGER, THICKER AND THICKER AND DEEPER AND DEEPER INSIDE THERE. SO THIS IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF HOW WE WILL USE MECHANICAL TRAPS TO REDUCE YELLOW JACKETS, A NATIVE INSECT THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT IN OUR WILDLANDS. BUT IT BECOMES THERE'S A CONFLICT WHEN FOLKS ARE WITH THEIR SWEET DRINKS AND THEIR NICE PROTEIN RICH MEATS ARE PICNICKING. SO YOU'LL SEE THESE AROUND OUR PICNIC SITES. THIS IS ONE WAY TO REDUCE THAT CONFLICT. IN CERTAIN AREAS, WE OCCASIONALLY WILL HAVE A PLACE WHERE WE HAVE TO USE AN INSECTICIDE TO KILL A NEST. SO GENERALLY THE FIRST STEP IS TO FLAG AND AVOID. WE ASK THE PUBLIC TO AVOID A YELLOW JACKET NEST ONCE IT'S LOCATED ALONG MAYBE A TRAIL OR A ROADSIDE. BUT IF WE HAVE A RACE COMING THROUGH, WE CAN'T REALLY ALLOW FOR THAT THAT NEST TO PERSIST THROUGH, LET'S SAY, AN ULTRAMARATHON OR A 5K OR A 10K. SO THAT'S WHEN WE HAVE TO USE AN IBM APPROVED INSECTICIDE TO DESTROY THAT NEST. FIRE SAFETY. AGAIN, A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS THAT WE CONTROL OR THAT WE ACCOMPLISH FIRE SAFETY. THERE'S THE ZONE ZERO AROUND OUR DISTRICT BUILDINGS. THAT'S NO VEGETATION ZONE. WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT LAST YEAR. WE ALSO HAVE THOSE HIGH IGNITION SOURCES LIKE YOUR LIKE YOU CAN SEE HERE, THIS GRAVEL PARKING LOT HAS VEGETATION RIGHT UP TO THE CURB STOPS. AND THIS IS A VERY HOT PART OF OUR DISTRICT. SO WE HAVE A PRETTY WIDE STRIP WHERE WE NEED TO CONTROL THAT VEGETATION. WE DON'T NEED AN OVERHEATED CAR TO COME IN, PULL IN TO COOL DOWN, START A FIRE. AND YOU KNOW THAT'S CAN BE A PRETTY DEVASTATING IMPACT. AND AGAIN, JUST AS A REMINDER, WE SHOOT FOR LESS THAN 5% VEGETATION. THAT'S A METRIC THAT WE USE. ECOLOGICAL FUNCTION. I MENTIONED A FEW TIMES ABOUT ARTICHOKE THISTLE. WE HAVE ENGAGED AND PARTNERED FOR 27 YEARS WITH BOTH ALAMEDA COUNTY AND CONTRA COSTA COUNTY IN CONTROLLING ARTICHOKE THISTLE AND PURPLE STAR THISTLE. IT'S A REGIONAL APPROACH. WE JUST RECENTLY HIRED A NEW VEGETATION ECOLOGIST TO KIND OF HEAD THIS UP AND BRING US INTO THE NEXT LEVEL OF MAPPING THE ENTIRE DISTRICT, STRATEGIZING AND PRIORITIZING AREAS. IN 2023, WE WE TREATED APPROXIMATELY 50 NET ACRES, NOT GROSS ACRES, NET ACRES OF ACTUAL ARTICHOKE THISTLE AND PURPLE STAR THISTLE. LIKE I SAID, WE DID MORE WORK IN 2023 THAN WE'VE EVER DONE. AND IN 2025, WE WILL BE EXPLORING WAYS TO GET THE ENTIRE DISTRICT MAPPED SO WE CAN ACTUALLY KNOW WHERE AND AT WHAT DENSITY THESE POPULATIONS ARE AND ALSO WHAT THEY'RE THREATENING, WHETHER IT'S RANGELAND, NATIVE PLANT, NATIVE GRASS, NATIVE GRASSLANDS, OR FORBS THAT ARE ENDANGERED OR DESIRABLE. AND TO INTRODUCE SAFE AND ACCESSIBLE RECREATION I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE JACLYN LIM, OUR IPM ECOLOGIST. SHE'S GOING TO TALK TO YOU QUICKLY ABOUT OUR FAVORITE PROJECT. GOOD AFTERNOON. AS PAM SAID, MY NAME IS JACLYN LIM. I AM THE IPM ECOLOGIST IN THE STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT, AND I'M GOING TO BE TALKING TO YOU ABOUT THE CASE STUDY FOR THE IPM GOAL OF SAFE AND ACCESSIBLE RECREATION. [02:30:01] FOR NINE YEARS, THE IPM TEAM HAS WORKED WITH EARTH TEAM, A LOCAL YOUTH ENVIRONMENTAL INTERNSHIP PROGRAM THAT PROMOTES LIFELONG ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP THROUGH SERVICE LEARNING PROJECTS. IN 2023, WE WORKED WITH 35 STUDENTS FROM THREE LOCAL HIGH SCHOOLS TO DO WORK OR TO DO PROJECTS THAT IMPROVE AND MAINTAIN OVERWINTERING MONARCH BUTTERFLY HABITAT AND THE DISC GOLF COURSE AT OYSTER BAY. STUDENTS PLANTED NECTAR PLANTS SO PLANTS THAT BLOOM DURING THE FALL AND WINTER TO HAVE A FOOD SOURCE FOR THOSE OVERWINTERING MONARCH BUTTERFLIES WHEN IT'S REALLY SCARCE, THERE'S NOT A LOT OF OTHER PLANTS BLOOMING. THIS HELPS THE MONARCH BUTTERFLIES PREPARE FOR THEIR SPRING MIGRATION. STUDENTS ALSO REMOVED INVASIVE VEGETATION ALONG THE DISC GOLF COURSE TO PROMOTE NATIVE PLANTS, AS WELL TO REDUCE COMPETITION FOR NATIVE PLANTS AS WELL AS KEEP THE COURSE PLAYABLE AND WALKABLE FOR DISC GOLF PLAYERS AND HIKERS ALIKE. THEY ALSO PRUNED THE TREES ON THE DISC GOLF COURSE THAT CREATES THE OBSTACLES ON THE COURSE TO ENCOURAGE HEALTHY GROWTH AND ENSURE THE LONGEVITY OF THE DISC GOLF COURSE FOR YEARS TO COME. THEIR WORK WAS RECOGNIZED BY THE OYSTER BAY DISC GOLF CLUB AND AS A THANK YOU, THE CLUB HOSTED A CLINIC FOR THEM TO TEACH THEM THE SPORT AND ENGAGE THEM IN THIS NEW EMERGING SPORT. THIS PROJECT REALLY EXEMPLIFIES THE IMPORTANCE OF MAINTAINING SAFE AND ACCESSIBLE RECREATION WHILE CREATING COMMUNITY CONNECTION, ENHANCING HABITAT, AND CREATING COMMUNITY INVESTMENT INTO OUR RESOURCES. THANK YOU. NOW I'LL HAND IT OFF TO TATIANA. SO I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE TATIANA MANZANILLO, OUR VEGETATION ECOLOGIST. SHE WORKS PRIMARILY WITH THE FUELS REDUCTION COORDINATORS AND DOES A LOT OF WORK IN OUR HEALTHY FORESTS GOAL. AWESOME. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANKS FOR THE INTRODUCTION AGAIN. MY NAME IS TATIANA MANZANILLO. I'M A VEGETATION ECOLOGIST IN THE STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT. AND I'M GOING TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT OUR OPERATION BROOM BUST IN OUR EAST BAY HILLS. IT'S A PROGRAM RUN BY OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT STARTED IN 2022. SO 2023 MARKS THE SECOND YEAR OF TREATMENT FOR THIS PROJECT. SO JUST A LITTLE BACKGROUND. SOME OF YOU MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW THIS FRENCH BROOM IS AN INVASIVE PLANT THAT THE DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE HAS RATED AS A C RANK PEST, SO THIS MEANS THAT IT IS KNOWN TO CAUSE ENVIRONMENTAL DETRIMENT AND IS ALSO WIDESPREAD IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA. BECAUSE IT CAN GROW RAPIDLY AND FORM DENSE STANDS. BROOM ALSO POSES A FIRE HAZARD. RISK IN THE WILDLAND URBAN INTERFACE AND IN THE FACE OF WILDFIRE, CAN INCREASE THE INTENSITY OF FIRE FROM A LOW GRADE TO MODERATE OR HIGH, BECAUSE THE ADDITIONAL WOODY FUEL AND HEIGHT THAT STANDS CAN CONTRIBUTE THAT CARRY FIRE FROM THE GROUND UP INTO THE CANOPY. SO IN 2023, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WITH A CONTRACTOR TREATED ABOUT 94 ACRES OF PARKLAND FOR FRENCH BROOM AND OTHER INVASIVE PLANT SPECIES ACROSS SEVEN PARKS TO REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF HAZARDOUS FUELS IN PARKLANDS ALONG THE WUI OR THE WILDLAND URBAN INTERFACE. SO THIS TREATMENT INCLUDED A MIX OF INITIAL AND MAINTENANCE MECHANICAL TREATMENTS OVER LARGE AREAS WITH DENSE AND COMPLEX STANDS OF BROOM. BROOM WAS CUT BACK AND ALLOWED TO REGROW WITH DENSER FOLIAGE, AND THEN TREATED WITH A FOLIAR HERBICIDE APPLICATION TO EFFECTIVELY REMOVE THEM FROM THE LANDSCAPE, AGAIN REDUCING THE AMOUNT OF WOODY FUELS AND SUPPLEMENTING OTHER TREATMENT WORK DONE BY THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. AND A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THIS IS OUT AT MILLER KNOX. SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE SEEN THE SITE THERE. IT'S BEAUTIFUL COASTAL GRASSLAND HABITAT WHERE PINE TREES WERE GROWING AND PINE TREES HAVE A LIFESPAN, SO THEY WEREN'T LOOKING SUPER GREAT. AND ALSO YOU HAD BROOM ENCROACHMENT COMING IN. SO THERE THE FIRE DEPARTMENT CAME IN AND REMOVED, THE PINE TREES, REMOVED THE BROOM FROM THE LANDSCAPE SO THAT THE COASTAL PRAIRIE COULD THRIVE. OH THAT'S IT. THANK YOU. AWESOME. YOU'LL DEFINITELY HAVE TO CHECK OUT THAT MILLER KNOX AREA. IT'S GORGEOUS. SO PROGRAM DIRECTIONS FOR 2024 I CAN I CAN HONESTLY SAY WE'RE WELL INTO SOME OF THESE PROGRAMS. PREVENTION. WE DO HAVE AN EMERGING PEST, THE INVASIVE SHOT HOLE BORER. SO WE'LL BE FOCUSING ON SOME SURVEILLANCE AND DEVELOPING SOME PROTOCOLS. YOU'LL HEAR MORE ABOUT THAT IN THE FUTURE. WE WILL CONTINUE TO ADVOCATE FOR BOTH PARTICIPATION AND COMMITMENT TO PATHOGEN BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES. [02:35:03] SO WE'LL CONTINUE TO EDUCATE AND TRAIN WHILE WE REQUEST FOLKS TO FOLLOW GUIDELINES. AGAIN, PREVENTION, PREVENTION, PREVENTION. WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF NEW PEST SPECIES, IT'S ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL THAT WE LOOK REALLY ROBUSTLY AT THE DISTRICT AS A WHOLE. AND THE WAYS IN WHICH PATHWAYS CAN BRING SLEEPER PESTS THAT CAN DEVASTATE FORESTS THAT CAN DEVASTATE RECREATIONAL AREAS, ETC.. HABITAT ENHANCEMENT AND MITIGATION WILL CONTINUE TO RUN OUR OWN MITIGATION PROJECTS. WE'RE TREATING NEW AREAS IN LEONA CANYON FOR CAPE IVY AND MAINTAINING OUR OLD AREAS. WE'RE TREATING NEW AREAS AT POINT PINOLE IN [INAUDIBLE] MARSH FOR PERENNIAL PEPPERWEED AND MAINTAINING OUR OLD AREAS. WE'RE INCREASING OUR NOXIOUS RANGELAND WEEDS PROGRAM BY MAPPING AND PRIORITIZING STRATEGIZING. AND WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO BUILD THOSE IPM PARK PLANS ONE PARK AT A TIME, ONE STEP AT A TIME. FIRST BY DIGITIZING. AND THAT PICTURE, THERE IS AN EXAMPLE. THAT'S THE CURRENT WORKING MODEL OF THE PORTAL FOR THE IPM PLAN. AND YOU CAN SEE IN GREEN ARE PARKLANDS AND IN BLUE OUTLINES ARE EVERYTHING THAT'S BEEN DIGITIZED TO DATE. AND CURRENTLY WE HAVE ONE PARK THAT IS IS DRIVING THIS PILOT PLAN AROUND, SO WE'LL GET MORE INFORMATION. WE'D LOVE TO REPORT MORE ABOUT THAT NEXT YEAR. AND WITH THAT, THANKS FOR YOUR TIME. ANY QUESTIONS THAT WE CAN ANSWER WE'D BE HAPPY TO. I DIDN'T KNOW THEY ATE MICE. OH, MAN. THAT'S A GOPHER. THAT'S A GOPHER. GOPHER? YEAH, THEY LOVE GOPHERS AND OTHER THINGS. OKAY. I'M SORRY I WAS DISTRACTED. DIRECTOR WAESPI. I'VE SEEN. YOU'VE SEEN TWO WHILE EATING LUNCH. 20 MINUTE PERIOD. [LAUGHTER] IT'S AMAZING. IT'S GREAT ENTERTAINMENT. IT'S THE NEW RECREATION. WELL THANK YOU, PAMELA. YOU KNOW, I GOT TO PREFACE ALL THIS BY SAYING I REALLY ADMIRE YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND ESPECIALLY YOUR PASSION FOR THIS WORK. YOU'VE DONE IT FOR A LONG TIME NOW, AND IT'S AMAZING THE ORGANIZATION YOU'VE CREATED HERE AND TACKLING SOME OF THESE NEVER ENDING PROBLEMS THE DISTRICT HAS TRY TO KEEP THE GREAT PLACE IT IS. I DON'T HAVE ANY ANYTHING TO SAY OTHER THAN IT'S AMAZING THE WORK YOU DO. I WAS WONDERING WHEN YOU TALKED ABOUT RODENTS AND RODENTICIDES. YOU KNOW, I ALWAYS READ THAT OWLS BARN OWLS ARE. I MEAN, THEY I JUST LOOKED IT UP. THEY EAT 12 DIFFERENT TYPES OF RODENTS IN A DAY. HAVE WE EVER I NOTICE AROUND LAKE CHABOT THERE'S A COUPLE OF OWL BOXES. IS THAT WOULD THAT SOLVE THE. OBVIOUSLY IT'S NOT GOING TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM. BUT IN SPECIFIC PICNIC AREAS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. IT'S FUN TO LOOK AT IT'S PARK ARCHITECTURE. IT'S ALSO IF YOU CAN SEE THE GUYS, IF YOU'RE OUT AT NIGHT, IT'S FUN HAVE WE EVER TRIED USING THAT. YEAH. SO WE DO. BARN OWLS ARE GREAT. THEY DO REQUIRE THOSE BOXES DO REQUIRE MAINTENANCE, YEARLY MAINTENANCE. AND THAT'S ON PARK STAFF. AND SO THERE ARE TIMES WHEN PARK STAFF DON'T HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY OR THE CAPACITY BECAUSE OF OTHER PRESSING ISSUES. THEY'RE STILL DIGGING OUT FROM PREVIOUS SEASONS OF HEAVY RAINS OR FIRE, ETC.. SO NUMBER ONE THE OWL BOX PROGRAM NEEDS TO BE REPRISED AND NEEDS TO BECOME MORE ROBUST. YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT THAT THEY DO HAVE AN IMPACT, BUT THEY HAVE AN IMPACT ON PRIMARILY ON GOPHERS. AND YOU RECALL NANCY BROWNFIELD FOR MY PREDECESSOR AND HERO DID A PRETTY ROBUST STUDY AND GATHERED THE OWL PELLETS AND PICKED THEM APART AND IDENTIFIED IT. AND THEY'RE PRETTY MUCH EATING GOPHERS. IS THAT ENOUGH? NO, IT'S NOT ENOUGH TO CONTROL GOPHERS IN AN AREA WHERE WE'RE ACTUALLY ACTIVELY CREATING HABITAT FOR THEM, I.E. LAWNS, BECAUSE THEY EAT VEGETATION AND WE WATER THE LAWNS, THEY GROW, THEY MAKE DELICIOUS FOOD, NICE MOIST ENVIRONMENT AND HOT DURING THE HOT SUMMER. SO WE ATTRACT THESE PESTS. WE CREATE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THEM TO THRIVE AND SO CONTROLLING THEM HAS TO COME, HAS TO BE AN ITERATIVE PROCESS. AND WE HAVE TO HAVE STACKING TYPES OF METHODS. SO THAT WOULD BE THE BIOLOGICAL USING A MUCH MORE ROBUST OWL BOX PROGRAM. RIGHT. BECAUSE WE NEED TO REBUILD MANY OF OUR OWL BOXES. WE NEED TO MAINTAIN THOSE BOXES YEARLY. WE NEED TO MAKE THEM SAFE TO MAINTAIN, ETC.. AND THEN WE NEED TO TRAP. WE DO TRAPPING PRIMARILY WITH GOPHER TO CONTROL GOPHERS. WITH RESPECT TO GROUND SQUIRRELS, GROUND SQUIRRELS GENERALLY ARE NOT A HIGH A HIGH PREY ITEM, RIGHT? [02:40:02] THEY ARE MOSTLY ACTIVE DURING THE DAY. THEY AREN'T NECESSARILY IN A LOT OF OUR TURF, SO WE DON'T GET A LOT OF CONTROL FROM BARN OWLS. DEFINITELY RAPTORS PRODUCE OR HAVE A STRONG EFFECT, BUT DEFINITELY NOT ENOUGH. THEY'RE MAMMALS, AND IF YOU RECALL FROM ECOLOGY, MAMMALS REPRODUCE BEYOND CAPACITY SO THAT THEY CAN FEED ALL OF THE DIFFERENT PREDATORS ABOVE THEM. SO THEY'RE ALWAYS GOING TO BE A LITTLE BIT AHEAD OF US. SO IT'S TOUGH. BUT AGAIN WE'RE LOOKING AT CONTROL NOT ELIMINATING. SO THAT'S WHY WE HAVE THOSE STACKED METHODS. DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION. YES IT DOES AND IT'S OBVIOUS WE NEED TO INTRODUCE RATTLESNAKES IN PICNIC AREAS. [LAUGHTER] I THINK THEY'RE ALREADY THERE. YEAH. THEY'RE HELPING TOO. DANG IT. SO ANYWAY AND ALSO TALKING ABOUT PHYTOPHTHORA I AGREE IT'S A BIG ISSUE. AND YOU MENTIONED NURSERIES AND HOW THEY, WE CAN GET CONTAMINATION FROM THAT. I ALSO NOTICED I THINK WE'RE STUDYING A 30 BY 30 GRANT AND TALKING ABOUT INTERNAL NURSERIES, PARK DISTRICT NURSERIES, BIG ONES. AND I I HOPE WE CAN DO THAT. I HOPE THAT THAT WOULD WORK. I THINK IT'D BE GREAT WORK. I KNOW THAT WE JUST APPROVED A STRIKE CAMP FOR A CCC CAMP IN BRIONES AND, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THEY'RE GOING TO BE VERY, VERY BUSY. BUT RUNNING A NURSERY, I THINK, IS THE PARK DISTRICT USED TO BUY THOUSANDS OF PLANTS FROM THE CCC NURSERY UP IN SONOMA AND YOU KNOW, 40 YEARS AGO. I THINK THAT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY. ALSO, WHAT ELSE? I'M VERY HAPPY YOU'RE MAPPING NOXIOUS WEEDS. I THINK IT WOULD BE REALLY, REALLY GREAT TO SEE WHERE ALL THESE THINGS ARE GROWING AND IN WHAT CONCENTRATIONS. LOVE THE PROGRAM YOU'RE DOING WITH HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS. I THINK THAT'S REALLY WONDERFUL AND A GREAT, GREAT DEAL. AND FRENCH BROOM. DO THEY STILL SELL THAT AT YOUR LOCAL DRUGSTORE OR? IT'S CALLED SWEET BROOM. I YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW THAT IT ESCAPES TO THE SAME DEGREE THAT FRENCH BROOM DOES. SO I THINK THERE HAS BEEN SOME MANIPULATION OF IT. I DO NOT RECOMMEND USING IT AS A LANDSCAPE PLANT. I DON'T RECOMMEND ANY LANDSCAPE PLANTS IN OUR PARKS OR NEAR OUR PARKS, BECAUSE THERE'S A LAG TIME FROM WHICH EITHER IT COULD BE A CULTIVAR OR SOMETHING THAT IS NOT AS GENETICALLY MANIPULATED WILL EVENTUALLY DEVELOP SOME ABILITY TO PRODUCE VIABLE SEED, OR THE VIABLE SEED THAT THEY DO PRODUCE CAN BECOME MORE COMPETITIVE IN A NATURAL ENVIRONMENT. SO HORTICULTURAL SPECIES LAG TIMES CAN BE AS LONG AS 100 YEARS OR 150 YEARS EVEN DEMONSTRATED LONGER. SOMETIMES IT'S JUST A FEW YEARS. SO WHILE THE SWEET BROOM THAT'S AVAILABLE NOW IS AN IMPROVEMENT, AND WE DON'T SEEM TO SEE THAT SWEET BROOM IN OUR PARKS, WE'RE LOOKING AT SOMETHING THAT WAS INTRODUCED THREE DECADES AGO, FOUR DECADES AGO. THAT DOESN'T MEAN IT WON'T BE. SO YES, DON'T BUY SWEET BROOM. ALL RIGHT. WELL, THANKS TO YOU AND YOUR STAFF FOR YOUR GREAT WORK. THANK YOU. I DON'T HAVE ANYTHING TO ASK OR COMMENT ON. IT'S REALLY GREAT WORK AND VERY INFORMATIVE, AND I THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND EFFORT AND BRINGING TOGETHER THE TEAM FOR US. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. WE DO HAVE 1 PUBLIC COMMENT. OH LET'S GO. I'M GOING TO GO AHEAD AND ELEVATE WILLIAM HERE. OUR PUBLIC HAS STUCK WITH US THROUGH THIS MEETING. THAT'S TERRIFIC. APOLOGIZE FOR THE DELAY. A VERY INTERESTING PRESENTATION AND REALLY APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING. SPECIFICALLY THE REDUCTION IN CHEMICALS USED. I MEAN, IT'S GREAT. I'M FOCUSING ON A FEW PARKS IN SOUTHERN ALAMEDA COUNTY. I NOTICED IN ONE OF THE PARKS THAT I MONITOR A TERRIFIC INCREASE IN FRENCH IN YELLOW STAR-THISTLE ACROSS THE PARK, SPECIFICALLY IN THE LOWER PASTURES NEAR RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS. I'M ASSUMING THAT THIS IS DIRECTLY AS A RESULT OF THE OVERGRAZING THAT'S OCCURRING IN THAT IN THOSE PASTURES. AND SO THE YELLOW STAR IS INCREASING. WHEN I DID A CALIFORNIA PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST AND ASKED FOR SPECIFICALLY ON THE GROWTH OF THE YELLOW STAR-THISTLE, I WAS GIVEN BACK A PAMPHLET SHOWING THAT THE PARK DISTRICT IS CONCERNED ABOUT YELLOW STAR-THISTLE. THAT DOESN'T REALLY SPEAK TO THE QUESTION OF WHETHER YELLOW STAR-THISTLE IN MISSION PEAK AND THE LOWER PASTURES IS BEING MONITORED. AND MY CONCERN IS THAT INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT IMPLIES THAT YOU'RE ACTUALLY MONITORING AND MANAGING [02:45:05] ITEMS THAT YOU CAN ACTUALLY DOCUMENT. SO IF YOU'RE NOT GETTING THE INFORMATION THAT YELLOW STAR-THISTLE IS EXPANDING AT AN ACCELERATED RATE IN VERY SPECIFIC PASTURES THEN YOU'RE NOT MANAGING IT BECAUSE YOU NEVER HAD THE INFORMATION UP FRONT. SO I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THE PANEL THAT YOU'VE YOU DESCRIBED THAT YOU'RE YOU'RE GOING TO PRESENT TO THE PUBLIC. I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THAT. IN FACT, YELLOW STAR-THISTLE, MEDITERRANEAN THISTLE AND OTHER THISTLES ARE BEING DOCUMENTED AND ARE BEING CALIBRATED SO THAT YOU CAN THEN GO IN AND WORK TO REMOVE THEM. FINALLY, I REALLY DON'T SEE AN EMPHASIS ON VOLUNTEERS IN THE PARK DISTRICTS AND WORKING ACROSS THE PARK DISTRICTS. I DID THE BOARD TOUR AT COYOTE HILLS. THEY WENT THROUGH AN AMAZING MAINTENANCE SHED. THERE WERE FIVE WEED WHACKERS MOUNTED ON THE WALL. WEED WHACKERS MOUNTED ON A WALL. DO NOTHING. YOU ACTUALLY HAVE TO HAVE THEM IN THE HANDS OF SOMEBODY THAT'S TRAINED TO USE THEM, AND THAT PERSON HAS TO BE OUT WHACKING WEEDS. I'D LOVE TO SEE THAT. LOVE TO SEE VOLUNTEERS USED AS PART OF THE INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT PROGRAM. I'D LOVE TO SEE THE DISTRICT GET BEHIND USING VOLUNTEERS IN THE PARKS, BOTH FOR WHACKING WEEDS AND FOR TRAIL MAINTENANCE. I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT. AND IT'S ACTUALLY PART OF THE INTEGRATED APPROACH THAT APPEARS TO BE MISSING. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. WILLIAM. I'M LOOKING ABOUT THE ROOM. NO OTHER PUBLIC COMMENT. NO OTHER FROM ZOOM. NO ADDITIONAL COMMENTS. SO WE'RE READY. READY TO ADJOURN THE MEETING. [Announcements] BEFORE THAT, I'LL ASK FOR ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM THE COMMITTEE. DIRECTOR WAESPI. WELL, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S AN ANNOUNCEMENT, BUT I THINK THESE ARE THREE OF THE MOST THOROUGH, INTERESTING TOPICS I'VE SEEN IN A LONG TIME. THIS WOULD DRIVE ANYONE OFF THE FINANCE COMMITTEE TO TRY TO GET ON THIS COMMITTEE. YOU KNOW, I HESITATE TO SAY THIS. I'D LOVE TO SEE THESE PRESENTATIONS BEFORE THE FULL BOARD. I THINK IT WOULD BE A CREDIT OUR BOARD MEETINGS THAT LAST TILL 9:00 AT NIGHT, BUT MAYBE ONE AT A TIME. I THINK THEY'RE REALLY INCREDIBLE. AND YOU GUYS DID AN EXCELLENT JOB. IT'S AN INTERNAL SECRET WE'RE NOT TO TALK ABOUT, BUT THIS IS THE MOST POPULAR COMMITTEE TO APPLY FOR AMONGST OUR COLLEAGUES. [LAUGHTER] EVERY TIME ONE OF US TAKES THE POSITION OF PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD. DO YOU HAVE ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS? NO ANNOUNCEMENTS, BUT I CONCUR. I MEAN, I'M VERY EVERY TIME I LISTEN TO A LOT OF THESE PRESENTATIONS FROM MY STAFF, WHETHER IT'S IN THIS COMMITTEE OR AT THE BOARD MEETING OR JUST OUT WHEN WE DO A SITE TOURS NOT ONLY AM I IMPRESSED AND PROUD, BUT I'M LUCKY TO BE, YOU KNOW, HAVING THIS GROUP UNDERNEATH ME AND I REALLY, YOU KNOW, THANK YOU ALL. IT'S AUGUST OR JUST ABOUT. DO WE HAVE ANOTHER COMMITTEE MEETING COMING UP IN THE FALL? WE DO HAVE ONE MORE IN THE FALL, I THINK NOVEMBER I BELIEVE, IS THE TIME. SO I THINK THAT WOULD BE A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE A LOOK AT THAT MASTER LIST OF POTENTIAL TOPICS WE PUT TOGETHER A YEAR OR TWO AGO. SOUNDS GOOD. THAT, AS I RECALL, WAS GOOD FOR ABOUT FIVE YEARS. SO MAYBE WE MADE A DENT IN THAT LIST, BUT IT WOULD BE GOOD TO. I'M SURE MATT HAS IT TO LOOK AT IN NOVEMBER AND SEE HOW FAR WE'VE KNOCKED INTO THAT THOSE TOPICS AND SEE IF THERE ARE ANY FURTHER TOPICS FROM THE COMMITTEE FOR FUTURE COMMITTEE MEETINGS. OKAY. WITHOUT ANYTHING ELSE COMING UP WE'LL STAND ADJOURNED. THANK YOU VERY MUCH ALL. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.