On April 22nd, people around the world came together to celebrate Earth Day. This year’s theme, Our Power, Our Planet, highlights a simple but powerful idea: protecting the environment depends on the everyday choices of individuals committed to making a difference.
Last Saturday, Earth Team interns from Arroyo, San Lorenzo, and Skyline High Schools gathered at Castro Valley Creek Trail to celebrate the holiday with a creek cleanup. Interns partnered with the Alameda County Resource Conservation District, Clean Water Project, Alameda County Public Works, CVSan, and Friends of San Lorenzo Creek to remove litter and invasive plants from the creek and surrounding trail.
After signing in, stretching, and enjoying breakfast provided by CVSan, interns heard from Friends of San Lorenzo Creek and ACRCD about the importance of healthy watersheds and the impact of invasive species. The day’s work focused on three main efforts: litter removal, invasive plant removal, and ash tree removal.
Litter cleanup remains a critical part of maintaining healthy creek ecosystems. Interns documented and collected large amounts of micro-litter, including food wrappers, cigarette waste, and plastic bags. By the end of the day, they had removed three large bags of trash from both the trail and the creek.
The largest group tackled invasive plants growing along the creek. Students focused on removing ivy and blackberry thickets that had become tangled along fences and creek banks, helping to restore space for native vegetation.
A smaller team worked on removing ash trees, specifically the Shamel ash (Fraxinus uhdei), a non-native species originally from Central America. Commonly planted as a shade tree, it has spread into creek and wetland habitats, where its rapid growth and dense canopy block sunlight from reaching native plants. This team’s efforts contributed to an impressive total of 15 yd3 of organic material removed during the cleanup.
In addition to restoration work, Earth Team interns also hosted a tabling session along the trail, where they shared outreach materials from their Tire Road Wear Particle (TRWP) research projects. Interns engaged with community members, explaining their findings and raising awareness about how everyday driving contributes to microplastic pollution in local waterways.
After the restoration work was complete, interns conducted water quality testing with support from Jennifer Trevis of the Clean Water Project, connecting their fieldwork to ongoing watershed monitoring efforts.
A huge thank you to Jennifer, Bruce, Jeff, and Ann for your continued support of our interns. We also extend our gratitude to the Alameda County Resource Conservation District and the Clean Water Project for funding this work. Your support empowers students to engage with their communities while contributing to a healthier, more resilient watershed.
