As all readers will surely be aware, California has been experiencing increasing fire severity and frequency in recent years. In 2020, 4 million acres were burned, and in 2021, the Dixie and Caldor fires were the first fires in CA history to hop the crest of the Sierra Nevada. So, […]
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Over the last couple winters, Sierra Streams Institute has begun conducting targeted stormwater monitoring as a part of our normal watershed monitoring regimen. In light of the some of the recent inclement weather we’ve experienced in the Sierra Foothills, our executive director Jeff Lauder wrote an article in January 2023 […]
Read More >This spring, with funding from the Sierra Nevada Conservancy (SNC), Sierra Streams Institute has kicked into high gear the process of developing a vegetation management plan for Bureau of Land Management (BLM) parcels in the Lower Steephollow region of the Sierra Nevada foothills. The plan will be shared with BLM […]
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Sierra Streams Institute created the Our Forests project to answer the question: “what would it mean for students to be able to engage with local environmental issues through real-world scientific investigation?” Benefits of Place-Based Community Science Funded through the National Science Foundation, Our Forests has been a collaborative project between […]
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As we move into spring with snow still on the ground, we wanted to revisit this topic and give a brief update on where we stand now. The atmospheric rivers have continued to provide us with rain and snow, filling creeks and reservoirs and contributing to a snowpack for the […]
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This winter has certainly been one for the memory books, but what about the record books? With all of the rain we’ve received over the last few weeks, multiple questions have been coming up. Just how big is this storm compared to prior wet years? Is this a “drought buster”? What […]
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Summer sampling by the numbers: Summer Water Quality Summary: Between June and August, we collected water quality data from 12 sites in the Deer Creek watershed and 10 sites in the Bear River watershed. Learn more about our water quality parameters below! Oxygen is necessary for all forms of life. […]
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This past school year, Sierra Streams Institute had the joy of venturing into our local forests with over 300 3rd-5th grade students in Nevada County. The mission? Promote students’ environmental science agency, spark curiosity and increase interest in land stewardship through placed-based investigations into forest health. The program, Our Forests, […]
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The signs are related to bacteria levels. Every summer in the creeks, as the temperature increases and water flow decreases, we see an increase in bacteria at many of our monitoring sites. Some amount of bacteria is always present in creek water, but less water in the creek concentrates any […]
Read More >Sierra Streams Institute is excited to undertake a new restoration project to supplement, improve and maintain salmonid habitat along a portion of Dry Creek within Beale Air Force Base located near Spenceville Wildlife Area. This is an exciting new project for SSI because all programs have an opportunity to work […]
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Over the last twenty years, Sierra Streams Institute’s water quality monitoring program has used citizen science to assess the health of the Deer Creek Watershed and engage community members in their local ecosystems. Historically, dedicated volunteers conducted monthly monitoring along eighteen sites spread strategically throughout the watershed. Volunteers measure pH, […]
Read More >The “snowmageddon” storm of December 2021 was one to remember. Just ask the trees. Some lost branches. Some were bent over—sometimes seemingly permanently—by the weight of the snow. Many many more were uprooted, leading to the power and transportation issues we lived with for days or weeks after the storm. […]
Read More >As we reach the first anniversary of the Jones Fire, there is a lot to reflect on both the landscape and organization. Much like a forest is renewed by low severity while simultaneously being forever changed by high severity fire, by losing our office to the blaze, we were given […]
Read More >Our heart goes out to all in our community who were affected by the River Fire. This fast-moving fire took the community by surprise, and we are grateful to all the firefighters and community members who helped defend our communities. Unfortunately, there was still an immense loss. We want to […]
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Public health and safety have been at the forefront of many peoples’ minds this year as we are all dealing with a worldwide pandemic. There are a myriad of components that contribute to one’s health. One major factor is water. Water is one of the most critical elements to all […]
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Last week, Jeff, SSI’s ecologist and Wes, one of SSI’s AmeriCorps members, presented their work modeling water quality and climate change data at the California Water Boards Water Data Science Symposium. Using R, a programming language, they overlaid SSI’s twenty years of monthly water quality measurements along Deer Creek with […]
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Each spring and fall, Sierra Streams in partnership with Sierra College puts on the Science Speaker Series the second Tuesday of each month. The talks focus science happening in the Sierra Foothills and Sierra Nevada range. Drought, Tree Mortality, and Wildfire in Sierra Nevada forests: Using Lessons from the Past […]
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Meet Hailey Wilson! Hailey Wilson is an enthusiastic ten-year old with a deep passion for laughter and learning. I thought it was so important to highlight Hailey in this series because she’s downright inspiring. She’s full of silliness, energy and a love of the natural world that is contagious. We […]
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Earlier this year, our AmeriCorps members set up wildlife cameras at a site in the Deer Creek watershed. We were overjoyed with what we got back. We hope you enjoy these photos as much as we have! A Great Blue Heron taking […]
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Each spring and fall, Sierra Streams in partnership with Sierra College puts on the Science Speaker Series the second Tuesday of each month. The talks focus science happening in the Sierra Foothills and Sierra Nevada range. Impact of a Warmer and Drier Future: Rangeland Ecosystems and Ecosystem Services Between 2012 […]
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