Let's restore the Colorado River Delta

Thanks to your support, new generations get closer to nature at the Colorado River. Environmental education is crucial. It strengthens values, helps to history and cultural heritage appreciation, and increase awareness and actions for climate change in the Colorado River basin.

For this reason, the Community Involvement team conducted a field trip to Miguel Aleman Restoration Site. This field trip was led by the specialist Yuliana, technician Marylu, and the interns Annelis, Yuli, and Yareli (students from the Centro de Estudios Tecnológicos del Mar).

The field trip was conducted in coordination with the directors of the Carlos García Rivera Elementary School and the Miguel Alemán Kindergarten, both located in Colonia Miguel Alemán, in Mexicali Valley.

Our explorers among with their teachers from Carlos Garcia Rivera Elementary School and the Miguel Alemán Kindergarten, school staff and parents, started the visit with a conference on site about the restoration process in the area that began in 2010.

Currently, we have a concession for ecological conservation of 190 hectares in the Miguel Alemán Restoration Site, located in the border area of the Colorado River riparian corridor.

In 2014, the first reforestation efforts arose with volunteers and the education sector. Carlos García Rivera Elementary School was one of the first visitors that contributed to the reforestation actions. After eight years, now with the support of more hands that have been increasing year after year, this area is the most important native border forest that hosts about 122,000 native trees of different species like Fremont cottonwood (Populus fremontii), Goodding's willow (Salix goddingii), mesquite habitat and high terrace to Sonoran desert species, which have great resilience to the climatic conditions of the region, are low water consumption and low maintenance, among which are: Honey mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa var. torreyana) and Screwbean mesquite (Prosopis pubescens), Mexican palo verde (Parkinsonia aculeata), Palo brea (Parkinsonia praecox), Catclaw acacia (Senegalia greggii), Blue palo verde azul (Parkinsonia florida), Desert iroonwood (Olneyda tesota), Redberry desert thorn (Lycium andersoni), Big saltbush (Atriplex lentiformis), etc.

Undoubtedly, the environmental education actions that can be done for elementary school students are fundamental to mold future citizens with ecological sensitiveness and knowledge to be more linked to environmental problems and the solutions where they can get involved.

The Miguel Aleman Restoration Site provides maintenance and preservation of native forests that gives extensive benefits to wildlife and the locals, such as oxygen, carbon sequestration, groundwater recharge, spaces for meditation and contemplation, habitat, air purification, temperature reduction, shade, and food.

During the tour of the interpretive trail, we were able to identify some of the birds that use the forest, learn about the plants of our region and the importance of the water of the Colorado River for various sectors in Baja California and Sonora in Mexico.

Links:

• Clarita, Pepe, and Willy, three Yuma Ridgway's Rails
• Water flows again through Colorado River
• Clean up day at Vado Carranza

We started a pollinator garden at the Miguel Aleman Restoration Site. For it, we have conducted some community involvement activities, including visits to the Miguel Aleman Restoration Site with the San Luis Rio Colorado communities for volunteers to support the production of native plants. The community helped to build hotels for insects and reforestation with native plants that directly benefit pollinators.

We also conducted a field trip with the Montessori Bilingual School of San Luis Río, Colorado, with the participation of the Principal, two teachers, and 15 students. During this visit, students visited the native plant nurseries and reforested 25 Mexican Palo-Verde (Parkinsonia praecox) and planted California bush sunflower (Encelia californica) trees in the section destined for the Pollinator Garden project.

Then in a group, we followed the interpretative trail to introduce the visitors to native plants and flowers recovered in the restoration project.

In the end, the Montessori group attended the propagation of 50 Desert willows (Chilopsis linearis), a native species that provides pollinators' habitat. Mainly, its pink and purple tubular flowers attract hummingbirds.

These actions with the community will contribute to create the Colorado River Delta Pollinator Garden.

Links:

• Cleanup day at Vado Carranza
• Water flows again!
• Clarita, Pepe, and Willy, three Yuma Ridgway's Rails