The Environment and Us

September 05, 2023

The San Francisco Bay Area is a modern powerhouse supporting a vast area of residential and office structures. Millions of individuals go about their day in a modern setting. When I think “Bay Area,” I think of Traffic, Bridges, Tech companies such as Apple, Google, and Facebook. I think of development and high population density such as what is seen in South San Francisco itself, I think of Cargo Ships crossing the bay to Oakland. However, we always forget about the Marshland that once was the Natural Bay Area.

The Bay Area was once comprised of a vast space of grass, marsh, and wetlands. Willow, reeds, and a larger assortment of brush are part of the native plant life, or flora. The native natural flora is rarely seen when one inhabits the inner city such as myself. I live in Fremont which is a city that serves as a very large suburb of the greater Bay Area. However on the eastern outskirt of the city, there is natural wet habitats that are protected by the city. These areas and even the mission hills offer a great amount of beautiful and natural scenery but my focus throughout my younger years was oriented in a different direction. My focus has always been on education and work which is not bad, but I and many others forget that there are still glimpses of what use to lie under our urban foundation.

Therefore, I encourage others to enjoy any natural parks and recreation areas. Exposing yourself to nature can remind you of the natural history of our urban development. You will be reminded of what the natural state of our land that once was. The Flora I previously mentioned can be found at lake Elizabeth which is a manmade lake in the middle of our urban sprawl. You can see cattail plants, reeds, grasses, even sometimes you may see a deer or a few if you go at a early time in the morning.

All of this is not to say that we are ruining our environment, but that we can be conscious of it. We humans are often-self centered and need to be humble to the place we call home. We can develop alongside nature by preserving natural lands and going out and immerse ourselves in the natural habitats that are still present.

Resources used:

Striplen, C. (2006). Life and Times at the Edge of the Bay. News from Native California, 20(1), 24. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,cpid&custid=s8900657&db=f6h&AN=23395000&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Scarborough, C. Zoë S. Welch, Jono Wilson, Mary G. Gleason, Vienna R. Saccomanno, Benjamin S. Halpern. (2022) The Historical Ecology of Coastal California, Ocean & Coastal Management, 230, 106352. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2022.106352.