The Santa Rosa plain provides a truly unique habitat for the California Tiger Salamander (CTS), which requires shallow seasonal ponds (called vernal pools) for breeding. To date, 80% of the vernal pools in the SR plain have been destroyed or degraded, and this is the primary reason for the Federal listing of the CTS as a threatened species.

For over a year now, the Santa Rosa Plain Conservation Strategy Team has been developing a conservation plan to preserve the California Tiger Salamander and four endangered plant species. A draft of the Strategy TeamÕs plan will soon be released for public comments. Although the Strategy is far from perfect, and many questions about successful implementation remain, the success of its efforts will ultimately depend upon the whole community cooperating to save the unique vernal pool ecosystem of the Santa Rosa Plain and the species that live in it. It is now time for Sonoma County citizens to get involved, become informed about the realistic costs and benefits of conservation and let our local elected officials know where we stand.

Valerie Brown, District 1:
vbrown@sonoma-county.org

Mike Kerns, District 2:
mkerns@sonoma-county.org

Tim Smith, District 3:
tsmith@sonoma-county.org

Paul Kelley, District 4:
pkelley@sonoma-county.org

What You Can Do:

• Write to your local city council members and county supervisors to inform them of your interest in preserving the ecosystem and wonderfully unique plants and animals of the Santa Rosa Plain. Inform them that you'd like to visit these sites and have them be a public resource. (See accompanying list.)
• Watch for the publication of the public review draft of the Santa Rosa Plain Conservation Strategy, expected some time this summer. Read it through and suggest improvements to the conservation strategy or implementation mechanisms.
• Check the City of Santa Rosa website for more details on the Strategy and to view maps of the Santa Rosa Plain. Go to the website's homepage at http://ci.santa-rosa.ca.us, and in the "Find it Fast" search window, click on "Santa Rosa Plain..."
• Attend public meetings on the issue - expected after publication of the public review draft.
• Become familiar with the Santa Rosa Plain and its issues; watch for and go on a fieldtrip to the existing plant preserves on the plain to view wildflowers and learn about the ecosystem.
• Come up with your own ideas of how best to preserve this special area!
• More information is available at www.redwood.sierraclub.org/sonoma, including information to asisst you in writing a letter to the editor of your local paper.