New road signs indicate creek crossings

As we drive around the Sonoma Valley focusing on getting to our destinations, it’s easy to take the natural feature that defines the Valley for granted — Sonoma Creek.
Reminding Sonoma Valley residents and visitors of the creek’s presence and importance is the objective of a new road sign program sponsored by the Southern Sonoma County Resource Conservation District (RCD). Signs identifying Sonoma Creek have been installed by eight intersections on county roads throughout Sonoma Valley. There is also a new sign on Arnold Drive near Orange Avenue identifying Carriger Creek.
The Sonoma Creek signs are the latest in the RCD’s efforts to have signs identifying creeks and watersheds installed on county roads throughout Sonoma County. The RCD has sponsored creek and watershed signage programs in the Petaluma and Penngrove areas, and partnered with an Occidental nonprofit to have creek and watershed signs installed in west Sonoma County.
Tish Ward, long time Southern Sonoma County Resource Conservation District board member and ranch manager at Glen Ellen’s Atwood Ranch, said: “We hope the new signs make people think about what they’re crossing, so that Valley residents become more familiar with their own backyards and the importance of Sonoma Creek and its tributaries. We all as humans have impacts on our creeks. It’s RCD’s goal to help landowners and residents keep the creeks healthy for future generations.”
The RCD received funding for the signs from the California Coastal Conservancy, the North Bay Watershed Association, and the Sonoma Ecology Center. For more information about the creek signs and other Southern Sonoma County Resource Conservation District programs that serve the Sonoma Valley, call 707.794.1242 ext. 5 or visit its Web site, SSCRCD.org.
The Southern Sonoma County Resource Conservation District supports landowners in caring for the land in the Sonoma Creek, Petaluma River and Stemple Creek watersheds. The resource conservation district works in partnership with landowners to improve water quality, prevent soil erosion, improve natural habitat, restore streams and support agriculture.