Discoveries
What do our photos show?
San Clemente Canyon has been preserved for years, so our photos showed no obvious problems. However, under scrutiny they showed a very different picture. Even among crystal-clear water, little pieces of plastics stood out, along with dog excrement and cigarette buts. This trash is nonbiodegradable and full of toxins, meaning it will leave chemical trails long after it has been picked up or transferred to storm drains and eventually to the ocean. Also prevalent in our pictures were non-native plants, a scourge of San Diegan canyons. In Rose canyon and Tecolote canyon, two parks not-so-far from Marian Bear and under the same ranger jurisdiction, ice plant, a succulent with no natural enemies in San Diego, is especially harmful. San Clemente canyon has few invasive species invasions, due to the hard work of volunteers and the Marian Bear Recreational Council. However, according to Sr. park ranger Matt Sanford, “[there are] a number of non native plant species from mustard [a yellow flowered plant surrounding our interview area]...to castor bean, which is a very bad one, to onion weed...” These nonnative plants could be seen in almost every photo, especially at the beginning of the trail. This could have been due to another issue identified by Mr. Sanford: dumping of landscaping waste. Landscaping waste often consists of products that are nonnative to the San Diego, including many succulents and pretty wildflowers that lack natural predators here. This waste is dumped illegally monthly and sometimes weekly, usually near the entrances to the park, which allows invasive species to concentrate there.
What can be inferred about the condition of the forest?
According to our photos, the canyon is in pretty good shape. However, its most obvious enemy was strikingly obvious as one simply looked to the north. San Clemente is nestled in a valley between housing developments and the 52 freeway. The original plans for Route 52 totally obliterated the canyon floor, leaving only the hillsides for eventual development into homes. It was the park’s namesake, Marian Bear, who fought for the transformation of the plans into a highway for the hills. Now, Route 52 extends the entire 467 acres of canyon lands. This leads to difficulties for animals, who may be killed as they look to expand territory or migrate up or down the coast.
What did we learn from Global Forest Watch data?
Global Forest Watch’s satellite images tell us little about Marian Bear itself. Forest monitoring has not existed long enough to truly capture the issues faced by this forest. Indeed, this canyon is protected from many of the problems faced by many other forests in San Diego county. It has a significant water source, there is an abundance of volunteers willing to weed out non native species, and it is has the wonderful Marian Bear Recreational Council taking action to keep its borders secure from new, possibly harmful development.
What did we learn from other sources?
We interviewed Mr. Matt Sanford, Senior Park Ranger for the City of San Diego, and consulted the Marian Bear city park website. There was also an immensely helpful sign put up by a girl scout troop about the flora and fauna in the park. They echoed the photos’ stories.
Final thoughts
The only conclusion left to make is that this canyon is generally healthy, except for a few man-made problems that can only be changed with the betterment San Diego’s population as a whole. Many people have yet to fully understand the importance and beauty of our natural ecosystem
