Feel Good Friday - San Bruno Mountain Watch

In this week’s Feel Good Friday I’m highlighting a local, well local to me, conservation organization, San Bruno Mountain Watch. 

Headquartered in Brisbane, California, what began in 1971 as the Committee to Save San Bruno Mountain is now San Bruno Mountain Watch. This nonprofit organization “helps the public explore San Bruno Mountain’s history and environment and works with local communities to restore the mountain’s native habitats, cultivate its flora at the Mission Blue Nursery, and protect its open space.”

If you live in the Bay Area, or have ever driven to San Francisco from SFO and seen “South San Francisco the Industrial City” painted on a hillside, you’ve seen San Bruno Mountain. What you may not know is that it's a 3,600-acre island of biodiversity. The mountain’s “colorful grasslands, thick woodland canyons, trickling creeks, and scrubby hills” are home to 13 rare and endangered plant species and multiple federally listed endangered butterflies.

San Bruno Mountain Watch provides educational resources to the public such as online archives that explore the mountain and its history, and field trips for students to learn about the mountain’s inhabitants like the endangered Mission Blue butterfly. In order to protect and conserve areas of natural and cultural significance for public open space purposes, the organization works with local landowners, donors, and government officials.

The Mission Blue Nursery grows native plants exclusively from seeds and cuttings collected by permit on San Bruno Mountain. Talk about local! These plants are used for ecological restoration projects on the mountain and landscaping projects in neighboring cities. They are also for sale to the public.

A final area of activity revolves around ecological restoration and depends on volunteers. From planting native grasses and wildflowers that support the butterflies, to installing dune plants and designing a botanical garden there are many ways you and your green thumb can get involved. Don’t have a green thumb? You can also help out washing pots and picking weeds. Check the upcoming events page for volunteer opportunities or the trail maps to plan your next hike.

Other ways you can support San Bruno Mountain Watch and protect the open space for you and others to enjoy is by making a donation and following them on on social media. San Bruno Mountain Watch: Facebook and Instagram. Mission Blue Nursery: Facebook and Instagram