Hello! For my first report, I’d like to introduce you all to the suburb where I live, Foster City, in the state of California in the United States of America. Its development has an interesting history, being affected by environmental issues. 

Located in the Bay Area, the area of Foster City is close to the shoreline, and has vast tidal marshes. Many different species and numbers of birds, fish, and seals can be sighted when walking along the shore, or boating. 

In the 1800’s, Foster City was busy with oyster fishing, especially during the Gold Rush. In 1958, T. Jack Foster and his four sons purchased the marshland. For six years, Foster cleaned out the mud and weeds with a dredge, and built up layers of 18 million cubic yards of mud and sand, in order to lift the land above sea level. A 13 foot tall levee was also built, in order to hold back the tide.

Foster City is also unique with a 218 acre lagoon through the community, and automatic gates that bring in 71 million gallons of water from the neighboring San Francisco Bay.

This development arose a “save the bay” movement, as the size of the bay had been reduced by a third and destroyed 90% of the marshes. So, in 1965, the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission was created to regulate bay development, in order to protect the remaining marshland. Paths for walking and biking (that I visit often) preserve the shoreline, and make use of the levee as a trail. Despite its environmental challenges, Foster City is a very peaceful, calm, and uniquely built place to live, and is home to 30,000 (and growing) people.

With gradual climate change causing sea levels to rise, they pose a threat to the Foster City community. Flood maps by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) indicated that Foster City will be in a flood zone if nothing is done. The changes would involve an increase in height in the levee, which is currently being constructed. It’s not the most pretty sight, but it is essential in order to protect our city from future storms and floods. 

Link to levee project: https://fostercitylevee.org/

References used:

https://www.fostercity.org/community/page/creation-foster-city-built

https://west.stanford.edu/news/blogs/and-the-west-blog/2018/city-rose-marshes-will-bay-take-it-back-foster-city

https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Foster-City-a-story-of-filling-the-bay-3295665.php