The Peyton Slough watershed is composed of urban Peyton Creek and some minor tributaries, managed runoff from the Shell Oil Refinery located west of I-680, urban runoff from the relatively small Arthur Road neighborhood east of I-680, as well as drainage from portions of I-680 itself. The watershed includes Martinez Reservoir, the terminal reservoir of the Contra Costa Canal. Martinez Reservoir has a spillway connected to Peyton Creek. Peyton Creek is a highly modified urban creek with a combination of open concrete channels, natural channels, and a 1,000-foot-long underground concrete culvert through the Shell Oil Refinery property. Peyton Creek is an intermittent stream, mostly drying up by the summer.
Skills: Ecological restoration, California native plant horticulture, volunteer coordination, environmental education, community outreach.
Fun Fact: Enjoys collecting more plants than he can fit in his yard, loves learning about restoration projects around the world for inspiration.
Evan developed a love of nature as a kid catching lizards and building forts in the canyons of suburban San Diego. This deep interest in the natural world evolved into a focus on the human relationship with nature. Following this interest, he studied Environmental Science at UC Berkeley and Environmental Horticulture at Merritt College in Oakland. He spent several years working in retail plant nurseries before obtaining a master’s degree in Regenerative Studies (environmental sustainability by another name) at Cal Poly Pomona. This led to an extremely rewarding position as a garden educator at an elementary school in an underserved community in Pomona, CA, growing his love for environmental education work.
Working as a California native plant horticulturist at California Botanic Garden in Claremont, CA, then caused Evan’s interest in ecological restoration to blossom. He considers restoration to be a crucial pursuit for preserving biodiversity, mitigating climate change, and fulfilling people’s desire to heal the natural world. He worked several years as a restoration technician on projects throughout the Bay Area and is excited to be involved in community-focused watershed conservation with CCRCD.
