SMART School: Aragon High School
Location: San Mateo, California
Mentors: Kevin Doyle (kdoyle@smuhsd.org)
SMART student researchers: Mayuko Boffelli, Lindsey Stevens, Aech Loar (Point Person, m.loar.2000@gmail.com)
Community partners: San Francisco BayKeepers
Group meeting time: Mondays at 12:00 pm PT
Watershed: Crystal Springs Creek
Research sites:
- Crystal Springs Creek under the Bridge on Crystal Springs Dr. just West of El Camino Real.
- Crystal Springs Creek at Gateway Park in San Mateo on 2nd Ave.
- Crystal Springs Creek at the creekside amphitheater of Ryder Park in San Mateo off 3rd Ave, (just before the waterway enters the Bay).
Team goals and research topics:
Sites were chosen for safe public access and to monitor the change in water quality due to passing through a suburban residential and downtown area. Site 1 is just below a water treatment plant for the outflow from Crystal Springs Reservoir (one of the areas drinking water sources). Site 2 has passed through about 2 miles of low density residential area and just after this goes through some culverts as it enters a suburban downtown area. Site 3 measures after passing through the downtown area. Site 4 will give an idea of what is being poured into the San Francisco Bay after residential, downtown and freeway crossings. At this point we are not sure what questions we will ask of this creek beyond what is happening. However, as our school site is part of the watershed in question and has had some serious flooding issues in the past, the group would like to research, plan, propose some rain-garden or other onsite drainage and water-flow solutions.
