Nina Suzuki, waterway steward at the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden joins a diverse group of talented educators and conservationists who are using the power of education to help tackle tough issues in their communities and striving to create a more equitable and sustainable world.

The path on the south side of the Arboretum Waterway, which we sometimes refer to as the yellow brick road, is more than halfway complete. Soon the entire walk from the east end of the Arboretum GATEway Garden to the beginning of the Redwood Grove will have a universally accessible path of smooth pavers.

The weirs in Phase One of the Arboretum Waterway Maintenance and Enhancement Project are functioning beautifully. They allow water to flow from the east end of the Arboretum Waterway (where the weirs are located) to the west end of the Arboretum Waterway (near the Equestrian Center) where pumps send the water all the way out to Putah Creek. Once here, the water eventually reaches the San Francisco Bay.

The majority of the Arboretum is still open for walking, jogging, strolling, smelling the flowers and all the other activities you normally enjoy in the Arboretum except the portion between our Australian / New Zealand collection at the east end of the Arboretum up to, but not including, the Redwood Grove.

We’re still finishing up Phase One of the Arboretum Waterway Maintenance and Enhancement Project, but the construction fencing located in T. Elliot Weier Redwood Grove and Lake Spafford areas is now removed! We expect the pump controller to be programmed by the end of November. Once it is ready, we can turn the pump on and see the water flow over the weirs.  If the weather holds out, you can also expect to see some new plants getting planted around the weirs in December.

The construction dam is down and water is now back in parts of the phase one project area. (Phase one of the Arboretum Waterway Maintenance and Enhancement Project extends from the easternmost portion of the waterway all the way to Wyatt Deck near Lake Spafford.) We're now working with contractors to test and optimize the pump system, which is an essential part of the waterflow in the Arboretum Waterway.

The first weir has been built. Now it has walls, a spillway, and wetland retaining walls on the upstream and downstream sides of the weir. This series of weirs, along with the pump and underground pipe that will move water along the length of the project, are the structures that will transform the Arboretum Waterway from a flat pond to a flowing waterway.

More updates on the Arboretum Waterway Maintenance and Enhancement Project: splash pad concrete poured, weir creation begins, new Learning by Leading Student Co-Coordinators

The Arboretum Waterway is not only the centerpiece of the Arboretum; it is an essential piece of our campus’s water infrastructure. Despite its high-profile importance, the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden has never had a staff member actively managing it, until now! Please welcome to our staff Waterway Steward Nina Suzuki!

Major updates about Phase 1 of the Arboretum Waterway Maintenance and Enhancement Project, including a temporary dam, our new waterway steward, our successful Waterway WOW! campaign, sediment removal, bank reshaping and more!