Americano Creek (Latitude: 38.317 N; Longitude: 122.898 W) is a stream in southeastern Sonoma County, California^[1] and western Marin County that discharges to the Pacific Ocean. This watercourse rises in the low lying coastal hills west of Cotati and meanders to the Americano Estuary, an area of federal protection.^[2] Its headwaters are in an area near Roblar Road where a closed landfill and a proposed hard rock quarry are situated. The headwaters area is a habitat for a number of rare and endangered species including Sebastopol Meadowfoam, Limnanthes vinculans; Showy Indian clover, Trifolium amoenum; and Pitkin Marsh Lily, Lilium pitkinese.^[3] Flow rates are highly seasonal with the heaviest flows occurring in the rainy winter months. A permanent Coast Miwok prehistoric village has been authenticated to have existed at the mouth of the mouth of Estero Americano Creek; the village name is Awachi. A running stream. ... Sonoma County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California, north of Marin County and the San Francisco Bay Area. ... Marin County is a county located in Californias San Francisco Bay Area, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. ... A waterway is any navigable body of water. ... Cotati is a city located in Sonoma County, California. ... The headwaters of a river are small streams that create it. ... A landfill compaction vehicle in operation A landfill, also known as a dump (US) or a tip (UK), is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment. ... A small cinder quarry A dimension stone quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. ... Rare species is an organism which is very uncommon or scarce. ... The critically endangered Amur Tiger, a rare subspecies of tiger. ... Bodega Bay as viewed from present-day Dillon Beach, was ancient homeland of the Coastal Miwok. ... Prehistory (Greek words προ = before and ιστορία = history) is the period of human history prior to the advent of writing (which marks the beginning of recorded history). ... A village is a human residential settlement commonly found in rural areas. ...

Americano Creek has been designated by the U.S. Government as an impaired water body subject to the meaning of section 303(d) of the Federal Water Resource Statutes. It is also noted as an impaired estuary that discharges to a federally protected marine sanctuary, the Gulf of the Farallons National Marine Santuary. Primary water pollutants listed for impairment are nutrients (i.e. nitrate and phosphate) as well as sediment. Secondary pollutants of concern are ammonia, boron and coliform bacteria. All seven miles of Americano Creek are considered impaired.^[4]Water testing for pH (acidity) levels have generally found slightly alkaline values in Americano Creek and its estuary; typically pH levels in the range of 7.5 to 8.0 are found, but these results are within the guidelines of the State of California Basin Plan. County outline map of California, showing position of the Farallon Islands The Farallon Islands are a group of islands and rocks found in the Gulf of the Farallones, off the coast of mainland San Francisco, California. ... Water pollution Water pollution is a large set of adverse effects upon water bodies (lakes, rivers, oceans, groundwater) caused by human activities. ... A nutrient is either element or compound necessary for or contributing to an organisms metabolism, growth, or other functioning. ... An electrostatic potential map of the nitrate ion. ... Above is a ball-and-stick model of the inorganic hydrogenphosphate anion (HPO42−). Colour coding: P (orange); O (red); H (white). ... Sediment is any particulate matter that can be transported by fluid flow and which eventually is deposited as a layer of solid particles on the bed or bottom of a body of water or other liquid. ... Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula NH3. ... General Name, Symbol, Number boron, B, 5 Chemical series metalloids Group, Period, Block 13, 2, p Appearance black/brown Atomic mass 10. ... Binomial name Escherichia coli T. Escherich, 1885 Escherichia coli (usually abbreviated to E. coli) is one of the main species of bacteria that live in the lower intestines of warm_blooded animals (including birds and mammals) and are necessary for the proper digestion of food. ... Phyla Actinobacteria Aquificae Chlamydiae Bacteroidetes/Chlorobi Chloroflexi Chrysiogenetes Cyanobacteria Deferribacteres Deinococcus-Thermus Dictyoglomi Fibrobacteres/Acidobacteria Firmicutes Fusobacteria Gemmatimonadetes Lentisphaerae Nitrospirae Planctomycetes Proteobacteria Spirochaetes Thermodesulfobacteria Thermomicrobia Thermotogae Verrucomicrobia Bacteria (singular: bacterium) are unicellular microorganisms. ... . The initial letter is shown capitalized due to technical restrictions. ... The common (Arrhenius) definition of a base is a chemical compound that either donates hydroxide ions or absorbs hydrogen ions when dissolved in water. ... Estuaries and coastal waters are among the most productive ecosystems on Earth, providing ecological, economic, cultural, and aesthetic benefits. ...

Bridges

The following bridges span Americano Creek: Gericke Road, Roblar Road and Valley Ford Road.^[5] The newest of these, erected in 1985, is the 22.3 meter concrete slab structure across Valley Ford Road, at a point 3.6 miles east of the junction with California State Highway 1. The oldest of these bridges is the Roblar Road span, which is a 8.2 meter long concrete culvert constructed in the year 1964; this structure is situated 0.7 miles east of the junction with Valley Ford Road. The Gericke Road bridge structure is a 32.6 meter concrete continuous Slab built in 1972 at a point 0.2 miles south of Valley Ford Road.. California State Route 1, more generally known as Highway 1, or in Southern California as the Pacific Coast Highway or P.C.H., runs along the Pacific coast for most of the length of the US state of California. ... A culvert is a flowing body of water which passes underneath a road, railway, or embankment, or the part thereof that does so. ...

See also

• Water pollution
• Overgrazing

Water pollution Water pollution is a large set of adverse effects upon water bodies (lakes, rivers, oceans, groundwater) caused by human activities. ...

References

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is a scientific agency of the United States government. ...

External links

• Americano Creek water temperature habitat designation
• Americano Creek monthly flow rates