Environmental protection and the trail plan

Only major issues are addressed here. Environmental issues regarding development in the Dish area have been explored in detail as part of Stanford's EIR filings.

Creek habitats

The County Trail Master Plan tends to route trails along creeks, which are the most environmentally sensitive zones in this area. We propose rerouting the Matadero Creek trail from the alignment shown in the Trail Master Plan to the narrow strip of Palo Alto which connects the Arastadero Preserve with Old Page Mill Road. We also propose routing the San Francisquito Creek trail further east of the creek than shown in the Trail Master Plan and using existing service road alignments in the Dish area where possible.

Hill erosion

Hill erosion from non-motorized trail uses is more of an aesthetic problem than a major environmental hazard. However, building out trails to County standards should alleviate this problem. It has done so successfully in areas such as the Arastadero Preserve, and in the few places where Stanford has built natural-tread trails (an example is the path to the Student Observatory) they have held up well.