ABOUT:
Founded in 1905, the city of Richmond, CA sits in the eastern San Francisco Bay Area. The seaside city actually has a National Park designation, covering the Rosie the Riveter Memorial Park, three regional shoreline parks, and over 50 other city parks of all shapes and sizes.Richmond will be transitioning its beloved Nichol Park in a city-wide move towards organic park and field maintenance. Nichol Park offers a sprawling 21 acres of outdoor activities for the whole family – including (but not limited to) a playground, soccer field, picnic area, lawn bowling, putting green, tennis courts, baseball/softball fields, and community center!WHY:
Richmond adopted an Integrated Pest Management plan in July of 2012 to minimize pesticide use within city departments that dealt with pest and weed control. While this plan did aim to limit pesticide use, the city did not ban it completely – until a few years later, that is!In 2015, the Richmond City Council unanimously voted to ban all pesticide use from public parks and fields. The city is working with school districts, city departments, and enthusiastic citizens to encourage a continued movement away from harmful pesticides and towards organic field maintenance.