Freshwater Wetlands Protected at Watsonville Slough
The Watsonville Slough complex in southern Santa Cruz County is the largest area of freshwater wetlands on the Central Coast. The Land Trust of Santa Cruz County will soon acquire four properties totaling 486 acres in this area, so as to protect and enhance these wetlands, improve floodplain function and public access, and preserve agricultural lands.

The purchase price is about $15 million. The Conservancy is contributing $6.5 million in Proposition 84 funds, the Wildlife Conservation Board has approved $5.5 million, and the Nature Conservancy will contribute $1.5 million. In partnership with the Conservancy and WCB, the Land Trust has applied for $1.6 million in U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Coastal Wetland Grants and also expects to raise local funds to contribute to the project.

The Watsonville Slough complex comprises riparian habitats, upland grasslands, and freshwater wetlands. It provides critical habitat for California brown pelicans, tri-colored blackbirds, long-billed curlews, white-faced ibises, and other coastal and migratory birds, as well for the federally listed tidewater goby, south-central California coast steelhead, California red-legged frog, and other aquatic and riparian species.

The Land Trust's acquisitions will link two isolated Department of Fish and Game Ecological Reserve units and various other parcels so that a total of 850 acres of contiguous lands are protected in the Slough complex. The Land Trust will hold title to the newly acquired lands and manage them. It expects to help preserve farming operations on the property, while reducing soil erosion and sedimentation that is affecting the Slough's drainage capacity and water quality. Rowcrop farming will continue in upland areas, with revenues from rents applied to restoration, management, and further acquisitions.

Work to Begin on South Bay Salt Ponds
With a total of about $15 million now secured for construction on the first phase of the 15,100-acre South Bay Salt Ponds Restoration Project--the largest wetland recovery project ever attempted in California--on-the-ground work can soon begin. In November, the Conservancy authorized $4.25 million from Propositions 50 and 84 funds for the project's first phase, with a number of other agencies contributing to the total. The Conservancy also authorized $300,000 for the South San Francisco Bay Shoreline Study, which will identify specific flood control, habitat restoration, and public access improvement projects in the South Bay, including areas surrounding the salt ponds. These funds allow habitat restoration and public access construction to begin.

The former Cargill salt ponds will be reconfigured into a complex of managed ponds and tidal wetlands to create conditions more closely resembling the historic landscape of San Francisco Bay. Public access will be improved, with trails, viewing platforms, cultural and environmental resource interpretive stations, waterfowl hunting, non-motorized boat launches, and parking areas.

Phase I will include five public access projects (interpretive platforms and overlooks) and six wetland construction projects. Restored wetlands are expected to provide not only improved habitats for a variety of wildlife, but more resilience to tidal flooding as sea level continues to rise.