Sonoma Land Trust secures two grants for wildlife habitat restoration and interpretive facilities at Sears Point
(SANTA ROSA, CALIF., March 17, 2008) — The Sonoma Land Trust and Sonoma County Regional Parks are the recipients of a $1 million federal grant through the North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) to fund construction of two major wildlife habitat restoration projects in the North Bay. An additional $50,000 grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has been awarded to the Sonoma Land Trust and the San Pablo National Wildlife Refuge to support the building of a pavilion devoted to environmental education at Sears Point.
Under NAWCA, the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission has approved $29.6 million in federal funding for the protection and management of nearly 190,000 acres of wetlands and associated habitats in the U.S. to benefit ducks and waterfowl. The Commission's funding will support 31 projects in 21 states under NAWCA’s U.S. Standard Grants Program.
In Sonoma County, the NAWCA grant award provides $750,000 toward initial construction of the Land Trust’s Sears Point Wetlands and Watershed Restoration Project, and $250,000 for creek habitat restoration at Tolay Lake Regional Park, owned and managed by Sonoma County Regional Parks.
The 2,327-acre Sears Point project, one of the largest tidal wetlands restoration projects in the nation, includes restoration of a 970-acre coastal wetland ecosystem in northwestern San Pablo Bay, and enhancement of more than 1,350 acres of seasonal wetlands and uplands grasslands in southern Sonoma County. The NAWCA award will fund initial restoration actions essential to the comprehensive wetlands and watershed restoration program at Sears Point.
“Restored wetlands provide so many functions,” says John Brosnan, Baylands program manager for the Sonoma Land Trust. “They reduce the risk of flooding highways and rail lines, improve water quality, provide critical habitat for endangered species, and also offer opportunities for hiking, birdwatching and environmental education.”
The Sonoma Land Trust’s planned pavilion at Sears Point is now closer to being built thanks to the $50,000 grant through USFWS’ Challenge Cost Share Program. This funding will support the development of interpretive facilities to educate visitors and hikers about the unique properties of the bay and marshland, and also provide meeting and event space.
More than 90 percent of the San Pablo Bay’s historic tidal marshes have been lost since the late 1800s, when extensive diking of historic marshes took place and land was “reclaimed” for growing oat-hay and wheat, and used as dairy land. The levees that were built eliminated natural tidal action, which dramatically reduced natural habitats and caused declines in key Bay Area wildlife species. The Sears Point project will assist in turning back these losses by restoring critical habitats, improving water quality, and expanding state and federal wildlife management areas.
Working since 2004 with the California Coastal Conservancy and more than 40 additional partner organizations, the Sonoma Land Trust has spearheaded the acquisition, preliminary restoration planning and preliminary habitat design processes at Sears Point. The Land Trust is now working with USFWS and the California Department of Fish and Game to complete compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act and the National Environmental Policy Act by late 2008. Major, on-the-ground restoration actions will begin in the summer of 2009.
About the Sonoma Land Trust
The Sonoma Land Trust preserves scenic, natural, agricultural and open land for future generations. Since 1976, the Sonoma Land Trust has protected nearly 20,000 acres of beautiful, productive and environmentally significant land. For more information about the Sonoma Land Trust, please visit www.sonomalandtrust.org.