Coastal health at core of work on wetlands

Restoring and expanding Marin’s historic wetlands has been an environmental priority for years.

The latest milestone in this effort was reached last month when the California Coastal Conservancy unveiled the new taller and wider levee that will allow for the restoration of about 1,600 acres of wetlands around Bel Marin Keys.

Add that to the neighboring Hamilton wetlands of 648 acres.

It is an impressive step toward reversing, where it’s possible, some of the wetlands lost to decades of the Bay Area’s development. Baylands were diked and filled to provide acreage for agriculture, towns, commercial hubs, subdivisions, highways, airports, military bases, stadiums and many dumps.

It has been estimated that over the past 150 or more years, up to 90% of the bay’s wetlands have been destroyed.

Today, we are trying to repair that damage, where it’s practical.

That work will help improve the bay’s water quality, bolster flood protection, sequester carbon from the atmosphere and, importantly, bring back the wetlands that not only serve as natural habitat for birds and animals, but as a nursery for fish and other marine creatures.

They also provide a public trail that will likely be popular with birders and those seeking exercise with a view, as has Hamilton’s bayfront path.

In June 2016, a whopping 73.5% of Marin voters backed up our community’s long

It has been estimated that over the past 150 or more years, up to 90% of the bay’s wetlands have been destroyed.

standing environmental credentials by supporting a Bay Area tax measure aimed at restoring and expanding wetlands.

This project is a big step toward that objective.

The California Coastal Conservancy and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers took the lead on the Bel

Marin Keys levee project, starting work in 2019.

The new levee has been designed to provide greater protection against sea level rise and placed farther inland to set the stage for creation of a new tidal marsh.

The new levee has been designed so it can be increased in height, if necessary. The project also includes a new pump station as additional flood protection.

We will never recover that 90%, but as we now recognize the environmental value of those Bel Marin wetlands, we can restore and renew the opportunities that become available.

The milestone reached on the Bel Marin Keys levee project is a step toward fulfilling that goal.