Proposition 1 Cycle 2 Awarded Grants

1602 – Dutch Slough Revegetation

Grantee: Reclamation District 2137
Amount: $2,900,000
Coordinates: -121.6829987, 38.0033989

The primary goal of this project is to restore historic Delta habitats and provide ecosystem benefits for native species. Funds from this grant will be applied toward Phase 2, revegetation, which is a critical component for the project to attain its full habitat benefits. The project site consists of three leveed parcels totaling 1,187 acres that have been used as dairy and grazing lands. Phase 1 will be grading of the first two parcels to create proper elevations for tidal marsh, intertidal channels, and upland areas. Phase 2 will be revegetation of the two graded parcels, and will include preparation of the planting plan; purchase of planting material; planting of tules, riparian trees and shrubs, and forbs and grasses; maintenance of the plantings; monitoring, and reporting. Phase 3, which overlaps with the first two phases, is monitoring. Restoration of these two parcels will create 400 acres of tidal marsh, 50 acres of riparian woodland, 18 acres of native grassland, and 110 acres of subtidal open water; and will enhance 70 acres of managed marsh. Native wildlife is expected to rapidly colonize the restored habitats.

1605 – Petersen Ranch: Working Waterway Habitat Enhancement Project

Grantee: Solano Resource Conservation District
Amount: $444,795
Coordinates:  -121.737999, 38.25249863

This project will pair cattle management practices with ecosystem restoration practices to create 13.5 acres of riparian habitat on actively-farmed and grazed ground in the northern part of the Petersen Ranch along Lindsey Slough. It will address both the need for native vegetation, with the habitat and ecosystem benefits it provides, and for improved water quality in the Cache Slough Complex. The project will build upon a successful history of riparian restoration and cattle exclusion activities at the ranch, and is moving forward with the full support of the landowner and neighboring property owners. The project will install nearly 6.5 miles of fencing and provide off-stream water sources for livestock. This will ensure that cattle no longer have direct access to surface waterways that discharge into sensitive Delta habitats and will create a riparian corridor available for restoration activities. The riparian corridors will be planted with a diverse mix of native trees, shrubs, grasses, sedges and forbs to create 13.5 acres of wildlife habitat that will also serve as filter strips for irrigation and storm water runoff. It is anticipated that the removal of cattle and creation of riparian filter strips will provide significant ecosystem benefits to this area, including increased habitat for terrestrial and invertebrate species, reduced erosion and improved water quality, enhanced ecological condition of ranch waterways, and carbon sequestration.

1608 – Restoration of Priority Freshwater Wetlands for Endangered Species at the Cosumnes River Preserve

Grantee: Sacramento County Regional Parks
Amount: $942,631
Coordinates: -121.3280029, 38.34109879

This project will restore 110 acres of priority wetlands located approximately five miles upstream from the legal Delta boundary. The project will benefit sensitive species such as the giant garter snake, greater sandhill crane, and many other species of resident and migratory waterfowl and waterbirds. The project would restore the hydrologic function and condition of Horseshoe Lake by using heavy equipment to remove invasive Uruguayan water primrose and its associated biomass and sediments, followed by aquatic herbicide applications for long-term primrose control. The project goals are to contribute to the survival of both listed and non-listed species by providing perennial water with adequate aquatic prey in Horseshoe Lake, and to restore local water storage capacity along the Cosumnes River to help recharge shallow perched water and deep aquifers. This may help river flows to reconnect earlier in the fall/winter for migrating chinook salmon, while also curbing the need for drilling bigger and deeper water wells that could further exacerbate water problems in the lower Cosumnes River watershed and the downstream Delta. Upon completion of the project, the Preserve expects that Horseshoe Lake and the upstream reaches of Badger Creek east of Highway 99 will support giant garter snake, sandhill cranes, and other wetland dependent species with minimal annual management requirements.

1612 – Investigations of restoration techniques that limit invasion of tidal wetlands

Grantee: The Regents of the University of California
Amount: $104,452
Coordinates:  -121.6869965, 38.01399994

In the Delta, a major constraint on restoration success is invasive species. Historic and recent simplification of habitat structure and altered flow patterns have facilitated the increase of non-native species throughout the Delta, some of which have become harmfully invasive. Once established, invasive species are difficult to control due to their generally rapid growth rate, high reproduction output, and proficient dispersal ability. Conventional control approaches, such as pesticides and mechanical removal, only provide temporary relief to invaded sites.  Competition by native species can be a more sustainable management tool; however, this strategy has not been investigated in a tidal wetland environment.  This project will investigate several revegetation techniques to deter colonization of invasive species on restoration sites in tidal wetlands to improve the potential for successful restoration efforts. Project outcomes will provide restoration strategies that limit invasion of vulnerable tidal systems, which will be put to immediate use by the Department of Water Resources in the planning and implementation of restoration projects, including the adjacent Dutch Slough Restoration Project, as well as several other regionally-significant efforts.