City Of Del Mar: Council Receives Report On Wetlands Restoration Project

Press release from the City of Del Mar:

February 13, 2022

A presentation to the City Council on Feb. 7 outlined plans to restore 84 acres of wetlands east of Interstate 5 with the added benefit of placing sand on Del Mar’s beaches.Shawna Anderson, executive director of the San Dieguito River Park Joint Powers Authority, told the council that the two-year, $87 million wetlands restoration project began last month.Plans show the project will create a range of habitats, from open water basins to coastal sage scrub.The project includes a requirement to place 5,000 cubic yards of sand onto the beach within one year after construction is finished and an additional 5,000 cubic yards every decade thereafter, said Kim Smith, SANDAG senior planner and project manager.The wetlands restoration project adds to earlier work completed in 2011 that brought expansive, open-water basins and improved tidal flushing to adjoining areas east and west of Interstate 5. Both phases are designed to create ecosystems that can sustain flooding and future sea level rise.Today, the work program includes building a new connection from the Coast to Crest Trail to the Dust Devil Nature Trail just south of the project. Workers will revegetate restored areas with native plants. A set of utility poles is scheduled for removal.The San Diego Association of Governments and Caltrans are running the job as part of their 40-year, $6 billion North Coast Corridor Program.Watch meetingVisit restoration project webpage

This press release was produced by the City of Del Mar. The views expressed here are the author’s own.