Fixing a dysfunctional marsh on Sonoma Creek
Restoration projects, like species, evolve. The Sonoma Creek Enhancement Project, originally about mosquito control, has shown itself to be a boon to special-status tidal marsh wildlife as well. More than a decade of adaptive management actions made that happen. The existing marsh, formed rapidly beginning in the 1960s by deposited sediment, lacked the dendritic channels of a mature marsh. High tides brought in water that pooled in a central basin and didn’t drain out, providing breeding habitat for mosquitos. The disadvantages of chemical treatment prompted land managers to look for alternatives.
Related articles:
- Sonoma County Gazette: A reimagined view for Sonoma Creek
- San Francisco Estuary Magazine: Dutch Slough Laboratory
- San Francisco Estuary Magazine: Sediment Paparazzi