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Many who look at the 1,400-acre Cargill Salt Ponds in Redwood City don't immediately see
an area that could someday be beautiful tidal wetlands.
Some, like Cargill and the developer, DMB Associates, have called the current Salt Ponds
an industrial wasteland, and a moonscape. But what may look unproductive actually holds
huge potential for our bay's ecological health.
Just ask the thousands of birds who already use this area whenever it's flooded -- terns,
egrets, and many other species already feed and nest here. If this area was restored to
tidal marshes, so many more birds and mammals could live here, and we could use it for recreation
and for the valuable ecological services it provides like pollution reduction and flood
protection.
It IS possible to return these salt ponds to tidal marshes. We only have to look across
the bay to see evidence of the possibilities here.
First, let's travel to the Alviso area in the South Bay, and visit a former salt pond
called "Pond A21". This area used to be owned by Cargill to make salt, but in 2002, Cargill
sold it, along with 16,500 acres of salt ponds to the state and federal government to be
restored back to tidal wetlands. Soon after, the restoration began.
Images from 2003 through 2009 show that after the levees were breached, the bay's waters
began to bring in mud and sediment, carrying with it seeds of wetland vegetation. You can
see the evidence of vegetation growing and channels forming.
Next, let's travel to the North Bay to visit the Napa Sonoma Marsh Restoration Project.
Restoration of these Napa Salt Ponds to tidal marshes began in 2002, and already wetland
vegetation has started to come back, and terns and endangered clapperrails are also returning,
among many other birds.
Nearby, another Napa Pond is in the early stages of restoration, and already terns and
other birds are coming back. What makes these ponds so interesting is that they are crystallizer
salt ponds -- the same kind of ponds as the Cargill Salt Ponds in Redwood City.
Nearby, in Marin County, we can visit Petaluma River Marsh. While this area was never a salt
pond, it was used for agriculture prior to the 1990s. This wetland shows the amazing
job that nature can do all by itself if it is allowed to be restored.
So you see, wetlands are being restored all over the Bay Area. Doesn't Redwood City deserve
this opportunity too?
As our population grows in Redwood City, we need these marshes. We need it for flood control,
filtering pollution run-off from our cities, wildlife habitat, and recreation. It helps
our climate too, as wetlands provide a carbon dioxide sink, helping to reduce climate change.
Not only are Redwood City's salt ponds one of the largest remaining sites available for
restoration – they have already been approved for acquisition by the Don Edwards National
Wildlife Refuge, and are the key piece of the puzzle for connecting Ravenswood (which
is currently undergoing restoration), Greco Island and Bair Island.
This map shows wetlands in the Bay and Delta before the 1850s. Since that time, over 90%
of our wetlands have been lost... they have been replaced with agriculture, salt production,
and urban development.
The Cargill Salt Ponds represent one of the largest areas of land that will help Redwood
City and the entire Bay Area reach this goal. to protect our [human] lifestyle in the Bay
Area, and promote wildlife and ecosystem values, in a natural way.
The choice is ours -- should we allow Cargill and DMB Associates to build over this land,
taking away this ecological potential forever? Or should we choose to restore this area to
tidal wetlands, so that we can all benefit from what it offers us and our environment
in Redwood City and the entire Bay Area.
RWC Council would have to change zoning from open space to housing. Make your voice heard
now at the next city council meeting, or sign the online petition at www.DontPaveMyBay.org.