Environmental Impact Statement - Sonoma Land Trust

California Department of Fish and Game
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Chapter 1. Introduction, Purpose, and Need
5. To provide recreational opportunities, public access (including the Bay
Trail), and environmental education compatible with protecting and restoring
ecological and cultural resources.
6. To develop a stewardship program that maximizes ecological functions and
minimizes the need for active management and maintenance of the site over
the long term.
7. To ensure public health and safety, including flood protection for Highway
37, Lakeville Highway, Reclamation Road, and the SMART railroad right of
way (ROW), and mosquito abatement.
Relationship of the Project to Local, Regional, and
National Plans
The Project is related to the following local, regional, and national planning
efforts.
San Francisco Bay Plan
The San Francisco Bay Plan was prepared to guide the future protection and use
of the San Francisco Bay and its shoreline (San Francisco Bay Conservation and
Development Commission 1969). The federal Coastal Zone Management Act of
1972 encourages states to voluntarily develop coastal management plans (CMPs)
to preserve and protect the unique features of each coastal area. The San
Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) is the state
coastal management agency for the San Francisco Bay segment of the coastal
zone, and its laws and policies constitute the federally approved state coastal
management program for the Bay.
In April, 2002, BCDC amended the findings and policies of the San Francisco
Bay Plan regarding marshes and mudflats, fish and wildlife, and dredging (San
Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission 2002). These
amendments added identification of “areas diked from the Bay (that) have highvalue
wildlife habitat and restoration potential” to the Bay Plan maps. The
amendments also included a Bay Plan policy of “where and whenever possible,
former tidal marshes and tidal flats that have been diked from the Bay should be
restored to tidal action in order to replace lost historic wetlands or should be
managed to provide important Bay habitat functions, such as resting, foraging,
and breeding habitat for fish, other aquatic organisms and wildlife.” The
proposed project complies with the1992 2002 Bay Plan policy amendment by
proposing to restore tidal wetlands and rehabilitate diked wetlands and upland
habitat.
Sears Point Wetland and Watershed Restoration
Project Final Environmental Impact
Report/Environmental Impact Statement
1-10
April 2012