By Roy Little
The area of the marsh that is being considered (roughly 150 acres, but there will be several variations). Photo by R. Essinger
There is a unique opportunity to expand the wetlands in the north-east corner of Mission Bay due to the ending of the 50-year lease for Campland and the legal agreement to have De Anza Cove vacated.
The San Diego Audubon Society is leading a planning and study effort to investigate the options of a wetlands-oriented expansion of the marsh. The existing wetland is shown in dark green at the right side, Campland and Rose Creek in the lower center and De Anza Cove to the left.
Until roughly a hundred years ago Rose Creek flowed through the marsh but was re-routed to make development easier. From a wetlands and water quality perspective the original flow of the Rose Creek is important in order to help purify storm water before it reaches the bay and provide nutrients to make the marsh more healthy.
The initial conceptual study is funded and should be completed in one to two years. The public and lease-holders will be involved and decisions will eventually be made by the City of San Diego since almost all the property is city-owned. Since this topic impacts many aspects of the local environment, life and culture, it is important that residents get involved and provide constructive comments.
Wetlands are an important but under-appreciated part of our environment. In particular, salt-water wetlands are an important part of our local Mission Bay, providing nursery functions for many of the fish and feeding grounds for thousands of migrating birds every year.
Photo by R. Essinger
The only remaining salt-water marsh in Mission Bay is the Kendall-Frost Reserve (University of California) and the contiguous Northern Wildlife Preserve (City of San Diego), roughly 40 acres out of the original several thousand acres that existed before the major developments of the 1950s.
Given the fact that saltwater marshes are inundated with saltwater twice a day, only plants and animals that have evolved appropriately can survive and thrive there. Almost by definition saltwater marshes are very flat and elevation changes of a foot mean the plant species change due to differing conditions.
In addition there has to be a transition from saltwater environment to normal non-salt conditions around the edge. Many species of marsh animals crowd to the transition zone at high tide. This transition zone has been severely degraded here by developments and its loss will become even more serious as sea level rises since the marsh cannot expand naturally.
A small restoration effort is being undertaken beside the UC trailer at the corner of Pacific Beach Drive and Crown Point Drive in the K-F Reserve. Covering about 1.5 acres, the effort is limited to the transition zone and upland and has so far removed invasive non-native plants, lots of concrete and asphalt, and smoothed out the slopes so the transition zone can work as water level rises. Volunteers have since planted some 400 native plants (12 different species), ranging from High-marsh Pickleweed to CA Buckwheat. More will be planted around the beginning of 2016 once more funding and plants are available.
Below are a few of the local birds that get their food from the marsh and bay:
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The Long-billed Curlew digs crustaceans out of the mud.The Long-billed Curlew digs crustaceans out of the mud. -
The Cooper’s Hawk was born locally and finds small birds and animals in the upper marsh.The Cooper’s Hawk was born locally and finds small birds and animals in the upper marsh. -
Pied-billed Grebe creek is a fall migrant that arrived in August before its breeding plumage disappeared.Pied-billed Grebe creek is a fall migrant that arrived in August before its breeding plumage disappeared. -
The Hooded Oriole breeds in the upper edge of the transition zone.The Hooded Oriole breeds in the upper edge of the transition zone. -
The Osprey eats only fish, usually caught in the bay.The Osprey eats only fish, usually caught in the bay. -
The Little Blue Herons and Snowy Egrets spend their time fishing in the tidal creeks.The Little Blue Herons and Snowy Egrets spend their time fishing in the tidal creeks. -
The Short-billed Dowitcher arrives late summer and spends the winter here, finding food in the tidal creeks and along the shoreline.The Short-billed Dowitcher arrives late summer and spends the winter here, finding food in the tidal creeks and along the shoreline. -
The young Ridgway’s Rail (an endangered species) having a bath was born in the marsh as a result of a local breeding effort that placed its mother in the marsh in 2013. Rails eat mainly crabs and similar crustaceans and can only thrive in Cordgrass that only grows in wetlands such as these.The young Ridgway’s Rail (an endangered species) having a bath was born in the marsh as a result of a local breeding effort that placed its mother in the marsh in 2013. Rails eat mainly crabs and similar crustaceans and can only thrive in Cordgrass that only grows in wetlands such as these.
All photos by Roy Little unless otherwise stated.
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State legislation passed years ago required that the mobile home residents living on De Anza Point vacate the property by 2003 and the point property revert to public parkland. Due to drawn out lawsuits, that hasn’t begun to happen until now, and multiple special interests are coming forward with new proposals that would use De Anza Point for uses other than public parkland. Hopefully the mayor and city council will restore the point to public parkland use.
El Morro Beach in Laguna, & Crystal Cove in Newport are two examples of the public benefit taking priority over private interests.
Rare – but proof it can happen.
An excellent article about an extremely important topic for all of us. There will be a public announcement before many months pass about a planning process for future use of the former De Anza Point trailer park area. The wetlands and Campland’s future in Mission Bay Park must be discussed within this context.
My personal opinion is that the Campland use should be transferred to De Anza Point so that the wetlands can be expanded. De Anza Point began as an RV camping facility before the illegal transition to permanent residences, and the location is far more accessible from I-5 than the present route through residential neighborhoods. An RV camping facility is an essential resource for public overnight enjoyment of Mission Bay, has been an important element of Mission Bay planning since the first (1958) Master Plan and is a use that the Coastal Commission strongly endorses in the current Master Plan.
Benefits of wetland expansion are numerous though most important for Mission Bay Park itself are the improved water quality through Rose Creek runoff filtering through wetland plants and the potential for reducing siltation around the present mouth of Rose Creek, an accumulation which has affected the navigation past that area. A costly dredging project is close to beginning; realignment of the mouth of Rose Creek to direct runoff into the wetlands will limit that future need and will hring huge water quality improvements.
Also important, for the Bay and for all of us, is the expanded and enhanced habitat – the highest priority for residents of the SD region according to a phone survey conducted prior to beginning the 1994 Master Plan process – and will provide opportunity for that quadrant of the Bay to adapt to the expected sea level rise.