Grant to Purchase Wetlands Gets Federal Approval

A $750,000 grant to buy an endangered 43-acre wetlands on Escondido Creek next to San Elijo Lagoon has been approved by the federal government, it was announced this week.

The wetlands, between San Elijo Lagoon and the ocean, was selected by the Department of Interior’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said Tina Kreisher, spokeswoman for Rep. Bill Lowery (R-San Diego).

John Schmidt, director of the state Wildlife Conservation Board in Sacramento, said the wetlands area where San Elijo Lagoon and coastal waters meet will be bought by the state and reimbursed by the federal grant. The land purchase is now in escrow.

“The San Elijo Lagoon is already owned by the state and San Diego County parks,” Schmidt said. “But the acquisition of the 43-acre site makes it possible to protect the remaining wetland area (not already owned by the state) and the habitat, which includes four endangered bird species.”

Joy Zedler, director of the Pacific Estuaries Research Lab at San Diego State University, said the four endangered bird species are the lightfooted clapper rail, Belding’s savannah sparrow, California least tern and least Bell’s vireo.

“A species like the lightfooted clapper rail has only 235 pairs in the entire region and five in the San Elijo Lagoon area,” Zedler said. “We’re happy to have five, which is a lot considering how little there are in the entire region.”

Zedler also said California has lost more wetland areas to urbanization and agricultural development than any other state. She said more than 91% of the state’s wetlands have disappeared since the state maps were drawn up in the 1850s.

“California lost a lot in the Central Valley due to farming . . . and along the coastal regions, where urbanization has removed the rest of the wetlands,” Zedler said. “It wasn’t until the 1960’s, in Chesapeake Bay, where studies showed the lost of wetlands affected the fishing industry by eliminating plant food important for fish production. Although this is not the only reason for preserving wetlands, it is one that changed how people viewed these types of areas.”

The purchase of the Escondido Creek section was made possible by the new Coastal Wetlands Planning Protection and Restoration Act of 1990.