Water Resource Collections and Archives

Western Stege Marsh and Coastal Prairie Restoration

Organization: The Watershed Project (formerly The Aquatic Outreach Institute)
2005 & 2007 Grants Recipient – Contra Costa County

Purpose

Restore salt marsh, ecotone, and surrounding upland habitat, including adjacent upland scrub, wet meadow and coastal prairie. Western Stege Marsh and adjacent areas support a diversity of wildlife species, including the California clapper rail, a federally listed endangered species, and many migratory birds. The project resulted in re-vegetation of more than 50 local native plant species to protect and increase existing native plant populations and provide diverse foraging habitat, upland cover and refugia for a number of special status wildlife species.

The site belongs to the University of California, Berkeley, and The Watershed Project partnered with UC Berkeley with support from the San Francisco Foundation and other organizations to conduct the restoration. The project included a significant educational component for interns and University students, who were trained in seed collection of local genotypes, propagation in the on-site plant nursery, and outplanting. Students and interns also participated in monitoring restoration success, rare plant distributions, and invasive species control. The data collected helped produce an adaptive management plan for continued maintenance. Community outreach and K-12 student programs related to the restoration helped to inform local residents of the values of marsh restoration.

2012 Update

The University continues to use the restoration project for ecology and environmental studies classes, and has continued monitoring and stewarding the marsh and coastal prairie. For additional information see “Year 5 Monitoring Report for the Western Stege Marsh Restoration Project, University of California, Berkeley. Richmond Field Station, Richmond, California.” September 2010. Read more ...

Documents

• Final Report for the University of California, Berkeley, Richmond Field Station Remediation and Restoration Project.
  Habitat Restoration Progress Report 2003 – 2007. Sharon Farrell, (under contract to the Watershed Project), with contributions by Monica Stafford & Martha Berthelsen, the Watershed Project and Stacy Haines, Tetra Tech EM Inc. October 2007. (81 pp.)
• Appendices for the Final Report. 2009. (207 pp.)

Primary Contact

Martha Berthelsen
Public Programs Manager
The Watershed Project
Phone: (?)
Email: Martha@TheWatershedProject.org

Secondary Contact

Karl Hans
Senior Environmental Scientist
UC Berkeley Office of Environment, Health & Safety
Phone: (?)
Email: KHans@Berkeley.edu

Project Ecologists:

Sharon Farrell (currently with Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy)
Joe Cannon (Restore_Ecology@earthlink.net)
Monica Stafford (MStafford@ParksConservancy.org)