'Red tape' kept marshland dry
But for the second year in a row, the marsh visible to thousands of daily commuters on Interstate 680 was dry when migratory birds flew in from the north looking for a food and rest stop. A Caltrans drainage project and concerns over an endangered marsh mouse delayed plans to refill the marsh this year. Some conservationists are growing impatient with the wait for fixing the marsh so it can stay wet year around. "It's very frustrating," said Bob Wisecarver, the Audubon Society's representative on a committee that watches over the publicly owned marsh. "I'm an environmentalist, but I wonder sometimes how anything gets done with all the red tape." Marsh managers with the Mountain View Sanitary District say they are doing the best they can to cope with restrictions that others imposed. Two new hurdles surfaced this year to delay plans for dredging the marsh when it's dry, so brackish water will flow more freely there when it's wet. The federal Army Corps of Engineers decided it wouldn't approve the dredging until scientists survey the marsh for endangered species like the endangered salt marsh harvest mouse. The tiny rodent, which scampers between picklewood plants in brackish marshes, was spotted in McNabney Marsh years ago. The survey will be done soon, but not in time to do marsh dredging this year, said Dick Bogaert, a biologist with the Mountain View Sanitary District, the main agency responsible for the marsh. "We didn't expect this," Bogaert said. "We thought it was a minor enough project, but they want to make sure no species are damaged." More recently, Caltrans spurred another delay. Caltrans told marsh operators to postpone marsh reflooding. The transportation agency needed to have dry ground for equipment to unplug a mud-filled drainage pipe that steers flood waters away from Waterfront Road on the edge of the marsh. The drainage work might be done as early as Monday, but rain could delay it further, said Bill Shedd, a Caltrans engineer. Meanwhile, the 147-acre marsh remains dry and unavailable to ducks, geese and other waterfowl. "The birds will go elsewhere. I don't think this will harm them," Bogaert said. But he added that he and other marsh managers are anxious to get on with the marsh improvements. Once done, the project will manage water flows to create a healthier habitat for plants, bugs and birds, some of which nest there. The marsh has relied for years on sewage effluent treated by the sanitary district and allowed to trickle through the marsh before flowing into Carquinez Strait. When the marsh is dredged and other tidal gate improvements are made, brackish water can flow into the marsh at high tides and help plants and animals. The brackish water suppresses cattails that crowd out other marsh plants and creatures, Bogaert said. Keeping marsh water moving also will suppress mosquito population, a growing concern since the emergence of West Nile virus, marsh planners say. Several plans for developing the marsh surfaced in the 1980s, but the marsh became public property as a result of a Shell oil spill that blackened large stretches of the Carquinez Strait shoreline in 1988. Shell contributed $10.8 million to buy the core of the marsh as public property. It was named after the late Al McNabney, a leader of the Aubudon Society's Mt. Diablo chapter. Wisecarver said it has been a long wait, but he is looking forward to seeing the marsh fixed and permanently wet. The marsh also was dry during summer and early fall last year for studies on marsh improvements, he said. "A big part of the marsh is having birds there so people can enjoy watching them." Contact Denis Cuff at 925-943-8267 or dcuff@cctimes.com http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cctimes/email/news/13309607.htm © 2005 ContraCostaTimes.com and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.
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