Archive | www.aapa-ports.org |
June 3, 2013 |
San Diego: South Bay Restoration Project Earns Federal Environmental Award
Print this Article | Send to Colleague
A joint project that restored 300 acres of marsh and wetlands in South San Diego Bay has earned an environmental award from the Obama Administration.
The Port of San Diego, along with its project partners at the federal, state and non-profit level, received the Coastal America Partnership Award on May 29. The award recognizes outstanding efforts to restore and protect the coastal environment.
San Diego Port Commissioner Dan Malcolm, at the podium, accepts the 2012 Coastal America Partnership Award from Rowan Gould, deputy director of operations for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Photo/Port of San Diego
The project restored coastal habitats that are home to endangered birds such as the California Least Terns and Western Snowy Plovers, along with fish and even sea turtles. The restoration project in the Salt Works, the Chula Vista Wildlife Reserve and Emory Cove, began in September 2010 and was completed in March 2011.
Hundreds of volunteers helped remove invasive plants and replaced them with native plants to promote clean water and preserve the habitat.
The port shares this Coastal Award with its partners, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California State Coastal Conservancy, National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association, San Diego Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex, Ocean Discovery Institute, Southwest Wetlands Interpretive Association, San Diego Audubon Society, and the Coronado Rotary Club.
The port contributed about $1.3 million from its Environmental Fund toward the project. The fund's goal is to restore or enhance the bay and surrounding tidelands by funding programs that include but are not limited to recovering habitats, environmental education, protecting endangered species, research, protecting water and sediment quality and restoring natural resources.
Other funding included grants from the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the California Coastal Conservancy.
San Diego Bay is home to more than 89 species of fish and an estimated 300 species of birds.
Photo/Port of San Diego
|
Asociación Americana de Autoridades Portuarias
1201 Maryland Ave SW, Suite 860, Washington, D.C. 20024
E: info@aapa-ports.org
W: www.aapa-ports.org
