Posted on September 2, 2020
State Fish and Wildlife plans massive restoration at underwater park
Residents have until Wednesday to comment on a proposal for restoring Franks Tract, a 3,000-acre flooded island in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, to marshlands.
A public draft of the proposal identifies three optional concepts for restoring the tract. Leaving the tract in its current state is a fourth option.
The preferred concept that’s emerged after several public meetings would restore about 1,000 acres to tidal marsh habitat and deepen other areas to provide fill for the marsh. Community concerns regarding navigation and recreation would also be addressed, according to the plan.
“For this report, we worked with the local community to come up with concepts for restoration that address not only biological objectives but also recreation, navigation, flood concerns and economic concerns,” said Carl Wilcox, California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Delta policy adviser.
Located southeast of Brannan Island between False River and Bethel Island, Franks Tract State Recreation Area is only accessible by boat and is primarily used by fishermen, boaters and waterfowl hunters.
It’s also a hot spot for invasive plants and predatory fish, and during dry conditions, saltwater intrudes into waterways that are used to convey freshwater to cities and agriculture in the Delta and other parts of California.
Over the past several years, the Department of Fish and Wildlife has been studying ways to restore part of the 3,523-acre state park to its original marshland state with the aim of reducing saltwater intrusion into the Delta and cutting back submerged aquatic weeds and eliminating invasive nonnative fish that feed on native fish such as the endangered Delta smelt and Chinook salmon.
An initial 2017 study included plans to split the submerged island in two with a berm, to create a thousand acres of wetlands. But that would have permanently blocked access to False and Sacramento rivers from Bethel Island and Franks Tract, so planners revised their proposal.
A draft of the Franks Tract Futures Report, titled “Franks Tract Futures 2020 reimagined,” can be accessed at franks–tract-futures-ucdavis.hub.arcgis.com
Source: eastbaytimes
