A 2005 ground view of the area that has now been restored to tidal action. (photo: USFWS)

by Steve Martarano and Dan Welsh, Sacramento FWO
Another restoration project has been completed to compensate for impacts from the 1996 Cape Mohican oil spill in San Francisco Bay – the last big spill in the Bay prior to 2007’s devastating Cosco Busan incident. 

More than 500 people turned out for a ceremony on Oct. 26 to watch the breaching of the final levee at the Giacomini Ranch Wetland Restoration Project at Point Reyes National Seashore in California’s Marin County. The project restores 563 acres to tidal action, helping improve the health of Tomales Bay. A significant portion of the $10 million project was funded by the Cape Mohican Oil Spill Trustee Council, which includes representatives from the Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, California Department of Fish and Game, and California Department of Parks and Recreation. The Trustee Council, which contributed $435,000 to the effort, was involved because the area supports migratory birds and marsh habitats affected by the spill.

As the Service’s lead on the Trustee Council, the Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office's Coastal and Environmental Contaminants programs played key roles in the project. This was one of 12 projects to compensate for the negative impacts of the Cape Mohican spill. Other recently completed or ongoing Cape Mohican restoration projects that benefit Service trust resources include:

·        California Least Tern Habitat Enhancement at Alameda Point;

·        Exotic Vegetation Control in Seabird Nesting Areas at Farallon NWR;

·        Snowy Plover Nesting Habitat Enhancement at Point Reyes National Seashore:

·        Exotic Cordgrass Control in San Francisco Bay Wetlands.