WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Petaluma) Thursday, announced that a grant of $350,000 was awarded to the Bay Institute of San Francisco to assess, designate and acquire wetlands in Marin, Sonoma, Napa, Solano and Contra Costa counties. The funds were secured by Rep. Woolsey in the Commerce-Justice-State appropriations bill for FY 02 and are provided to The Bay Institute in a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as part of their coastal zone management administration awards.

“Protecting the natural environment of the North Bay is one of my top priorities,” said Rep. Woolsey. “This grant will help the Bay Institute meet the challenge of restoring the largest area of wetlands on the San Francisco Bay, and will help ensure that future generations will enjoy the Bay’s diversity of wildlife.”

“We thank Rep. Lynn Woolsey for her tireless efforts to protect and restore one of the North Bay’s most precious and imperiled ecological systems,” said Marc Holms, Bay Restoration Program manager for The Bay Institute.

“This grant is an important complement to the San Pablo Bay Restoration Program already underway,” said Mr. Holmes. “These funds will enable us to leverage more state and local funding for habitat protection for fish and wildlife throughout the five counties touching San Pablo Bay.”

The San Pablo Restoration Program will enhance fish and wildlife habitats by protecting and restoring wetlands and addressing water quality problems in the San Pablo Watershed. The restoration program has received active support from the environmental community, agricultural interest and local government in the five county San Pablo Baylands Region.

Other projects under consideration include work along the Petaluma and Napa rivers and in Solano and Contra Costa counties to restore tidal wetlands, increase flood storage capacity, expand habitat for fish and other wildlife, and scour accumulated sediment from tidal channels.

The Bay Institute of San Francisco is a non-profit research, education and advocacy organization that works to protect and restore the ecosystems of the San Francisco Bay watershed.

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