By Ezra Neale, Restoration Ecologist and River Partners

San Diego County is one of the most biologically diverse parts of our country. It contains more threatened and endangered species than any other county in the U.S., but it is also facing significant pressure from increasing development, and water scarcity. River Partners has been restoring riparian habitat in San Diego since 2008 to help support the restoration and recovery of the biodiversity in the region, and so far has restored more than 500 acres of habitat in the county.

In July 2018, River Partners achieved another milestone by completing the 100-acre San Dieguito River Riparian Restoration Project. The project lies in the San Pasqual Valley adjacent to Escondido, CA on land owned and managed by the City of San Diego Public Utilities District. This project area is part of the highly valuable Cornerstones Lands identified in the City of San Diego’s Multiple Species Conservation Program (MSCP) Subarea Plan.

To implement the project, River Partners worked closely with many partners including the City of San Diego, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Geological Survey. The first step involved working as a coalition to plan and design the project to provide habitat for neotropical birds including the endangered Least Bell’s Vireo, as well as a suite of riparian dependent wildlife species, most notably the endangered Arroyo Toad. The final design includes approximately 80 acres of riparian habitat. It includes a mix of overstory trees and understory shrubs geared towards neotropical bird habitat, as well as 20 acres of grasslands designed to provide aestivation habitat for the Arroyo Toad, native pollinator resources, and open habitat for riparian birds that prefer low vegetation fields such as Blue Grosbeak and Lesser Goldfinch.

Efforts like this need the help of many people to get in the dirt and do the physical restoration work. We collaborated with the San Diego Urban Corps, an organization that provides paid job training, support services, and a second chance for young adults to earn a high school diploma, while simultaneously offering a variety of professional services to the community. The Corpsmembers carried out the majority of the labor for removing non-native plants, planting the site with native trees and shrubs, and will be used throughout the life of the project to maintain the site. The partnership between River Partners and Urban Crops offers a unique opportunity to provide jobs and training in habitat restoration to disadvantaged youth employed in the county.

The project is also is highly visible to the public, offering recreational and educational opportunities for the local community. In fact, the 70-mile Coast to Crest Trail, which runs from the coast near Del Mar, CA to the San Pasqual Valley, runs directly through the project, and is visited by hundreds of community members every day. To educate the public, River Partners posted signage, developed a Facebook page, and will hold regular volunteer days to connect the community with this important restoration effort.

In the coming years, we will be monitoring for a diverse mix of wildlife including priority species like the Quino Checkered-spot Butterfly, Arroyo Toad, San Diego Horned lizard, California Gnatcatcher, and Least Bell’s Vireo. Additionally, we will be working closely with the City of San Diego to restore as much as 400 more acres in the San Pasqual Valley. Success of the restoration project will be measured by our ability to provide habitat to rare and endangered species, as will enrich the lives of people throughout San Diego County.