HAYLEY LERCH
News Assistant
Not only is Malibu home to Pepperdine students and posh movie stars, but the wildlife that inhabit Malibu Lagoon add to the city’s eclectic population. These creatures are the focus of the plan to restore Malibu Lagoon. The $3 million project, which will begin in fall at the earliest, calls for the creation of three bird islands and an improved water circulation system.
“The lagoon was much larger when people first started developing the area,” said Dan Preece, Santa Monica Resource and Conservation District administrator. “The lagoon that’s currently there is much more restricted, but by restoring the natural flow, you make it more useful to endangered species.”
According to Damon Wing, Malibu Lagoon program manager for the Santa Monica Resource and Conservation District, discussion about the restoration has been ongoing for the past 15 years. Wing is in charge of compiling the environmental impact report and moving toward acquiring the necessary permits. Restoration of the lagoon is still in its beginning phases.
The lagoon was restored in 1983 by the California Department of Parks and Recreation. This project included the excavation of three channels with sloping mudflats to reintroduce tidal flow.
“We’ve learned a lot since then,” Wing said. “This is not a hard science, but we do know how to do it better now, and this is called adaptive management.”
In addition to the formation of bird islands, the project will include the resurfacing and reworking of the parking lot that exists near the lagoon. According to Wing, the work on the plan is being funded by a grant from Proposition 13, and four state agencies are involved in the project.
The changes to the lot will improve water quality and increase the size of the lagoon.
“There is a water quality problem,” Wing said. “One part is to remove the parking lot and resurface the area so that runoff doesn’t go to the lagoon. The goal would be to eliminate all runoff.”
The plan is to rework the lot and also replace three dead-end tidal canals with a broad loop channel. “There’s an A, B, and C channel right now, but the idea is to eliminate the B channel in the middle,” Wing said.
This undertaking also includes the extraction of as much as 18,000 cubic yards of silt, which is equal to about 1,200 dump truck loads worth of material that will be taken to a landfill.
The lagoon, which is adjacent to Surfrider Beach, will have increased water circulation as a result of the project.
According to Wing, the first phase of the project, which may begin in fall if all required permits have been granted, will include the renovation of the parking lot. Then, in fall 2007, work on the lagoon arms and channels will begin.
Wing is not only compiling plans for the restoration of the wildlife area, but also the interpretive aspects, including signs and informational tools meant to guide visitors.
“We would also like to integrate visitors into the environment with our educational and interpretive programs,” Wing said.
Much of the state has lost areas and according to Wing, this project could help reverse this trend and improve the environment for both the wildlife and the citizens of Malibu.
“We’ve lost 95 percent of our coastal lands and here’s an opportunity to take back a few more acres,” Wing said. “This is important because it is a water quality issue that affects both wildlife and also anyone else who uses the beach and ocean areas.”
03-23-2006