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Reusing Land and Mud at Hamilton

A combination of tidal and non-tidal wetlands and uplands is the preferred alternative identified for restoring habitat on 900 acres of diked baylands at the former Hamilton Army Airfield. It is one of several alternatives described in a conceptual plan recently released by the staff of the Coastal Conservancy and the S.F. Bay Conservation and Development Commission.

The "Natural Gradient" alternative would use dredged material to restore seasonal wetlands habitat above the tidal plain and accelerate the formation of tidal wetlands in areas subject to tidal action. A back-up alternative consists of breaching the outboard levee and allowing natural sedimentation to restore tidal wetlands.

"The preferred alternative accomplishes so many objectives," says the Conservancy's Terri Nevins. "It implements the Long Term Management Strategy for dredged material disposal in the Bay, it gives the Port of Oakland an upland beneficial reuse disposal site, it completes base closure and reuse, and it is consistent with the San Francisco Estuary Project's Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan, the Regional Habitat Goals program, and CALFED."

Public comments on the plan were due on May 29. "It's an incredible opportunity," says the Audubon Society's Barbara Salzman, who though "very excited" about the project has some concerns about whether the dredged material to be used contains an appropriate biological base to sustain wetland plants.

A draft EIS/EIR is due for the project on August 1, as is a feasibility study by the Corps of Engineers. Nevins says the Conservancy is negotiating with the Army to acquire the property at no cost through a public benefit discount conveyance, and is seeking Congressional authorization to begin construction in the year 2000. In addition, she says the Conservancy is working with U.S. Fish & Wildlife and the Audubon Society to obtain 1,600 acres adjacent to the site currently scheduled for development.

Contact Terri Nevins (510)286-1015

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