Estuary Blueprint
2022 Estuary Blueprint
The final version of the 2022 Estuary Blueprint was approved on March 16, 2022 by the Implementation Committee and was approved on May 9, 2022 by the Executive Council. It is now pending approval by the US Environmental Protection Agency.
Additionally, increasing the resilience of the Estuary’s habitats, human communities, and natural resources is a central focus in the 2022 Estuary Blueprint Update. Thus, we have conducted a climate vulnerability assessment in order to understand the extent to which climate change could impact the Partnership’s ability to successfully undertake the actions laid out in the Estuary Blueprint.
About the 2022 Update Process
This update of the Estuary Blueprint, formerly known as the Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan, is less comprehensive in scope than previous revisions, such as the 2016 Estuary Blueprint. The 2022 update process has focused on revisions at the Action and Task levels.
The overall update process was guided by a Steering Committee consisting of volunteers from the Implementation Committee. Estuary Partnership staff established working groups for updating the actions by starting with the 2016 Estuary Blueprint Task Owners and Collaborating Partners. The team also sought to bring in new stakeholders from audiences that haven’t historically been involved in the Estuary Blueprint process.
Those working groups worked for the past year to draft updated Actions in preparation for public input. Early public input was also invited through listening sessions, social media, and an online survey. Over 80 organizations and agencies have been involved in the Estuary Blueprint update process so far, and many more individuals. All written public input has been compiled and addressed in 2022 Estuary Blueprint Public Input Responses.
For questions on the 2022 Estuary Blueprint Update, please contact Project Coordinator Darcie Luce at darcie.luce@sfestuary.org or (415) 778-6673.
Side-by-Side Comparison
The table below shows an overview of changes between the 2016 and 2022 Estuary Blueprints.
2016 Estuary Blueprint | 2022 Estuary Blueprint Update |
GOALS | |
1. Sustain and improve the Estuary's habitats and living resources | No change |
2. Bolster the resilience of Estuary ecosystems, shorelines, and communities to | No change |
3. Improve water quality and increase the quantity of fresh water available to the Estuary | No change |
4. Champion the Estuary | No change |
OBJECTIVES | |
a. Protect, restore, and enhance ecological conditions and processes that | No change |
b. Eliminate or reduce threats to natural communities | No change |
c. Conduct scientific research and monitoring to measure the status of natural | No change |
d. Increase resilience of tidal habitats and tributaries to climate change | No change |
e. Increase resilience of communities at risk form climate change impacts while | No change |
f. Promote integrated, coordinated, multi‐benefit approaches to increasing resilience | No change |
g. Increase drought resistance and water efficiency and reduce reliance on | No change |
h. Improve freshwater flow patterns, quantity, and timing to better support | No change |
i. Reduce contaminants entering the system and improve water quality | No change |
j. Build public support for the protection and restoration of the Estuary | No change |
k. Strengthen regional leadership in support of Estuary health | No change |
l. Promote efficient and coordinated regional governance | No change |
m. Incorporate the best available social science and cultural knowledge when protecting and improving the Estuary | New |
n. Engage frontline, underserved, and Indigenous communities as partners in | New |
ACTIONS | |
1. Watershed‐based approach | Discontinued and integrated into Action 12 |
2. Wetland regional monitoring program | Updated |
3. Tidal marsh and tidal flats | Updated and narrowed to tidal marsh only |
4. Transition zones | Updated |
5. Intertidal and subtidal habitats | Updated and expanded to include tidal flats |
6. Managed ponds | Updated |
7. Creeks | Updated |
8. Seasonal wetlands | Updated |
9. Invasive species | Updated |
10. Terrestrial predators | Discontinued and integrated into Action 6 |
11. Carbon sequestration | Updated |
12. Watershed connections | Discontinued and integrated into Action 6 |
13. Sediment | Updated |
14. Nature‐based shorelines | Actions 14, 15, 16, and 17 re‐oriented and consolidated into 3 Actions focused on climate resilience and nature‐ based solutions |
18. Freshwater flows | Updated |
19. Long‐term drought planning | Discontinued and integrated into Actions 20/21 |
20. Agricultural water use efficiency | Updated and combined with Action 21 |
21. Landscaping water use efficiency | Updated and combined with Action 20 |
22. Recycled water | Updated |
23. Plan Bay Area – water integration | Integrated into climate resilience Actions |
24. Stormwater management | Updated |
25. Emerging contaminants | Updated |
26. Raw sewage discharges | Discontinued and integrated into Action 30 |
27. TMDLs | Re‐oriented to contaminants related to fish |
28. Nutrients | Updated |
29. Ocean acidification | Discontinued |
30. Trash | Updated |
31. Public access and resource protection | Updated |
32. Champion the Estuary Blueprint | Updated and re‐oriented to Champion the Estuary |