News @ Webb Tract

SAVE THE DATE: PUBLIC MEETING #2

The next public meeting will be held at the Big Break Visitor Center in Oakley, CA on Wednesday, February 12, 2025 from 10:00 a.m. to noon. A Zoom conference line will also be provided for those who cannot attend in person. The meeting will provide updates on the Wetland Restoration Project design and the status of Rice Conversion Project. This meeting is designed to solicit your feedback on the projects. This meeting is co-hosted by the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Conservancy and Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. More information coming soon!

Webb Tract is about to be transformed by a Nature-Based Solutions grant from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Conservancy. The current steward of the approximately 5,500-acre island, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, is leading the effort to stop or reverse subsidence, reduce greenhouse gas emissions through carbon sequestration, create a mosaic of habitats with eco-cultural benefits, and explore sustainable farming opportunities in the Delta. It’s a big challenge funded by the $20.9 million grant and contributions from Metropolitan.

Design included using LiDAR measurements to create a high-resolution elevation map to measure subsidence across the island. Darker green indicates more deeply subsided areas of the island.

WEBB TRACT WETLAND PROJECT UPDATE

The planning for the Webb Tract Wetland Project (funded by the Delta Conservancy’s Nature Based Solutions grant program) continues on pace. The design team is developing a plan that is flexible, implementable and forward thinking. The team that includes local engineering and restoration consultants, ecocultural specialists, an ecocultural working group, and land managers have learned from other Delta restoration projects and are using their combined experience and knowledge to design a sustainable wetland plan that will have multiple benefits even in the face of climate change.

Challenges include finding the right balance between wetland water management, working with the existing infrastructure, and limiting earthwork to provide a variety of habitats. Borrow material has been identified for future levee maintenance while protecting existing remnant sand dune habitat, and design takes advantage of an existing paleo slough to reduce construction of new berms.

The Ecocultural Working Group has helped to integrate tribal knowledge into the design and restoration plans. In December, the co-leads Don Hankins and Austin Stevenot engaged with the larger Tribal community and continue to engage with the Delta Conservancy, Metropolitan, and the design team as the project progresses.

Goats provide vegetation maintenance on Webb Tract

If you'd like to stay informed on the progress of the projects on Webb Tract, please sign up for the newsletter here.

Metropolitan will continue to engage local Delta interests, environmental organizations, tribal and indigenous people and solicit input through public workshops and community engagement sessions.