DELTA COUNCIL: Tide’s End Project will complete 10-mile wetland corridor in Yolo Bypass

A second goal is to maintain land uses compatible with habitat restoration, including flood-compatible agriculture such as wild rice production and managed seasonal wetlands for waterfowl. A third goal is to reduce flood risk while supporting habitat objectives.

Although habitat restoration remains the project's central purpose, the design treats flood management, recreation, and agriculture as integral, compatible uses rather than secondary considerations.

"While this is fundamentally a restoration project, it is integrated with other compatible land uses and flood conveyance, which is directly related to water supply reliability," said Judah Grossman. "This is a true multi-benefit project."

Project Design

The project design combines tidal habitat restoration with floodway-compatible agriculture, including wild rice production, and managed seasonal wetlands for waterfowl. Irrigation and drainage improvements would support these land uses while providing broader benefits to the surrounding area.

Tidal inundation would be restored by opening or lowering selected berms and excavating channels. The resulting habitat would support plankton production and allow juvenile salmon and other native fish to access the floodplain during high-flow events.

The design has four main components:

• Open or lower selected Toe Drain berms to improve tidal connectivity and drainage between the Toe Drain and the project area.
• Excavate tidal and drainage channels.
• Install fish-passable water-control structures.
• Improve irrigation, drainage, access, and supporting utilities to simplify water management and increase efficiency within the project area and the surrounding community.

The slide below compares existing conditions on the left with the proposed design on the right. In place of the relatively uniform habitat shown under current conditions, the project would create a network of tidal channels and a mosaic of habitat types while retaining compatible uses, including managed wetlands and agriculture, shown in peach.