West Bay Habitat Restoration

This OC Parks project involved slope stabilization, trail repair and native plant restoration in an 8-acre area around “Barranca 2″ (the second gully to the southwest of the Interpretive Center). Plant restoration included both hydro-seeding of large open areas and individual plant installation. The project was initially started in the fall of 2007, but was put on hold during the 2008 bird breeding season. It got fully underway in September 2008 and was completed in April 2009.

There were two hydro-seeding and two planting palettes (on each for grassland and coastal sage scrub). Growth was quite spectacular, with many annuals flowering in May of 2009. Key contributors to the success of the project are the fencing that has kept the public out of the restored areas, and the temporary irrigation system.

Construction ended in April 2009. The project scope included three months of maintenance to be complete mid July 2009, including the temporary irrigation as well as non-native weeding. Maintenance was extended to November 2009. Maintenance continues to be performed under a renewable annual maintenance contract with a separate company.

Total cost including three year maintenance to bring vegetation to maturity is roughly $600,000.