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Project Reports and Publications
The California Regional Water Quality
Control Board has proposed limits on salinity discharge to the San
Joaquin River. The Grassland Water District (GWD), a seasonal
discharger to the San Joaquin River, is working to coordinate its salt
loading to the River with times of higher assimilative capacity.
This project is dedicated to improving the water quality of the San
Joaquin River while improving the local and regional habitats. By
employing new technologies in monitoring and decision making and applying
these to wetland management, not only will the San Joaquin River benefit,
but so will the local environment, regional agriculture, and the San
Joaquin / Sacramento Delta.
The Grassland Water District (GWD), encompassing more than 51,000 acres of wetlands, is located in California's Central Valley. Along with neighboring state and federal refuges, it is an integral part of the 160,000 acre Grassland Ecological Area (GEA). These nearly 300 square miles have survived major water diversions, urban encroachment, and agricultural development in large part from the stewardship of approximately 200 private hunting clubs. Today, the GEA remains California’s largest wetland ecosystem. Seventy percent of the GEA is privately held, with the remaining thirty percent managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the California Department of Fish and Game. This unique area has maintained incredible diversity, offering permanent and seasonal wetlands, riparian corridors and native grasslands. More than 550 species of animals and plants, including 47 species that are federally listed as sensitive, threatened or endangered have been identified in the GEA. The GEA winters up to 2 million of the Pacific Flyway's waterfowl and have been designated as one of only 22 international shorebird reserves worldwide.
