Restoration Management Plan

. Banner Image by Jerry Dodrill

Management Plan

Enhancing and Caring for the Laguna

The Laguna de Santa Rosa, in Sonoma County California, is a biologically rich freshwater wetland complex which has retained much of its wildland character even as its surrounding neighborhoods have been converted to agriculture, commerce and housing. The Laguna has remained relatively strong and resilient in the face of severe pressures from habitat fragmentation, water pollution, floodplain encroachment, and urban development. Meanwhile, the general public perception of the area as a “wetlands jewel” has resulted in a widespread outpouring of public sentiment in support of its protection and restoration.

Ecological Imbalances

A deeper look at the wetlands reveals a long list of ecological imbalances that portend a darker future. The need for enhancing the Laguna becomes clearer when the historical record is examined; most notably the record of the land’s great fertility and its former abundance of wildlife and diversity of plant life. When compared to today’s remaining, simpler, less-diverse, plant and animal communities, the contrast is sharp and a sanguine outlook for the future is not expected by simply sticking to the status quo.

Enhancing the Laguna

Enhancing the Laguna—through the removal of invasive plant species, the restoration of native vegetation, the reconfiguration of artificial water channels, and the reduction of waterborne pollutants—represents a foundational objective for the region’s citizens.

Equally important is the ongoing stewardship of the Laguna, which involves monitoring ecological changes, managing the land responsibly, educating future generations, advancing scientific understanding of the ecosystem, and implementing sound public policy.

Together, the processes of enhancement and caring constitute complementary strategies that collectively strengthen the Laguna’s capacity to achieve ecological resilience and maintain a dynamic, yet balanced, state of flux.

The entire management plan is available on the Laguna Knowledgebase as a series of downloadable PDF documents.

A Comprehensive Look

The need for a comprehensive look at the physical and biological functioning of the Laguna de Santa Rosa was defined in 2003 by the Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation, shortly after its publication—with the Sonoma Land Trust—of the Laguna Resource Atlas and Protection Plan. That publication represented a snapshot of the watershed’s then-existing data pertaining to endangered species, flooding, land use planning, and open space protection. The Atlas, in turn, had its genesis in an earlier publication, the Laguna Coordinated Resource Management Plan, prepared in 1995.

The latest look at the Laguna, by design, is intended to leverage the existing body of work, and to extend it through the concerted efforts of the Laguna’s broad community of stakeholders. This report, Enhancing and Caring for the Laguna, represents the findings and recommended courses of action to be taken towards the preservation, restoration, management and long-term monitoring of the Laguna’s natural resources, as defined by the stakeholder community.

This new look represents a different approach—a more active, ongoing, community-oriented approach—a way of making good decisions, based in science, balanced with the human needs of the citizenry, and most importantly, always forward-thinking.

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For more information, contact Brent Reed, Stewardship Director
by email or calling (707) 527-9277 x 101

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Enhancing and Caring for the Laguna
The Laguna de Santa Rosa, in Sonoma County California, is a biologically rich freshwater wetland complex which has retained much of its wildland character even as its surrounding neighborhoods have been converted to agriculture, commerce and housing. The Laguna has remained relatively strong and resilient in the face of severe pressures from habitat fragmentation, water pollution, floodplain encroachment, and urban development. Meanwhile, the general public perception of the area as a “wetlands jewel” has resulted in a widespread outpouring of public sentiment in support of its protection and restoration.
Ecological Imbalances

A deeper look at the wetlands reveals a long list of ecological imbalances that portend a darker future. The need for enhancing the Laguna becomes clearer when the historical record is examined; most notably the record of the land’s great fertility and its former abundance of wildlife and diversity of plant life. When compared to today’s remaining, simpler, less-diverse, plant and animal communities, the contrast is sharp and a sanguine outlook for the future is not expected by simply sticking to the status quo.
Enhancing the Laguna

Enhancing the Laguna—through the removal of invasive plant species, the restoration of native vegetation, the reconfiguration of artificial water channels, and the reduction of waterborne pollutants—represents a foundational objective for the region’s citizens. Equally important is the ongoing stewardship of the Laguna, which involves monitoring ecological changes, managing the land responsibly, educating future generations, advancing scientific understanding of the ecosystem, and implementing sound public policy. Together, the processes of enhancement and caring constitute complementary strategies that collectively strengthen the Laguna’s capacity to achieve ecological resilience and maintain a dynamic, yet balanced, state of flux. The entire management plan is available on the Laguna Knowledgebase as a series of downloadable PDF documents.
A Comprehensive Look

The need for a comprehensive look at the physical and biological functioning of the Laguna de Santa Rosa was defined in 2003 by the Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation, shortly after its publication—with the Sonoma Land Trust—of the Laguna Resource Atlas and Protection Plan. That publication represented a snapshot of the watershed’s then-existing data pertaining to endangered species, flooding, land use planning, and open space protection. The Atlas, in turn, had its genesis in an earlier publication, the Laguna Coordinated Resource Management Plan, prepared in 1995. The latest look at the Laguna, by design, is intended to leverage the existing body of work, and to extend it through the concerted efforts of the Laguna’s broad community of stakeholders. This report, Enhancing and Caring for the Laguna, represents the findings and recommended courses of action to be taken towards the preservation, restoration, management and long-term monitoring of the Laguna’s natural resources, as defined by the stakeholder community. This new look represents a different approach—a more active, ongoing, community-oriented approach—a way of making good decisions, based in science, balanced with the human needs of the citizenry, and most importantly, always forward-thinking.
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