Location: Santa Barbara County
Project Type: Restoration Planning
Status: Completed
Habitat Type: Tidal Wetland
Cost: $500,000
Area Affected: 4.5 acres
Assembly District: 37
Senate District: 19
Congressional District: 24
Project Lead/Grantee:
City of Santa Barbara (John Ledbetter, 805-897-2569)
For more information, visit scwrp.org
This project evaluated alternatives for restoring tidal action to isolated basins in Goleta Slough adjacent to Santa Barbara Municipal Airport, and investigated potential associated bird strike hazards. With the financial assistance of the California Coastal Conservancy, the Airport restored tidal circulation to a 2-acre portion of the Goleta Slough. This project will provide a scientific foundation for assessing the feasibility of a larger tidal program.
The Goleta Slough is an area of estuary, tidal creeks, tidal marsh, and wetlands near Goleta, California. It primarily consists of the filled and unfilled remnants of the historic inner Goleta Bay about 8 miles (13 km) west of Santa Barbara. The slough empties into the Pacific Ocean through an intermittently closed mouth at Goleta Beach County Park just east of the UCSB campus and Isla Vista. The slough drains the Goleta Valley and watershed, and receives the water of all of the major creeks in the Goleta area including the southern face of the Santa Ynez Mountains.
