Restoration Plan for the Laguna de Santa Rosa

The Laguna de Santa Rosa, an expansive freshwater wetland complex located in the Russian River watershed of Sonoma County, CA, is a vital ecological and cultural resource that has undergone considerable change over the past 150 years. Land conversion for agriculture and development have led to a decrease in habitat for native species within the Laguna and an increase in the delivery of streamflow, fine sediment, and nutrients to the Laguna.

The State released its SLR projections, and SFEI's Warner Chabot is featured in the comments

Future projections for sea level rise have been slightly reduced by the California Ocean Protection Council (OPC) in a report released by the agency today. Still a draft, the report projects an average rise of 9.6 inches by 2050, with the benefit of new data and expert interpretation. However, the very modest adjustment still depicts a dire picture when it comes to the risks faced by California's coast. Sea level rise still presents a monumental challenge for current and future generations.

Statewide Plastics Monitoring Plan & Strategy

Plastics, in their various chemical composition and sizes, pose serious challenges to the vitality of California's ecosystems. Once escaped into the environment, plastic contamination persists for very long periods and breaks down into ever smaller pieces, becoming more readily available to wildlife and populations who live, work, and play in those same habitats.

California Aquatic Resource Inventory (CARI) version 2.2 GIS Data

The California Aquatic Resources Inventory (CARI) is a Geographic Information System (GIS) dataset of wetlands, streams, and riparian areas consisting of polygon and line features that are standardized to a common wetland classification system.  This statewide dataset is hosted online through http://www.EcoAtlas.org, a web application specifically designed to provide wetland information, at variable landscape scales, to environmental scientists, managers and planners in support of the State’s Wetland and Riparian Area Protection Policy

Sediment Solutions

Sediment Solutions is a timely and innovative project that builds on SFEI’s past work, operationalizing cutting-edge science to inform management approaches that take advantage of natural processes to provide more creek sediment to baylands, increase climate resilience, and enhance creek health. With study areas in North Bay, East Bay, and South Bay, the project will provide new guidance for management strategies that support flood risk management and ecosystem health benefits throughout the region.

SFEI Individual Vernal Pools, 2023

This work was completed in 2023 and funded by the California Department of Transportation. Individual vernal pools were mapped within the Carol Witham complex polygons where high resolution lidar data was available, approximately 83% of the complex polygon area. SFEI attempted to map the remaining complex polygons without lidar data, however without lidar and high resolution time series data the results were not compelling enough to include in this final dataset. Data used to map pools included 3DEP high resolution lidar sourced from the years 2007 - 2022, NAIP 2018, and NAIP 2020.

New Ecology for Heath report forges tighter connections between human and ecological health

The same features in urban parks that support biodiversity can also benefit human health. Even biodiversity itself may help us — and the San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) wants to see more of it. To that end, the nonprofit released an innovative report in September called Ecology for Health. It’s a practical guide for planners and designers to aid both biodiversity and human health in urban settings.

SFEI’s Dr. Kelly Moran Receives 2023 Teng-chung Wu Pollution Prevention Award


On October 8, 2023, the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board presented the 2023 Teng-chung Wu Pollution Prevention Award to the Bay Area Pollution Prevention Group Pesticides Subcommittee. The award honors both the subcommittee and the staff who have led its activities. SFEI’s Dr. Kelly Moran helped found the subcommittee and led its work to prevent pesticides water pollution for more than a decade, turning over leadership to her associates Stephanie Hughes, and Tammy Qualls in 2021. 

New $3 million grant to support harmful algae monitoring in the San Francisco Estuary

NOAA recently announced that it is awarding a $3-million grant, through its Monitoring and Event Response Research Program (MERHAB) to support the development of a harmful algal bloom (HAB) monitoring program for the San Francisco Estuary. The project, led by scientists at the San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI), US Geological Survey, and California Department of Water Resources (DWR), will leverage on-going research and monitoring activities in the Bay and Delta to build a robust system-wide HAB monitoring program for the Estuary.

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