Cross-Border, Nature Based Market Solutions to Protect Blue Carbon Coastal Ecosystems in the Californias

March 2022

The historic loss and degradation of California’s wetlands can be attributed to a variety of economic activities, including but not limited to: agricultural use, residential, commercial and industrial development that resulted in direct loss of wetlands due to filling, oil & gas wells, roads, highways and railways, ports and marina development, and flood control projects, including the channelization of wetlands. Based on historical data obtained from the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey, it is known that between 1851 and 1889, the Southern California coast supported approximately 15,591 hectares (38,526.2 acres) of estuarine habitats between Point Conception and the U.S-Mexico border. 28 Over 57 of Southern California’s coastal habitats were located in San Diego County, in what was once known as False Bay (present day Mission Bay) and San Diego Bay. 29 See Figure 3 for a detailed map. Additional tideland habitats were either degraded and lost due to the development and industrialization in the coastal reaches of Rancho La Nacion in San Diego’s South Bay (present day Chula Vista, National City, and Naval Base San Diego) as highlighted in Figure 4. Since that time, there has been a loss of 9,317 hectares (23,022.8 acres) amounting to 48% of the total historical coastal estuarine habitats along the Southern California coastline. 30

Figure 3: San Diego Bay Map, 1894. Source: National Oceanic & Atomopheric Administration (NOAA), NOAA, 2021 31

28 Eric D. Stein, et al, Wetlands of the Southern California Coast-Historic Extent and Change Over Time, Southern California Coastal Water Research Project (SCCWRP), SCCERP Technical Report 826, August 15, 2014,

29 Ibid 30 Ibid 31 https://historicalcharts.noaa.gov/image=606-00 1857

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