HISTORIC VOTE TURNS THE TIDE FOR SAN FRANCISCO BAY

The San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority on Wednesday approved nearly $18 million in grants for wetlands restoration and flood protection projects in San Francisco Bay. The grants are the first made by the Authority, which is funded by Measure AA, the first nine-county regional ballot measure approved by over 70 percent of voters in 2016. The Bay Area Council partnered with the Silicon Valley Leadership Group and Save the Bay to lead the Measure AA campaign, whose success was made possible by generous contributions from Council members PG&E and Facebook, among many others.

The Council became increasingly engaged in Bay resilience following a 2015 Bay Area Council Economic Institute report—Surviving the Storm—estimating the region could suffer more than $10 billion in economic damages in an extreme storm event under present sea levels. In addition to providing habitat and water quality benefits, wetlands also naturally absorb tidal energies and can be paired with lower, less costly levees to improve local flood protection against rising sea levels. Measure AA will raise $500 million over 20 years for shoreline and other projects that improve the region’s resilience to extreme storms and rising seas.

Among the initial projects to receive funding was the Montezuma Wetlands’ Tidal and Seasonal Restoration Project, which is managed by Bay Area Council Executive Committee member Jim Levine. Congratulations, Jim! To engage with the Council’s Committee on Water & Resilience, please contact Vice President of Public Policy Adrian Covert.