Information Table about Upper Newport Bay

GENERAL			Source
Site	Upper Newport Bay
Map	Newport Bay, 7.5' USGS quadrangle
Location	Upper Newport Bay is located in the City of Newport Beach, Orange County. The City of Costa Mesa is along the western border and the City of Irvine is to the north. The wetland areas are contained between the Pacific Coast Highway Bridge and the Jamboree Road Overpass at San Diego Creek
Contacts	Orange County Environmental Management Agency, (714) 834-6667
	Friends of Upper Newport Bay, (714) 646-8009
	Dept. of Fish and Game, Upper Newport Bay Ecological Reserve, (714) 640-6746
Approximate Wetland Habitat Acreage	1,357		2
Approximate Historic Acreage	2,800		2
Ownership	Owner	Acres	Source
	City of Newport Beach & Orange County	12	7
	Orange County	412	1
	State Lands Commission (leased to the Department of Fish and Game)	752	10
	Orange County Flood Control District	Not Specified	7
	University of California	5	16
	Private	346	1
LAND USE			Source
Land Use Designation	City of Newport Beach's LCP designates the Upper Newport Bay as Recreation and Environmental Open Space, Water and Tidelands.		10
Onsite Use	In 1975 the 752 acre Upper Newport Bay State Ecological Reserve was established by the Department of Fish and Game. The Reserve occupies the major portion of the northern part of the Upper Bay and provides public parking and walking trails, and a small boat launch ramp. A rowing club and dredging maintenance facility are located on Shellmaker Island within the Reserve. Public facilities for swimming, boat launching, berthing and anchorage for small craft, and a trailer park occupy the southern portion of the Upper Bay.		1
Historic Use	From the early 1800's upper and lower reaches of Newport Bay supported an active fishery. In 1933 the uppermost portion of Upper Newport Bay was developed as saltworks. It was destroyed by winter storms in 1969. Beginning in the 1950's recreational boating and marinas, and bathing beaches were established.		10
Adjacent Use	Upper Newport Bay Regional Park adjoins the perimeter of the Ecological Reserve. To the east, west and north of the Bay lay industrial and residential areas including the University of California Irvine Campus 1.5 miles northeast and the Orange County Airport 1.5 miles north. To the southwest is the densely developed Newport Beach Harbor.		1
Historic Adjacent Use	From the time of the Spanish land grants the surrounding mesas were used for cattle raising and agriculture. Development of the lower Bay into a commercial port and fishing harbor began in the 1800's.		1
HYDROLOGY			Source
Tidal Influence	The Upper Newport Bay is connected to lower Newport Bay by a narrow constriction at the Pacific Coast Highway bridge. Newport Bay receives tidal waters via a maintained inlet. It is estimated that total flushing of the Upper Bay occurs every 3-4 days.		7
Watershed Area	154 square miles		16
Tributaries and Flow	Tributary	Flow	Source
	San Diego Creek	The Creek is perennial with an average flow of 40 cfs. In 1987, the peak 100-year flood discharge for San Diego Creek at MacArthur Blvd. was estimated to be 31,430 cfs. It accounts for over 90 percent of the sediment delivered to the Bay.	1, 3, 4
	Bonita Creek	Not specified	1, 14
Dams	Bonita Creek Reservoir Dam		1, 17
Other Sources	Santa Ana - Delhi Channel and Big Canyon wash; storm drainage and urban run-off.		1
WATER QUALITY			Source
General	According to the Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB), general problems include eutrophication, threat of recreational impacts and threat of toxic pollutation. Water quality is categorized by the RWQCB as impaired. Beneficial uses are rec1, rec2, comm, biol, wild, rare, spawn, mar, shel and est.		5, 6
Dissolved Oxygen (DO)	1995 - Data are averaged for three sampling stations from monthly sampling for the years 1993-95. Time of day for sampling varied, but typically sampled in the late morning. Dissolved oxygen levels in surface water ranged from 6.4 to 12.0 mg/l and in bottom water from 5.1 to 21.1mg/l. Wide variations in sampling data are recorded between sites during the same sampling period. Temperatures varied seasonally in surface water from 13.5 to 23.5 degrees C.		4
Water Salinity	1995 - Data are averaged for three sampling stations from monthly sampling for the years 1993-95. Data are reported in micromho: surface water ranged from a low of 465 to a high of 52,433, and bottom water from 2797 to 52,433. Salinity is highly variable due to high run-off to the Bay during storm events.		4
Sediment	Sediment loading is the greatest contributor to habitat change in Upper Newport Bay. It was estimated, in 1978, that 694,000 cu. yds. accumulated from 1968 to 1977. Upstream, in San Diego Creek sediment control measures have reduced the delivery of sediment to approximately 53,000 cu. yds. annually. Sediment settling basins within the upper reaches of the Ecological Reserve were completed in 1988.		7
SOIL			Source
Soil	Marine terrace, Monterey formation, Capistrano siltstone and estuarine and lagoonal deposits.		16
Habitat	Acres	Vegetation
Open Water	904	Not specified.	2
Estuarine flats	67	1989 - limited areas of mat algae and sea lettuce.	Ac. 2, Plants 7
Salt Marsh	382	1989 - Cordgrass, pickleweed, saltwort and jaumea dominant, and Australian saltbush* ripgut grass* and alkali mallow abundant. 1986 - Salt marsh birds-beak+ was present in several areas of the upper marsh.	Ac. 2, Plants 7, Plants+ 10
Coastal brackish / freshwater marsh	4	1989 - report lists bulrush, cattails, sedges and willows dominant, and mule fat present.	Ac. 2, Plants 7
Upland	20	Coastal scrub and chapparal.	2
ANIMAL USE			Source
Birds	1995 - Monthly surveys identified 78 species of birds in Upper Newport Bay, including 66 water-associated birds and 3 special status species. 1995 - 117 pairs of light-footed clapper rail#. 1991 - 199 pairs of Belding's Savannah sparrows#.		9, 14, 15
Fish	1978/79 - 46 species were captured in bimonthly fish samples at four stations in Upper Newport Bay. Gear types included seine, otter trawl, Hensen plankton net, drop net, gill net and small enclosures. Topsmelt, California killifish, mosquitofish*, deep body anchovy and slough anchovy were most abundant.		11
Benthic Invertebrate	1981 - 274 benthic taxa were identified. Polycheates were dominant. Sampling method and duration of survey not specified.		7
Insect	1984 -12 orders of insects representing 36 families were recorded. The majority were from the orders of flies, bees and wasps, and beetles.		7
Other Wildlife	1978 - 17 species of mammals were found in the areas adjacent to the upper bay, including racoons, skunks, opossum, long-tailed weasels and domestic cats. 1970 - 19 species of amphibians and reptiles.		7
Special Status Species	1995 - 117 pairs of light-footed clapper rail#. 1995 - California least tern, Brown pelican, American peregrine falcon. 1991 - 199 pairs of Belding's Savannah sparrows#. 1986 - Salt marsh birds-beak.		14, 9, 15, 10
OUTLOOK			Source
Enhancement Status	A series of sediment settlement basins were excavated in the upper portion of the Ecological Reserve (completed 1988) to reduce distribution of sediments in the Bay and increase the tidal prism. Two least tern nesting islands were built during this project to encourage nesting activity. The plan for the next phase of maintenance dredging and increased basin capacity was prepared in 1995. Orange County has developed a general plan for a regional park encompassing the perimeter of the reserve. Construction of the regional park and interpretive center is scheduled to begin in 1997.		10
Watershed Management	In 1983 the Comprehensive Storm Water Sediment Control Plan for Upper Newport Bay was approved. It recommends reduction of erosion at the source through the implementation of agricultural and construction best management practices, and resource conservation plan. In addition, work has been completed for sediment interception in San Diego Creek and upstream watershed management practices have also been implemented.		5, 13
Pressure	The Regional Water Quality Control Board identified the major areas of concern for the Newport Bay as sedimentation, bacterial contamination, toxics, and nutrient inflows (including the treated effluent discharged by the IRWD into San Diego Creek), leading to eutrophication. Additionally, the desire for water related recreational uses; boating, swimming, and fishing, continues to increase.		12

Source: "CWIS -- "Upper Newport Bay"" CERES. 26 Mar. 1998. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. <http://ceres.ca.gov/wetlands/geo_info/so_cal/newport.html>.

SOURCES
1	Department of Fish and Game. 1970. Report on natural resources of Upper Newport Bay and recommendations concerning the bay's development. 68 pp. This report reviews the natural resources and present use of Upper Newport Bay and its environs. Physical features, history, land use, ecology, and resource use are summarized. The report also discusses the geographical position of the bay as a vital link to the ecological system of southern California. Appendices include species lists for birds, mammals, and fish found at the bay.
2	MEC. 1993. San Dieguito Lagoon restoration project regional coastal lagoon resources summary. 56 pp and appendix. This report provides a summary of habitat types, fish, bird and benthic invertebrate populations at 16 coastal wetlands south of Anaheim Bay. It is based primarily on existing information; sources used in identifying and quantifying habitat types include aerial photographs taken in early 1993. The report provides a comparative summary of the remaining wetland habitats within the Southern California Bight south of Anaheim Bay. The summary analysis reveals which habitats are scarce and which are relatively abundant in the region, and provides a brief review of the biotic community. Areas for each habitat type is included in table form.
3	CH2MHILL. 1996. Addendum to environmental impact report, Irvine Ranch Water District water supply project. 30 pp. This addendum analyzes the environmental effects of a modification to the Irvine Ranch Water District's proposed wetlands water supply project. It addresses the temporary, low flow, partial diversion of San Diego Creek. This analysis includes a discussion of the impacts to geology, biological resources, hydrology, noise, aesthetics and vector control.
4	Orange County Environment Management Agency. 1996. Sort Retrieval Program, tabular listing of actual sampling values for selected parameters. Monitoring data (DO, water temperature, and conductivity) for numerous site and dates in Orange County.
5	Regional Water Quality Control Board. 1995. Water Quality Control Plan for the Santa Ana River Basin. 200 pp. The plan includes information on the quality of inland surface waters, coastal waters, reservoirs and lakes and ground water in Orange County. It identifies beneficial uses supported by these waters and provides a plan for their protection
6	Regional Water Quality Control Board Santa Ana Region. 1995. Water quality assessment. This information comes from the state's water quality assessment data base and includes the water quality assessment data for estuaries in Orange County. For each estuary, information is presented for water quality (impaired or threatened), including a brief summary of the problem.
7	Department of Fish and Game. 1989. Management Plan Upper Newport Bay Ecological Reserve. 265 pp. This plan outlines management objectives and provides a discussion of all relevant information relating to the resources of the Bay. Includes information on water quality, habitat, and comprehensive lists for invertebrates, fish, birds and mammals.
8	City of Newport Beach. 1988. Land use element. 103 pp., plus appendices. The Land Use Element is a long-range guide to the development of all lands within Newport Beach, including Upper Newport Bay. Includes land use maps, information on development policies, and future growth projections.
9	Audubon Society. 1995. Upper Newport Bay bird census for 1995. Dick Crust count leader. Unpublished survey data. 4 pp. Summary of monthly survey data collected by the Audubon Society at Upper Newport Bay for 1995.
10	Culbertson, Adams and Associates, Inc. prepared for the City of Newport Beach. 1986. Environmental Impact Report Upper Newport Bay Enhancement/Sediment Management Project. 125 pp., plus appendices. This document analyzes the environmental impacts of the excavation of siltation basins in Upper Newport Bay. It provides information on existing conditions for biological resources, water quality, land use and harbor circulation, including original biological field work.
11	Department of Fish and Game. 1981. Ecology of Fishes in Upper Newport Bay, California: Seasonal Dynamics and Community Structure. Technical report No. 45. 102 pp. This report summarizes the results from 366 bimonthly (January 1978-January 1979) samples for fish taken with six types of gear at four stations in upper Newport Bay. The results of the sampling are discussed for juvenile/adult populations, egg and larval populations and community structure. Species richness and abundance are correlated with both temperature and salinity.
12	California Regional Water Quality Control Board Santa Ana Region. 1989. Newport Bay Clean Water Strategy. 101 pp., plus appendices. The Santa Ana Regional Board was directed by the California legislature to prepare a report of the status of water quality in Newport Bay and its watersheds. This report details the current water quality conditions in the Bay and includes recommendations for future actions. It includes background information on bacterial contamination, sediment control, toxic substances assessment and control, nutrients and eutrophication, and resource management.
13	Lance Natsuhara, Orange County Flood Control. Personal communication, March 11, 1996.
14	Zembal, Richard. 1995. Status and distribution of light-footed clapper rails in California, 1980-1995. Preliminary report to the California Department of Fish and Game. 28 pp. Results of the 1995 survey of breeding light-footed clapper rails in California. The report incorporates data from 15 years of annual surveys and disusses population trends for the region and at each of 36 sites censused. Trends are tied to ecological conditions at each site and the author identifies possibilities for improving habitat.
15	U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1991. A survey of the Belding's savannah sparrow in California, 1991. Report to the California Department of Fish and Game. 24 pp. and survey site maps. Report of a survey for territorial Belding's Savannah sparrows at 34 marshes between southern Santa Barbara county and the border with Mexico. Results are discussed within the context of the previous years' data and recommendations are provided for further study and habitat improvements. The survey was carried out to update population data and evaluate habitat conditions.
16	Department of Fish and Game. 1979. EIR for Upper Newport Bay Ecological Reserve. 144 pp., plus appendices. This report describes the Upper Newport Bay area, including data on land use and environmental features. It discusses the potential impacts of creating the Upper Newport Bay Ecologcial Reserve. No original field surveys conducted.
17	California Coastal Commission. 1992. Draft findings on combined consistency certification and coastal development permit application (San Joaquin Transportation Corridor). File N0. CC-63-92/5-92-232. 57 pp., plus attachments. Coastal Commission staff review and comments on a combined coastal development permit and consistence certification for construction of the San Joaquin Transportation Corridor. Of the 17.5 miles of tollway, two small segments (2/3 mile at Upper Newport Bay and 1/2 mile at Moro Ridge) are reviewed for consistency with the Coastal Act. These findings were not adopted and were later revised.
18	John M. Tettemer & Associates, Ltd., for the City of Newport Beach. 1995. Upper Newport Bay Sediment Control and Enhancement Project. 8 pp., plus attachments. Update on implementation of the watershed-wide sediment control plan for Upper Newport Bay. Volume of sediment removed from Upper Newport Bay and associated costs for Phase I (completed) are reported. Planning for Phase II dredging is detailed.
19	LSA Associates, Inc., for San Joaquin Transportation Corridor. 1993. San Joaquin Hills transportation corridor conservation plan for the California gnatcatcher and cactus wren. 90 pp., plus appendices. Plan defines the mitigation program for the San Joaquin Hills transportation project with respect to two sensitive bird populations. Enhancement of coastal sage habitat is required to compensate for impacts of the tollroad through this habitat. Restoration of wetlands at the mouth of the San Diego Creek is required mitigation for disruption of the creek bed during construction of a bridge over the creek.

Information Sources

California Coastal Commission. Our Wetlands, Our World. Web. 21 Nov. 2011. <http://www.coastal.ca.gov/publiced/UNBweb/owow_entire.pdf>.

California Coastal Commission, Upper Newport Bay Community Restoration." California Coastal 
Commission Home Page. California Coastal Commission. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. <http://www.coastal.ca.gov/publiced/UNBweb/restore.html>.

"CWIS -- "Upper Newport Bay"" CERES. 26 Mar. 1998. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. <http://ceres.ca.gov/wetlands/geo_info/so_cal/newport.html>.

"Top Ten Wetland Facts." Ducks Unlimited Canada | Conserving Canada's Wetlands. Ducks. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. <http://www.ducks.ca/resource/general/wetland/facts.html>.

"Why Restore Upper Newport Bay." California Coastal Commission Home Page. California Coastal Commission. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. <http://www.coastal.ca.gov/publiced/UNBweb/whyrestore.html>.

Upper Newport Bay... Now and Then

Sources:

Jepsen, Chris. "Newport Bay, Anaheim, and OCHS." Web log post. O.C. History Blogspot. 7 Nov. 2011. Web. 21 Nov. 2011. <http://ochistorical.blogspot.com/>.


"Newport Beach, California." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newport_Beach,_California>.


"Upper Newport Bay." California Environmental Resources Evaluation System. 6 Jan. 2000. Web. 21 Nov. 2011. <http://ceres.ca.gov/wetlands/geo_info/so_cal/newport_index.html>.

Wetlands across the Globe

Wetlands can be found on every continent across the world except for Antarctica!


Source:
United States of America. Department of Agriculture. Natural Resources Conservation Service. NRCS Soils. 8 Sept. 2003. Web. 21 Nov. 2011. <http://soils.usda.gov/use/worldsoils/mapindex/wetlands.html>.

How to Improve Human Impact on Upper Newport Bay

Newport Beach is a beautiful place to live, and the view overlooking Upper Newport Bay is one of the best in all of Newport Beach. The development around the bay will not go away, however its impacts can be moderated. Small measures, like harsher punishments for people who let their dogs off leash on trails surrounding the bay, need to be implemented. Educating the people who live around the area is also key. Teaching these people the ramifications of their behavior is a necessary precursor to the changing of behavior. For example, encouraging people to landscape with more native species and use less harsh pesticides will have a positive impact on the bay. Most importantly, steps need to be taken to improve the quality of the water that is fed into Upper Newport Bay from San Diego and Bonita creeks. Ideally, the water would go through a water processing plant that would eliminate trash, fertilizers, sediment, and other contaminants before it was allowed to enter Upper Newport Bay. This would lessen the amount of dredging that had to occur while also improving the quality of the water and consequently the status of aquatic wildlife living in the bay. If at all possible, the government should continue to try and buy any additional wetland area that is for sale and restore it. There is potential to return the Upper Newport Bay into a thriving wetland ecosystem, and to capitalize on this potential would mean protecting so many plants, animals, birds, and fish from disappearing forever.  

The Future of Upper Newport Bay

The future of Upper Newport Bay remains precarious as the human population around the bay is unlikely to decrease. Steps towards improving the bay are positive and should not be discounted, however removing non-native plants and re-planting native species is only a small portion of the battle. The water that continues to flow into Upper Newport Bay from the San Diego and Bonita creeks is extremely contaminated which has led to poor water quality in the bay. Unless contaminants can be removed from the creek water before it enters the bay, the water quality of Upper Newport Bay will not improve, and plants and wildlife will continue to be negatively affected. Furthermore, extreme dredging will have to continue so long as excessive sediment is washed into the bay from those same creeks. Dredging is necessary to preserve the water level of the bay, but it is also damaging to the wildlife and plants in the area. Because of this, I predict that aquatic species in the bay will slowly die off as long as the water remains and potentially becomes more toxic. And species that rely on fish and other aquatic species for food will be negatively impacted if those aquatic species become more toxic and/or die off. I do believe that the substantial and ongoing efforts of the Upper Newport Bay Restoration Program will improve the bay by returning it to a state with more native species and less invasive species. 

Current Human Impacts on Upper Newport Bay

Once a pristine ecosystem, human development has greatly harmed the Upper Newport Bay wetlands. Upper Newport Bay is a beautiful area, so it is no surprise that people want to live near it. Housing developments dominate many of the bluffs overlooking the bay, and the proximity plus the landscaping of these homes has proved problematic. California sagebrush used to grow abundantly on the bluffs surrounding the bay, but development of the area has drastically reduced the amount of sage that remains in the area. Furthermore, non-native species used in the landscaping of the homes have been introduced into the ecosystem of the bay, out-competing and displacing native species. Some of these invading non-native species include giant reed and ice plant. The loss of native species in Upper Newport Bay lessens the availability of food sources for animal species living there. Fertilizer and pesticides from the irrigation of the landscaping enter Upper Newport Bay as run-off. In addition to the Newport Beach area, all of Orange County has become extremely developed, including areas around the San Diego and Bonita creeks. Watershed from these areas enters Upper Newport Bay through the creeks, and brings toxic chemicals, silt, fertilizers, and trash into the bay. The watershed from residential and agricultural sources was deemed toxic to marine and freshwater zooplankton in the bay by studies conducted under the Evaluation Monitoring Demonstration Project in July 1996. The same study found that areas of Upper Newport Bay are experiencing dissolved oxygen depletion mostly likely resulting from excessive fertilization of the bay in the form of nitrogen and phosphorus which enter Upper Newport Bay in run-off water channeled to the bay from San Diego Creek. The excessive fertilization supports large algal blooms harmful for the fish that live in Upper Newport Bay, as the amount of oxygen in the water is reduced. Additionally, Upper Newport Bay and the surrounding bluffs contain biking and running paths for people and their pets. An important resource for people living near this area, providing such amenities has resulted in litter accumulation in the bay. People and dogs off of their leashes trample plants and disturb wildlife and bird nests in the area.

While humans have had immense negative impacts on the Upper Newport Bay wetlands, people have recently made great steps to protect and restore the area. There currently exists the Upper Newport Bay Project 
Community-Based Restoration and Education Program, which enlists citizens to help restore the Upper Newport Bay habitat while simultaneously teaching them about the importance of the area. The California Coastal Commission partnered with H.T. Harvey Ecological Consultants to create and initiate this project. In the last ten years, 96,000 pounds of non-native plants have been pulled by volunteers, and more than 6,000 native plants have been re-planted. Major dredging of the bay commissioned by the government has become necessary so that the bay floor doesn’t rise too much. From 1998-1999, enough sediment to fill one million pick-up trucks was removed from the bay, and this will have to be repeated so long as sediment continually washes into the bay from the creeks. Much of the Upper Newport Bay wetlands are protected since they became an ecological reserve in 1975. The area is also protected under the 1968 Estuary Protection Act, in which the federal government incurs some of the cost of maintaining and protecting estuaries in state possession. And finally, nesting islands were created in the late 1980’s during one of the dredging projects to aid and hopefully increase bird nesting in the bay.