This year’s work marked big steps forward. Crews removed invasive plants from over an acre of the lower creek corridor near Davenport, clearing the way for native vegetation to return. Farther upstream, crews placed 106 large redwood trees into 1.25 miles of the creek to create natural logjams, slow the flow of water, and form the deep pools coho salmon need for shelter.  This builds on the collaborative effort that removed the Mill Creek Dam in 2021, which reconnected fish habitat for the first time in decades.

 "One year later in 2022, we performed juvenile salmonid monitoring in Mill and San Vicente Creeks and excitedly saw the return of coho salmon to the Mill Creek Dam site for the first recorded time in a century,” said Beatrix Jiménez-Helsley, Sempervirens’ Natural Resource Manager. “These efforts prove that if you establish the conditions, the fish will come, and we expect they will return."

Over the last 150 years, past land use activities have straightened creeks, hardened streambanks, and removed old-growth redwoods that would have naturally fallen into streams and created intricate habitats. Without these features, fish populations declined, and invasive plants took hold, choking out native species and reducing biodiversity. 

The San Vicente Creek restoration project is helping to reverse that trend. By reintroducing large wood, removing invasive plants, and giving native vegetation space to reestablish, the project is improving habitat for fish and wildlife. Selected trees along the creek that were placed in the stream will give dominant trees in overly dense stands more space to grow faster and bigger. This improves their resilience to climate change impacts while also strengthening the surrounding forest against wildfire, drought, and other climate impacts.

“This is not a one-time effort,” said Daniel Nylen, Program Manager with the Resource Conservation District. “Long-term maintenance and adaptive management will be critical to the project’s success—keeping invasive species under control and continuing to improve conditions for fish, frogs, and other wildlife.”

The San Vicente Creek project is just one of many efforts the RCD and our partners are facilitating across Santa Cruz County to restore native habitats, improve stream health, and protect water resources for future generations.

For more information please contact:
Email Angie Gruys | 831.205.3487 
Email Daniel Nylen | 831.205.3528

About the Resource Conservation District: Established in 1942, the RCD is a locally governed special district and one of the oldest environmental organizations in the County. We make on-the-ground conservation happen by partnering with our local community on a voluntary basis to care for our land, water, soil, wildlife, and other natural resources. www.rcdsantacruz.org