P r o te c t i n g t he pla ces that m ake the E as t Bay s peci al
TIDAL WATERS RETURN
TO PACHECO MARSH A MAJOR MILESTONE “Who wants to see a levee breach?” Paul Detjens asked the assembled crowd of about 250
partners, supporters, engineers, construction workers, and journalists. The resounding cheers affirmed that this much anticipated moment had indeed arrived. A news helicopter hovered overhead to record the proceedings. Two huge excavators moved the dirt that would allow a five-foot tall wall of water to gush into the recently carved channels of the new Pacheco Marsh. On a sunny day last October, twenty years of conservation work had reached this important milestone. Paul, whose title, Senior Civil Engineer and Lower Walnut Creek Restoration Project Manager, Contra Costa County Flood Control & Water Conservation District (CCCFCD), is almost as long as he is tall, had reason to celebrate. The one missing ingredient to the restored marsh was the twice daily tidal flow from Suisun Bay, and it was now streaming in beside him.
P A G E T W E LV E
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