San Joaquin County RCD &
California Department of Water Resources
Discover how we protect and conserve our resources.
The goal of this project is to protect the habitats and species that depend upon the preserves for survival.
Program Overview
Since 1988, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) has funded development of habitat mitigation and enhancement sites in accordance with Delta Levees Program (DLP) provisions that mandate no net loss of habitat as well as net long-term habitat improvement (Water Code §12314(c-d) and §12987(c-d)). Ongoing management activities of the habitat sites are required to restore and maintain sites that have been degraded by invasive species, trespassing, vandalism, and other stressors. Generally, Resource Conservation Districts (RCDs) can provide the necessary land stewardship activities. Six RCDs have jurisdictions that cover the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta: Solano County, Yolo County, Dixon, Contra Costa County, San Joaquin County, and the Lower Cosumnes. The San Joaquin County RCD (SJRCD) provides oversight of the necessary long-term habitat management activities by contracting with natural land experts and/or entities to fulfill the long-term habitat management requirements of the DLP.
Habitat Management Sites
Medford Island
The Medford Island Preserve, located in the San Joaquin River Delta northwest of Stockton, protects approximately 60 acres of important wetland and riparian habitat under a conservation easement held by the Center for Natural Lands Management (CNLM). Established in 2006, the preserve safeguards diverse seasonal wetlands and riparian forests that provide critical habitat for migratory songbirds, waterfowl, shorebirds, and raptors, supporting a variety of native plant and animal communities.
Pace Preserve
The Pace Preserve, managed by the Center for Natural Lands Management, protects a rare remnant of native grassland habitat in San Joaquin County and supports a diversity of native plants and wildlife. This conservation area helps safeguard natural grassland ecosystems that have largely disappeared from the Central Valley, preserving important habitat for native species and maintaining ecological diversity.
Terminous Tract
Terminous Tract is a Delta island located in San Joaquin County that provides important habitat within the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. As part of the Delta Levees Program, the site is included in long-term habitat management efforts focused on maintaining and enhancing natural areas affected by invasive species and other environmental stressors.