Northern Sierra Nevada watersheds generate approximately 20 million-acre feet of runoff each year. These rivers and associated wetlands form an immense natural and engineered water supply that provides approximately 60 percent of California's water.
Sierra Nevada rivers, lakes, wetlands, and large and small streams also support complex aquatic ecosystems which host more endemic aquatic invertebrates than any other ecological region in the world. Sierra meadow wetlands are prevalent throughout the headwaters of the Sierra watersheds and make up a critical but often overlooked part of this entire system.
This project arose in response to a growing need for regional integrated management of Sierra meadow wetlands, which are often neglected in water resources planning. The project's goal is to protect wetland-associated biodiversity, while also integrating these concerns with downstream water quality and quantity issues, including the timing of water supply.
NHI's Sierra Meadows project aims to understand important water management functions and to develop a suite of integrated water quality, quantity and habitat restoration strategies and projects that protect and restore these functions. In addition, this planning effort will consider the role of Sierra meadows in terms of attenuating flood flows and promoting water quality under a range of climate change scenarios. This initiative builds on research and monitoring already underway. It involves a robust stakeholder process combined with a team of multidisciplinary professionals from a range of organizations who have a successful track record of working together.
Contact: Carrie Monohan
