Cullinan Ranch Restoration Project

Status In-progress County Solano
Project Type Compensatory mitigation Location 38.13736° N, -122.32930° W Map
Project Area (Acres) 1,555 Last Updated 2 October 2024
Project Abstract This project will restore 1,549 acres of diked bayland to tidal marsh through passive sedimentation and import of beneficially reused dredged sediments to create wetland and associated habitats for wildlife like salt marsh harvest mice.
Project Groups San Francisco Bay Adaptation | San Francisco Bay Joint Venture | San Francisco Bay Joint Venture Project Tours | San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority (Eligible) | San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority (Funded) | San Pablo Bayland Collaborative Protection and Restoration (CPR) Project
Administrative Region San Francisco Bay Joint Venture - Jemma Williams, SFBJV

Project Identification

IDType
CN5-04 BCDC - Permit Number
CN9-89 BCDC - Permit Number
97-N18 California Bay-Delta Authority
49 JV - Record Number
2009/06112 NMFS - Record Number
2007092004 SCH - State Clearinghouse Number
RA-015 SFBRA - Project ID
R2-2010-0108 SWRCB - 401 Certification Letter (e.g., Site Number or WDID)
254700, 2000-25470N USACE - DA File Number
SFB-2010-01 USFWS - File Number

Habitat Plan

Site NamePhaseActivitySubActivitiesHabitatSubHabitatAcresActivity StatusWater Regime
Cullinan East Implementation Restoration/Re-establishment Bay Habitat (SFBJV Only) Tidal marsh 290.0 Implementation in-progress Fully tidal
Cullinan East Implementation Restoration (unspecified) Upland Scrub-shrub 15.00 Implementation in-progress
Cullinan West None Restoration/Re-establishment Vegetation Management, Water Management, Wildlife-specific Measures Bay Habitat (SFBJV Only) Tidal marsh 1,250 Completed Fully tidal
Cullinan West None Creation/Establishment Seasonal Wetland Diked wetland 1,264 Completed Seasonal non-tidal

Related Habitat Impacts

Impact Project NameHabitatAcres LostType of Loss
Cullinan Ranch Restoration Project-impact Depressional Wetland 1,264 Lost Permanent
Cullinan Ranch Restoration Project-impact Riverine Wetland 72.70 Lost Permanent

Sites

NameStatusAcres
Cullinan East In-progress/Implementation 305.0
Cullinan West Completed 2,514

Events

DateTypeDescriptionSite Name
2015-01-15 Other Delete: Formerly Project End Date; usurped by addition of other sites.
2015-01-15 Levee breach Breach date derived from original Project End Date. An additional site was added (Cullinan East), so Project End Date was overridden. Cullinan West
2013-08-01 Update WT noted that enhanced acres were added on this date
2009-09-30 Project start date
2001-11-14 Permit BCDC record number issued

People

TypeNameOrganizationDepartment
Contact Meg Marriott USFWS - San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex San Pablo Bay
Contact Renee Spenst Ducks Unlimited, Inc. Not applicable/Unknown
Contact Natalie Washburn Ducks Unlimited, Inc. Not applicable/Unknown

Funding

Funding Need: $5,000,000

PhaseActivityFunderAmount
Implementation Restoration (unspecified) SFBRA San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority - Measure AA
None Restoration/Re-establishment Shell Oil Company Mitigation Fund
None Restoration/Re-establishment WCB Wildlife Conservation Board $7,200,000
Implementation Restoration/Re-establishment SFBRA San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority - Measure AA $2,500,000
None Restoration/Re-establishment USFWS Federal Highways Funding $2,458,000
None Restoration/Re-establishment NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration $2,271,600
None Restoration/Re-establishment Natural Resource Damage Assessment $1,650,000
None Restoration/Re-establishment USFWS National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Program $1,450,000
None Restoration/Re-establishment California Environmental Protection Agency $1,400,000
None Restoration/Re-establishment USFWS U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service $1,320,000
None Restoration/Re-establishment USFWS North American Wetlands Conservation Act $651,600
None Restoration/Re-establishment CDFW Ecosystem Restoration Program $368,500
None Restoration/Re-establishment Ducks Unlimited, Inc. $100,000
None Restoration/Re-establishment USFWS Coastal Program at San Francisco Bay $35,000

Related CRAM Assessments

Visit DateVersionSite NameWetland TypeIndex Score
2011-06-23 5.0.2 NWCA 2921 perennial/seasonal depressional 67
Name File Type Submitted On Submitted By
Cullinan East Staff Recommendation Other 2022-05-05 Kelly Iknayan, San Francisco Estuary Institute

How to Use the Habitat Development Curve

Habitat Development Curves (HDCs) are used to determine the developmental status and trajectory of on-the-ground projects to create, restore, or enhance California wetland and stream habitats. Each HDC is based on assessments of habitat condition for different age areas of one habitat type that in aggregate represent the full spectrum of habitat development. The assessments of condition are provided by expert applications of the California Rapid Assessment Method (CRAM). Visit the CRAM website for more information about CRAM.

For each HDC, reference condition is represented by areas of a habitat that consistently get very high CRAM scores, have not been subject to disruptive management practices, and exist within landscapes that are protected and managed for their natural conditions. The horizontal lines intersecting the top of an HDC represent the mean CRAM score and standard deviation of scores for 25 qualifying reference areas.

The age of a project is estimated as the elapsed time in years between the groundwork end date for the project and the date of the CRAM assessment. To add or update a groundwork end date, use the Project Events form in Project Tracker (ptrack.ecoatlas.org). The minimum age in years of a non-project area, including any natural reference area, is estimated from all available local information, including historical maps and imagery, historical written accounts, and place-specific scientific studies of habitat development.

An HDC can be used to address the following questions:

  1. At what time in the future will the area of assessed habitat achieve the reference condition or other milestones in habitat development? The HDC can answer this question if the CRAM score for the assessed area is within the confidence interval of the HDC. The answer is the time in years along the HDC between the current age of the assessed area and the future date corresponding to the intersection of the HDC and the reference condition or other milestone.
  2. Is the area of assessed habitat likely to develop faster, slower, or at the same pace as most other areas of the same habitat type? The habitat area is likely to develop faster, slower, or at the same pace if the CRAM score for the area is above, below, or within the confidence interval of the HDC, respectively.
  3. What can be done to improve the condition of the habitat area or to increase its rate of development? HDCs by themselves cannot answer this question. Possible answers can be inferred by the following analysis that involves HDCs:
    1. Examine the HDC for each of the four CRAM Attributes;
    2. Identify the Attribute(s) scoring below the HDC;
    3. For any low-scoring Attribute, examine the component Metric Scores (note: the Metric Scores for any public CRAM assessment in the CRAM database can be obtained through EcoAtlas);
    4. Assume the low score of an Attribute is due to its low-scoring Metric(s);
    5. Consider modifying the design or management of the habitat area in ways that will sustainably increase its score(s) for the low-scoring Metric(s).

For more information about CRAM Attributes and Metrics, including their scientific rationale, see the CRAM Manual.

Display Habitat Development Curves For Wetland Type:

CRAM Site Scores