The Hanson Floodplain Restoration Project is in the final planning stretch and very close to submitting permit applications to the County. This pioneering project will convert four large gravel pits back into much-needed river flood plains just downstream of Healdsburg. Recreating floodplains that were lost to development will increase groundwater recharge to improve water supply, re-create nursery areas for juvenile salmon, reduce erosion and damage in floods and create the largest river park in the watershed. The Hanson Floodplain Restoration Project will help slow the river down, allow the river to spread out and increase local groundwater, and assist with recharging the river to help augment our water supplies.
Where are we right now with The Hanson Floodplain Restoration Project? We’re currently working with one last property owner to address concerns they have raised to gain their approval in order to finalize designs and submit the applications for construction.
Lead project designer, Jeremy Svehla, of GHD has been working on the engineering designs, construction phasing, and environmental documents to build the project. GHD landscape architect Lucas Piper has been working on park facilities and public access plans for Sonoma County Regional Parks and will eventually own and operate the property. The project team has been working with adjacent property owners over the last three years to secure their approvals for the project.
As impacts from climate change on our watershed grow, the benefits of the Hanson project become even more important. Around the world we see droughts take an ever greater toll on rivers and the communities they support. Recently sudden floods have shown us that our rivers need more room to handle larger flood events we’ll see with the warmer atmosphere and recreating the floodplain will help buffer those floods. As salmon populations struggle this project will recreate the floodplain wetlands that provided tiny juvenile salmon more food to grow and refuge from high flows until they are bigger and stronger.
With your continued support, we are able to work with the project team to advance the planning and design work and continue to remove a large number of invasive plants prior to project construction. We look forward to soon announcing the submission of project applications and the beginning of the public review period for this important project to improve the resiliency of our watershed. Stay tuned!