Status and Trends in Protection of California Wetlands

The evidence is overwhelming that the majority of California's historic wetlands no longer exist, that there are continuing pressures on the remaining 10 percent, and that protection under present programs and practices is far from assured. Since about 1860, when reclamation of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta began, the extent and distribution of wetlands have changed dramatically, reflecting the chronology and patterns of settlement in the state; cultivated agriculture, ports and harbors, and metropolitan centers have displaced much of the state's natural wetland heritage.