San Diego Audubon Society held a well-attended community science event at Kendall-Frost Marsh on Jan. 12 discussing king tides, sea-level rise, and protecting endangered birds, while extolling the virtues of wetlands and the need to preserve them.

Andrew Meyer, director of conservation for San Diego Audubon Society, led the discussion joined by District 1 Councilmember Joe LaCava along with Lesly Gallegos-Stearns of San Diego Coastkeeper.

“Kendall-Frost Marsh is the northeast portion of Mission Bay and this corner of it is the last remaining 40 acres of (previously 4,000 acres) of tidal wetlands habitat managed by the City and UC San Diego,” said Meyer adding, “The entire 3,960 other acres are open to the public. These 40 acres are closed most of the year because this is the last habitat that all these other non-human species have in Mission Bay.”

Meyer pointed out San Diego Audubon Society has been collaborating with the City and UC San Diego to help endangered bird species, like the Ridgway’s rail, which depend on tideland habitats like Kendall-Frost.

“All kinds of birds, fish, and invertebrates use this habitat and it’s a critical spot for endangered species in particular,” said Meyer adding, “Today, at king tide, the highest tide of the year, we can see what the future holds, and how hard it will be if you are a (creature) that needs to survive in this habitat, because this habitat is disappearing before our very eyes.”

Of king tides, Meyer noted: “We get our highest tides of the year when we are closest to the moon and sun and when they both are pulling on our oceans in alignment. We get high tides in June/July then usually in December/January. In a place like Kendall-Frost Marsh, in the protected Mission Bay, you can see the highest tides creep through the marsh without much wave or wind or storm action.

Added Meyer: “But if we were to get a storm on a king tide day, then we’d get even more flooding and salt-water inundation than we did a few weeks ago when a storm brought the ocean up and over the beach and seawall in Mission and Pacific beaches. If that had been a king tide day, we would have added several more inches of flooding on top of that damage to our beaches, protected coastal habitats and infrastructure.”

Concluded Meyer: “The real big problem is that our king tides will become more and more common. As sea levels rise, our normal high tide will get higher and our king tides will be even higher. That’s a big problem for our beach infrastructure and also a big problem for our protected marsh habitats that need to be expanded to keep pace with that sea-level rise. We’ve got to restore those places now, and fight climate change if we want that natural resilient infrastructure to survive.”

Meyer also promoted Rewild Mission Bay, an advocacy project by wildlife conservationists, who are lobbying the City to restore and expand the Kendall-Frost PB marshland habitat.

Pointing at a nearby housing development adjacent to Kendall-Frost, LaCava pointed out, “That water is lapping at their doors, and that is the future that we’re talking about.” He added, “It’s not just about protecting the natural habitat. It’s also about protecting our public and private investments and public infrastructure that will be threatened by sea level rise. We can’t just sit back and say, ‘Maybe it will happen, maybe it won’t.’ What we have to do is be proactive in figuring out what the solutions are, especially focusing on logical solutions to make sure that we protect the quality of life we have and protect our natural habitats.”

Gallegos-Stearns of Coastkeeper said: “I am in charge of a Mission Bay water quality-control program, and Kendall-Frost is one of 10 sites we sample around Mission Bay every month. For the past few months, without stormwater being involved, the water quality hasn’t been the best. It has failed state water-quality standards in bacteria, copper, and phosphorus. And Kendall-Frost has been one of the sites that has failed every month.”

King tides along the beachfront are damaging in other ways. Just ask Cathy Ives of the nonprofit Don’t Trash Mission Beach. She noted the recent king tides “washed up thousands of pieces of Styrofoam (cups, coolers, and boogie boards), which are illegal at the beaches.” Additionally, Ives said, “All the charred wood from illegal fires is also washed up and uncovered, which has turned the beaches from a light brown to gray. If you walk the tideline, you will see specks of white, clear bottlecaps, colored particles (broken beach toys) flecks of white (styrofoam and chunks of black (charred wood).”

Added Ives about king tides: “It is not unusual to pick up over 100 straws and parts of straws (which kill wildlife) in one mile of beach. All the kelp washed ashore is filled with plastic. High winds also bring in balloons and fishing gear, crab pots, fishing lines, lures, and more. Birds eat all the balloons and plastic thinking they are food. Because their stomach says they are full, they essentially starve to death as plastic has no nutritional value.”