Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Tr For Long Beach & Seal Beach

The Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust was incorporated in 2001 by dedicated individuals who grasped the vital importance of defending Los Cerritos Wetlands from encroaching development while making local citizens and decision makers aware of the importance of this unique estuary. As an organization the Land Trust is committed to: 1) Facilitating the purchase of privately owned properties in Los Cerritos Wetlands, 2) Reconnecting and restoring this remnant estuary ecosystem, 3) Providing an educational setting for people in underserved communities to discover the wonders of southern California’s coastal wildlands, and 4) Building a culture of public stewardship for this precious resource.

The Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust for Long Beach and Seal Beach was incorporated in 2001 by dedicated individuals who grasped the vital importance of the Los Cerritos Wetlands and the urgency of saving and restoring what remained of this unique estuary. In the ensuing years, our organization and membership have grown. Today, we have upwards of 1,000 members. Our name and mission have become known to environmental groups and schools, the City of Long Beach and governing agencies of California, such as the California Coastal Commission, the Department of Fish & Game and the California Coastal Conservancy, as well as Federal agencies such as the Department of Fish & Wildlife and the Army Corps of Engineers. We are working with the Los Cerritos Wetlands Authority (LCWA) and each of its entities—City of Long Beach, City of Seal Beach, Rivers and Mountains Conservancy and the California Coastal Conservancy—to restore recently acquired portions of the Los Cerritos Wetlands.We have dedicated volunteers who donate their time to inform and educate about the Los Cerritos Wetlands at events throughout the year and tabling at our Farmers’ Markets and other local venues. This dedication has been indispensable in our efforts to raise funds to help defray legal costs incurred in cases where we must file lawsuits to defend Los Cerritos Wetlands.Our members come from all walks of life and cover the age spectrum from Campfire Girls to college students to full-time careerists to retirees. Our common thread is our passion and determination to purchase, preserve, protect and restore the Los Cerritos Wetlands.

1) We worked to ensure that a proposed mitigation bank would enhance habitat and expeditiously transfer its fragile lands into the public trust. We advocated for comprehensive planning for Los Cerritos Wetlands that would provide the highest level of habitat protection. I am happy to report that the transfer is complete and those lands are on their way to being restored. 2)We offer numerous programs in outdoor and ecological education, including free monthly guided nature walks and low-cost tours throughout the wetlands and river estuary, led by trained ecologists and naturalists who educate groups of all ages about the history and value of Los Cerritos Wetlands. We also hosted wetlands educational field trips for elementary classrooms and youth programs, with a focus on outreach to youth in urban areas or attending Title 1 schools. 3) We sponsored extensive habitat restoration including activities that improved wetlands water quality, removed unsightly and unnecessary fencing and other aging infrastructure, maintained a robust native plant demonstration garden, and expanded our community-based restoration events. In previous years we successfully navigated the Intervenor process for the AES powerplant conversion process to include more protection for wetlands. 2) Designed and initiated the first ever (state endangered) Belding's savannah sparrow monitoring program in Los Cerritos Wetlands 4) Developed a comprehensive Habitat Restoration Plan for the future acquisition of a 5 acre parcel of Los Cerritos Wetlands as the next phase of community-based stewardship programming. 5) Expanded our field trips to Los Cerritos Wetlands for 3rd graders from Long Beach to include the Santa Ana school district for students from areas that are the most urban and have the least resources.

1) Funding for Environmental Education Programs 2) Funding for Community-based Restoration Efforts 3) Funding for Environmental Planning Efforts 4) Website and social media re-development 5) Volunteer Coordinator Position 6) Support for Operations and Capacity Building 

Seal Beach and Long Beach, California. Programs target communities of Los Alamitos, Rossmoor, Santa Ana and Seal Beach. 

With the vast majority of Southern California wetlands lost forever to development, it is important to protect and restore the few that are left. Not only do urban wetlands such as the Los Cerritos Wetlands provide critical habitat for fragile and endangered species but they provide an outdoor educational setting where students and community members can come and learn about the value of wetlands and the importance of protecting them. To have wetlands near urbanized communities provides a unique educational resource for people and important habitat for rare and threatened animal and plant species.

I am comforted by the natural world and, by extension, the important role that Los Cerritos Wetlands plays in our community, both as a habitat for fragile and endangered species and as a place for families to spend time in nature. We’ve hosted nature walks that the local community can enjoy (free of charge) on the first Saturday of the month for years now. Through those nature walks we have been able to introduce people from throughout Southern California to our unique wetlands habitat and educate them about its value.
What started as an introductory program to bring youth from our most urban communities out to Los Cerritos Wetlands so they could spend time in nature, is now an enduring and beloved program. These visits are a great resource for those in our community with limited access to nature; they also help educate students’ parents about the value of wetlands. We are so
proud that every year we host hundreds of third and fourth graders from Title 1 schools, as well as participants in Long Beach urban parks BeSAFE programs (and now students from a Santa Ana elementary school) to enjoy guided wetlands field trips and educational sessions. After all, every person, not just those who have the resources to travel, has the right to enjoy time in nature, learning about the natural world. The Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust hosting field trip programs for urban youth is our small contribution to a more just world.
I am inspired that the community has come together to work to protect and preserve Los Cerritos Wetlands and I will be forever grateful for those forward-thinking individuals who banded together to fight for Los Cerritos Wetlands when strip malls, houses,
and a golf course were proposed for this land. It sure hasn’t been easy, and there are plenty of battles ahead of us, but I am happy to report that more than half of Los Cerritos Wetlands are now safely in the public trust and more wetlands are on the way.