Overview
The Inland Wetlands Conservation Program (IWCP) was created to assist
the Central
Valley Joint Venture (CVJV) in its mission is to protect, restore,
and enhance wetlands and associated habitats. The CVJV, a partnership
of twenty two public and private organizations and agencies, has identified
through its Implementation Plan specific goals to increase populations of six bird groups:
wintering waterfowl, breeding waterfowl, non-breeding shorebirds, breeding
shorebirds, waterbirds, and breeding riparian songbirds. The IWCP has
a wide range of options to accomplish these goals, including acquisitions
of land or water for wetlands or wildlife friendly agriculture, acquisition
of conservation easements, restoration of public or private lands,
or enhancement of existing degraded habitats. In addition, the program
will work toward providing long term reliable water for wetlands and
winter-flooded agricultural lands.
The IWCP jurisdiction matches that of the CVJV, and includes most
of the watershed of the Central Valley. The Implementation Plan and
the IWCP, however, continue to focus on the Central Valley floor, which
extends approximately 400 miles from Red Bluff in the north to Bakersfield
in the south and encompasses the following nine basins: Butte, Colusa,
Sutter, Yolo, American, Suisun Marsh, Delta, San Joaquin, and Tulare.