
In a significant move to restore and preserve the ecological system of Point Buckler Island, the John Muir Land Trust (JMLT) has officially acquired the 29-acre property through a credit bid of $3.8 million, marking a new chapter for the island, which has faced environmental degradation due to an unauthorized levee construction.
Point Buckler, part of the Suisun Marsh in the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta estuary, plays a vital role in California's ecosystem, the marsh having been subjected to extensive industrial abuse and the restoration of which will serve as a migratory corridor for fish and a habitat for hundreds of Californian species, Linus Eukel, JMLT's Executive Director, "John Muir Land Trust and many conservation partners are working to protect and restore the Bay Delta after decades of harmful human activity," as per the announcement by John Muir Land Trust. Point Buckler is essential for more than 25 million state residents depending on the Delta for clean drinking water. It also supplies water for farming purposes.
Previous ownership issues led to severe ecological impacts, prompted by a legal battle with the state that culminated in the sale to JMLT after the former owners failed to follow state-imposed judgments relating to the disruptive levee they constructed without permission around the island that led to ecological harm to the sensitive tidal ecosystem. This conflict has spanned nearly a decade, with initial construction in 2014 and 2015, followed by resistance against cleanup and abatement orders from the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board, resulting in a fine of $2.8 million, mirrored the seriousness of the negatively impactful activities.
Eileen White, Executive Officer for the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board, noticed the sale as a significant shift in future conservation efforts, "The prolonged legal issues were unfortunate. Instead of being cooperative and following the requirements of an order designed to protect water quality and aquatic life, the owners of the island chose not to comply," she had stated this and added, "The sale of Point Buckler Island offers a new path forward, and we are confident that the nonprofit John Muir Land Trust will restore it into an example of responsible environmental stewardship" in a press release by the San Francisco Water Board.