Responses flood in for Bolsa Chica restoration plan

More than 60 groups and individuals have submitted responses to the Bolsa Chica Land Trust’s plan to restore the habitat’s lower mesa.

The state Department of Fish and Game, which developed the initial study in collaboration with the Land Trust, is reviewing the responses. Fish and Game will not release the comments until they are reviewed and responded to, said reserve manager Carla Navarro Woods, who noted that the process could take months.

The responses were due March 17.

Kim Kolpin, executive director of the Bolsa Chica Land Trust Stewards, said her group is helping Fish and Game review the submissions. The state agency asked for responses to the project’s mitigated negative declaration — a document outlining the plan’s environmental impacts — but many people have submitted comments about the plan itself as well, Kolpin said.

“We know there’s a lot of misinformation that’s been put out there, which is unfortunate,” she said. “But the plan is still on track, and we’re going to do what we need to do and make sure we get the right answers to everyone who’s made an inquiry.”

The restoration plan, dubbed “CPR for the Mesa,” aims to remove invasive weeds and restore native plants across the 118-acre lower bench of the mesa.