San Marcos Unified School District officials saw opportunity – rather than potential regulatory headaches – when they learned a new elementary school site harbored federally-protected wetlands habitat and endangered thread-leaved brodiaea.
The district developed ambitious plans to preserve the wetlands and to translocate the plants to a 7.6-acre preserve surrounding the school on two sides.
“While we’re excited by the early success of the habitats, we’re equally happy that the mitigation efforts enabled us to break ground on the new school earlier this year,” said Katherine Tanner, San Marcos Unified School District’s executive director of facilities planning and development. “This preserve with its rare plants and wetlands will offer students a unique first-hand environmental educational experience.”
Read more on Dudek’s blog.