Ballona Wetlands Activists Say THANK YOU To Surprising Ally

by Lisa Levinson/In Defense of Animals & Marcia Hanscom

LOS ANGELES (May 27, 2025) — Late last week, on International Day for Biological Diversity (May 22) and during American Wetlands Month, advocates from Defend Ballona Wetlands, In Defense of Animals, Protect Ballona Wetlands and Sierra Club rallied at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in downtown Los Angeles and delivered a giant thank you card to the Colonel's executive office. The event recognized the Corps for rejecting flawed flood risk data that was being used to justify a destructive plan to bulldoze Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve and repair failing fossil fuel infrastructure within.

While the Army Corps was an initial partner with the CA Department of Fish & Wildlife in scoping and preparing a draft Environmental Impact review of the project, the Army Corps insisted on accurate flood risk standards to protect the public, effectively forcing state developers to revise or abandon their proposal.

The Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve, the only State ecological reserve in Los Angeles County, is one of the last remaining coastal wetlands in Los Angeles County. It’s a rare refuge for hundreds of animal and plant species, including several federally endangered species like the Least Bell’s Vireo, which rely on the reserve.

A high-profile campaign to save this critical habitat has been endorsed by celebrity advocates including James Cromwell, Lily Tomlin and Genesis Butler.

“We are so grateful to the Army Corps of Engineers, for standing strong in favor of the public interest - making sure our communities surrounding the Ballona Wetlands are safe from increased flood risk that this misguided project would bring if it is ever constructed,” stated Marcia Hanscom, Community Organizer for Defend Ballona Wetlands.

Robert J. van de Hoek, Environmental Scientist for the coalition, explained, “The Army Corps of Engineers learned a lesson from Hurricane Katrina, and they now insist fully that their infrastructure, such as the levee walls of Ballona Creek must stay strong. In the process, the Army Corps also protected the federally endangered Least Bell’s Vireo, a migratory songbird, which has been nesting in vegetation on those levee walls. That’s one reason why we chose International Day for Biological Diversity to say ‘thank you!’ to the Army Corps of Engineers."

While the Army Corps’ intervention halted the most dangerous parts of the proposed plan, the site remains at risk of being destroyed.

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has repeatedly announced plans to release a revised Environmental Impact Report, after a California Superior Court ordered the previous version to be decertified in summer of 2003, due in part due to reliance on erroneous flood standards, but funding for a new review that has already wasted more than $25 million in public funds appears challenging. While this harmful bulldozing project was put on hold by the court, CDFW still states that it hopes to implement the project sequences in the future, and the Department continues to allow the fossil fuel industry to expand operations piecemeal at the reserve — despite legal and environmental concerns.

“We’re so fortunate to have a functioning wetlands ecosystem in the heart of Los Angeles’ coastline,” said Lisa Levinson, Campaigns Director for In Defense of Animals. “We thank the Army Corps of Engineers for responding to letters from our supporters in favor of protecting Ballona Wetlands — since 2020, nearly 40,000 people have called for Ballona Wetlands to be protected. Today, we celebrate this powerful victory. But despite the Army stepping in to win this battle, the war continues. We reaffirm our commitment to fighting to preserve this essential habitat for thousands of animals who are also Angelenos, just like the rest of us.”

The Ballona Wetlands is part of the Pacific Flyway, an essential corridor for migratory birds and refuge for thousands of wild animals. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife project would decimate essential habitat for numerous endangered and rare species, including the federally endangered Least Bell’s Vireo, proposed endangered Monarch Butterfly, and threatened and declining Western Burrowing Owl.

Hanscom added, “federal recovery teams have only just helped bring back to health some of the once declining populations of beautiful songbirds; birds like the Least Bell’s Vireo and Coastal California Gnatcatcher have now expanded their ranges and returned to nest at or immediately adjacent to the Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve. Several other endangered and rare species rely on Ballona, some of which have been elevated to more sensitive status this past year: the Monarch Butterfly and Western Burrowing Owl.”

Scientists are currently assessing updated statuses for these twospecies, including potential elevation under the Endangered Species Act.

Concerned members of the public can learn more at www.defendballonawetlands.org and can also take action online to stop the proposed bulldozing project and support a gentle restoration instead: www.idausa.org/saveballona

Species at stake: Ballona Wetlands is critical habitat for:

• Least Bell’s Vireo (federally endangered)
• Monarch butterfly (proposed endangered)
• Western Burrowing Owl (threatened and declining)
• Several other endangered and threatened species
• Dozens of migratory bird species along the Pacific Flyway

May is American Wetlands Month, created in 1991 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to celebrate the vital importance of wetlands to the nation’s ecological, economic, and social health.