A man wades into Ballona Lagoon, Los Angeles, California, circa 1902 Pierce Photography Collection, USC Libraries
It’s quite something to view these historic photos of Los Angeles wetlands.
Early Los Angeles wetlands provided a vast expanse of critical habitat, now lost forever because coastal Southern California grew and developed in the early 20th century as a place to live. All of this development happened many years before the public and our leaders realized the value of wetlands and the need to protect them. I’m happy to say that the tide seems to be turning and here locally, the shift towards supporting, protecting and restoring Los Cerritos Wetlands has truly been remarkable. We couldn’t do it without you, and for that we say “thank you”!
We encourage you to check out the Los Cerritos Wetlands on one of our monthly nature walks(always the first Saturday of the month) or join a wetlands restoration or trash clean-up event.
Details about these activities, and more, can be found here.
Perhaps the restoration of our local wetlands isn’t happening as fast as we would like but it is happening, and some day Los Cerritos Wetlands will be a fully restored and high functioning wetlands complex that will serve as a great resource for the community and fragile species alike.
We know we can’t bring back most the historic wetlands of Los Angeles County but we can help make those that remain robust and viable, not only for ourselves but also for future generations to enjoy.