California Sea Grant College Program

Climate change and water diversions have greatly modified freshwater outflow into the San Francisco Estuary, changing the Estuary’s salinity regime. These climate- and water diversion-driven changes in salinities may have a wide range of impacts on important components of the San Francisco Estuary including the distribution of threatened/endangered species, the success of habitat restoration and the management of invasive species.  Previous work has shown significant variation in the recruitment and survival of numerous species throughout the Estuary linked to freshwater outflow levels.