The Huntington Beach Wetlands Conservancy now owns 118 acres of wetlands between the Santa Ana River and Newland Street.  Our goal is to acquire and restore the remaining coastal wetlands in Huntington Beach.  These wetlands parcels are identified as Talbert Marsh, Brookhurst Marsh, Magnolia Marsh, Newland Marsh and the Waterfront Wetlands. 

Talbert Marsh    The Talbert Marsh offers the public a multipurpose trail on approximately 25 acres from Brookhurst Street to the Santa Ana River Trail and is owned in total by the Conservancy.  More than 75 species of birds have been observed at Talbert Marsh and the other adjoining Huntington Beach wetlands. In addition to year round residents, thousands of birds use the Huntington wetlands as a rest stop during long migrations from their nesting grounds in the Arctic to their wintering grounds in the south.

Throughout most of the year, the water in the marsh is seawater from the ocean inlet located at Talbert Marsh.  Water flows in and out twice a day with the tide and can rise and fall as much as 8 feet.  Fresh water also washes down storm water channels during winter rains.

In 1989, a man-made dike separating the wetlands from the flood control channel was breached and tidal flushing action was restored. 

Brookhurst Marsh    Brookhurst Marsh consists of approximately 67 acres between Brookhurst and Magnolia Streets.  The Conservancy owns approximately 56 acres and has conservation easements on approximately 10 acres of county property.

Magnolia Marsh     Magnolia Marsh is located between Magnolia and AES Power Plant. It covers about 40 acres of which 34 acres is owned by the Conservancy. The remaining property is secured though a conservation easement with the County of Orange.

Newland Marsh    Newland Marsh is a parcel of land located along Beach Boulevard and extends behind a mobile home park all the way to Newland Street and consists of approximately 40 acres.  It is bisected by a flood control channel.  It is currently owned by a private land owner and CalTrans. 

Waterfront Wetlands    The Waterfront Wetlands area is a one acre parcel at the northern-most end of the Huntington Beach Wetlands located on the west side of Beach Boulevard just north of Pacific Coast Highway. It was protected from development and is surrounded with a constructed "treatment wetland" which is designed to treat urban runoff from local streets and housing developments.  The Wetlands Conservancy manages the entire 3.5 acre site for the City of Huntington Beach.