Eden Landing Ecological Reserve
For decades, the salt ponds at Eden Landing were an industrial landscape -- geometric basins where bay water was evaporated to produce salt. Now they are becoming something else. The Eden Landing Ecological Reserve, spanning portions of Hayward and Union City on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay, is one of the largest wetland restoration projects in the West, converting former salt ponds back to the tidal marshland that the bay originally supported.
From Salt to Marsh
The conversion of salt ponds to tidal marsh is a slow process that involves breaching levees, managing water levels, and waiting for native plants to colonize the newly restored terrain. Eden Landing is part of the broader South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project, which aims to restore 15,100 acres of industrial salt ponds to a mix of tidal marsh, managed ponds, and other habitats. The project is the largest tidal wetland restoration on the West Coast.
The Species That Need It
The reserve provides critical habitat for several endangered and threatened species, including the California clapper rail and the salt marsh harvest mouse, both of which depend on tidal marsh for survival. Shorebirds and waterfowl use the restored ponds during migration, and the reserve's location on the Pacific Flyway makes it an important stopover for millions of birds annually. The reserve demonstrates that even heavily industrialized landscapes can be reclaimed for ecological function.
Geometric Patterns
From the air, Eden Landing is a striking mosaic of colors and shapes: the remaining salt ponds show various hues of green, pink, and brown depending on salinity and algae concentration, while restored areas appear as natural marsh. The geometric patterns of the industrial ponds gradually give way to the organic curves of tidal channels -- a visible record of landscape transformation in progress.
From the Air
Eden Landing Ecological Reserve is at 37.594°N, 122.118°W on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay. The salt ponds and restored marshes create colorful geometric patterns visible from altitude. Nearest airports: Hayward Executive (KHWD) 5 nm north.