DUMBARTON BRIDGE Calif. (KCBS) _ Environmentalists and nature lovers celebrated the first completed part of the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project on Tuesday.

The ribbon was cut by U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein, who played an instrumental role in the purchase of the property at the west end of the Dumbarton Bridge from Cargill.

“I have come to really believe that this Bay is the destiny of the San Francisco Bay Area,” Feinstein said. “And to return this Bay to the wetlands that had existed is an imperative. We have lost 85 percent of the wetlands of San Francisco Bay.”

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Sam Schuchat, Executive Officer of the California Coastal Conservancy said this is the largest salt pond restoration project on the West Coast.

“When complete, this project will restore 15,100 acres of industrial salt ponds to a mosaic of tidal wetlands and other habitat,” he said. “This is a very exciting time for the project. There’s a lot going on right now.”

2.2 miles of Bay Trail at Moffett Field is also scheduled to open on September 20.