Carmel River Floodplain Restoration & Environmental Enhancement (CRFREE) Post-Construction Restoration & Management (Big Sur Land Trust)

The Carmel River Floodplain Restoration and Environmental Enhancement (CRFREE) Project will be a multi-phase effort designed to reduce flood risk and restore ecological function at the confluence of the lower Carmel River and Carmel Lagoon.

Led by Big Sur Land Trust and Monterey County, the $55M project will reconnect 102 acres of historic floodplain by removing levees, grading floodplains, and constructing a causeway for State Route 1 (better known locally as ”Highway 1”), all of which will divert high river flows away from developed areas and into a restored floodplain. The NOAA- supported phase will stabilize and manage the newly graded and reconnected floodplain through active revegetation, invasive species control, and interim habitat management to ensure that flood-risk reduction and ecological outcomes will be achieved and sustained over time.