AVALON, CATALINA ISLAND - The Conservancy has just completed construction of unique 20-foot tall "ring nets" to protect the Catalina Island Marine Institute at Toyon Bay in Swains Canyon and Campus by the Sea at Gallaghers from the onslaught of mudslides in the event of a storm.

The giant nets will protect the campers, staffs and buildings at the two facilities from the mud and debris that could be washed down the canyons. They will also keep that debris away from the unspoiled nearshore waters that are critical to the camps' education programs.

The debris barriers have become necessary following the wildfire of May 2007 that charred 4,750 acres or about 10 percent of the Island.  The loss of foliage, especially on the steep slopes above the camps, created conditions for major flows of mud, ash and debris for the next several years.

"The watersheds above the two camps flow directly into the Island's marine habitat that is a major ecological, commercial, and recreational resource in Southern California," said Mel Dinkel, the Conservancy's Chief Operating Officer and Treasurer.

The Conservancy is taking a unique approach erecting barriers, which are usually massive concrete structures, Dinkel said.

"The disadvantage of concrete walls is that they are difficult to remove when the threat has passed, in addition to their impact on important habitat."

So, during the past year and a half, engineers from the Natural Resource Conservation Service and Los Angeles County have partnered with the Conservancy to come up with the ring net solution that retains coarse debris while water and fine material pass through into channels that divert the water away from the camps.

"In fact, this approach is a prototype for other areas of Southern California which face similar mudflow challenges," Dinkel said.

Funding for this project has been provided in part by the National Resource Conservation Service, the Marisla Foundation in Orange County and the Conservancy.