Borrow Pit Exchange Authority

The Borrow Pit Exchange Authority would coordinate development along the Interstate 5 corridor. The location of the pits may implicate them in Peripheral Canal planning.

The BPEA gets its name from a series of ‘borrow pits’ dug in the 1960s to provide fill for construction of the I-5. These pits run parallel to the highway, and over the last 40 years, have developed sufficient riparian qualities that some have been designated wildlife sanctuaries. The BPEA would use this principle of excavation and riparian habitat creation to manage the ecology of development along the I-5 corridor.

Management would occur at two scales: First, the BPEA territory would develop a system of canals, increasing the quantity of waterfront properties; second, it would export its fill material to other Delta regions, including to the South Delta Exchange Authority, where serious concerns over flooding and water quality will inevitably lead to the construction of a more robust levee system and greater channel carrying capacity.