From mavensnotebook.com – The Yolo Bypass was originally designed as a flood control measure to protect the city of Sacramento.  It is also widely viewed as an environmental and water management success story, as it has been demonstrated to achieve multiple benefits, including benefits to agriculture, flood control, and the environment that derive from reestablishing the connectivity of a major river to its floodplain. Previous reports

have highlighted studies that document some of the environmental benefits.  In a study referred to as the Nigiri project because of its benefits for both rice and fish, researchers funded by the Delta Stewardship Council, Department of Water Resources, and others demonstrated that managed inundation of the Yolo and Sutter bypasses at times not necessarily needed for flood control resulted in the generation of large amounts of fish food, zooplankton and higher growth rates and larger sizes of juvenile Chinook salmon that were using the floodplain for foraging and shelter. (more)