In 1986 the coastal Conservancy funded the Butchers Slough Restoration . The Butchers Slough restoration project increased saltwater wetlands by reconfiguring Butchers Slough to a more natural meandering channel and created another freshwater marsh in the former log pond. This expanded the Sancturary to its current size of 154 acres. Arcata's system has become an international example of appropriate wastewater reuse and wetlands restoration technology. Individuals, schools, and state officials have come to Arcata to learn more about this sytem.
Visitors come here to learn about the political, biological and engineering aspects of the program.
The AMIC is staffed by the City of Arcata on weekdays and by community volunteers on weekends and holidays. The City recently received funds from the Environmental Enhancement and Mitigation Program and the Wildlife Conservation Board to purchse 75 acres of diked agricultural lands lying to the west of the Sancturary. Plans are underway to cooperatively restore and enhance up to 250 acres of the former tidelands. The Wiyot people lived peacefully on the lands surrounding the Humboldt Bay. However, all was not peaceful.