Mt. Scott Creek Restoration Project begins

Work on the Mt. Scott Creek Restoration Project has officially begun! The project’s initiation follows a year and a half of planning and permitting, which began after the project received a $150,000 Metro Nature in Neighborhoods grant in 2010.

A partnership between Clackamas County Water Environment Services and North Clackamas Parks and Recreation District, the project includes restoring Mt. Scott Creek in North Clackamas Park, removing a crushed culvert, replacing a bridge, and building two overlooks for visitors.

“’Basically, the whole project is to revegetate and enhance the entire stream system, building in shade to improve water quality and provide habitat for native wildlife’ while providing access to nature for human visitors, [NCPRD Natural Resources Coordinator Tonia] Burns said,” according to the Clackamas Review. Read the full story by Ellen Spitaleri.

Friends of Trees looks forward to contributing to the project through Green Space Initiative plantings on Dec. 8, 2012 and February 9, 2013.

The project continues work begun in 2000 by the Tsunami Crew, a team of diehard Friends of Trees crew leaders and other dedicated planters. The Tsunami Crew has spent 12,570 hours removing invasive species and planting 21,000 native trees in the 3 Creeks Natural Area, where Mt. Scott Creek converges with Phillips and Deer creeks.

Spitaleri concludes:

“In the end, the project is all about education, Burns said.

“’We plan to have interpretive signage on the overlooks and decks, and we want people to realize that what we do in parks is an example of how habitat functions and how they can implement these same techniques in their own backyards,’ she added.

“’When we did the Watershed Action Plan, we found that this watershed has seen a lot of development,’ [WES Environmental Policy Specialist Gail] Shaloum said, noting that storm water runoff from streets and homes has negatively impacted the creeks.

“’We want to educate people about storm water and what they can do personally to improve water quality.’”