We are thrilled to provide an update on one of our most ambitious endeavors in the North Coast region: the Prairie Creek Floodplain Restoration Project as a part of the Redwood National and State Parks Trails Gateway and Restoration Project. This initiative stands as a testament to our skills as effective leaders in collaboration and to our unwavering dedication to ecological restoration.
Along with the rest of our collaborative partner non-profits, state and federal agencies, our team of local design and compliance consultants, and the Yurok Tribe - we are delighted to announce that the project has received a recommendation for $7 million in funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which will drive the restoration efforts forward to be completed by the end of 2025. The grant will be awarded to the California State Coastal Conservancy, who funds both CalTrout, and the Yurok Tribe. The Yurok Tribe Construction Corporation and Fisheries Department are implementing the design team’s vision - reshaping the creek's channels, removing invasive plant species, and reintroducing native vegetation. Working alongside the Yurok Tribe to restore balance on ancestral lands is an experience that reverberates beyond the project site.
Prairie Creek, known for being home to Redwood National and State Parks, has a history of ecosystem restoration and lush riparian habitats and diverse wildlife can be found throughout the watershed. At this site historical impacts are compounded from road building, homesteading, and the mill site developments combined with a heavy sediment load from historical timber harvest practices – the result is a deeply incised channel that severed the connection between the creek and its floodplain. Consequently, habitat degradation occurred and disrupted ecological processes.
Initiated in 2015, the Prairie Creek Floodplain Restoration Project aims to revive critical salmonid rearing habitats, reconnect Prairie Creek with its floodplain, and ultimately rehabilitate the vibrant floodplain and wetland ecosystem. Within Prairie Creek's waters, an array of remarkable species can be found, including Chinook and coho salmon, steelhead, coastal cutthroat trout, and lamprey. The restoration project elevates the habitat quality within this property, contributing to the stronghold upstream that is managed by Redwood National and State Parks.
The vision for the completed project extends beyond the fish. By 2025, the site will also provide a new point of public access—the southern gateway to the Redwood National and State Parks system. To achieve this vision, the excavated soil from the floodplain is repurposed as fill, replacing the mill site asphalt, and laying the groundwork for visitor amenities and trails that will seamlessly connect the site with the surrounding parks.
As we approach the third season of construction in the summer of 2023, we are eager to share further updates on the project's development. Stay tuned for more exciting news as CalTrout and partners continue to restore and rejuvenate Prairie Creek and its floodplain.
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Peter Moyle is the Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology and Associate Director of the Center for Watershed Sciences, at UC Davis. He is author or co-author of more than 240 publications, including the definitive Inland Fishes of California (2002). He is co-author of the 2017 book, Floodplains: Processes and Management for Ecosystem Services. His research interests include conservation of aquatic species, habitats, and ecosystems, including salmon; ecology of fishes of the San Francisco Estuary; ecology of California stream fishes; impact of introduced aquatic organisms; and use of floodplains by fish.
Robert Lusardi is the California Trout/UC Davis Wild and Coldwater Fish Researcher focused on establishing the basis for long-term science specific to California Trout’s wild and coldwater fish initiatives. His work bridges the widening gap between academic science and applied conservation policy, ensuring that rapidly developing science informs conservation projects throughout California. Dr. Lusardi resides at the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences and works closely with Dr. Peter Moyle on numerous projects to help inform California Trout conservation policy. His recent research interests include Coho salmon on the Shasta River, the ecology of volcanic spring-fed rivers, inland trout conservation and management, and policy implications of trap and haul programs for anadromous fishes in California.
Patrick Samuel is the Conservation Program Coordinator for California Trout, a position he has held for almost two years, where he coordinates special research projects for California Trout, including the State of the Salmonids report. Prior to joining CalTrout, he worked with the Fisheries Leadership & Sustainability Forum, a non-profit that supports the eight federal regional fishery management councils around the country. Patrick got his start in fisheries as an undergraduate intern with NOAA Fisheries Protected Resources Division in Sacramento, and in his first field job as a crew member of the California Department of Fish & Wildlife’s Wild and Heritage Trout Program.