Installing Christmas trees along Sheldon Creek

Sheldon Creek is home to a native fish that is at risk of becoming extinct. This July, volunteers helped restore their habitat and reverse some of the damage from past land uses. Their work helped rehabilitate this ecosystem by reducing erosion on stream banks, giving the river room to flood and restoring the streamside forest.



They stepped into chest waders and waded into waist-deep water to anchor old Christmas trees into the streambank. This not only reduces erosion and stabilizes the streambanks, but also creates habitat for young trout and salmon, which hatch on the site every year.

One week later, an excavator arrived at the site. Did they undo what our volunteers just built? Not at all!



Installing the Christmas tree revetments was just the beginning. The excavator arrived to carefully shave back the eroding riverbank to match the new shape of the stream, creating a wider floodplain that can better handle snowmelt and heavy rain, helping to slow the flow, reduce erosion, and improve water quality downstream. 



The result? A more stable riverbank that can handle more water and a brand new wetland habitat for local wildlife.