Riparian Project Gallery

Taking a moment to appreciate the beauty of growing trees during a visit to a riparian restoration site in Whatcom Conservation District.

A local landowner in Spokane grew up fishing on the creek featured in this before and after photo. As a kid, he dreamed of purchasing the property one day. Now, he owns it, and is passing along his experiences by fishing with his grandchildren. He wanted to help restore the creek for future generations, and was excited to move the reed canary grass, build floodplains, and plant native vegetation.

Each year, elementary school students in Grays Harbor Conservation District raise Coho from egg to fry in their school's salmon tanks. These fish will eventually be released into the wild.

Snohomish Conservation District staff install a notch exclusion fence along the shoreline of Lake Stevens to protect sensitive areas while allowing natural water flow. This fence helps improve water quality, reduce erosion, and support local fish and wildlife habitats.

Swooping to and fro, an excavator and front loader work in tandem to smooth over streamside land that will later be planted with native vegetation.

Cows always come out to say "hi" at this site in northeast Lynden, WA, along Kamm Creek. A riparian restoration project here established a 50ft riparian forest buffer with livestock fencing lining the perimeter of the planting area. This area is heavily compacted, and tree growth has been slower, but recent plantings are growing vigorously!

Volunteers in Benton Conservation District work together to pull up invasive water stargrass in the Yakima River to open up spawning beds for salmon.

Second graders in Ferry Conservation District visit the Ferry Conservation Outdoor Education property to plant willows along Herron Creek.

Grays Harbor Conservation District launched an innovative outreach collaboration with Mount Olympus Brewing. Together, they have created a beer called "River Roots." The beer is brewed with salmon-safe hops, and each beer sold represents one native tree planted along a local waterway. In this photo, volunteers work to plant some of those trees with other community members.

Pacific Conservation District is actively restoring Smith Creek, which flows into the lower Naselle River and Willapa Bay. The tide now flows freely in and out of the creek, and a bridge has been built where there were only a few culverts before.

Whatcom CD's Annual Run With The Chums 5K Fun Run & Smolt Sprint brings community members together in celebrating salmon. This educational fun run includes a Smolt Sprint obstacle course for kids under 10 to race through obstacles a smolt salmon might encounter on its way to the ocean.

Local students partnered with Lewis Conservation District and the Chehalis River Basin Land Trust to plant trees along the Chehalis River Discovery Trail.

A drone photo captures the Dartford Creek (center) in Spokane Conservation District, where their Riparian Field Crew had just finished mulching as part of a riparian restoration project.

A Benton Conservation District staff member monitors the water quality in the Yakima River, where invasive water stargrass is threatening local waterways.

Benton Conservation District staff are working tirelessly to fight endless swaths of water stargrass threatening local waterways, using an aquatic harvester.

Benton Conservation District staff are working on site with a local producer to provide recommendations for the management of healthy riparian vegetation.

This photo was taken about five months post-planting at a riparian forest buffer along California Creek, near the mouth of Drayton Harbor. This portion of the riparian buffer is upland, with a large wetland to the left and a fish accessible California Creek side channel along the mature conifer tree-line in the background.