Fivemile-Bell Restoration Project Tour

I've been hearing about this innovative restoration approach over on the coast for several years and I finally got an opportunity to check it out as part of a tour led by the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board that I'm on a Regional Review Team for.

 Bell Creek (above and below) in reaches of recent restoration

The project exceeded all of my expectations.  The concept, "Stage Zero" is a holistic restoration approach to restore stream evolution to stage zero or the beginning.  In their infancy, streams are wide, shallow, and braided.  Over time, multiple channels reduce to only a few and then down to one.  Sinuosity increases and riparian vegetation develops as streambanks stabilize.  With increased streambank vegetation comes wildlife like beaver which create diverse habitat.  And diverse habitat is what these ecological systems need to recover.

Fivemile Creek which was restored with Stage Zero techniques several years ago already exhibiting terrific signs of recovery

Part of the tour showed previous phases of the project and the recovery is not only impressive, but super quick.