Habitat Restoration

NSEA has completed over 120 restoration projects on over 15 miles of local streams. These projects address some of the causes of habitat degradation, including lack of stream side vegetation and livestock access.

NSEA replants native trees and shrubs along stream banks to restore the riparian zone, shade the stream, and improve salmon habitat.
Fences are constructed to keep livestock out of streams.
In-stream salmon habitat improvement projects include adding large woody debris (LWD) or gravel to streams to create crucial salmon rearing and spawning habitat.
Eroding, slumping, or undercut stream banks are also stabilized.

Eighty percent of all land species depend on the riparian area (about one percent of the land area) for survival. Protecting the riparian zone is the best way to protect species and the environment as a whole. One by-product of a healthy riparian zone is clean water. The county's riparian zones are crucial to the quality of our water resources and to the economic future of Whatcom County.

NSEA's restoration efforts are focused on the riparian zones of lowland Whatcom County. We believe that is the most productive approach we can take to restore salmon runs. The Washington State Departments of Natural Resources, Fish and Wildlife, and Ecology agree with our approach. By restoring the riparian zone to a more natural configuration, the stream systems can again operate as they should by providing adequate habitat for salmon and other wildlife; creating more even stream flows throughout the year; buffering against high flood flows and low summer flows; and helping to filter pollutants from our water supply.

NSEA's projects address the causes of habitat degradation. Where riparian cover is absent and stream temperatures are high, we replant the riparian area with native trees. Where livestock trample stream bands and contaminate waterways, we build permanent fences to protect the riparian are and keep domestic animals out. Where people have altered streams so that they now lack juvenile coho salmon rearing habitat, we re-create the habitat by installing logs and root wads.

NSEA's approach works to bring resources and people together for the common good. Even small sections of improved streams, amid otherwise degraded habitat, provide an island of habitat in just a few years. In some cases, only a few months passed before spawning salmon were using enhanced habitat areas, such as newly installed gravel spawning pads.

If you are interested in working with NSEA on a salmon habitat restoration project on your streamside property, please download this form and send it in to the NSEA Office at 2445 E. Bakerview Rd. Bellingham, WA 98226. For more information on restoring riparian areas on your property you can download Restoring the Watershed: A citizen's guide to riparian restoration in Western Washington for tips and techniques.

Map of restoration projects along the Nooksack River and the contributing watershed. Click to enlarge.