The McKenzie
There could be a crayon named after the color of the McKenzie. The rich turquoise travels from the Cascades, through valleys and wilderness and under lava beds, until it meets the Willamette just north of Eugene. On its 90-mile journey, it courses past six acres of streamside that are newly thriving with native plants, thanks to The Freshwater Trust and its partnership with the McKenzie Watershed Council.
In 2013, TFT entered an agreement with the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission (MWMC) to identify a selection of projects where planting could deliver quantifiable impacts to the river. These pilots were executed with the aid of the local watershed council and contractors with the shared goal of laying the groundwork for the same type of water quality trading programs in operation with Medford and Ashland. After nine years, their benefits had proven themselves, and as this report was in development, the new, full-scale program was on its way to launching.
“The projects did what they were supposed to and thrived incredibly,” said Olivia Duren, Restoration Program Manager.
“Natural infrastructure programs like the one we are building are still relatively new. Being able to see how they work and witness their impacts in real time has been important proof of their resilience and potential.”
In early spring of 2021, the fifth pilot project was planted on land that had been burned in the 2020 Holiday Farm fire. The project will recover native species diversity and habitat while suppressing weeds that often take over after disturbance.
Once implementation is complete in 2027, this program will be the largest water quality trading program TFT has ever executed, with an estimated 22 projects. It will operate slightly differently. In this basin, thereʼs already a wealth of restoration knowledge. TFT will serve as a manager of the credits the program generates that keeps MWMC in compliance, but implementation will be handed to the watershed councils and other local contractors.
“This approach to restoration, involving innovation and collaboration, is gaining traction,” said Duren. “Itʼs exactly whatʼs needed now in more watersheds nationwide.”