Category Overview
The State Lands Restoration and Enhancement category provides funding to two state agencies to help repair damaged plant and animal habitat. These grants focus on resource preservation and protection of public lands. Projects in this category help bring important natural areas and resources back to their original functions by improving the self sustaining and ecological functionality of sites.
Project Highlights
The Department of Fish and Wildlife used this grant to continue restoration of five areas in southern Puget Sound by removing invasive plants and replanting. Scatter Creek, Mima Mounds, Bald Hill, Rocky Prairie, and West Rocky Prairie are home to many rare plants, animals, and plant communities of concern to the Washington Departments of Fish and Wildlife and Natural Resources. The five sites in this agreement contained more than 60 percent of the remaining, native-dominated prairie outside of Joint Base Lewis McChord in southern Puget Sound. The department eradicated invasive plant species, using controlled fire, herbicide, and other integrated weed control methods. The two agencies partnered with The Nature Conservancy and Joint Base Lewis McChord to increase the seed production capacity. This cooperative project saved the agencies time and money by avoiding redundancies in staffing, contracting, and seed source development.