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
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife will use this grant to complete phase 1 of a multiphase approach to restore the ecological function of 18 riparian areas in 5 sites that make up 407 acres and 8.2 miles of stream, lakeshore, and adjacent habitat in the Sinlahekin Wildlife Area in Okanogan County. These areas are degraded due to floods, incised channels, past land use, catastrophic wildfires, and invasive plants. Restoring this riparian habitat is critical for the 40 species of greatest conservation need, 60 priority habitat and species, and 3 major biological corridors. Priority species include western gray squirrels, bighorn sheep, mule deer, wolves, Columbian sharp-tailed grouse, monarch butterflies, Upper Columbia Steelhead and Chinook DPS. In phase 1, we have prioritized to restore 1 mile of stream and 34 acres in 6 riparian areas based on their degraded state and high potential use by priority species after restoration. We intend to improve long term habitat stability in these project areas through planting native trees, shrub, and grass species, controlling invasive plants, and repairing fence. We also intend to improve stream erosion, water retention, and floodplain diversity by installing beaver dam analogs and other log and rock structures.