The Calapooia-Santiam Landowner Recruitment for Restoration Project recruited landowners and provided planning assistance and materials in the three Mid-Willamette sub-basins. The Councils recognized that recruiting landowners to complete on-the-ground restoration projects is important to strategically meet restoration needs as identified by watershed assessments.
The Landowner Recruitment for Restoration Program utilizes multiple outreach and education techniques to inform landowners of potential restoration and conservation activities and practices they can implement on their lands. The program conducts restoration tours and provides presentations to community groups. Local newspapers, council newsletters, and mailings are utilized to raise awareness among watershed residents about upcoming events, watershed health challenges, and to give folks recommendations on how they could improve watershed health on their own property. Workshops and local community meetings are another method to communicate best management practices. Topics included but were not limited to invasive weed removal and control, watershed health, riparian buffer restoration, restoration opportunities and funding sources, pasture and grazing management, manure management, soil health, erosion, water conservation, and wellwater and septic system management.
The program positively impacts local communities throughout the three watersheds. Medium to long-term results include increased awareness and involvement in watershed council activities due to outreach efforts, increased support for projects, increased participation in restoration projects due to becoming aware of a nearby completed project, increased awareness of stream processes and habitat needs due to educational materials disseminated to the communities, increased enrollment in incentive programs, trust building between agencies and landowners as landowners receive assistance on projects, and increased opportunities for students and local groups to get involved and receive credit for participation.
As of 2009, the Councils recruited 45 landowners to do voluntary restoration projects throughout the three watersheds. 19 projects were completed using multiple grant funds.
- Calapooia Watershed: Six projects completed–2 in Brush Creek, 4 in Brush Creek tributaries.
- North Santiam Watershed: Seven projects completed–2 on a side channel, 1 on Bear Branch Creek, 4 on Stout Creek
- South Santiam Watershed: Six projects completed–3 on Crabtree Creek, 1 on Thomas Creek, 1 on McDowell Creek, 1 on a McDowell Creek tributary
Landowner restoration and conservation practices
Vegetation plantings
Native trees and shrubs used for plantings include the following species: bigleaf maple, ponderosa pine, douglas fir, cascara, alder, ash, hemlock, grand fir, willow, red osier dogwood, mock orange, ninebark, douglas spiraea, rushes, sedges, Oregon grape, nootka rose, snowberry, twinberry, elderberry, and serviceberry. Monitoring activities have shown that there has been a high percentage of survival of native trees and shrubs that were planted over the past two years. This is in part due to landowners taking time to water and weed around the plants. Length of riparian buffer improved as a result of plantings – Riparian buffers play a key role in bank stabilization, offer fish and wildlife habitat, provide stream shading, filter sediment and pollution, and future large wood recruitment essential for native fish habitat. When visiting sites earlier this year after the high winter flows, contractors observed that the trees and shrubs caught much soil and debris, doing their part to stabilize the stream banks and capture sediment. As the native plants grow taller, they will begin providing shade that will help curb increased water temperatures and continue to provide bank stability.
- Calapooia Watershed: 1,650 trees and shrubs (minimum one gallon size) were planted on five properties. Over 5,500 linear feet of stream bank was planted with a minimum width of 20 feet.
- North Santiam Watershed: approximately 2,500 (minimum one gallon size) trees and shrubs were planted on five properties. 800 bare root plants were planted on an additional property. Over 3,000 linear feet of stream bank was planted with a minimum width of 15 feet.
- South Santiam Watershed: over 5,000 native trees and shrubs were established on six private properties. More than 4,800 linear feet of stream bank was planted with a minimum width of 15 feet.
Invasive weed removal
Invasive weeds common to all three watersheds include Himalayan blackberry, reed canary grass, Japanese knotweed, and scotchbroom with blackberry being the most common throughout the project sites. Removing and controlling these weeds helped open habitat up for native plants and increased survival rate of native plants. Monitoring activities have shown that Himalayan blackberry continues to be a challenge to address, especially on one site along Brush Creek in the Calapooia. Reed canary grass has been addressed on several sites along Stout Creek but will also continue to be a challenge as the plant has become naturalized throughout the sub-basin. Larger trees have been planted in these sites, as the canary grass does not respond well to shade. The Councils continue to believe that a minimum of two years of weed removal and control is necessary before a planting can be completed.
- Calapooia Watershed: Blackberry was less common as the livestock had suppressed most vegetation. Approximately 2 acres were removed and controlled.
- North Santiam Watershed: Approximately 5 acres of blackberry and 2 acres of reed canary grass were treated and controlled.
- South Santiam Watershed: Approximately 4 acres of blackberry were treated and controlled.
Livestock fencing
Several properties contained livestock which had access to the creek. These livestock were contributing to bank erosion, sediment inputs, and the livestock had also consumed all vegetation along the stream. In the South Santiam Watershed, 2,500 feet of fencing was constructed to exclude livestock from the stream. In the Calapooia Watershed, approximately 6,500 feet of fencing was constructed. Where exclusion fencing was established, native plants are flourishing and grasses are filling in the degraded areas. Water quality has also improved, as cattle are not defecating near the stream.