Planting trees to protect wetlands
Published 9:51 pm Sunday, March 23, 2008
MUKILTEO — Ed Anderson believes urban sprawl must be controlled to stop the flow of pollution into the Puget Sound.
He hopes a project under way in his Mukilteo neighborhood might show others what they can do to help.
On Saturday, dozens of residents of the Waterford Park community in the Harbour Pointe area worked side-by-side to restore landscaped strips of open space adjacent to wetlands.
After uprooting grasses and nonnative plants, they laid down mulch and replanted Sitka spruce trees, Douglas firs, vine maples, western red cedars and a variety of shrubs that are native to the area.
The new plants will at times require watering, but they won’t require the use of harmful fertilizers used to keep lawns green, said Anderson, a 52-year-old Boeing employee.
“We’re trying to improve the wetlands to improve water quality,” he said.
The restoration project — funded with $22,600 in grants from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife — was designed by a group of students from the University of Washington’s Restoration Ecology Network.
The project aims to improve a handful of wetlands areas in Waterford Park that flow into Picnic Point Creek. Water drains into the creek from several nearby housing developments before emptying into the Puget Sound.
Silver and Chum Salmon spawn in the creek, although their numbers have dwindled over the years, Anderson said.
Jeff Hanson, 46, president of the Waterford Park Homeowners Association, has been talking to residents about the restoration plan since September. Some people opposed it, concerned over losing their vibrant, green lawns.
Other neighbors asked what they can do to restore wetland buffers in their own yards.
“We’re trying to show what it can look like, and that it can be attractive,” Hanson said.
Reporter Scott Pesznecker: 425-339-3436 or spesznecker@heraldnet.com.
More online
Visit the following Web sites to learn more about protecting wetlands:
Puget Sound Partnership: www.psp.wa.gov
Snohomish County Surface Water Management Division: www1.co.snohomish.wa.us/Departments/Public_Works/Divisions/SWM
Washington State Invasive Species Coalition: www.invasivespecies coalition.org
Adopt-A-Stream Foundation: www.streamkeeper.org
