By Kat Hall
Per usual, the summer has flown by! One of the season’s many benefits is that the size of TLC’s staff swells with the addition of our amazing summer interns; and this year was no exception. Zab Potter and Rosie Zhou took the reins on our Spokane River Toxics Outreach Project, spreading awareness of PCBs found in fish and heavy metals found in beach sediments among primarily economically-disadvantaged and ethnic communities. Their infectious passion, energy, and spirit smashed grant deliverables and made for an exuberant atmosphere around our office. We miss them already!
Similarly, TLC’s summer field restoration tech crew passed the difficult test of keeping our newly-planted seedlings alive through sustained 90° and 100°+ temperatures. Al Carlson, Melissa Herrin, Justyce Brant, Jasmine Vilar, and Alishia Orloff hauled buckets 3-4 times/week…and performed other restoration tasks such as adjusting tree tubes, removing fencing, pulling noxious weeds, and loading/unloading gear. They were hard-working, caring, fun, and just a general joy to be around. I cannot thank our summer interns enough for their commitment to our work and dedication to our mission. TLC shines more brightly because of them!
We now sit on the brink of autumn and an exciting riparian restoration season! Thanks to a new 3-year cycle of grant funding from the Department of Ecology, we’ll be kicking off two new projects and continuing a third. We plan to begin planting hundreds of Ponderosa pine seedlings along Hangman Creek near the Hanging Tree Historical Monument, and will continue planting our wetlands excavation project site along Marshall Creek with the USFWS. We’ll also be pounding over four hundred 8’ and 10’ posts and weaving brush material in order to construct 18 beaver dam analogs (BDAs) on Thompson Creek. We expect these BDAs to trap phosphorus-laden sediment originating from the upper watershed and ultimately improve the water quality of Newman Lake. We also hope to create a healthy, meandering stream system that reconnects with its floodplain, raising the water table and enhancing wildlife habitat. Stay tuned for photos of this much-anticipated project!
