WCF gets grant to fund student habitat restoration project

Dr. Rob Stockhouse (bottom left) and students work to eradicate knotweed in Birnie Creek in Cathlamet. The Wahkiakum Community Foundation has received a $62,000 grant from the Lower Columbia River Estuary Partnership (LCREP) and NOAA to support two groups of high school students working in habitat restoration in Wahkiakum County. The grant will support the Columbia Estuary Environmental Education Program (CEEEP) at the Community Foundation. The Foundation is partnering with both Wahkiakum and Naselle/Grays River School Districts to support groups of students working on different projects in watersheds located in the county. The program runs from July 7 through August 9. Students, teachers and interns will be paid to work on habitat projects in several watersheds.

A group of seven Wahkiakum High School students will work this summer with their high school teacher, Jeff Rooklidge; college intern, Heather Ireton; and Dr. Rob Stockhouse, CEEEP’s Education Director, on a Nature Conservancy Reserve on Puget Island ; at Clear Creek on the Elochoman River; and at the Elochoman Hatchery. They will also work with Hancock Forest Management to replace culverts and have a day with DeBriae Logging to learn forest practices. Both companies have supported CEEEP students in past summers. Their help and sponsorship has been crucial for the students in understanding the need for balance when approaching logging and fish habitat.

Seven high school students from the Naselle/Grays River School District will be working with their teachers, Rob Dalton and Debbie Denny, along the Grays River on Columbia Land Trust properties, and in the Gorley Springs area, also on the Grays. Jenny Klinger, former CEEEP worker for two years, will be their college intern. Columbia Land Trust staff will be working with them, as well as Dr. Rob Stockhouse. Amy Ammer from CREST will be their advisor/supervisor for work in the Gorley Springs area on the BPA funded Mark Linquist/Gorley Springs project.

Both school districts partner with the Community Foundation to support CEEEP by providing transportation for the students during the summer projects. Dr. Stockhouse, as faculty for Pacific University in Forest Grove, Oregon, is able to offer college level science credit to both students and teachers who participate in the program at a reduced cost.

At the end of the five week program, each group will present a public presentation on their work over the summer. Wahkiakum’s presentation will be on Friday, August 8 at the school in Cathlamet and the Naselle/Grays River group will present theirs on Saturday, August 9 at the school commons in Naselle.

For more information on the project, contact Karen Bertroch, Foundation Director, at (360) 465-2414 or at kbertroch@aol.com.