Planting Trees & Helping Salmon by Education Intern Abbie Niskanen

Courtesy of Abbie:

I am back, taking over the SFEG page to continue talking about my experience as an education intern. In my last post, I talked about my experience going in and out of elementary schools in Skagit County and teaching them about the salmon life cycle. That continues to be a blast, and I am looking forward to all that’s to come. However, for this post, I will be talking about my experience going to tree planting parties throughout the Skagit Watershed.

I had the opportunity to attend planting parties hosted by SFEG that took place throughout September. We planted near the Mount Vernon wastewater treatment plant along the Skagit River and Debay’s Slough Wildlife Area. With the help of our amazing volunteers, we were able to plant over 800 trees between the two locations! A mix of Douglas fir and black cottonwood saplings were planted in the hopes that we can help increase stream bank stability and the overall health of our waterways.

Additionally, restoring the riparian vegetation around steam banks has immense benefits for the health and wellbeing of our native Pacific salmon that swim through the streams of the Skagit Watershed. Vegetation provides shade and shelter to keep the water cold, clean, and clear as salmon come back up the rivers to spawn. Any fallen trees also act as an amazing shelter for passing salmon.

I had a blast working with everyone who came out and gave a helping hand during our work parties. It is always a nice feeling to know that we are all working together to improve the health of our local ecosystem. I look forward to attending SFEG planting parties in the new year!