Why Meadow Restoration Is Important For Rivers And Wildlife You already know how important mountain meadows are to river health and why we need to keep them healthy and functional. but if you’re a human who enjoys clean, abundant drinking water and breathtaking natural space, this is the blog post for you. As meadows deteriorate, they fail to provide as many natural benefits. however, meadow restoration is possible, and as vogel states, “restoring them helps all of us.” here’s four reasons why: #1: meadows serve as a natural reservoir for water.
Why Meadow Restoration Is Important For Rivers And Wildlife Healthy meadows benefit people, wildlife, and rivers by acting as natural reservoirs that give rain, snow, and runoff the chance to slow down, spread out and sink into the soil, filtering and storing water. We discuss how these watershed scale meadow restoration efforts can be partnered with process based restoration techniques that address source problems, capitalize on locally sourced natural materials, and use fluvial and biological energy to assist with restoration efforts. “in a post fire environment healthy meadows can lessen the threat of flooding and reduce downstream sedimentation problems,” said mary moore, stanislaus national forest hydrologist. “that’s one reason we have assessed more than 40 meadows and are committed to restoring 25 of these meadows found within the perimeter of the rim fire.”. The network partners with nature to recover degraded meadows and stream catchments by removing barriers to physical and biological processes. this approach harnesses the system’s fluvial and biological energy to do most of the restoration ‘work.’.
Why Meadow Restoration Is Important For Rivers And Wildlife “in a post fire environment healthy meadows can lessen the threat of flooding and reduce downstream sedimentation problems,” said mary moore, stanislaus national forest hydrologist. “that’s one reason we have assessed more than 40 meadows and are committed to restoring 25 of these meadows found within the perimeter of the rim fire.”. The network partners with nature to recover degraded meadows and stream catchments by removing barriers to physical and biological processes. this approach harnesses the system’s fluvial and biological energy to do most of the restoration ‘work.’. Meadows are key links in an interconnected ecosystem, providing habitat for wildlife, clean water for people, and critical fuel breaks during wildfires. pacific southwest research station ecologist dr. karen pope and sierra national forest supervisor dean gould explain why meadows matter and the ongoing efforts to restore them. One of the most significant roles mountain meadows play involves water storage, a burning topic for californians in the face of drought and climate change. meadows are like green glaciers in how they hold groundwater and release it slowly, allowing our rivers to stay hydrated during periods of drought. related article:. Riparian, wet meadow, and other mesic areas—places where land meets water—are rare but incredibly important to wildlife and working lands. these areas are reservoirs of late season productivity that provide reliable water and forage for livestock and wildlife during the dry summer and fall. Meadow restoration improves birding, fishing, and wildflower and wildlife viewing. making meadow restoration happen above: stakeholders survey a head cut caused by erosion damage (left), and a repaired head cut (right) as part of the assessment of a pleasant valley meadow in the carson river watershed .
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