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| Dragonfly Bend garners State Land Board Wetland Award | ||
| 04/10/2007 | ||
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For immediate release 07-12 More information: Julie Curtis – 503-378-3805, ext. 298 Jeff Krueger, LCOG – 541-682-4122 City project praised as “state-of-the-art” wetland restoration
In presenting the 2006 Wetland Award, State Treasurer Randall Edwards, a Land Board member, said the project “serves as a model, not only because of its high quality habitat restoration, but for going above and beyond established wetland mitigation bank standards.” A wetland mitigation bank is a venture in which the bank sponsor restores, creates or enhances wetlands, and sells credits to developers who need to offset their wetland impacts to obtain a removal-fill permit from the Department of State Lands (DSL). The City of Eugene developed the project and the initial action plan for the 77-acre Dragonfly Bend site for the West Eugene Wetlands Mitigation Bank, said Jeff Krueger, a senior landscape architect with the Lane Council of Governments who prepared the award nomination. “To further improve the site’s overall ecological function, the wetland mitigation effort was combined with other site improvements including upland prairie enhancement and a major stream restoration effort along Amazon Creek,” said Krueger. Dragonfly Bend is part of a longer-term ecological vision for the nearly 3,000 acres in the West Eugene Partnership lands. Project participants include the City of Eugene, Bureau of Land Management, Lane Council of Governments and The Nature Conservancy. “The Eugene group has really advanced the science of restoration by conducting careful monitoring of their many projects. The Dragonfly Bend project sets a very high standard by establishing rare species, achieving high diversity and putting a long-term stewardship plan in place,” said Louise Solliday, DSL director. Solliday noted that city wetlands staff help advance the knowledge of wetland restoration through workshops and tours of the West Eugene projects. The State Land Board Awards were created in 2003 to promote and recognize responsible, sustainable stewardship of natural resources. To be eligible, stream and wetland projects must have received a Removal-Fill Permit from the Oregon Department of State Lands and must meet or exceed all permit conditions. The State Land Board consists of Governor Theodore Kulongoski, Secretary of State Bill Bradbury and State Treasurer Randall Edwards. The Department of State Lands administers diverse natural and fiscal resources. Many of the resources generate revenue for the Common School Fund, such as state-owned rangelands and timberlands, waterway leases, estates for which no will or heirs exist, and unclaimed property. Twice a year, the agency distributes fund investment earnings to support K-12 public schools. The agency also administers Oregon’s Removal-Fill Law, which requires people removing or filling certain amounts of material in waters of the state to obtain a permit. ####
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