We are please to announce our 2018 Restoration Awards!

Restoration Project of the Year

O’Dell Spring Creek Restoration

SERNW recognizes the work of NorthWestern Energy, Granger Ranches, Longhorn Ranch and River Design Group, Inc. in this multi-year partnership to restore O’Dell Spring Creek. The involvement of partners for this restoration project: private partners Granger Ranches and Longhorn Ranch, as well as non-profits, and public agencies, and the longevity, size and scope of the project have aided in meeting the criteria. O’Dell Spring Creek Restoration is also awarded in recognition of the important wildlife habitat gains in permanently protecting and restoring a historical floodplain, and reconstructing and reconnecting important wetland habitats. Integrating goals of the Pacific Flyway Council’s trumpeter swan recovery plan and project monitoring to show gains in trumpeter swan populations in the O’Dell Spring Creek project area, are a notable example of integrating effectiveness monitoring into a project package, and add to the scope and breadth of this project’s achievements.

Special Award

Clark Fork Coalition

The award is given “To a person, team or project representing a theme or focus of restoration science and practice chosen annually by the Board of Directors. “ This year’s theme was focused on ecosystem and community resiliency for those restoration projects and organizations in the eastern portion of SER’s Northwest region.

SERNW’s presents this award to the Clark Fork Coalition in recognition of its success in launching the world-class restoration of the Upper Clark Fork River, in removing the Milltown Dam near Missoula, and restoring the historic confluence of the Clark Fork and Blackfoot Rivers, in addition to its many other projects. Clark Fork Coalition’s achievements as a community organization, and galvanizing of community-based efforts for clean water and healthy rivers, to turn back centuries of mining pollution in the watershed, are noteworthy and influenced our Board in selection of this award. In addition to real conservation gains- improving water quality, removing fish barriers, enhancing fish and wildlife habitat- you have directly engaged thousands of people through education and a vibrant and active Volunteer River Corps, to achieve these goals. Your close work with private and public landowner partners and the public to restore streams in the Bitterroot, Blackfoot, Ninemile and Upper Clark Fork , have increased restoration resiliency, and will have a lasting impact in the region.

Restorationist of the Year

Susan Reinhart

The award is given “for recognition of individual efforts to promote ecosystem health, integrity and sustainability through ecological restoration. “ This year’s theme was focused on ecosystem and community resiliency for those projects and organizations in the eastern portion of SER’s Northwest region.

Susan, SERNW presents you this award for developing the Region One Native Plants Program to increase capacity for acquirement and use of native plant material for revegetation and restoration efforts by the USFS Region One. Initiating the study of seed transfer zones in the Region’s Seed Transfer Zone study, will increase capacity and availability of native seeds such as the blue bunch wheatgrass, a priority revegetation species for Region One forest and grasslands. Partnerships established by the program, by cooperatively sharing services for revegetation and development of native plant materials, increase ecosystem resiliency across the region, and provide a host of benefits to numerous species, including providing nectar and pollen for native pollinators. By providing education to the public at the Birch Creek Native Plant Pollinator Garden about pollinators and the importance of native plants, the Region One Native Plants Program you have spearheaded provides the important element of community resiliency to the long-term success of the program.