Photo credit: Swaner EcoCenter & Preserve
2020 grantee ($48,000) partnership between Wild Utah Project and Swaner Preserve and EcoCenter aims to increase carbon sequestration in Park City’s open spaces by restoring wetlands. Their project involves the installation of human-constructed beaver dams! Beaver dam design restores creeks and riverbeds by diverting water onto the banks and re-soaking dried land. Marshy soil conditions are excellent carbon sequestration “sinks”.
The partnership has reported that they will meet their goal of 100 dam installations by November of 2021. With the stream restoration infrastructure in place, we look forward to the results of their ongoing, carbon sequestration monitoring being conducted by Colorado State University PhD Candidate Sarah Hinshaw. Her work is supporting the project objectives as well as large-scale research on carbon sequestration potential at restoration sites across the west.
Those interesting in volunteering to build the remaining dams can sign up here >>
For more information, contact:
Josh Wood, M.A., Executive Director
Wild Utah Project
josh@wildutahproject.org
Nell Larson, Executive Director
Swaner Preserve and EcoCenter
nell.larson@usu.edu