Crowley Gulch Project
CCWG received a grant from FishAmerica and NOAA Restoration Center in April 2009 to do a restoration and beautification project on Crowley Gulch.
Crowley Gulch, a tributary of Lower Cottonwood Creek, runs through the unincorporated, largely rural community of Cottonwood. The area restored lies directly south of Gas Point Road and extends for a distance of approximately ¼ mile. The area is borded on one side by West Cottonwood Junior High School and on the other by Cottonwood Community Center and Park, which includes a Little League Field and other facilities.
Like many smaller streams in the area, this waterway was probably straightened many years ago in the mistaken belief that it would aid anti-flooding efforts. As a result of this and other early attempts at bank-stabilization efforts, the areas on both sides of the creek are choked with non-native invasive vegetation, including growths of Himalayan blackberries. Due to the density of the undergrowth, it has become a fairly popular place for illegal camping, with the accompanying problems of trash, litter, and human waste, posing a serious threat of biological pollution to the waterway. Since the waterway is a tributary of the lower Cottonwood Creek (approximately ½ mile to the south), the project will
Crowley Gulch, a tributary of Lower Cottonwood Creek, runs through the unincorporated, largely rural community of Cottonwood. The area restored lies directly south of Gas Point Road and extends for a distance of approximately ¼ mile. The area is borded on one side by West Cottonwood Junior High School and on the other by Cottonwood Community Center and Park, which includes a Little League Field and other facilities.
Like many smaller streams in the area, this waterway was probably straightened many years ago in the mistaken belief that it would aid anti-flooding efforts. As a result of this and other early attempts at bank-stabilization efforts, the areas on both sides of the creek are choked with non-native invasive vegetation, including growths of Himalayan blackberries. Due to the density of the undergrowth, it has become a fairly popular place for illegal camping, with the accompanying problems of trash, litter, and human waste, posing a serious threat of biological pollution to the waterway. Since the waterway is a tributary of the lower Cottonwood Creek (approximately ½ mile to the south), the project will
reduce pollution to a critical anadromous fish habitat.
The project was completed in three specific phases:
Phase I: A botanist identified and tagged endangered and beneficial plants and grasses.
Phase II: Hand-crews removed blackberries and other non-native species from the area. All vegetation was cut down and used as mulch or removed from the site as needed. A trash clean-up day was organized with volunteers.
Phase III: Volunteers planted native shrubs and grasses with the help of a local botanist. Plants were donated from Burney High School, Wyntour Nursery and Grey Pines Nursery.
The project was completed in three specific phases:
Phase I: A botanist identified and tagged endangered and beneficial plants and grasses.
Phase II: Hand-crews removed blackberries and other non-native species from the area. All vegetation was cut down and used as mulch or removed from the site as needed. A trash clean-up day was organized with volunteers.
Phase III: Volunteers planted native shrubs and grasses with the help of a local botanist. Plants were donated from Burney High School, Wyntour Nursery and Grey Pines Nursery.
