In order to achieve Phase TWO of our Fairhaven Park Trail & Wetland Boardwalk, we had to get permits from the US Army Corps of Engineers and the City of Bellingham for the impacts that we were having crossing through a wetland. These permits required standard mitigation and monitoring reports for the project. We relied on Perry, our trusty Wetland Biologist, from Welch Ecological to provide us with these reports. In 2022, we will satisfy the requirements of this mitigation project.
Of note. Phase ONE, completed in 2015, did not have any mitigation requirements since we moved a trail out of the wetland and into the Buffer as shown below.
Mitigation Timeline
This timeline details the process of trail abandonment, invasive species clearings, and native plantings in project area shown above.
Lower Woods Buffer and Wetland Meadow
August 2015 – Trail Abandonment
March 26, 2017 – Native Plant mitigation pre-Phase TWO
Upper Meadow Buffer (Native Plant Garden)
March 11, 2017 – Blackberries and other invasive plants removed/cleared
April 28th, 2017 – Native Plant mitigation pre-Phase TWO
Upper Meadow Buffer expansion
May, 2020 – Supplemental Plantings
January 2021 – Supplemental Plantings
February 2021 – Blackberries and other invasive plants removed/cleared (WW)
March 2021 – Supplemental Plantings
Abandoned Trail in Wetland and Buffer
September 2017 – Trail Abandonment
November 2017 – Native Plant mitigation Phase TWO
Outdoor Classroom
April 28, 2021 – Blackberries and other invasive plants removed/cleared (P66)
Fall 2021 – Supplemental Plantings
Native Plant List
Fairhaven Park Mitigation Planting sites as recorded in June 2019
Woods & Meadow Buffers 3,277.5 SF – 74 plants
5 DF Douglas fir
5 PB Paper birch
20 OB Oso Berry
3 SW Sitka willow
25 SB snowberry
5 WC Western crabapple
10 RC Western red cedar
1 RA Red alder
Wetland Meadow 3,253 SF – 78 plants
15 BT Black twinberry
20 ROD Red-osier dogwood
2 SW Sitka willow
5 HW Hooker willow
10 SS Sitka spruce
5 PW Pacific willow
20 PN Pacific ninebark
1 DS Douglas spirea
Abandoned Trail in Wetland 2,675 SF – 78 plants (200 sedges)
20 Red-osier dogwood
17 Black twinberry
5 Western red cedar
10 Red alder
20 Salmonberry
1 Vine maple
5 Indian plum
200 Slough sedge
Abandoned Trail in Buffer 2,125 SF – 56 plants
8 Western red cedar
1 Red alder
10 Indian plum
11 Snowberry
9 Vine maple
2 Hazelnut
5 Red elderberry
10 Sword fern
2019 Totals
11,330.5 Square Feet of mitigation area
286 plants ( + 200 slough sedges)
