WAHOUGAL — The city of Washougal joined with the Watershed Alliance of Southwest Washington and Washougal High School students May 5 to plant native species along Campen Creek, which runs near the school campus. This collaborative effort aims to enhance the riparian habitat along the Creek while providing a hands-on learning experience for the students. A total of 242 native plants, including slough sedge, spreading rush, Douglas spirea, stink currant, Douglas aster, riverbank lupine, and kinnikinnik, were planted by a team of 64 student volunteers.
“It was an amazing experience to participate alongside the Washougal High School students and to hear about their lesson plan that focused on the benefits of a healthy riparian ecosystem,” remarked Stormwater Program Supervisor Sean Mulderig. “I am grateful for the collaborative effort with the Water Alliance, and I found it very fulfilling to help provide this hands-on experience for the students. It was especially rewarding to see some of them plant their first native species!”
This project is a collaboration between several partners, including the city of Washougal, which developed and submitted the mitigation plan, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, whose stormwater operations crew prepared the site, set up traffic control, and flagged the new plants.
The Watershed Alliance of Southwest Washington, which purchased 242 plants, developed the planting plan, worked with Washougal High School to organize volunteer participation.
