SHS students go to work on Whychus Creek

Whychus Creek, the once over-allocated irrigation ditch, is coming back to life for wildlife. It's happening because of all the restoration projects and the abundance of tender, loving care provided by the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council (UDWC).

That TLC comes most recently from Samra Spear's junior biology class at Sisters High School. Last Friday, the entire class descended on the Wolftree holdings along Whychus Creek to carry out a planting and weed-control project astounding in depth and scope.

Wolftree is a science and outdoor education program that has a living laboratory along the creek north of Sisters.

Jordan Rundinsky, a junior in Mrs. Spear's class, carried out a great deal of research on the Internet, condensing data on the best way to plant a total of more that 500 trees and shrubs in the unstable riparian zone along the banks of the creek. They'll use red dogwood, grey alder, and a member of the rose family, Douglas spiraea.

Joining him in an effort to plan methods to safely control noxious weeds that have invaded the same area was Claire Siebold, another of Mrs. Spear's juniors. Sieblold knows she will have to use potent chemicals to remove a prolific plant villain

invading Central Oregon: diffuse knapweed. She also realizes that using such chemicals in a sensitive riparian system requires careful planning and execution.

Backing up the students are the leaders from the UDWC, among them Kolleen Yakes, and Wolftree restoration specialists.

Yakes said, "In order to restore riparian and meadow conditions for fish and wildlife at the Whychus Creek Discovery Outpost, we plan to coordinate and implement the following project activities: Planting native riparian plants from Clearwater Native Nursery; removing knapweed, mullein and cheatgrass in collaboration with the Deschutes County Weed Board."

Watching and helping students, while they carried out their work, Yakes said - with an enthusiastic nod from the SHS students, "Our time next to the waters of Whychus has brought wonder and inspiration for the life that thrives within the

canyon."

Maret Pajutee, Forest

Service ecologist, along with hydrologists and fisheries biologists, would like to see these same efforts taking place on behalf of Indian Ford Creek.

In addition to the satisfaction of doing a job and doing it well, the students will be presenting all of their project findings at the Student Watershed Summit on May 13. "Students Speak: A Watershed Summit" is coordinated in collaboration with Wolftree, the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council, and The Freshwater Trust.