By Nick Werner—
MUNCIE, IN— Muncie based Red-tail Land Conservancy’s Fall Creek Woods is a model for the power of partnerships when it comes to restoring wetlands and rebuilding resiliency into our landscape.
Fall Creek Woods is a nature preserve along Mechanicsburg Road in eastern Henry County. In 2015, Red-tail Land Conservancy acquired about 70 acres to expand Fall Creek Woods, and the organization protected this new acreage with a conservation easement held by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Two years ago, Red-tail partnered with the DNR to restore those acres from row-crop agriculture to a natural wetland complex.
The restoration was funded by the DNR’s Indiana Stream and Wetland Mitigation Program (INSWMP) and implemented by the environmental consulting firm Stantec.
“We couldn’t have asked for better partners,” said Jason Randolph, Mitigation Project Manager with INSWMP. “Everything worked out great.”
Randolph was one of several environmental professionals on hand at Fall Creek Woods on Tuesday, Sept. 29, to lead a guided tour of about 15 Red-tail Land Conservancy supporters. Other professionals at the hike included Brad Baldwin, INSWMP Director; Jeff Spicer, Senior Environmental Engineer with Stantec; and retired Red-tail Executive Director Julie Borgmann, who initiated the project.
Wetlands like the one at Fall Creek Woods are critical to the wellbeing of Indiana and the resiliency of our land. Wetlands filter our drinking water, recharge our aquifers, and act as giant sponges to mitigate flood damage. On top of that, they provide outdoor recreation opportunities and critical habitat for wildlife, which was evident at the group hike.
“If you listen, you can hear restoration happening right now,” Spicer told the audience, a reference to the symphonic hum of insect life surrounding the group.
The restoration has cost about $2 million to date, with zero tax dollars involved.
INSWMP is an option to compensate for permitted wetland impacts where permittees pay the program to take over their responsibility to restore streams and wetlands within the same watershed. INSWMP can pursue larger and more ecologically significant stream and wetland restorations than individual permittees. The restoration involved:
● Restoring drained wetlands.
● Reshaping the previously ditched and channelized Mechanicsburg Drain stream back to a natural meandering state.
● Removing invasive species.
● Planting the field in high-quality native seed mixes and 6000 trees.
The project is now in a monitoring phase. So far, all INSWMP monitoring standards are being met, with many exceeding expectations.
While biodiversity is one way to identify the project’s success, the way the wetland responded to the historic flood in August is another. The property avoided any serious erosion or damage. Furthermore, in the days after the heavy rainfall, Mechanicsburg Drain ran almost crystal clear at a time when the nearby Fall Creek looked like chocolate milk, evidence that wetland was recharging the restored stream with clean water.
While much of Fall Creek Woods is open to the public, the wetland restoration area is not yet open. Red-tail has plans to create a trail through the restoration area and open it to the public, and is working on developing a timeline for the work.
Baldwin credited the property’s success to teamwork, and asked the hikers to imagine how it will look a few decades from now.
“We’re only in year two,” he said. “This site is going to look more and more natural. Someday, you won’t even know we were here.”
About Red-tail Land Conservancy
Red-tail Land Conservancy is a nonprofit organization founded more than 20 years ago to protect and restore natural areas in east central Indiana. Since its founding, Red-tail has protected almost 3,000 acres, including several nature preserves open year-round for community enjoyment. The organization also offers signature programs such as Growing Home, Wildlife Warriors and the Indiana Master Naturalist series
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