Wetlands mitigation project to restore land near Colorado River
A wetlands restoration project is getting started in the Clifton area near the Colorado River. The county will use the site as a wetlands bank, to offset some of the costs of building and repairing roads and bridges.
The county has owned this four acre parcel for over a decade, said Carrie Slubowski, Regulatory Programs Manager for Mesa County. Staff in the county Public Works department have wanted to use the site as a wetlands mitigation bank for just as long.
“When Mesa County builds roads and bridges, we end up impacting wetlands that have to be mitigated through the Army Corps [of Engineers], said Slubowski.
When land is developed it may impact wetlands and other ecologically important areas. That’s offset by the purchase of credits, or building a mitigation site somewhere else to make up for the impacted area. By building and owning this mitigation site, the county can use it as a bank, and won't have to buy credits for future projects.
The site, between the River Trail and the Colorado River off of 30 and C ½ Road, is currently a dried up pond that was once part of a gravel pit operation.
When the project is finished, the site will be restored to a wetland and riparian habitat, with water naturally flowing in and out from the river. Different layers of native vegetation will support birds and other wildlife. A walking path will be added connecting the site to the River Trail.
Construction for the project is currently out to bid, and is expected to start this winter. By spring, new vegetation will be planted at the site. The River Trail will stay open during construction, but there will be some truck traffic across it as materials are moved in and out of the area.
The estimated cost of the project is $1 million. The wetlands bank will be the first of its kind owned by the county.
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