A narrow creek threading through leaf covered winter woodland.

Straight Creek | Conservation Mitigation Easement

Total Acres

145

Project Year

2022

 
Located in the Straight Creek River Basin of Morgan County KY

The Straight Creek site is relatively large and includes many objectives for restoration and conservation including:

  • Restore degraded perennial, intermittent, and ephemeral streams to a stable system that exhibits low streambank erosion, minimal vertical instability, increased habitat for aquatic organisms, minimal floodplain erosion, and streambanks and streamside areas vegetated with forbs, grasses, trees, and shrubs.

  • Perform grading work to reverse the hydrologic modifications made to the site and re-establish the streams in an appropriate geomorphic location with a meandering pattern and appropriate channel dimensions, creating a stable and self-sustaining stream system.

  • Increase in-stream habitat through the addition of riffles and other structures.

  • Perform specific floodplain grading to ensure regular overbanking, while minimizing the potential for flows to follow historic anthropogenic channels and creating floodplain instabilities.

  • Planting site specific, native vegetation on the streambanks and throughout the riparian corridor.

  • Protection of the mitigation area through recordation of Declaration of Restrictive Covenants for Conservation.

Mitigation Partner

RES logo

Our Role

Conservation Easement Grantee

Mitigation Type

Stream Restoration & Enhancement

About the AuthorMichael Scisco

Michael brings nearly 20 years of experience to his role as Trusted Conservation Advisor at Unique Places to Save. He has worked to conserve over 200,000 acres across the U.S. while securing over $200M in funding and transacting $500M in land and other real estate.

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