Port approves Brender Creek restoration at Cashmere Mill District

CASHMERE — The Chelan Douglas Regional Port Authority has approved an agreement to remove invasive grass from Brender Creek and restore vegetation along its banks at the Cashmere Mill District.

Cascadia Conservation District has secured grant funding to treat reed canary grass along the creek, which crosses Port property. The district has been working on neighboring properties and will now be able to extend that work through the mill site.

Port property manager Ron Russ told commissioners Sept. 22 that the grass has become a significant concern as the Port works to reduce the potential for flooding there. Cascadia plans to apply an herbicide registered for use over water, then plant vegetation along the banks to shade the creek and discourage the grass from returning.

Reed canary grass can form dense stands that crowd out other plants. In a waterway, it can restrict flow and trap sediment and organic material. Removing the grass addresses the growth already in the creek; establishing shade is intended to make it harder for the grass to take hold again.

The creek has posed water-flow problems for the Port before. A 2014 City of Cashmere environmental review described a plan to install water-level controls in two beaver dams on Brender Creek. The Port was working with Cascadia on streamside planting at that time as well.

“We talk a lot about the beavers’ impact on that stretch of stream as it flows through our property, but this reed canary grass is really one of the major problems that we’re fighting in trying to mitigate the flood potential there,” Russ told commissioners.

During Tuesday’s discussion, one commissioner said the system installed at the dams has worked well at allowing water to pass. The new agreement focuses on another obstruction in the same stretch of creek.

The work also continues a long effort to restore and reuse the former lumber mill property. The Port bought the 32.5-acre site in 2008 and, with state assistance, removed wood waste and contaminated soil before developing it for businesses. Brender Creek runs through a part of the property that requires its own attention alongside the buildings and roads.

Commissioners asked about a cultural resources survey listed among the conservation district’s tasks before ground-disturbing work. Staff said Cascadia would handle that requirement.

The grant will cover the initial grass treatment and streamside planting. The agreement also leaves a way for the Port and Cascadia to undertake additional work if they identify a need later. Unlike the work now planned, a future project might require the Port to reimburse the district if grant money is unavailable.

Commissioners approved the agreement unanimously.

Andrew Simpson: 509-433-7626 or andrew@ward.media