Photo: TSF staffer Syd Godfrey participating in the “build like a beaver” training.
On October 12-13, the California Process Based Restoration Network (Cal PBR), which The Sierra Fund co-chairs, held the second annual, in-the-field, “Build Like a Beaver” Training. This hands-on workshop featured process-based approaches to restore degraded wetland ecosystems to retain water, support biodiversity, create fire resilience, and adapt to climate change. Process based restoration is a low-cost, minimally intrusive, and highly effective method of restoring ecosystems. Treatments may include adding post-assisted log structures (PALS), beaver dam analogs (BDAs), and large wood augmentation. Over 70 experts and knowledge holders from tribes, agencies, non-profits, and consulting firms attended the training at a meadow near Lake Almanor. Attendees were able to walk the section of the stream where they installed BDA’s the previous year and see how much evolution had happened. There was increased wet and complex habitat and sediment captured to slow flow. Participants noted it was amazing to see how much can change in just one year! In addition, attendees got their hands dirty building new structures to improve a section of the creek– so they too can “build like a beaver” and restore health to their watersheds!
