Earth Day 2025

aguddal
3 days ago
3 min read

“Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference.”

― Jane Goodall

Two people hold up a pulled scotch broom into the air. — 95 Volunteers removed 20 cubic yards of invasive scotch broom on the North Fork Nooksack River.

Ninety-five volunteers joined Whatcom Conservation District (Whatcom CD), Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA), Whatcom Land Trust (WLT), and Nooksack Indian Tribe, in celebration of Earth Day 2025. These organizations and community members came together to make a difference for the North Fork Nooksack River, our Nooksack River watershed and our larger Whatcom County community. After an introduction to the site and the day’s goals, the volunteers got right to the task of invasive plant removal. Over the course of three hours, twenty cubic yards of invasive scotch broom were cleared from this creek! As scotch broom is cleared away, it makes room for more native plants that provide greater benefits for the riparian habitat. The WLT will be planting trees along the cleared area this Fall, when planting conditions are more conducive.

A person holds scotch broom over their head. Other people work behind them. — Scotch broom can grow massive quickly and will colonize disturbed ground, outcompeting native vegetation that are important for a thriving river ecosystem.

Riparian areas, or the native vegetation along streams, help restore rivers in a multitude of ways. The trees and shrubs filter pollutants, keep streams cold by providing shade, filter sediment out of water, stabilize stream banks to prevent erosion, enhance water flow, and create complexity in streams. Scotch broom thrives when native plants are removed, and the ground is disturbed. It can take over a riverbank, outcompeting all other species. Scotch broom does not provide the same level of shade, filtration, or bank stabilization that a diverse array of native plants can. Removing invasive species and restoring trees to the bank of the Nooksack River improves habitat for salmon and other animals that live in and around the stream. These trees also protect water quality and quantity for the people that depend on the river for water, crop production, and recreation.

Seedlings planted along a stream in seedling protection tubes. — The Whatcom Land Trust has been partnering with Whatcom CD and others to restore the area surrounding the confluence of Maple Creek and the Nooksack River since 2003.

This year’s Earth Day Celebration took place at Maple Creek Reach, a WLT property located at the confluence of Maple Creek and the North Fork Nooksack River. The 111-acre property is a powerful testament to the potential of riparian restoration. Through collaboration with Whatcom CD and other partners, a long series of projects have taken place on the property since 2003, each aimed at restoring natural processes and establishing a self-regulating and highly functioning riparian ecosystem. These efforts include the installation of a fish-friendly bridge, de-leveling areas to their natural forested wetland state, installation of large woody debris in the North Fork River channel, ditch re-meandering, and countless acres of riparian planting. Due to all these restoration efforts, Maple Creek supports some of the most productive spawning habitat in the North Fork Nooksack Watershed. In several more years, we expect to see an even healthier river.

A group of people wearing Earth Day T-shirts pose for a photo.

Whatcom CD has partnered with organizations and community members across Whatcom County for decades to restore streamside habitat. We can provide free plants, planning, planting, and maintenance to property owners of salmon bearing streams because, we envision a thriving community that protects and benefits from clean and plentiful water, productive working lands, and resilient natural habitats.

A woman and child work together. The woman digs with a shovel and the child is holding a plant.

The sun was shining as almost a hundred people joined us on April 26, 2025, to show how much they cared about working towards a healthier watershed. The day was filled with love, hope, unity, and a deep appreciation and care for what the earth provides. After all their hard work, the morning concluded with closing remarks from organizational partners, including a Lummi Nation elder, tying the work was done at the site

to work that has come in the past in land stewarded since time immemorial, and how the actions we take today are for the benefit of generations ahead of us. Together, these volunteers made changes they wanted to see for our community and the Earth, and that effort doesn’t need to be isolated to Earth Day. Each of us can take actions every day to support our watersheds and our planet.