NHS Students to do mass planting on Earth Day

Newberg High students team with CPRD and ODOT in special Earth Day tree planting effort

As many as 90 Newberg High School students will participate in a special Earth Day project on Friday, April 22 that includes the planting of 400 Oregon white oak trees on land owned by the Chehalem Park and Recreation District (CPRD) in Newberg.

The project is in cooperation with the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) and is part of environmental or natural resource mitigation that will offset the effects of the Newberg-Dundee Bypass Phase 1 highway project currently under construction.

The site of the tree planting is on 90 acres of CPRD land in south Newberg next to OR 219 less than a mile from where the Bypass is located. CPRD entered into an agreement with ODOT to turn this property into a beautiful, healthy, and thriving natural area by restoring native vegetation, removing invasive species, and building water habitat features. The work is already well underway.

Henderson Environmental, a company that specializes in restoration projects, will provide a hands-on lesson for students on planting trees within an upland forest, hillside, and prairie habitats. Students will also learn about general ecological and local watershed habitats.

“This will be a great opportunity for students to receive a hands-on experience in tree planting and gain some ownership of their work and develop environmental stewardship,” said Tony Snyder, Project Manager for ODOT. “We are excited to be able to bring together ODOT, the CPRD and the local school district to benefit the area’s natural resources or watershed.”

The project was developed to provide compensatory environmental mitigation to offset the overall effects of the Bypass highway project which includes over 4 miles of new highway that crosses land where streams , wetlands, and riparian habitats are located. ODOT is required mitigate the environmental effects of highway projects, and the agency typically looks for opportunities to partner with communities on restoration projects. The mitigation plan includes the establishment of over 2 acres of freshwater wetlands, 0.1 acre of stream habitat, and approximately 40 acres of riparian buffer. The project includes the planting of roughly 46,000 native plants and seeding of 60 acres with native vegetation. CPRD will manage the property once the mitigation work has been completed.

CPRD purchased a total of 400 oak trees from Newberg High School Greenhouse. NHS botany teacher Peter Siderius oversees the greenhouse program. His botany class propagates native plants and sells them at the annual NHS greenhouse plant sale. Siderius has frequently orchestrated mass plantings by his botany students on CPRD and other park properties, including woodland pockets within Chehalem Golf Course.

“This tree planting will provide a significant boost to the property when it is completed. Then the CPRD Board of Directors and staff will decide how to use the improved nature spot, whether to turn it into a park or add a campground on the 90-acre property,” said superintendent Don Clements.

ODOT wetlands and landscape specialists, Ron Francis and Sara Geddes, will lead a tour of the site for the students together with CPRD and Henderson, sharing the purpose of the project, and the long term plans for the site. Representatives with Henderson Environmental, a highly experienced firm that provides a wide range of environmental services including design and construction, will provide materials, demonstrate planting methods and assist students on where and how to plant the oak trees.

The class will return periodically to inspect, maintain, and replace the trees as needed, as part of the ongoing hands-on outdoor classroom activities. Henderson is also assisting ODOT on another wetlands mitigation effort in the City of Dayton. The plans are to restore and improve a one acre area in a city park by the Yamhill River. This project is also to mitigate for the Newberg-Dundee Bypass Phase 1 highway project.