Galena Creek Ecological Restoration & Demonstration Project

Project Description:

OBI seeks to expand learning opportunities, specifically for Title I students, in service-based outdoor education through collaboration with teachers, educational institutions, land management agencies, and local foundations. The Institute delivers educational programs while serving as lead organization at the Galena Creek Visitor Center, a partnership with Washoe County and the US Forest Service now entering its eleventh year. This collaboration aims to ensure students and teachers have access to integrated educational activities at outdoor sites of learning, regardless of financial limitations. Utilizing the infrastructure at the Regional Park, including the interpretative center, residential facility and historic fish hatchery, the Institute provides field study programs for schools and the general public.

For this project, the Institute will establish restoration sites along Galena Creek, an at-risk tributary of the Truckee River. Project staff will engage teachers and students in STEM-based learning relevant to curricula used in Washoe County schools and will introduce teachers and students to theories and concepts of applied restoration ecology and watershed stewardship. Students will be challenged with inquiry-based field studies at Galena where students actively develop site plans, then participate in hands-on restoration and monitoring activities. A post-trip classroom visit will capture learning outcomes through testing. This project addresses the need for civic local engagement in active restoration activities, providing integrated learning opportunities and ongoing stewardship of our local watershed.

TMWA Benefit:

This project supports multiple Truckee River Fund priorities that seek watershed improvements by reducing sediment, suspended solids, or TDS discharges to the Truckee River. The project also supports the development and implementation of educational programs relative to water, water quality and watershed protection.