Thanks to our intrepid volunteers, including locals, Nevadans, CalFire and Ca Conservation Corp members, we had a successful three (3) days of restoration.
Each of the three (3) days brought us approximately 30 volunteers, who focused on seeding the slopes, and chinking trees, in the watershed, in order to lessen the effects of erosion and mitigate debris flowing into the creek. Editors note: The image at the top of this post is only of one crew, this particular troup was on site last Sunday.
Chinking? You ask…I (Mark) had not heard the term before last Sunday but based on what I can tell it is derived from log cabin building and the filling in of the spaces between the logs with a mortar of some sort.
As it relates to erosion mitigation it’s about filling in the upslope side of a felled tree (felled parallel to the creek) with rocks and dirt in order to capture sediment and re-direct water flow.
A special shout out to the Alpine County Chamber of Commerce and its Tamarack Fire Assistance Fund. It was that fund that allowed us to purchase the wattles and the seed.
Andy Lovell, and the Alpine Trails Association, helped out with tools expertise.
Mary Young, our President, and the First Gentleman, Bill Young, also deserve a shout out. They spent countless hours doing reconnaissance on the watershed, developing the plan and most importantly “herding the cats” to get the work done.
We should also mention Kimra and Sierra, from the Alpine Watershed Group. Their expertise and direction was such a plus!
The BIGGEST shout out, however, goes to you, dear volunteer. We wish we could name you all but the post would be too long if we did.
WE ARE SO THANKFUL! The Water Co., and the community as a whole, is lucky to have you.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Markleeville Water Company 