Green Cove Watershed is the largest watershed on Cooper Point on the Edge of the City of Olympia, and the natal site of the Ecosystem Guild. It cradles a vast wetland complex, with amphibians, bittern, green heron, mud minnow and other uncommon species. These wetlands recharge the local aquifer, providing drinking water for the city and residents, and feed a small stream that flows to Eld Inlet, and supports a robust chum salmon run. This tapestry of life has flourished for perhaps 5,000 years under the stewardship of people now known as the Squaxin Island Tribe.
While the system is a priority for local salmon recovery on paper, the development of the watershed is continuing beyond even modest stream protection targets set by the City in 1998, and forest health is declining with ivy and holly expanding in many stands. There are approximately 5,000 watershed residents, but no shared vision for the future of the watershed. The county has a 10% per year population growth rate, and residents have few mechanisms for exerting their stewardship. We aim to build a systematic community-led effort capable of perpetual watershed stewardship under population growth and climate change.
The Green Cove Strategy
We collect documents and other resources about the watershed on the Salish Sea Restoration Wiki. Which is a free regional information sharing platform. The decision to focus on Green Cove is in Update – 2018 Harvest and a summary of findings and strategy are in Update – 2019 Springtime
The following efforts are underway in Green Cove Creek Watershed: