Pacific NW 2023 - Orca Whale Project

PROJECT REPORT

PACIFIC NORTHWEST 2023 - ORCA WHALE PROJECT

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT

Dear friend,

Thanks to your support, a total of 284,983 trees were planted to restore 815 acres of land in California, Oregon, and Washington.

Planting trees in areas that have been deforested can help accelerate the reestablishment of healthy forests. Reforestation and smaller-scale tree planting projects benefit the surrounding ecosystem, and local communities.

None of this would be possible without you. On behalf of everyone at One Tree Planted, thank you!

What follows is a report outlining the project you supported in the Pacific Northwest. I hope you enjoy reading it and truly feel the impact you have made.

OVERVIEW

The Endangered Southern Resident Orca have called the stretch of the Pacific Ocean from Northern California to British Columbia home for millennia. Every year, as the orcas migrate north to south and back again, they rely on the West Coast Chinook salmon for food (nearly 80% of their diet). However, salmon stocks are diminishing due to habitat loss and increasing pollution — which impacts the Orca downstream. Planting trees along rivers and streams of the Pacific Northwest helps to restore critical salmon habitat.

TREES PLANTED

VOLUNTEERS INVOLVED

RIPARIAN HECTARES REFORESTED TREE SPECIES PLANTED

TREE SPECIES

PLANTED

Multiple native tree/shrub species were planted on more than three dozen public and private sites for this project. The selected species will benefit not only salmon, but all the other native wildlife that utilize the riparian planting areas, including many species that are threatened or endangered. In addition to enhancing wildlife habitat, the trees will help stabilize river and stream banks, which will reduce erosion that can negatively impact water quality.

SPECIES PLANTED THROUGH THIS PROJECT

Black hawthorne (Crataegus douglasii)

Hooker’s willow (Salix hookeriana)

Nootka rose (Rose nutkana)

Pacific willow (Salix lasiandra)

Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis)

Sitka willow (Salix sitchensis)

Western red cedar (Thuja plicata)

Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)

Bigleaf Maple (Acer macrophyllum)

Oregon White Oak (Quercus garryana)

Ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa)

Oceanspray (Holodiscus discolor)

Pacific ninebark (Physocarpus capitatus)

Black Cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa)

Western red cedar (Thuja plicata)

Western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla)

Red osier dogwood (Cornus sericea)

Mountain alder (Alnus incana)

Aspen (Populus tremuloides)

BY STRATEGICALLY PLANTING TREES NEAR PRIMARY CHINOOK SALMON STREAMS AND IN BOTH URBAN AND RURAL AREAS, WE CAN SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE POLLUTION, COOL WATERWAYS AND CONTRIBUTE TO WATERSHED AND ECOSYSTEM HEALTH. WE ENDEAVOR TO SUPPORT THE SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCA POPULATION BY ENHANCING THEIR FOOD SOURCE, AS HEALTHY SALMON POPULATIONS THRIVE IN HEALTHY WATERSHEDS.

YOUR IMPACT ON THE MAP

A CLOSER LOOK AT THE IMPACT

Salmon populations throughout the Pacific Northwest have been decimated over the last century by a variety of threats. Currently, 28 population groups of West Coast salmon are federally listed as threatened or endangered, with many more on the brink. In the Columbia River Basin alone, some estimates place salmon numbers at only two percent of those that existed prior to 1900. Primary among the threats to these iconic species is habitat loss and degradation. Land use changes, watercourse barriers, and pollution have negatively impacted salmon habitats in ways that significantly impair the species’ life cycle.

Five species of salmon are native to the Pacific Northwest - Chinook, chum, coho, sockeye and pink. While habitat preferences vary, these species share a unique and dynamic lifecycle that requires both fresh and saltwater habitats. Salmon begin their lives in rivers and streams after hatching, where they remain for a period of time to feed and develop before beginning their migration to the ocean. Once they reach the sea, salmon will continue to mature for up to 8 years (depending on species), before journeying back upstream to their natal rivers, where they will spawn and die shortly thereafter.

Critical to the salmon lifecycle is the preservation and restoration of high quality riparian habitat. High quality habitat is forested habitat that provides or enhances the riparian conditions that salmon need to thrive at each stage of their lifecycle. Riparian forest buffers intercept polluted runoff and reduce erosion that can create sedimentation, both of which impair water quality. Excess sedimentation can also reduce spawning success by burying the gravel salmon need to create their redds — or gravel beds in which fertilized eggs are deposited. Overhanging trees provide shade that cools the water, increasing beneficial oxygen levels. Trees also provide debris, such as branches and leaves, that increase the availability of shelter utilized by young salmon (referred to fry) to evade predators, rest and feed. Additionally, riparian forest vegetation increases the diversity and abundance of insect populations, which are a critical food source for salmon.

Riparian restoration is a key component of salmon recovery efforts in the Pacific Northwest. In addition to barrier removals, improved hatchery and fishery management, and other strategies being implemented, targeted riparian restoration can provide measurable salmon habitat improvements that will help secure the recovery of these iconic species throughout the region.

DOCUMENTING YOUR IMPACT

Through authentic and informative storytelling, we help donors relate to the people who plant their trees and to the impact they're making for the planet. We share photos, videos, and updates from our global projects across our social media, website, and other media to create a personal connection to the incredible work happening on the ground.

PHOTOS FROM YOUR PROJECT

VIDEO FROM YOUR PROJECT

ECOLOGICAL BENEFITS

Planting trees in riparian ecosystems in the PNW benefit salmon and, in turn, the southern resident orcas in a variety of ways, such as:

Improved water quality: Trees planted along the banks of rivers and streams can help filter out toxins as water passes through the soil and into the waters where the salmon spawn.

Reduced erosion: As the trees grow, their spreading roots stabilize river and stream banks, which reduces erosion that can produce excessive sediment.

Enhanced food resources: Trees also help provide important nutrients for young salmon as they grow. Leaves, needles, and woody debris falling into the river create habitat for insects that the salmon eat.

Enhanced spawning habitat: As the trees mature and the forest canopy becomes more dense, it provides critical shade for salmon spawning grounds.

OF SOUTHERN RESIDENT ORCA DIET IS COMPOSED OF CHINOOK SALMON

NEARLY 80% ONLY 75 200-385 LBS

COMMUNITY BENEFITS

This project will benefit local communities in many ways. Orcas are emblematic of the Pacific Northwest and hold significant cultural meaning for residents throughout the region, particularly First Nations communities that have lived in the area for millennia.

By helping to improve water quality in multiple watersheds throughout the region, the project will also provide a variety of socio-economic and public health benefits. Improved water quality will enhance the health of drinking water supplies, local fisheries, and the quality of recreational opportunities that are integral to the region’s economy.

Additionally, this project will enhance many important ecosystem services, including flood mitigation, air quality improvement and carbon sequestration.

U.N. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

THIS PROJECT CONTRIBUTED TO THE FOLLOWING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS:

WHAT ARE SDGS?

Sustainable development entails seeking out solutions that not only boost the economic outcomes of developing and poorer nations, but also work to limit (or eliminate) our impact on the planet. Trees are one such solution.

From creating jobs and reducing hunger to improving gender equality, cleaning air and water, absorbing carbon, protecting life on land and water, and more, planting trees can address all 17 sustainable development goals.

“One Tree Planted is proud to support this project, which will benefit the recovery of the endangered Southern Resident Orca and endangered salmon populations by restoring riparian forest habitats throughoutthePacificNorthwest.”

Brittney Burke Project Director North America