Last Sunday the Tsunami crew met up to clean out some of the camp sites that had cropped up this year. Needless to say, this is probably one of the most difficult work parties that Tsunami works on each year, but the reward and payoff is the best. Taking a trashed site full of plastic, metal and glass and restoring it to it’s natural state is a great feeling. Just one of these camp sites filled the back of a large pickup bed.

In addition to the camp sites there was a silt fence laying in Dean Creek which was recovered (not without a lot of grunts and groans).

This work party had a great turnout with about 8 hard working volunteers showing up. Afterwards, we sat around and prepared for the solstice the next and looked forward to the longer days ahead.

More photos available at http://www.flickr.com/photos/threecreekswetland/ .

Hi everyone. Read Deborah Barnes’ letter by clicking here. The JPACT is the regional group deciding on the Metro transportation projects. They will recommend the Sunnybrook blvd through the old growth White Oak habitat of the 3-Creeks. Clackamas County keeps telling everyone how green it is so everyone is falling all over themselves trying to be part of the “green road revolution” (please pick up on my sarcasm and frustration as we ratchet the ancient native oak forests deeper into oblivion). I will try to contact Donna Jordan (mentioned below) and see if I can present a different ecological view than the one our “green Commissioner” presents.

As we have said for years now, there are transportation solutions that don’t involve the destruction of any habitat yet provide safe access to the campus area, allow a campus build out for additional uses and could address other transportation problems.

Chris Runyard

Howdy everyone, a brief update about the happenings on the 3-Creeks. First of all, a huge THANK YOU!! to all who have written their representatives, newspapers and friends in support of our favorite wetland and old-growth White Oak upland! The 3-Creeks seems to have a lot of friends.

First of all the Tsunami Crew was reinstated as the official steward crew of the 3-Creeks a few weeks back thanks to all ya’ll plus the City of Milwaukie who sorted out our little mess at their mid September Council meeting. We appreciated the support of the council, the initiative of Councilor Deborah Barnes to get the discussion rolling, the finesse of Mayor Jeremy Ferguson to bring together the differing interests to facilitate a favorable resolution and all of the public that was there to make sure that there was a voice of the 3-Creeks present.

Secondly, I talked to Ed Feeley at PGE today to follow up on an email he sent a few weeks ago. He said they were looking for a new alignment for the powerlines and they would know by November where that would be. Today he said that they were going to reroute the powerlines through already existing right of ways, ie along already constructed streets, to avoid the 3-Creeks altogether and unless there is some major reason why that won’t work, that should be the final plan. He said that he wasn’t aware initially of how much carnage of wetlands, riparian zones and sensitive vegetation would occur, so taking it out of 3-creeks will be better (my paraphrase by the way). So I think things are looking up in the powerline department and I will keep you posted.

And finally a few of us will meet with 2 county commissioners and some staff next week. As always we will discuss possibilities of protection for the entire wetland and rare upland habitats, otherwise known as the entire 3-Creeks Natural Area. As ever more science and statistics point to failing planetary ecosystems I am hoping that we can talk about enhancement, not ‘mitigation’ or ‘minimization’. When I step back and see who is at the table, I believe these are the commissioners and councilors who are sharp enough to see that the long term needs of our communities are important enough to break the cycle of bad transportation habits of the past.

Thanks! (Send this around to any of your friends who were concerned too please)

Chris Runyard