In 2015, the Gila Watershed Partnership (GWP) began work to restore native vegetation in 200 acres of tamarisk-dominated habitat along a 54-mile stretch of the Upper Gila Watershed. The goal was to create islands of native vegetation to act as refugia for threatened and endangered species and reduce tamarisk beetle impacts on flycatcher habitat.

In response to the increased wildfire risk and spread of invasive species, the Sandia Pueblo Environment Department and ranch staff from Galloping Goat Pumpkin Patch Ranch, with funding from the Forest and Watershed Restoration Act through the New Mexico State Forestry Division, implemented a goat grazing program in 2021.

Goldbug Island, off the coast of Charleston, SC, was experiencing erosion and salt marsh loss. To prevent further loss, the Nature Conservancy constructed a 67-meter-long oyster castle reef. This reef prevents erosion, mitigates wave energy, enhances biodiversity, and with increased oyster settlement, will improve water quality. 

As temperatures and pests change, urban ecosystems will need to adjust and will become ever more important for public health and quality of life. In 2012, the City of Goshen completed an urban tree canopy inventory and assessment in order to understand what trees are in the community and how they will be impacted by environmental changes.

This project created 335 acres of marsh and 28,342 linear feet of earthen containment dike in Bayou Grande Cheniere, Louisiana. This project utilized sediment materials from the Mississippi River borrow areas. This marsh and containment dike will enhance biodiversity and coastal protection from erosion and wave action.  

For over ten years, the Tucson Audubon Society has collaborated with Audubon Southwest through the Important Bird Area (IBA) program to develop a protocol that protects the Chestnut-collared Longspur (Calcarius ornatus; CCLO). They monitored the CCLO population through volunteer-led in-person surveys and audio recordings, analyzed the conditions of cattle tanks, and documented the presence of invasive Lehmann’s lovegrass.

Grassy Point is a 100-acre wetland where the St. Louis River meets Lake Superior. It used to be home to several sawmills which unfortunately left debris behind to clog up the waters. This project eventually removed 11,000 cubic yards of wood debris from the site and reformed several channels during 1994-1996.

The Great Dismal Swamp, a 45,000-ha state and federally protected Coastal Plain peatland located on the border of North Carolina and Virginia, was degraded after centuries of drainage and logging. To restore its ecosystem structure and function, US FWS installed two adjustable water control structures (WCS).

Funded by the USEPA’s Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, a wetland system is constructed to reduce phosphorous loading in a forested cropland. Phosphorus is removed through natural processes such as particulate nutrient sedimentation, sorption to soil particles, and uptake by wetland plants. The project achieved a 50% - 80% phosphorus reduction and co-benefits like wildlife and fish proliferation.

The Portland Water District conducted a green-gray analysis to compare natural versus gray infrastructure for an EPA-granted filtration system to improve Sebago Lake's water quality. They ultimately chose to invest in forest-based natural infrastructure, including restoring riparian buffers and reforesting riparian zones.

Tuscon, Arizona faced stormwater management problems, with increased flooding and runoff, and degraded water quality. To address these issues and improve the urban tree canopy and recycle rainwater for irrigation, the city developed the Green Streets Active Practice Guidelines. This program requires integrating green infrastructure into all publicly funded roadway projects. 

Since 2017, biologists from the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD) and USFWS have conducted mechanical removal of Green Sunfish to protect native aquatic species diversity in Ash Creek, Arizona. With a rock waterfall barrier near the confluence with Trout Creek, managers and biologists isolated source populations for native fish while removing the invasive Green Sunfish.

As Milwaukee’s population grew, it faced increased stormwater flooding and sewer system overflows. In 2001, the Conservation Fund and the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) launched a flood management program called Greenseams. The program protects wetlands and other lands containing water-absorbing soils by purchasing land and conservation easements from willing landowners. 

The native Guadalupe Bass had become locally extirpated in the San Marcos River and its tributary due to hybridization with non-native Smallmouth Bass, habitat degradation, and reduced water availability. With funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) led a project to restore the native Guadalupe Bass population

In Colorado, the City of Boulder’s Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) department engaged in ongoing efforts to remove cattails and manage American bullfrogs to protect the native northern leopard frogs (NLF) from predation, competition, and disease transmission. Since 2015, ecologists have mechanically removed approximately 500 adult bullfrogs from 10 NLF habitats.

Since 2004, A.T. & Lucinda Cole, founders of the Pitchfork Ranch in New Mexico, have been working to restore the ciénaga habitat that had been degraded by overgrazing. They constructed over 200 in-channel and 800 drainage grade-control structures, implemented sustainable gazing, replanted tree and vegetation, and reintroduced endangered wildlife species.

A partnership between the BLM, Sacramento Water Forum, and USFWS is working to restore spawning conditions and salmonid habitats in the Lower American River downstream of the Folsom Dam. The plan focuses on enhancing gravel habitat, adding woody material, and creating side channels and floodplains for spawning and rearing Chinook salmon and steelhead.

Led by USACE, the Bosque Wildfire Project was initiated to restore bosque habitat and wetland function around Albuquerque, New Mexico. Key features of restoration included constructing wetlands and swales to support moisture-seeking plants and animals, creating high-flow channels and bank terracing to enhance hydraulic connectivity within the bosque, and revegetating with native plants.

The Nature Conservancy restored a 54-acre oyster reef in Matagorda Bay, Texas. This project successfully restored large, thriving oyster reefs that have enhanced biodiversity in the bay. This increase in biodiversity has improved recreational fishing opportunities and fishing-related tourism in the area. The increase in fishing at Half Moon Bay reef adds around $691,000 to Texas’ gross domestic product annually.  

The Hamilton Wetlands Site, just north of San Francisco, was diked and dried almost a century ago for commercial development. This loss of marsh impacted endangered species and lessened the area’s coastal resilience. This project is restoring marsh functions and ecosystems, as well as creating recreational opportunities.