Example Application RAC Point Wilson Conservation Project Fort Worden Beach Point Wilson Restoration Workgroup September 2016 Olympic Peninsula Chapter, Washington Native Plant Society Primary Contact: name, phone, email Address: xxxxxxx Additional applicant: name, phone, email Address: xxxxxxx On behalf of the Olympic Chapter of the Washington Native Plant Society, we are requesting funds to fence a conservation site on the Point Wilson Strand in Fort Worden State Park. The fencing will protect the delicate coastal native plant community that is unique to the harsh sandy conditions on the strand and thereby support the mission of the Washington Native Plant Society by conserving native plant habitat. The conservation land is located on public land that can be accessed for viewing and study by Washington residents and visitors. There are few protected places in Puget Sound that have large areas of sandy coastal beaches with as richly diverse native flora as Point Wilson, within Fort Worden State Park. It was recognized as a special treasure by the late Olympic Peninsula botanical researcher Nelsa Buckingham, in the eighties and early nineties. Unfortunately, the average park visitor is unaware of the delightful native plant community they inadvertently trod upon while crossing the delicate strand environment to Fort Worden’s stunning beaches. The steadily increasing beach traffic at Fort Worden significantly impacted the beach plant community. Consequently, in 2006 a group of WNPS Olympic Peninsula Chapter members formed the “Point Wilson Restoration Workgroup”. That year, The Friends of Fort Worden ($1500) and the Washington Native Plant Society ($500 conservation grant matched by $500 from our Olympic chapter) generously gave us startup money to create temporary signs and build barriers to close trails, directing traffic to open trails. We established 5 open trails on the southeast side of the road from the lighthouse to the kitchen shelter where there were once over 12 random trails. Three areas were marked for restoration; near the lighthouse, near the center bathrooms, and adjacent to the kitchen shelter. Photo documentation shows that in most closed areas the native vegetation regenerated quickly. Native plants with deep root systems, such as the yellow sand verbena (Abronia latifolia) and black knotweed (Polygonum paroynchia), took off when not disturbed by foot traffic. Other native plants reestablished very well over time. Unfortunately, with time the barriers defining trail closures and restoration areas fell into disarray. The fence posts originally installed were not designed for sandy soils. The original rope barriers were vandalized and replaced with recycled cable that didn’t have end supports. It became apparent that we needed to upgrade the materials and have a more substantial fix for the fences, corner posts, and signs. In 2016 the Point Wilson Restoration Workgroup purchased and tested metal posts which have been used in national parks to direct Figure 1. Fallen barriers before 2016 traffic away from sensitive areas. These 40” Screw in Earth restoration (photo S. Schlentner) Anchors seemed appropriate for upgrading trail closures in the dune environment. The Olympic Peninsula Chapter, Friends of Fort Worden, and Fort Worden State Park maintenance crew worked together to install earth anchors, sturdy 4” X 4” corner posts, string cable, and permanent directional signage. With funding from Friends of Fort Worden we purchased earth anchors and ¼” galvanized coated cable for some of the areas. However we did not have enough funding to finish the project and some areas still have rusting and used cable. In order to extend our restoration efforts and finish this phase of the project we need to purchase additional material including earth anchors and coated galvanized cable. We are requesting funding to replace the failing fencing at the project site. We estimate the additional area protected to be XXX acres. Past work indicates that the fencing will successfully contribute to the viability of the strand’s functioning native plant community. (The plant list for Point Wilson is available on the WNPS Olympic Chapter website.) Figure 2 Screw in Earth Anchor (photo S. Schlentner) Timeline 2016: Earth anchors and end posts were installed around our restoration areas in two work parties; February 26 and May 20, 2016. New and old cable was restrung. If we are approved for buying new cable and additional earth anchors these will be installed in an additional work party this fall, or no later than spring 2017. Budget: To complete this phase we need additional cable and earth anchors as below. 500 feet – cable ¼” galvanized: $140 15 earth anchors @ $6.36 each (free shipping) $95.40 Total $235.40 Local Support: This project is supported by our local WNPS chapter and volunteers. The photos of our 2016 installation project show how we will be able to successfully complete this project. Fig. 3 Fort Worden Park provided trail signage replacement FigureRestoration 3. Restoration in progress of barriers in 2016. (photos by Sharon Schlentner) Thank you for considering this… Figure 4. Aerial google display of restrooms and trails before start of the project; the totally denuded restroom area as it appeared after original barriers were in place and yellow sand verbena growing through jute mesh on recently closed trail, approx.. 2010 (photos S. Schlentner) .