On a chilly Saturday in March, a small group of friends gathered on the shoreline of Herron Island to install native plants and extend a drain line on Rebecca Adamson’s waterfront property. This project was the first to receive funds from Pierce Conservation District’s new Shore Friendly Mini-Grant program.

With a drizzly view of Case Inlet, the crew installed bare-root native plants from Conservation District plant sales with careful planting tubes to protect them from browsing deer. The plants were a mix of trees, shrubs, and groundcover that will help to restore the shoreline, help manage stormwater, and stabilize sediments on this natural shoreline.

With funding from the Estuary and Salmon Restoration Program, the Shore Friendly Mini-Grant program incentivizes stewardship and restoration on Puget Sound shorelines. Providing incentives to encourage landowners to protect or enhance natural resources on their property isn’t new for Pierce Conservation District. We have a long history of providing cost-share on agricultural properties, where the cost of the project is shared by the landowner and grant or district funding.

As part of a technical assistance package, landowners receive a site visit and land management recommendations from conservation district staff. The mini-grants help empower landowners to implement the recommendations, which usually include shoreline restoration, armor removal, lawn conversion, invasive plant removal, native plantings, and drainage improvements that will help protect residential property and protect Puget Sound. These stewardship actions (also known as shoreline best management practices) improve natural processes and habitat quality on the shoreline, with direct impacts to species like forage fish and salmon in the nearshore.

You can learn more about our services for marine shoreline landowners on our Shore Friendly Pierce website or contact our Shorelines Program Manager, Mary at maryk@piercecd.org.