KFCI Site Restoration

Site Restoration

After removing Kellogg Dam, restoration in the former lakebed will result in a naturalized, free-flowing Kellogg Creek and 14 acres of native stream-side restoration. Kellogg Lake neighbors and Milwaukie residents can expect significant habitat changes that will benefit multiple native fish, plant, and wildlife communities. The overall project will result in a shift from an open water habitat to riparian habitat.

The confluence of Kellogg Creek and the Willamette River is an ecologically dynamic area. After removing Kellogg Dam, the Willamette can be expected to backwater into the former lakebed seasonally. This will create an ideal space for wetland restoration that will invite native fish such as Chinook salmon, coho, cutthroat and steelhead to use the area for crucial over-winter rearing habitat, a type of habitat that has been seriously declining in the Willamette sub-basin. See a map that indicates the expected area of this seasonal wetland.

Removing the dam will also change the composition of wildlife that refuge within the project area. Wood duck, mallard, belted kingfisher, green heron, great-blue heron, and red-winged blackbird would still be expected to use the area-though largely confined to the places that receive the greatest inundation. Perching birds like marsh wren and yellow throat that are dependant on marsh and riparian willow habitat can be expected as well. It’s also likely that beavers will play a role in both the habitat and hydrology at the site-as they have historically in the Pacific Northwest.

For More Information

For excellent descriptions of Herbaceous Wetland and Westside Riparian Wetland habitats, visit the Northwest Habitat Institute at http://www.nwhi.org/index/habdescriptions .

The area of the former lakebed will be re-vegetated with native trees, shrubs and wetland grasses. View a short slideshow (PowerPoint or PDF) of these common wetland and riparian species.

If you are interested in habitat friendly restoration projects on your streamside property or would like to get involved in grassroots initiatives to promote healthy streams and wetlands, please contact the North Clackamas Urban Watersheds Council (NCUWC). The NCUWC is a group of community advocates and local and county agency representatives that are promoting protection and enhancement of watershed health in our region. Find them on the web at www.ncuwc.org

See a complete plant list of common wetland and riparian plant species.

Before and after images of a smaller, yet similar dam removal project conducted by the Johnson Creek watershed Council


Immediately post-construction of the stream channel	Two Years Later; Grasses and Native Vegetation Thrive