Opportunities for Ecological Restoration along Forested Headwater Streams in Kentucky’s Appalachian Mountains
Jennifer D. Shelby
RES Kentucky, LLC
Louisville, Kentucky
Eastern Kentucky’s Mountains Bioregion is a hotspot for biodiversity rivaling that of the Amazon Rainforest. Federally endangered species of fish, bats, plants, and numerous mussel species all rely on the region’s clear water and abundant forest resources along headwater streams for survival. These sensitive ecosystems and the species that rely on them are threatened by past, present, and future timber and resource extractions making stream restoration critical in this region. Navigating headwater stream restoration in the Eastern Kentucky mountains is far from easy due to a lack of accessibility, divisions in property ownership and mineral ownership, and a legacy of water quality issues, many related to a history of mining.
In this presentation, we look at a number of projects across the bioregion that are in various stages, from initial assessment to post-restoration monitoring, to shed some light on problems and solutions specific to Kentucky’s Mountain Region that may also have applications elsewhere. We will cover the ways in which property ownership hurdles have been overcome. We will look at the typical impacts to headwater streams in the region, opportunities for lift, and unique design approaches along these streams, which typically have intact forested riparian systems. A brief look at lessons learned based on several years of monitoring will wrap up the presentation.
About Jennifer D. Shelby
Jennifer’s interest and appreciation for natural resources began as she roamed her family’s farm in western Kentucky as a child and evolved into a passion for environmental stewardship during her formal education at the University of Kentucky and North Carolina State University and during her career as a restoration engineer. She has worked on natural resources management and restoration projects in Kentucky, Tennessee, and North Carolina for a variety of clients; and has focused the last 13 years on stream and wetland restoration projects for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources’ Fee In-Lieu of Mitigation program. During this time, she has contributed to the evolution and growth of the program through the design, implementation, and post-restoration monitoring of many restoration projects. Jennifer enjoys using her interdisciplinary experience to tackle the complex set of challenges that must be addressed to ensure an identified mitigation site becomes a high-quality, self-sustaining ecosystem.
