(MT) - On Saturday, Nov. 21 two dozena volunteers picked up their shovels
and went to work planting 200 western red cedar trees on Road 1825-111, a

recently decommissioned logging road, as part of an effort by Bark, a non-
profit dedicated to protecting the Mount Hood National Forest and the

surrounding lands, and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). Shafts of sunlight
highlighted their breath in the frosty air as they dug holes and carefully
planted trees in the parts of the old road surface that had been decompacted
using the bucket on a large excavator.
In 2009 the Forest Service analyzed each of the roads in the Old Maid Flat
area to determine which roads were needed for recreation or administrative
access and which ones posed a threat to water quality and salmon. Road
1825-111 was identified as a risk to watershed health and unneeded for public
access. It was decommissioned in July 2015 by removing old culverts so they
wouldn’t become blocked by debris and wash out during storm events, while
earthen water bars were dug to reduce soil erosion by diverting water off of
the road.

“Removing old, unneeded logging roads helps to protect our watersheds while
providing high wage jobs for local contractors,” said Russ Plaeger, Bark’s
Restoration Coordinator. “Tree planting is an excellent way for Bark to support
the Forest Service’s efforts to reduce its approximately 3,000 mile road
system, in the Mt. Hood area, to a more manageable size.”
Tree planting helps jump start the process of reforesting an old road. The
volunteers planted willow cuttings, to shade the creeks, on the banks where
two large culverts were removed. Willows produce extensive root systems
that stabilize stream banks and reduce erosion. The old road and a spur road
off of it total a little over one mile. The decommissioning was done by Leonard
Collins and Sons, a private contractor, based in Colton, Oregon.
Bark recruited volunteers from communities in the Sandy and Hoodland areas
as well as Portland. Zigzag District Ranger Bill Westbrook and fisheries
biologist Kathryn Arendt also participated with the tree planting project.
“It was great to have ten volunteers from Sandy-Hoodland area be part of the
crew today including seven current students or recent graduates from Sandy
High School,” Plaeger said. “These cedars have the potential to grow here for
hundreds of years. That means each person who planted trees today
contributed to the legacy of forests in the Old Maid Flat area.”
The project was the second time Bark planted trees in the Zigzag Ranger
District.
“Decommissioning unneeded, old roads really is restoration because it
improves water quality and reduces the impact of roads on fish and wildlife
habitat,” Plaeger said. “Bark would like to see the Forest Service put more
energy and funding into reducing the impact of the almost 3,000 mile road
system in Mount Hood rather than planning large timber sales and building
new roads.”
For more information, visit bark-out.org.