Project Description
Angel Rose Wetland Restoration
A wetland mitigation project located on a privately-owned farm, within the Southern Coastal Plain of Virginia in Sussex County, VA. The property is situated along the state scenic Nottoway River. The property is currently in agriculture with the potential to restore approximately 233-acres of existing ditches and floodplain cropland into coastal plain type streams, wetlands, and forest. In 2016, the landowner entered into a wetland restoration agreement with the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) to preserve recently cleared palustrine emergent and scrub-shrub wetlands and complete wetland restoration to mitigate for cleared wetlands.
A design plan was developed to allow the 2.0-acres of palustrine emergent and scrub-shrub wetlands to regenerate naturally with light planting and long-term monitoring. In addition, a plan was develop to restore 4.0-acres of cleared wetlands. The restoration included grading, subsoil ripping, and planting of native hydrophytic shrub and tree species to re-establish wetland hydrology, vegetation, and soils. The landowner is also exploring the option to create an environmental bank on the property. The farm fronts the Nottoway River and is surrounded by and within immediate vicinity of several wildlife refuges and management areas and presents the opportunity to provide and expand on habitat for threatened and endangered species including the Red-cockaded Woodpecker.
Goals
- Provide mitigation for impacts to aquatic resources
- Restore degraded stream and wetland systems
- Improve riparian and wetland habitat
Services: Regulatory, Plan Production and Mapping, Stream and Wetland Design, Steam and Wetland
