Resilience of a Team Meets Resilience of a Site. Persistence and Grit Produce the Most Beautiful Results, in the Face of Many Challenges
Wanda Lawson, PE
Stantec
Louisville, KY
Jessie Boles, PE
Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources
Frankfort, KY
Ecosystem restoration has been performed for decades. Permitting requirements have increased as well as needs and complexities of restoration projects. Broke Leg Creek and the surrounding gorge valley was once a breath-taking view, but in 2012, a tornado entered the Broke Leg gorge and devastated the landscape. The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR) contracted Stantec to design over 33,400 linear feet of restoration along Broke Leg Creek, Blackwater Creek, and 29 related tributaries for stream mitigation. However, successful and inspiring ecosystem restoration of Broke Leg Creek and surroundings, did not happen without a fight around every bend.
The site was first identified in 2016 as a potential restoration opportunity on private lands. The project area had diverse and unique habitat features throughout, was protected by a natural cliff line, and had enough stream resources to support a viable project. After 30% design, reaches above the cliff line were removed from the project. The Stantec/KDFWR team worked to find valuable restoration reaches among the tornado rubbish below cliff lines and was pleasantly surprised to find much more than anticipated. Soon after, KDFWR team members worked tirelessly to clear remnant paths riddled with downed trees for surveyor access. As the design progressed further, the permitting process stagnated and delays concerned the project team and landowner who were eager to see the project completed. The cliff lines held valuable habitat for endangered bats that required additional surveys for the project.
Finally, the project became fully designed and permitted in 2024 with construction starting in 2025. As construction began additional hurdles surfaced but Stantec and KDFWR continue to work with the contractor and the results are beautiful. The landowner is in love with their property again and Broke Leg valley is being restored to the unique and diverse ecosystem that once thrived between the cliff lines. The value of this project is much more than mitigation credit value or stream length restored. It is the success of a resilient team meeting a resilient site. It is the lessons learned to stay persistent and have grit in the face of challenges.
About Wanda Lawson, PE
Wanda is a technical lead and project manager in Kentucky, specializing in nature-based solutions including stream and river restoration. Wanda is a bioenvironmental engineer with more than 22 years of experience in conceptual design, assessment, final design, permitting, contract documents, construction, and monitoring for restoration and mitigation projects. She also has experience and training in watershed assessments and planning, ecosystem enhancement, bank stabilization, sediment transport, hydrologic and hydraulic analysis, stormwater analysis and design, and natural channel design. As a senior stream restoration engineer, she has assessed over 100 miles of streams in Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, and Texas as well as presented stream restoration techniques and environmental engineering to several collegiate level classes and interest groups. Wanda is very knowledgeable regarding stream restoration design and the various complexities surrounding the designs of natural systems. She has diverse experience involving stream characteristics that range from small to large watersheds, very flat to very steep systems, substrates from sand to cobble or bedrock, single thread to braided systems, and several projects involving both stream and wetland restoration. Wanda has designed more than 70 miles of stream restoration or enhancement while leading and working with a broad range of team members.
About Jessie Boles, PE
Jessie Boles, PE is a Project Manager for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR), where he has spent over 12 years with the Wetland and Stream Mitigation Program (FILO). Jessie has assessed streams and wetlands pre and post restoration, established native vegetation communities through plantings and invasive removal, implemented small construction projects, acquired 401 and 404 permits, and managed design and construction contracts for stream and wetland projects across Kentucky. He is actively managing over 5 projects in construction and over 25 projects in design and permitting. He enjoys hunting, fishing, and hiking with his family in and around KDFWR projects.