Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership

05/14/2026

It's with great sadness that we share the passing of friend and colleague, Alvey Seeyouma. Our hearts are heavy as we extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and community in this difficult time.

Send a message to learn more

05/12/2026

The East Fork Lewis River Reconnection Project is more than a floodplain restoration—it's also a learning laboratory where students gain hands-on experience in river ecology, native plants and wildlife, geology, and habitat restoration! Over the winter, nearly 500 students from four local elementary schools participated in behind-the-scenes field trips that allowed them to explore the restoration site and apply lessons learned in the classroom. We even created a new geology and rock identification activity to make the most out of student learning along this river, where gravel mines formerly stood. Read more about the East Fork Lewis River field trips at https://www.estuarypartnership.org/news/learning-laboratory-schools-along-east-fork-lewis-river

05/07/2026

We love getting students out for educational field trips to Vancouver Lake! Students always love spotting (and poking, and pretending to pick) this nose-like tree burl as we hike through the woods. 😁 And they engage their inner engineer--working together to make a model of the area on the sandy shoreline to see how rivers and lakes flow together (and yes, just having fun digging in the sand).

You can find a fun, interactive map of Vancouver Lake made by Art Nature Place in both English and español on our website: https://www.estuarypartnership.org/vancouver-lake

Big thanks to Vancouver, Washington City Government, Port of Vancouver USA & Clark County, WA for supporting critical outdoor learning time for these kids!

05/06/2026

CVTV made a great video update of the East Fork Lewis River Reconnection Project! Hear directly from our Principal Restoration Ecologist II Kari Dupler, and Clark County WA Public Works's Lands Coordinator Denielle Cowley about what's happened and what's to come for the project!

05/05/2026

Today is National Teacher Appreciation Day! Today especially, we honor all the teachers across our study area for their tireless work to support and educate younger generations. We also celebrate our team of Environmental Educators at the Estuary Partnership, who work every day to connect kids to their watershed! Thank you, teachers. 💙

05/04/2026

Crews from Tapani began mobilizing for the 2nd year of construction on the East Fork Lewis River last month, but the broader project team never stopped working. Throughout the fall, winter, and spring, skilled revegetation crews from Ash Creek Forest Management, LLC, Biohabitats, ERSM LLC, & R Franco Restoration planted tens of thousands of native trees and shrubs across the newly restored and reconnected floodplain. Crews planted 23 different species, including over 40,000 willow cuttings and more than 100,000 other species such as red osier dogwood, black cottonwood, Douglas-fir, and spirea. Read more about what's to come for the second year of construction at https://www.estuarypartnership.org/news/east-fork-lewis-river-reconnection-project-enters-final-year-of-construction.

05/01/2026

We had a great time sharing the progress we've made on the East Fork Lewis River Reconnection Project with students enrolled in Portland Community College's Intro to Environmental Restoration class! The students researched the project prior to the tour and came ready to ask excellent questions for our Principal Restoration Ecologists leading the project. We hope this tour sparks a long-term interest in pursuing a career in environmental restoration!

04/29/2026

Our April newsletter is out! We have updates on the East Fork Lewis River Reconnection Project, a volunteer planting season recap, an upcoming depaving event at Chief Joseph Elementary, and more news! https://www.estuarypartnership.org/news/april-2026-newsletter

04/27/2026

Big thanks to the almost 30 volunteers who helped us celebrate Earth Day by removing invasive blackberry at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge last Saturday! The group had a big impact, clearing lots of the thorny vines from trees and beating back a thick area next to the Cathlapotle Plankhouse. Special thanks to the hardworking team from Burns & McDonnell's Vancouver office for joining us as part of their Charity of Choice celebration this month!

04/24/2026

The numbers are in! This past planting season, volunteers who joined us planted almost 20,0000 native trees, shrubs, and other native plants along tributaries like Salmon Creek, Fox Creek, Scappoose Creek, Campen Creek, and the Clackamas River. Go team! Want to join in? Sign up for our newsletter to keep up on upcoming opportunities for stewardship! https://www.estuarypartnership.org/newsletter