Port Susan Bay Estuary Restoration

Herrera assisted the Nature Conservancy in collaboration with several project stakeholders, with restoring pre-development conditions to Hatt Slough, in the Stillaguamish River delta. The restoration effort increased the areal extent of intertidal habitat on the delta, and provide a transition from marsh habitats to upland vegetation that was eliminated by development elsewhere on the delta. Herrera prepared final engineering design plans, specifications, and contract bid documents for the project, which was constructed in 2012. Herrera also assisted in the acquisition of environmental permits and approvals. Because of the relatively large size of the project, Herrera facilitated numerous meetings with a technical advisory committee, the US Army Corps of Engineers, diking and drainage districts, adjacent landowners, and the agriculture community. The project was named by the Puget Sound Partnership as a “Puget Sound Champion” from the Snohomish and Stillaguamish watersheds for protecting and restoring habitat, cleaning up polluted water, and working with the community for win-win solutions.