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i I News Release LOWER AMAZON CREEK RESTORATION PROJECT October 30, 19918 Page 2 The flopd control function of the existing channels will be maintained. Relocated levees will be constructed around the margins of the project area to limit flooding to the restored wetlands. The new levees also willl,provide for future extension of the Fern Ridge Path along the edge of the restored area. The be~hefits of the recommended project are significant. The restored wet prairie wetlands will provide a uniquje habitat to support a number of threatened and endangered plant species. Native wet prairies also provide valuable wintering, breeding and migration habitat for waterfowl, birds, small mammals, and f he western pond turtle, which is being considered for federal listing as a threatened and endangered species. The restored wetland habitat along lower Amazon Creek will extend the ecological corridor that cup~rently includes wetlands and wildlife habitat managed by the Corps and the Oregon Department of dish and Wildlife at Fern Ridge Lake, The Nature Conservancy's Willow Creek Preserve, the Bureau of )sand Management's Bertelsen Slough sites, the City's recently completed restoration of Amazon Creek;between Bailey Hill Road and Terry Street, and other locations throughout west Eugene. The esximated total cost of the project is approximately $5.9 million. Under the agreement, the City of Eugene will provide 25 percent of the cost of the project while the Corps will fund 75 percent. The City's share of the project includes costs for land acquisition, in-kind design, construction, and monitoring services, and a cash contribution. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management also will participate in the project and will provide some of the lands needed. The bulk of the project construction is scheduled to occur during the summer of 1999. Some additional wetland restoration work, including planting and seeding native plants, will occur in following years. Under the agreement, the effects of the project on the ecology of the area will be monitored for five years after construction by the City, which also will maintain the restored area in conjunction with the Bureau of Land Management and The Nature Conservancy, partners in the West Eugene Wetlands I Plan.