West Fork White River Airport PL-566 – Fayetteville, Arkansas

Before

After

The Watershed Conservation Resource Center (WCRC) in partnership with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) , Beaver Water District, Beaver Watershed Alliance, and other project partners surveyed, designed, permitted, and oversaw the construction of a stream restoration project on the West Fork of the White River (WFWR) east of the Fayetteville Executive Airport in south Fayetteville, Arkansas.  The restoration was funded in-part, by USDA NRCS PL-566 funds that were borne from a completed watershed plan that established funding eligibility for large-scale river restoration projects in the West Fork White River.  The work included the restoration of approximately 1,600 feet of highly unstable river channel that included a number a streambanks that were experiencing extreme lateral erosion.  The work was performed on a stretch of the WFWR that is located immediately downstream of previously completed stream restoration work and the efforts associated with project have created a continuous restoration footprint of nearly 1 mile.  The restoration enhanced the aquatic and terrestrial habitat and improved the water quality of the WFWR which was listed on the State of Arkansas’ 303(d) list for impaired waterways. Construction activity began in November 2020 and concluded in March 2021.  Implementation of the site re-vegetation plan is ongoing including the removal of invasive species and expansion of the native plantings.

Additional Project Photos