Why the Forest Service Is Working to Restore Meadows in the Sierra

This story aired on The California Report — and originally aired on KVPR.

When you think of a meadow, you might picture a field of flowers straight out of a postcard, no trees in sight. But meadows are also key to forest health. And in the Sierra Nevada, most of the meadows that play this role have been degraded or lost.

In order to restore these ecosystems, some groups say we must adopt the mindset of small creatures, like rodents.

Kevin Swift, owner of Swift Water Design, has dedicated his career to restoring meadows in the Sierra Nevada — specifically one a few miles above Shaver Lake called the Lower Grouse Meadow, which was severely affected by the 2020 Creek Fire. As a result of the fire, that area is surrounded by barren hillsides and blackened, charred pine trees.

But here, in this meadow just above Shaver Lake, gravel and desiccated tree bark give way to tall grasses, purple wildflowers and buzzing pollinators. Like a strip of black-and-white film that’s been colorized.

Swift and his team managed to restore this meadow by building small dams along a stream — replicating what animals would have done.

To make dams, he says, think: “dirt lasagna.”

It’s a straightforward process involving layers of branches and mud, compacted together, mimicking what beavers have been doing for millions of years, Swift says. It’s also what indigenous people had been doing for centuries as well.

Water is the beating heart of a meadow, and dams, whether built by beavers or humans, create mini wetlands. These wetlands slow erosion, support wildlife and serve as natural firebreaks.

“So we want groundwater to rise up, we want surface water to spread out and we want the whole water to be backed up to create, we like to call them, ‘green glaciers,’” said Karen Pope, a research ecologist with the U.S. Forest Service.

Pope was curious to know how many meadows there are in the Sierra. So she and other ecologists taught computers how to find them from satellite images. The algorithm uncovered thousands, covering three times more land than previously known.

But most are in bad shape — overgrown, obliterated by wildfire, or damaged due to mining and other industries.

“About 5% are actually functioning in any proper sustainable way, productive way. So clearly we have a large task ahead of us,” said Dean Gould, Sierra National Forest Supervisor.

Meadows, it turns out, have significant environmental value. They can help mitigate climate change, according to Pope.

“Recovering meadows sequester carbon, and they can sequester up to six times more than the surrounding forest,” she said.

Meadows in the midsummer are also a critical habitat for endangered animals, like the Great Gray Owl and the Greater Sandhill Cranes, according to the U.S. Forest Service (PDF). In the summer, healthy meadows are like natural sponges that soak up spring snowmelt.

Further, meadows hold cultural importance to indigenous communities and have served as gathering sites for thousands of Native Americans.

Pope is optimistic about the restoration of the Sierran meadows. She recently co-founded a group called the California Process-Based Restoration Network to promote this work, and many individuals have joined the cause. She believes that the small pilot meadow off Highway 168, where Swift has been working, exemplifies what’s achievable and how restoring meadows can benefit the entire Sierra region.

“I have to admit that this is the most exciting work I’ve ever done. It absolutely makes me feel like I’m not just doing research but actually doing something to help,” she said.

Swift’s work to restore the Lower Grouse Meadow was contracted by the U.S. Forest Service, underscoring its importance.

He’s passionate about the work, even though witnessing so much degraded land can be emotionally taxing. “I tell everybody, if there’s another way you can make a living, do that, because this is hard on the soul,” he said.

Yet, as he watches a tiny frog disappear into the stream, he adds, “Or it is until you see a meadow like this recover. Then it’s easy again.”