Jacoby Branch – Ohio Mitigation Program

A stream and wetland system degraded by centuries of agricultural use is restored to a fully functioning ecosystem and a living demonstration of regenerative land use.

The Nature Conservancy (TNC) oversees Ohio’s Stream and Wetland In-Lieu Fee Mitigation Program, which restores and protects streams and wetlands for future generations while offsetting unavoidable environmental impacts from economic development. To offset impacts to the Little Miami River watershed, they initiated the restoration of Jacoby Branch, a stream that flows through a regenerative farming site known as Agraria. A program of the Arthur Morgan Institute for Community Solutions (AMICS), Agraria is Ohio’s first Center for Regenerative Agriculture.

The project site sits within a glacially modified landscape, which causes much of Jacoby Branch to flow subsurface for portions of the year. Long ago, the stream and its tributaries were ditched and straightened to support the site’s former agricultural use. In addition, much of the surrounding fields were tile drained, causing wetlands to disappear. These modifications led to habitat and riparian corridor degradation.

In a design-build capacity, Biohabitats helped TNC and Agraria design and construct the restoration of 7,050 linear feet of Jacoby Branch and its tributaries. The project regenerated an ecologically functioning riparian corridor, with reconnected flow to the floodplain. The increased floodplain connectivity was realized through the design of an anabranching stream system which will help restore a minimum of 2.1 acres of wetlands. The project also involved establishing a permaculture forest of native fruit and nut trees to support Agraria’s educational and research programs related to regenerative land use.

TAGS

• Assessment+Monitoring
• Ecological Restoration