Restoration continues along the Teton Creek Corridor

Nonprofit organizations in Teton County, Idaho, are teaming up to restore and protect the Teton Creek Corridor.

Teton Creek is flowing strongly today with vegetation growing all around, but this wasn’t always the case. The creek was ruined after a developer dredged it in order to develop the area. It caused the banks of the creek to erode and put the city of Driggs at risk for flooding. Starting in 2006, organizations began to repair the damaged area.

“We have completed over a mile of stream bank and stream channel restoration that has helped significantly reduce the risk of flooding to property owners to the city of Driggs,” said Amy Verbeten, executive director of Friends of the Teton River. “And (it) has also provided habitat for Yellowstone cutthroat trout and for all the other species that inhabit this stream corridor,” she said.

Restoration to the area continues today in a project created through a collaboration of nonprofit organizations. Each organization uses its specialty to work on a specific part of the project. Teton Valley Trails and Pathways is in charge of creating a path along the corridor to connect the citizens of Driggs to the public lands at the foothills of the Tetons.

“In this community, recreation has been something that the citizens have valued for a long time,” said Dan Verbeten, executive director of Teton Valley Trails and Pathways. “And giving the opportunity for citizens ages two up to 82 to be able to walk on this corridor or ride along this corridor and appreciate this area is part of what this project means.”

They plan to balance recreation with conservation by also maintaining agriculture, restoring and conserving the stream habitat and protecting wildlife habitats. Valley Advocates for Responsible Development is working with developers to redesign subdivisions along the corridor to protect habitats and bring back agriculture. Protecting the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem is their main goal.

“We are at the doorstep of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks,” said Shawn Hill, executive director of Valley Advocates for Responsible Development. “And so this is a world-renowned area when it comes to wildlife and natural resources. So we feel like we have a special duty to take care of the land here and really save this special place for the world.”

“We, you know, all love this community and love to live here,” said Joselin Matkins, executive director of Teton Regional Land Trust. “And there are ways where we can both protect the habitat and grow our community in a way that helps us sustain the high quality of life and the clean air, the clean water.”

The organizations say they hope to have the pathway open in the next five years. You can learn more about the project here.