Work is under way on the Payson Ranger District to restore one of Arizona’s fens as part of the Tonto National Forest’s Green Valley Creek watershed restoration project.

The Tonto is partnering with the National Forest Foundation to restore the fen at Little Green Valley. Fens are peat-forming wetlands that rely on groundwater to recharge, or replenish, the wetlands as well as provide nutrients.

Throughout February, the Tonto is overseeing the removal of old fences on a portion of the fen. The installation of 5,400 linear feet of new elk fencing will enclose about 15 acres on the fen. The fence will help reduce impacts to sensitive soils and vegetation by minimizing further erosion and degradation of the fen.

The next phase of the project will explore restoration and re-wetting of the fen environment. The National Forest Foundation received a 2022 Arizona Water Protection Fund grant from the Arizona Department of Water Resources to assist the Tonto in the restoration design.

When the Tonto acquired the fen in 2008, a 20-foot-deep head cut (an eroding face on the downstream end of the fen) already had been migrating upstream for decades. While this original head cut no longer is advancing, it created a gully that is 1,200 feet long, 10 foot deep and up to 20 feet wide. In turn, the gully lowered the groundwater table to where the fen is now dry. The gully also has caused water quality issues downstream.

During this first stage of fen restoration, plans also call for pipeline, water storage and drinking troughs for wildlife outside the fence enclosure.

Jeff Sturla, Supervisory Range Staff, said that the Tonto will work with the National Forest Foundation’s Northern Arizona Forest Fund and other organizations to collaborate and implement projects to repair the gully and restore the wet meadow. Sturla extended a special thanks to Earnhardt Ranches for providing access to the project location and hosting construction crews throughout the duration of the build.

Sasha Stortz, Arizona Program Manager for the National Forest Foundation, added, “Through the Northern Arizona Forest Fund, we invest in restoration projects that can both improve local conditions and bring water benefits to downstream communities. We’re pleased to partner in this effort to restore a unique and important place.”

According to Kelly Mott Lacroix, Tonto hydrologist and watershed program manager, this fen work is a key project in the overall Watershed Restoration Action Plan for the Little Green Valley, one of three priority watersheds on the Tonto.

“Collectively these efforts will restore hydrologic and ecosystem function on the Little Green Valley fen and improve watershed health overall,” Lacroix said.