Client: NC Division of Mitigation Services (DMS)
Location: Cleveland County, NC

Wildlands Engineering served as the prime consultant on the project design, organizing a multifaceted design and construction team including two design consultants, two contractors, and multiple subcontractors to complete the project. The project includes the restoration and enhancement of approximately 39,150 linear feet (LF) of degraded stream channels. Additionally, nine storm water Best Management Practices (BMPs) were constructed to stabilize gully erosion, treat agricultural runoff, and improve water quality. The project will provide 25,836 stream credits in the Broad River watershed and will protect approximately 145 acres of streams and riparian buffers in perpetuity via a conservation easement recorded by DMS. Project construction began in the spring of 2017 and took nearly 14 months to complete. Wildlands negotiated mitigation credit development with the NC Interagency Review Team to recognize a lighter touch and watershed-scale approach. The project’s multifaceted, watershed approach toward mitigation is one of the first of its kind in North Carolina. The site will continue to be monitored for a five-year term, which includes additional water quality monitoring provided by Western Carolina University.