Cain Creek work party taking place May 4

By Zoe Deal

Pull out your rubber boots and gardening gloves; it’s time for the second Cain Creek work party.

Community members can help restore two parcels of land along the Cain Creek riparian corridor on May 4. Goals for the 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. work party include mulching, inspecting past work, installing storm drain markers and preparing the land for the autumn native planting work party.

The two lots will be included in a future neighborhood park, to be named Cain Creek Park, at the north end of the 800 block of Blaine Avenue. Earlier this year, the city of Blaine budgeted $25,000 for preliminary design and permitting work and to build up the creek, said city planner Alex Wenger. Next year, there is a proposal in place for $150,000 to build a bridge and trail system.

“If everything went perfectly smooth, the city would be looking to finish constructing it in 2020,” Wenger said.

The purchase of this land was part of an agreement between the Washington Department of Ecology and Richmond, B.C.-based Nature’s Path Foods as a settlement for dumping acidic wastewater into the area on multiple instances between November 2014 and October 2016, as was previously reported in The Northern Light.

The company originally faced a $22,000 fine due to 39 water quality permit violations.

As part of the company’s appeal, Nature’s Path agreed to commit $20,000 toward the purchase of two undeveloped land parcels along Cain Creek to create a new park and $3,000 to restore the parcels.

Though fecal coliform levels in the creek remain high due to sewer pipe leakage and dog waste, the city is making efforts to improve the water quality through the installation of a sewer camera, said Wenger. This month, city crews will also make minor improvements to the drainage, paid for by Nature’s Path.

Meanwhile, the land surrounding the creek remains vibrant and rich in natural habitat. Beavers, salmon and herons are often spotted in and along the water and locals often describe the lush deciduous forest “the gully.”

The work party will meet at the Mitchell Avenue Apron. All members of the Blaine community are encouraged to attend.