Arlington Wildlife Area Site Assessment
Location
Arlington, Arizona
Client
Arizona Game and Fish Department
Project Description
Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD) plans to revegetate approximately 200 acres of land at the Arlington Wildlife Area (AWA) located in the historic Gila River floodplain west of Phoenix, Arizona. An original restoration goal was to restore native cottonwood-willow riparian habitat to support diverse assemblages of avian species. In support of that goal, GSA reviewed existing soils and groundwater data and conducted a field-based site assessment to characterize soil and groundwater conditions across the majority of the site.
The results of the site assessment indicated that the original restoration design was not suitable for most of the site given the actual site conditions due to deep groundwater and saline soils. Recommendations for the AWA restoration were developed to include: recommended plant materials suitable for the site conditions; irrigation leaching requirements to achieve favorable soil salinity for native vegetation, and general irrigation requirements to support the vegetation.
Project Highlights
- Review existing soils and groundwater data
- Site assessment
- Plant pallete development
- Restoration recommendations
- Irrigation and salinity management
