Removal of streamside trees (wrong!)

In a misplaced effort to clear room for the gabion baskets, three mature trees were removed from this stream bank. The trees had extensive root systems that stabilized parts of the bank, and could have helped anchor and strengthen the gabions as their root systems regrew. Now, the area immediately behind the baskets is being filled with soil which will be highly erosive without the root system to stabilize it. Further, tree removal opens up the canopy (the shade created by the tree leaves) so that more sunlight reaches the stream. With more sunlight, water temperatures rise and become less suitable for cold water species like the resident brook trout.