It's crucial that we continue to monitor and improve our natural resources and ecosystems in Kent so they can be more resilient to changes in the climate.

Natural Resources

The City of Kent is committed to a multi-faceted approach toward the protection and enhancement of local and regional natural resources.

The city collaborates with federal, state, and tribal governments, along with other interested parties in the Puget Sound region, to identify early actions and develop long-range strategies to conserve and restore critical natural resources.

Preservation of open space, fish and wildlife habitat and other critical areas and their buffers occurs throughout the development process. 

Critical Areas & Resource Lands

Green River Natural Resources Area (GRNRA)

The Green River Natural Resources Area (GRNRA) is a 304-acre wildlife sanctuary in the heart of Kent. The GRNRA provides flood protection, habitat for fish and wildlife, surface water treatment, and recreation to residents and visitors.

What was once an abandoned sewage lagoon system is now one of the largest engineered multi-use wildlife refuges in the United States. Trails and three viewing towers are available to the public where over 100 bird species can be seen depending on the times of year.  Expansive views of Kent and the Green River valley can also be seen from the towers

Flooding Mitigation

The GRNRA is critical to reducing flooding in Kent. Before the GRNRA was built, Mill Creek in central Kent used to inundate low-lying streets, parking lots, and warehouses nearly every year. Now, the GRNRA reduces flows in lower Mill Creek by over 50% and provides 312 acre-feet of floodwater storage (the equivalent of filling Lumen Field over 200 feet deep). Since completing the GRNRA, flooding in Kent’s industrial areas has decreased significantly.

Improved Water Quality

The GRNRA provides cleaner water for fish and wildlife. Surface water from the surrounding industrialized area flows into the GRNRA where it is filtered naturally. Runoff passes through an extensive treatment system, including two pre-settling ponds and a 20-acre constructed wetland, which reduces sediment and pollutants. Water enters the main lagoon for storage for flood risk reduction and then drains back into Mill Creek.

Enhanced Fish & Wildlife Habitat

The GRNRA provides habitat to an estimated 165 bird and 53 mammal species. The site serves as a nesting, feeding, and brooding area for many species that use the Green River valley.

Habitat construction at the GRNRA involved creating a large emergent marsh and open water wetland, increasing the amount of forested wetland and scrub-shrub wetland (for low-growing shrubs and trees), and improving upland habitats.

Great wildlife viewing can be found at the GRNRA any time from the Puget Power Trail along the southern boundary, the Green River Trail along the western edge, and from the eastern berm accessed from 64th Ave S.

Ecological Restoration

Ecological Restoration refers to actions taken to reestablish wetland, stream, or habitat and characteristics that have been destroyed or degraded by alterations. The city continues to make investments in ecological restoration efforts.

These investments make our environment more resilient to changes in the climate. During development and redevelopment around the city, all reasonable efforts are taken to preserve and restore ecological functions. 

The city has established standards for shoreline stabilization measures and modifications, vegetation conservation and water quality to ensure that new development does not further degrade our shorelines and is consistent with an overall goal to improve ecological functions and habitat. The preservation of ecological functions is balanced with public access and recreation objectives and have priority over development objectives whenever a conflict exists.

Wetlands

Wetlands are areas inundated or saturated by surface water or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation, typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas.

Any land use that would impact ecological functions or the natural character of a delineated wetland in the City of Kent is regulated by the city’s Critical Area regulations, mandated by the Washington Growth Management Act.

New land division and development or shoreline modifications that would reduce the capability of the wetlands to perform normal ecological functions are also regulated. The city owns many natural areas that consist of sensitive areas, including wetlands. Our Wetland Maintenance crew maintains approximately 140 sites.

During the growth season, crews perform tasks such as weed eating, cutting vegetation back from the perimeters to prevent overgrowth from encroaching onto neighboring sidewalks or properties and removal of non-native species.  In the off season (late fall), crews shift focus to repairing split rail fencing that surrounds these sensitive sites. 

Riparian Habitat

Riparian habitats are lands along the edges of rivers, streams, lakes, and other waterbodies. They're different from the surrounding areas because their soils and vegetation are shaped by the presence of water. Some examples include streambanks, riverbanks, and floodplains.

The conservation and improvement of riparian areas is important because they provide habitat and buffers for species that utilize the adjacent waterways and give them space from the built environment. 

Riparian areas are important for fish and wildlife habitat, help improve water quality, improve flood reduction and promote infiltration to help maintain instream flows during the dry season.

Kent is committed to the protection of water quality and natural groundwater movement. The protection of fish, vegetation and their habitats is vital to the aquatic food chain. Expanding available habitat and rearing opportunities for salmon and other anadromous fish is a high priority for the city. 

One of the key mechanisms is to improve fish passage by reconnecting mainstem river habitat to local tributaries. Other strategies include providing new side channel or protected off channel habitat, reconnecting floodplain habitat, and installing habitat wood structures. Some of these improvements can be seen in projects like the Leber and Downey side channel projects. 

Recent City Projects

The City of Kent has completed several projects over the past couple of decades to substantially improve our natural and critical areas and habitats and improve their resilience to changes in the climate.

Rock Creek Watershed Habitat Conservation Plan (2010)

The city prepared a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) designed to minimize and mitigate impacts on threatened and endangered species near the Clarks Springs Water supply and Rock Creek, a tributary to the Cedar River.

The city has completed all habitat conservation measures identified in the HCP including the fish passage improvements at SE Summit Landsburg Road, habitat enhancements in the lower portions of Rock Creek, wetland improvements and property acquisition of parcels to restore riparian habitat along Rock Creek. The city continues to provide stream flow augmentation to meet minimum instream flows during the fall when salmonids are spawning.

Completed in 2011, the project included an outlet control structure to regulate and release flows from Lake Meridian, construction of new stream channel, and wetland preservation and restoration as well as the removal of invasive and non-native plants. The main goal of this project was to restore salmonid rearing habitat and passage into Lake Meridian and enhance existing wetlands. 

The project also included an outlet control structure that allows water to be in the downstream channel further into the summer, providing additional locations for salmon to rear.

The Downey Farmstead is a historic homestead site that was previously used as a tree nursery and is located between the Green River and SR 516. This 22-acre site has been reshaped into a network of side channels which enhance habitat for juvenile salmon and increase flood storage in the Green River.

Climate resiliency was a key driver in the Downey restoration project being a multi-stem side channel system. Each of the three channel inlets and outlet are graded to different elevations to ensure more access to fish over a larger window of time. During dryer months, the project was designed to provide juvenile salmonids backwater refuge habitat along the Green River. To help provide habitat for fish and wildlife, more than 40,000 native plants have been planted which will help with water temperatures in this stretch of the Green. 

The Downey project provides significant flood storage capacity in a highly developed portion of the Green River valley. This provides both natural flood storage and helps lower the overall flood elevation in the surrounding areas. As the site is off channel it will also provide a refuge location for juvenile salmonids during storm events improving rearing habitat needed before moving into the Sound.  Allowing the salmon to rest and grow dramatically increases their chance for survival in the ocean.

Van Doren’s Landing Park/Lower Russell Levee (2023)

City crews closed the park in 2020 as part of the estimated $57 million Lower Russell Levee Setback project by the King County Flood Control District. It reopened in 2023.

The improvements to the 1.4-mile levee between South 212th Street and South 228th Street (Veterans Drive) will help protect surrounding residential and commercial development from flooding and create additional flood storage and fish habitat.

Grants from the state Department of Ecology, the Salmon Recovery Funding Board through the state Recreation and Conservation Office; and a Cooperative Watershed Management grant helped fund the project.

Riverview Park Fish Rest Area

The City of Kent completed construction of the Riverview Park Project, a $3 million project to build approximately 750 feet of new stream channel. The new channel flows through the middle of Riverview Park. This is the first side channel construction under the Green/Duwamish Ecosystem Restoration Project. The channel, which opened recently, will provide critical Chinook salmon rearing habitat and establish a winter refuge for fish during high flows in the main stem of the Green River.

Biodiversity

Biodiversity is the scientific term for the variety of life on Earth. It refers not just to species but also to ecosystems and differences in genes within a single species. Everywhere on the planet, species live together and depend on one another. Every living thing, including humankind, is involved in these complex networks of interdependent relationships, or ecosystems.

Biodiversity is the key indicator of the health of an ecosystem. A wide variety of species will cope better with threats than a limited number of them in large populations. Even if certain species are affected by pollution, climate change or human activities, the ecosystem as a whole may adapt and survive.

The City of Kent is working toward protection of Kent’s biodiversity and resilience to changes in climate by:

• Continuing focus on natural resources, open space, and critical areas maintenance and preservation
• Planting native and regionally appropriate species while preserving and increasing tree canopy and tree health
• Exploring and increasing rain gardens and other water conservation elements
• Controlling invasive plants with less toxic means and using natural systems to reduce erosion
• Testing environmentally friendly “green” cleaning supplies in parks where applicable
• Limiting irrigation and application of chemicals responsibly and to the minimum possible
• Managing water conservation and irrigation through centralized controls
• Following sustainable turf and integrated pest management practices
• Conserving existing and increasing permeable surfaces at parks and facilities (i.e. Turnkey Park)
• Utilizing pollinator gardens to increase ecological resilience of communities, attract bees, butterflies, moths, flies, beetles, bats, and even hummingbirds, to improve water quality by filtering stormwater and runoff and to help reduce the heat island effect
• Using drought tolerant, slower growing and wear resistant varieties of grass seed which require less water and fertilizer and less frequent mowing
• Introducing both non-maintained and low-maintenance areas throughout system
• Employing best practices for Low Impact Development (LID) and Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) wherever possible

Pollinator & Rain Gardens

Pollinator gardens are designed to contain plants which provide food and shelter to animals that pollinate plants and support the local ecosystem. The City of Kent has a formal pollinator garden at West Fenwick Park and informal pollinator gardens at Springwood Park and Clark Lake Park.

In addition, the city has formal rain gardens at Turnkey Park and Neely Soames Homestead, which is a depressed area in the landscape that collects rainwater from a roof, driveway or street and allows it to soak into the ground, reducing the heat island effect.

Pollinator habitat and native plants do much more than just support pollinators. They also:

• Increase ecological and climate resilience of communities
• Attract bees, butterflies, moths, flies, beetles, bats and birds
• Improve water quality by filtering stormwater and runoff
• Reduce the heat island effect
• Are low maintenance and water efficient

Planted with grasses and flowering perennials, rain gardens can also be a cost effective and beautiful way to reduce runoff from your property. Rain gardens can also help filter out pollutants in runoff and provide food and shelter for butterflies, songbirds and other wildlife.  

Native Vegetation

Plants form the foundation of the habitat for many different species,  supporting other animals and our environment.

When the plants and insects that form the base of our wild food chain are present in higher numbers, and when shelter and habitat are better connected across the landscape, wildlife populations are more resilient to changes in the climate.

Creating urban landscapes using native plants restores ecological functions and values. The vigorous root zones of our native plants can improve soil stability during heavy rainstorms, for example. Our urban streetscapes, city parks, regional trails, and vegetative stormwater facilities are ideal spaces for incorporating native plant communities. Native plants help to capture and infiltrate stormwater, thus improving water quality while providing habitat and biodiversity.

Our Parks Department utilizes native and resilient plants where they can in park designs and landscapes. By greening and enhancing our landscapes with native plants, the city can absorb carbon, reduce urban temperatures, provide habitat that supports pollinators and many other animals, and create connections between larger patches of habitat that will allow pollinators to move through our communities.

In addition to supporting a greater diversity and abundance of bees, and vastly more species of butterfly and moth caterpillars, native plants are typically better adapted to local conditions, making them easier to grow and more likely to survive. 

Aquatic Invasive Weeds

The reduction of aquatic invasive weeds from the city’s lakes is crucial. All three lakes (Lake Fenwick, Lake Meridian and Panther Lake) with public access have experienced growth of non-native and often invasive aquatic vegetation.

Problematic species include Eurasian watermilfoil, Brazilian elodea and water lily.  Not only are aquatic weeds a problem for boats and swimmers, but they also tend to reduce dissolved oxygen to levels below what fish need. The city completed a project to improve the Hypolimnetic Aerator at Lake Fenwick in 2023, which will maintain oxygen levels for fish and help reduce bacteria.

Hypolimnetic oxygenation and aeration have been successfully used in lakes and reservoirs as physical controls to maintain oxygen levels in bottom waters while avoiding warming.

Urban Forests

Kent’s urban forest is a valuable asset that provides residents and visitors with many ecological, environmental and community benefits. Today, our urban forests consist of the native forest remnants left from farming and urbanization, as well as any trees that have since been planted as ornamentals, shading trees and those that act as a food source.

Urban forest resources include the overall tree canopy cover, which includes both private and public-owned trees and the community urban forest, a subset that is comprised of the public-owned trees on streets, in parks and at city facilities.

The city requires private development to comply with landscaping requirements (Chapter 15.07 KCC). These regulations provide minimum standards for landscaping to maintain and protect property values, enhance the general appearance of the city and encourage low impact development (LID) for stormwater management.

Currently, the city’s Public Works department oversees the management of community trees on rights-of-way, natural resource areas, and at city facilities while our Parks department manages community trees in park and other open space properties.

Management Plan

The city's Urban Forestry Management Plan (PUFMP) was developed to address stewardship obligations with a strategic focus on one of the few city assets with the potential to appreciate over time rather than depreciate.

Urban forests are all the trees and woody shrubs growing within an urban area, while community trees are the trees on public property within a city. This plan focuses on park trees (a subset of community trees) and includes goals that support the City’s vision for all community and privately managed trees. 

Our Parks department manages community trees on over 1200 acres of parks and open spaces in Kent. In 2019, a tree inventory of our Parks department properties was initiated to collect information on species, conditions and maintenance needs. 

The data collected through July 2020 shows that at current resource levels, it would take 20 years to address all required tree removals and replanting, and 30 years to address all known tree pruning and maintenance needs on parks properties.  In light of this, our Parks department developed its first Urban Forestry Plan, which recommends keys strategies to help advance forestry goals.  

Tree Canopy

Tree canopy refers to the layer of leaves, branches and stems of trees and other woody plants that cover the ground when viewed from above.

Understanding the location and extent of the tree canopy is critical to developing and implementing sound management strategies that will promote the smart growth and resilience of Kent’s urban forest and the invaluable services it provides.

A tree canopy assessment examines tree cover (public and private) from a bird’s-eye-view and includes consideration of tree canopy along with other primary land cover, including impervious surface, low-lying vegetation, bare soils and water.

In 2018, the King Conservation District engaged 15 cities to conduct a district-wide Tree Canopy Assessment with the goal to conserve existing tree canopy and growing green infrastructure. The assessment produced land cover data for each participating community, including Kent.

Kent encompasses 21,995 acres over the total study area, which included both public and private property. Results from the assessment showed that Kent’s tree canopy covers 6,129 acres, which is 28% of the total area. 

Compared to the other 14 cities, Kent’s tree canopy fell below both the average (34%) and median (30%) of the results.  However, Kent’s numbers are comparable to other cities in the Valley.  As the map demonstrates, Kent’s overall percentage of tree canopy is skewed by the significant building and lot coverage of the Kent Industrial Valley.  As the graphic below explains, 47% of Kent's land area is “unsuitable” for tree canopy. 

Despite the canopy coverage resulting of the impervious surface found in the Kent Industrial Valley, Kent has demonstrated its commitment to caring for its urban forest as a Tree City USA community since 2002. 

The Tree City USA program provides a framework for communities to manage and grow the public trees. Kent was also an active member of the Green Cities Partnership from 2009 to 2019. Organized by Forterra, the Green Cities Partnership helps local municipalities in the region develop community-based stewardship programs to care for forests and natural areas in urban environments.  

The Parks department manages city parks and trails, community facilities including the Senior Center and Kent Commons, a golf course and undeveloped open spaces acquired for park purposes that are yet to be developed.

Spread across 1,287 acres (about 6% of Kent’s total land area), these properties range in size from less than an acre to 140 acres. Results from the 2018 tree canopy assessment show that Parks properties account for 10% of the overall tree canopy in Kent.

With an average canopy coverage of 49.2%, Parks properties range from mostly natural areas with dense forest vegetation to ballparks and open spaces with mainly standalone trees. Of the larger, forested properties, Mill Creek Canyon Earthworks Park has the highest canopy cover of 90.2%, while Lake Fenwick Park has an 85.1% coverage.

Parks with smaller canopy coverage may have potential area that is available for future plantings, while parks with higher canopy coverage need active management to maintain their health.

Community Programs

Green Kent

The Green Kent Partnership is building a sustainable network of healthy urban greenspace for the benefit and enjoyment of current and future generations by bringing 1,189 acres of Kent’s parks and natural areas into active management over the next 20 years.

Although this is an ambitious task, it is crucial to the health of our forested parks, wetlands, streams, and meadows, as well as our city, and it is possible only with the help of an engaged and empowered community.

In 2009, The City of Kent and Cascade Land Conservancy formed a partnership to help make Kent’s vision of a sustainable, healthy urban environment a reality. Kent’s natural areas face the same kinds of pressures and problems as urban natural areas throughout the Puget Sound region, including fragmentation, an invasive dominated understory that inhibits native species from regenerating, a declining tree canopy, illegal activity and inadequate resources for natural-area management and restoration.

These pressures diminish the benefits provided by our valuable urban natural areas; which include reducing stormwater runoff, improving water and air quality, creating attractive communities and increasing property values, reducing greenhouse gas, and providing habitat for native wildlife.

Our vision is a city with invasive-free, sustainable parks and natural areas. Kent’s urban forest, wetlands, meadows and streams will be supported by an aware and engaged community in which individuals, neighborhoods, nonprofits, businesses and city government all work together to protect and maintain their valuable public resources.

Since the program was adopted by the City Council in September 2009, the Green Kent Partnership has been working with the people, organizations and city departments interested in active natural-area management and stewardship in Kent.

These groups will help carry this plan into the future. The City hopes that the Green Kent Partnership will be a model for the future management of private property in our city and of the many additional acres of valuable urban natural areas in other cities like this one.

Planet Protector Summit

The city hosts an annual Planet Protectors Summit at Green River College for 3^rd to 5^th grade students.  What started as a Water Festival in the year 2000, has grown into the more robust Planter Protectors summit. Since the first Water Festival, nearly 30,000 students have been educated on several aspects of the natural environment.

Students have learned about the water cycle, water quality, habitat, recycling, littering, water systems, wetlands, bugs, animals native to the Pacific Northwest, pollution and how they directly relate to the importance of healthy water sources for humans and the fish and other wildlife that live in and around them.  These topics are important for students to understand climate change and how they can mitigate potential impacts within their own community.  

Parks Conservation Events

Kent Parks hosts several events throughout the year which give residents the opportunity to volunteer and participate in proactive environmental conservation projects that help improve our natural areas.

Earth Day

On Earth Day, staff and volunteers remove invasive blackberry bushes from areas around the city, such as the forest understory at Clark Lake Park.

Conservation Day

On Conservation Day, staff and registered volunteers work to remove invasive blackberry and spread mulch around understory native plants that were planted during the winter.

Orca Recovery Day

On Orca Recovery Day, staff and volunteers in partnership with Green River Coalition help our orca population by restoring riparian habitat along the Green River. They remove invasive species and plant native trees and shrubs which improve conditions for salmon, a critical food source for orca.

Arbor Day

On Arbor Day, staff and volunteers plant trees and bushes, remove invasive blackberry, and spread mulch around previously planted trees to repress weed growth and help native plants retain moisture.

ReLEAF in Kent

At these events, staff and volunteers work to remove invasive species and plant native trees and shrubs. This work will help to restore the riparian habitat and improve river conditions, plus help keep areas healthy, beautiful and thriving.