Merced River Restoration in Yosemite Valley

Designated as a Wild and Scenic River in 1987 for its free-flowing waters and beauty, the Merced River in the Yosemite Valley has endured negative human impacts over the years. Riparian corridors suffer from severe erosion, riprap, or trampling by visitors. To assist with river restoration efforts, the U.S. National Parks Service (NPS) engaged us as an ecosystem restoration consultant—to provide ongoing ecosystem restoration assessment, design, and construction support.

This project’s objectives? Restore a more complex and dynamic river and tributary channels, encourage more frequent overbank flooding and off-channel flows, and restore the riparian zone. Since 2015, we’ve worked with a team to characterize the underlying causes of river impairment that guide a 10-year, multiphase restoration strategy. We’ve been providing scientific, design, and construction support to help the NPS restore several miles of the river. And we’ve provided design and construction oversight for eight projects in the Yosemite Valley—including a restoration project near Sugar Pine Bridge to re-construct historic side channels that reduce Merced River flood flow through the historic stone arch bridge.

With these river restoration efforts in place, the NPS will be able to support public use and enjoyment of this important landscape for decades to come.