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BUSINESS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
YAKIMA, WASHINGTON
AGENDA STATEM ENT
Item No. 7.
For Meeting of: May 4, 2021
ITEM TITLE: Discussion of a motion to approve plan for habitat seed from
Pheasants Forever
SUBMITTED BY: Robert Harrison, City Manager
SUMMARY EXPLANATION:
At the April 20, 2021 Council business meeting, staff was directed to add this item to the May 4
agenda.
ITEM BUDGETED:
STRATEGIC PRIORITY:
APPROVED FOR SUBMITTAL BY THE CITY MANAGER
RECOMMENDATION:
Direct City staff to work with Pheasants Forever to potentially distribute seeds in an area by the
WWTP and place a placard in the area.
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Upload Date Type
D request 4/21/2021 r Me
Yakima Valley Chapter 311
Pheasants Forever, Inc.
PHEASANTS
eye/
March 24, 2021
Yakima City Council
City of Yakima
129 North 2nd Street
Yakima, WA 98901
Yakima City Council Members;
The Pheasants Forever Yakima Valley Chapter 311's primary mission is to promote
conservation and habitat practices. The chapter has funded and donated resources for habitat
development in the Yakima Valley to enhance and sustain wildlife populations over the last 25 plus
years,having planted over 10,000 acres of habitat in the Yakima Valley.
Every year fire, fueled by cheatgrass and kosha, creates an eye-sore,potential erosion and
loss of habitat to wildlife in our area.
Over the last few years, we have been working with the Washington Department of Fish and
Wildlife's Regional Private Lands Biologist to develop a pollinator seed mix which would thrive in
the Yakima Valley semi-arid desert environment.
You might ask what a pollinator is, and why are they important.
A pollinator is anything that helps carry pollen from the male part of the flower
(stamen) to the female part of the same or another flower(stigma). The movement of pollen
must occur for the plant to become fertilized and produce fruits, seeds, and young plants. Some
plants are self-pollinating, while others may be fertilized by pollen carried by wind or water'.
Animal pollinators are needed for the reproduction of 90% of flowering plants and one third of
human food crops (like tree fruits, apples, cherries,peaches). Pollinators include bees, butterflies,
moths, beetles, flies, birds, and bats. Each of us depends on pollinators in a practical way to provide
us with the wide range of foods we eat. In addition,pollinators are part of the intricate web that
supports the biological diversity in natural ecosystems that helps sustain our quality of life. After
the wild pollinator seed mix has produced its seeds, the seeds and remnant plant become forage for
wildlife, like deer and birds,both upland and waterfowl. The mix that we have developed has
excellent fire-resistant plants with varying blooms from early spring until fall. The mix offers plants
that are a food source to all types of wildlife, from bees to deer, throughout the year.
' Source www.ups.gov>subjects>pollinators
2 www.nres.usda.gov> wps>portal
Yakima County Chapter 311 would like to offer the following seed mix blend offeiing to the
City of Yakima, to be spread over burn areas.
Common Name Seeds/# PLS#s EOquiv Seeds/ft2
Beeflower, yellow 100,500 0.15 2.4 0.346
Blanket Flower 182,802 0.4 6.4 1.679
Globemallow,scarlet 500,000 0.1 1.6 1.148
Sunflower, Annual 67,333 0.5 8 0.773
Sweetclover, White 259,500 0.2 3.2 1.191
Sweetclover,Yellow 260,400 0.2 3.2 1.196
Winterfat 122,000 0.2 3.2 0.56
Yarrow 2,657,752 0.15 2.4 9.152
Bluegrass, Sandberg 986,740 0.22 3.52 4.984
Wheatgrass,Snake 135,925 0.8 12.8 2.496
River
These ratios represent approximately '/2 acre ofgroundcover.
As the seeds are wild, it may take a year or two for propagation, but they should, over time,
conquer the invasive species that burn so readily.
With the fire-resistant features and long seasoned rotating bloom it is our hope that areas that
every year turn brown and are subject to fire will be replaced with a nurturing habitat for wildlife
and be a pleasant reminder of the cooperation between a non-profit and the City to improve our
environment.
Our chapter members would work to distribute seed with volunteers from within the
community at no cost to the city, and the seed would be donated by the Pheasants Forever Yakima
Valley Chapter 311. We currently have several acres of seed available for donation.
We have identified an area by the Yakima Water Treatment facility that was subject to a burn
and would be visible the public from I-82.
It would be an honor if the Yakima City Council would allow the PF Chapter to place a
placard in the area/s that we plant as recognition of our gift to the community.
We seek the council's permission and approval of this effort.
Please advise us of the decision, as you know any precipitation, we receive this spring is
likely to occur in the next month. Even with that the seeds may not thrive this year but should again,
over time deliver as anticipated.
We thank you in advance for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Board of Directors
Pheasants Forever Yakima Valley Chapter 311