Marbrey-Jackson Stream Restoration

Quickfacts:

This project restored approximately 2,300 linear feet of a severely incised and eroding tributary to Back Creek, located on a privately owned, permanently conserved property in Alamance County. The stream had experienced decades of degradation from historical agriculture practices and unmanaged stormwater runoff, leading to vertical downcutting, unstable banks, and poor habitat conditions.
Restoration efforts focused on regrading the stream channel to reconnect it with its natural floodplain, stabilizing eroding banks, and installing a series of in-stream structures to improve habitat complexity. Native riparian vegetation was planted throughout the corridor to reduce sedimentation, filter runoff, and support long-term ecological resilience.
The project exemplifies how voluntary conservation on private land can provide meaningful water quality improvements, habitat restoration, and land stewardship. It was completed in late 2024 and supports broader conservation goals in the Cape Fear River Basin while protecting long-term ecological integrity of the site through a permanent conservation easement.

Quickfacts:

Alamance County, North Carolina – tributary to Back Creek, Cape Fear River Basin