Horsetail Creek, in the Columbia River Gorge, was historically a dynamic part of the Columbia River floodplain, with intact ash forest and scrub-shrub wetland vegetation habitat, and five creeks and sloughs connecting to the river that provided important habitat for salmon, steelhead and lamprey. Today, quality floodplain habitat is scarce for out-migrating salmon, and this important floodplain provides one of the last spots for these fish to rest and feed before traveling through the Portland-Vancouver Metro area where such habitat is severely limited.
The project happened over two phases.