WA Awards Nearly $1M To Pierce County Salmon Restoration Projects

OLYMPIA, WA — The Washington State Salmon Recovery Funding Board is awarding $21 million in grants to support efforts to aid salmon recovery.

The grants, announced this week, will go to 105 projects in 29 counties, including seven in Pierce County. The funding board says the money will help restore salmon habitat, remove barriers blocking salmon spawns, and conserve existing habitat threatened by development.

“Salmon are important to every Washingtonian, whether they spend time fishing, eat salmon, rely on salmon for their business or use salmon in their cultural celebrations,” said Gov. Jay Inslee in a written statement. “It’s imperative that we improve the areas salmon need, and these grants help do that.”

Pierce County's seven salmon restoration projects are receiving a total of $983,062 in grants. They are:

Buying Land to Conserve Nisqually River Floodplain, Nisqually Land Trust

The first of three projects from the Nisqually Land Trust will use grant money to conserve 36 acres of land along the middle reach of the Nisqually River. The land rests upstream of the confluence with Tanwax Creek, and is used by Chinook salmon and steelhead trout, both of which are listed as threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.

Conserving Lower Ohop Creek, Nisqually Land Trust

The Nisqually Land Trust's second proposal will buy up to 120 acres in the lower Ohop Valley to restore lower Ohop Creek. The land includes about 0.3 miles of the Otop Creek's banks and 11.5 acres of floodplain, both of which are used by salmon.

Conserving the Nisqually River at McKenna Reach, Nisqually Land Trust

Finally, the Nisqually Land Trust will conserve 12 acres along the Nisqually River, including a quarter mile along the Pierce County side of the McKenna reach. The conservation effort will protect existing Chinook salmon and steelhead trout populations.

Tracking Migrating Puyallup River Salmon, Puyallup Tribe of Indians

The Puyallup Tribe will use its grant to track young salmon as they leave the Puyallup River, to better understand the current salmon population and migration patterns. Organizers say that data will be critical for improving the health of the salmon living in the Puyallup River watershed.

Designing Restoration of the Mashel River, South Puget Sound Salmon Enhancement Group

The Salmon Enhancement Group will use its grant to design two restoration projects for the mouth of the Mashel River. One will remove bridge abutments, bank armoring, and restore floodplains and side channels. The other will place logs in the river, creating places for the fish to rest, feed, and hide from predators.

Restoring Greenwater River, South Puget Sound Salmon Enhancement Group

The South Puget Sound Salmon Enhancement Group's other project will remove up to 3,000 cubic yards of floodplain fill, armoring, and fill from roads and bridge crossings near the mouth of Midnight Creek. Organizers say filling in the waterways has created a bottleneck for salmon, limiting fish migration. This proposal will also place logs in the water, again giving salmon space to eat, rest and hide.

Buying Land for the Pacific Pointbar Levee Setback Project, City of Sumner

The City of Sumner has embarked upon a plan to purchase a half acre of land on the right bank of the White River. There, it will move a levee, creating an important rearing habitat for young salmon — something that is almost nonexistent in the lower White River.

“This funding provides the foundation for efforts to protect and restore the habitat our salmon and steelhead depend upon,” said Jeff Breckel, chair of the Salmon Recovery Funding Board. “It supports the work of many dedicated individuals and organizations and leverages additional government and private funding. These grants are one of our best tools for reversing the decline of salmon populations. Without this funding, we simply wouldn’t be able to save salmon, which are such a critical part of our Northwest culture, economy and quality of life.”

According to the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office, Washington's fish population declined as the human population grew until, at the end of the twentieth century, nearly three-fourths of the state's wild salmon and steelhead population were threatened or endangered. In the decades since, restoring the salmon population has become a priority for state environmentalists, and not just for the salmon's sake: 138 other species, from Southern Resident killer whales to flies, rely on salmon for food. Salmon fishing also supports 16,000 Washington jobs.