Friday, May 14, 2021

NOAA to Fund West Coast Fisheries Projects

Point No Point Estuary restoration in Washington, and documentation of coastal cutthroat trout distribution in Alaska are among the projects that will receive funding from NOAA, the agency announced earlier this month.

NOAA will fund the projects through National Fish Habitat Partnerships and will involve those in the recreational fishing community looking to restore habitats to help coastal communities and economies.

Pacific Marine and Estuarine Partnership will be the sponsoring partnership on the Point No Point Estuary Restoration project, which involves returning tidal influence to Point No Point Park by taking out a nonworking tide gate and bringing back a salt marsh habitat. This is a vital move for young Chinook salmon and to reestablish it as “a key site along migratory salmon routes in and out of Puget Sound,” according to NOAA.

North Kitsap Puget Sound Anglers and others will help gather information pre- and post-restoration for the project.

The Western Native Trout Initiative will act as the sponsoring partnership for the Documenting Coastal Cutthroat Trout Distribution in Alaska project, which involves the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the Western Native surveying possible habitats for Coastal Cutthroat Trout.

Area anglers will take genetic and tissue samples and record demographic data to help find streams where this type of trout will be.

These identified streams will be logged in the Alaska Anadromous Waters Catalog, which offers state law-protected habitat status and “conserve these important habitats at the northern and westernmost edge of the species' range,” according to NOAA. “This area is expected to become more important as the species’ range shifts due to climate change.”