DESCRIPTION
Pacific Coast Salmon Coalition proposes to improve fish passage to high quality, high quantity off-channel juvenile salmonid rearing habitat at a former WDFW SSHEAR fishway worksite; Rayonier Channel; and return it to naturally maintaining conditions with natural processes (see overall project map in attachments). This project site was identified as High Priority in the Off Channel Assessment & Design (#20-1249) after assessing all 55 SSHEAR Sites in the Olympic Peninsula.
The Pacific Coast Salmon Coalition proposes to restore fish passage and enhance juvenile salmonid rearing habitat at four high-priority sites identified through the Off-Channel Habitat Assessment and Design (OCHAD) project (#20-1249). These sites; Lear Springs, Mosley Springs, Nolan Channel, and Rayonier Channel, were prioritized after evaluating 55 SSHEAR legacy fishway sites across the Olympic Peninsula. Located within WRIA 20 in the Hoh and Bogachiel River watersheds, these tributary and off-channel habitats are vital for coho salmon, steelhead, and cutthroat trout. Restoration efforts will remove degraded plank and log controls, replace culverts, reintroduce large woody debris, and stabilize riparian zones. These actions will reconnect fragmented habitats, improve water quality, and restore natural processes to ensure sustainable ecological recovery. Grant funds will support construction, riparian restoration, and long-term monitoring to return these sites to naturally maintaining conditions, providing year-round benefits to salmonid populations during critical life stages.
