DESCRIPTION
Effective salmon recovery requires the restoration and protection of fish habitats. Thurston County stream buffer width requirements are based on watertype. Existing watertype maps demonstrably under-represent the extent of fish and fish habitat, and many streams are mapped incorrectly or not at all. Consequently, many stream channels that warrant protection may not receive appropriate buffers. Wild Fish Conservancy (WFC) will determine and correct water type classifications in ~40 miles of streams in prioritized portions of WRIA 14 using established protocols. In addition to providing data to ensure informed and responsible management of these watersheds, this assessment will assist with habitat restoration and protection project identification and prioritization efforts by providing data on fish species composition and distribution via field observations and use of eDNA, and by identifying the five highest priority habitat restoration projects encountered during the assessment. WFC will work with project sponsors to develop and implement identified projects in subsequent SRFB rounds. WFC will incorporate assessment results in a web-based interactive GIS available to resource managers and the general public. Data formats will be compatible with State, County, City, and Tribal datasets. This project will complement WFC's SRFB-funded Phase III WRIA 13 Watertype Assessment.
Effective salmon recovery requires the restoration and protection of fish habitats. Mason County stream buffer width requirements are based on watertype. Existing watertype maps demonstrably under-represent the extent of fish and fish habitat, and many streams are mapped incorrectly or not at all. Consequently, many stream channels that warrant protection may not receive appropriate buffers. Wild Fish Conservancy (WFC) determined and corrected water type classifications in ~281 miles of streams in prioritized portions of WRIA 14 (Johns, Goldsborough, Harsteine Island and Sherwood subbbasins) using established protocols. WFC also collected eDNA samples which were tested for presence of chinook, rainbow/steelhead, and coho DNA. eDNA results are included in a final report, and are also available on an interactive web map here: https://wildfishconservancy.carto.com/viz/88884c9a-1868-46bc-8a6a-fc91ebffeb10/public_map
A $15,000 cost amendment (with a $5700 increase in match) was requested and received to address an accounting error and increase the geographic scope of the project (we exceeded our target mileage three-fold).
The project benefits all salmonid species, including steelhead, Coho, Chum, and Cutthroat. In addition to providing data to ensure informed and responsible management of these watersheds, this assessment assists with habitat restoration and protection project identification and prioritization efforts by providing data on fish species composition and distribution via field observations and use of eDNA, and by identifying the nine high priority habitat restoration projects encountered during the assessment. WFC will work with project sponsors to develop and implement identified projects in subsequent SRFB rounds. WFC will incorporate assessment results in a web-based interactive GIS available to resource managers and the general public. Data formats will be compatible with state, county, city, and tribal datasets. This project will complement WFC's other SRFB-funded Watertype Assessments.