DESCRIPTION
In Clallam County, there are currently two evolutionarily significant units proposed as threatened, and other salmon stocks believed to be critically depressed are candidates for listing consideration. Since the early 90's Clallam Conservation District has been involved in stream enhancement/restoration activities to improve water quality and fish habitat for rearing and spawning. We have a crew of field workers who were hired four years ago under the Fisher Assistance Grant and the Jobs for the Environment programs, and we have been able to retain them through other grant projects. The District has erected thousands of feet of livestock exclusion fence, installed stream crossings and alternative watering facilities, planted almost a hundred acres of riparian corridor, and implemented over 43,000' of instream fish improvements. The District administered approximately $2.5 million in restoration funds over the last 5 years. The District is 97% funded by competitive grants that do not support project monitoring, watershed planning, assessment, inventories, project prioritization or participation on Technical Assistance Groups, 2496 Committees, etc. This request is not to hire additional staff, but to allow the present staff to monitor planned and existing projects by smolt trapping, spawner surveys and collecting GPS data on instream structures both constructed and natural to build a GIS database for long-term monitoring.