Restoration of the shoreline vegetation around Cayou Lagoon, and removal of blockages to fish passage in Fish Trap Creek. These restoration actions will support increased function in the estuary of Deer Harbor, and compliment actions to restore tidal flow in the Deer Harbor Bridge Replacement project.

The estuary restoration portion of the project was partially funded in the 2007 SRFB round to address one fish passage barrier and to do some riparian plantings.
This project has been split into two projects:
II-3 a) Deer Harbor Estuary Habitat Restoration is the estuary and creek restoration work.
II-3 b) Deer Harbor Bridge Replacement is the bride replacement work.
The Deer Harbor Estuary is the largest estuary on Orcas Island. Up until the mid 20th Century, the estuary supported a chum and coho salmon run as well as native oyster beds. Beginning in the 1860s, forest clearing and development in the Deer Harbor watershed, manipulation of the tributary streams and, especially, the construction of the Channel Road Bridge altered the freshwater hydrology, vegetation communities, sediment dynamics, and tidal flow patterns in the estuary. These impacts have led to the elimination of shellfish populations in the lagoon, elimination of salmon rearing and spawning habitat in the tributaries, and degradation of salmon feeding habitat in the estuary.
The general goal for restoring estuary habitat functions at the Deer Harbor Estuary is to correct,
to the extent practicable, the man-made conditions that have caused the degradation of the
estuary’s salmon habitat and overall aquatic ecology. Four specific objectives for meeting the
general goal were identified:
1. Remove fish passage blockages at the mouths of the tributary creeks
2. Restore natural shading along the shoreline of the lagoon
3. Eliminate on-going accumulation of fine sediment in the lagoon
4. Restore tidal hydraulics and sediment transport in the lagoon
The Deer Harbor Bridge on Channel Road is a timber bridge constructed in 1971, which restricts the natural flow from the Deer Harbor estuary. There is an interest among multiple agencies to restore the 20 acre estuary to its original condition which will require construction of a longer span bridge. San Juan County Public Works plans to replace the bridge in the next 5-10 years, but the work is contingent on funding for the replacement bridge. The County is willing to speed up the work if funding is available. The bridge replacement project is on the PSNERP list to potentially receive federal funding and a 35% design has been completed.