DESCRIPTION
This project will be coordinated with Kitsap County Public Works to design a replacement structure for two 36' salmon-blocking culverts located on Cowling Creek under Miller Bay Road NE. Open shield or conventional tunneling options will be evaluated and the most appropriate approach will be selected, field work implemented, modeling completed, culvert designs prepared, and permit applications prepared. Cowling Creek crosses under Miller Bay Road 1.5 north of Suquamish, WA. The culverts are 100% fish blockages and are located in the Miller Bay estuary. The project goal is to restore naturally spawning chum, coho, steelhead, and cutthroat populations that were historically present. The priority species historically harvested by the Suquamish Tribe from Cowling Creek were coho and steelhead. The design will restore estuary processes and habitat. The final project will accommodate sea level rise. The design will also serve to pass LWD that is recruiting upstream into the estuary and allow wildlife safely pass under the road. In recent years documented Cowling Creek road kill has included river otter, bear, beaver, mink, deer, raccoon, coyote, and mountain beaver. The project will provide recreational fishing opportunity as well as direct Tribal terminal fishery benefit. Mid Sound Fisheries will work closely with Kitsap County, the Suquamish Tribe, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and adjacent landowners.
Mid Puget Sound Fisheries Enhancement Group worked with project partners and contractors to complete a Feasibility Study for replacement of two 36” salmon-blocking culverts located on Cowling Creek where it runs under Miller Bay Road NE, about 1.5 miles north of Suquamish, WA. The stream supports Chum, Coho and Steelhead salmon, and searun cutthroat trout, and is a popular viewing location for returning salmon—with over 2,000 people viewing the salmon from that location in 2016. The existing culverts have significant challenges to replacement: they are covered by 40 feet of fill, and Miller Bay road cannot be closed due to the lack of alternative roads into the community. The feasibility study identified the minimum width of any passage option, and defined several options. The project team selected a bridge option, which would provide significant ecological benefits at a lesser cost than an appropriately-sized culvert. The final report included a 15% design for the preferred bridge alternative.
