The Skagit Watershed Riparian Stewardship Project represented a partnership between SFEG, Skagit River System Cooperative (SRSC), and conservation landowners in the Skagit River basin. The purpose of this project was to restore habitat and water quality for Chinook salmon and other species by actively restoring native riparian and floodplain forest vegetation on a number of sites throughout the Skagit River watershed. Sites were identified based on the following criteria: 1. Located in floodplain areas adjacent to mainstem, side channel, or off-channel habitats that are likely to be used by Chinook salmon 2. Had limited or impaired native vegetation conditions, and typically contain invasive species 3. Located on public or conservation property Property owners included Seattle City Light (SCL), United States Forest Service (USFS), Skagit Land Trust (SLT), and Skagit County Parks. This project targeted Chinook salmon, but chum, pink, coho, and sockeye salmon, and steelhead, cutthroat, and bull trout were also present within many of these reaches. Floodplain areas and associated side channels provide important complex habitats utilized by juvenile Chinook salmon because they provide opportunities for forage and refuge. Conifer species were desirable in riparian zones because they decay more slowly and function in a river or stream channel for much longer than hardwood species, providing large key pieces of woody debris that provide the structure needed within the channel and to anchor large log jams. Restoring native riparian and floodplain vegetation also provided shade, cover, and nutrients, improved water quality by reducing sedimentation, and provided edge habitat complexity for Chinook salmon and other species that were found in the Skagit River Watershed. Planting efforts involved developing a vegetation management plan for each of the sites based on a review of invasive species currently present, historic vegetation and local reference sites with an emphasis on restoring conifer tree species. Planting strategies distinguished between reforestation and underplanting at each site. Reforestation included the replanting of largely unforested areas (pastures, clearings), and typically a diversity of native species is planted at a density of 500 plants per acre. Work included substantial site preparation, weed control, and the use of plant protectors. Underplanting occurred in partially forested areas, where conifer species were typically planted at a density of 150-250 trees per acre, generally with less site preparation and often without tree protectors. At all sites, once the trees are planted, they were maintained for at least three years, which included control of competitive invasive vegetation with herbicides and/or manual weed removal. The original project agreement included work at the Lyman Sough worksite, where invasive knotweed was rampant along channel margins. The neighboring property upstream of the project area would not allow treatment of the knotweed infestation and thus, we needed to readjust the project. Instead, we conducted maintenance on the Hough project site, which was originally owned by the Nature Conservancy, but deeded over to the Skagit Land Trust in 2016. No worked was preformed on South Cascade or Kuo as additional funding was not leveraged to begin work on those projects. The Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group managed the project and served as project lead. Planting and maintenance work was completed by Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group and Skagit River System Cooperative, often using contract crews from the Washington Conservation Corps (WCC) and Whatcom County Corrections Crew (WCCC). The contract crews were a cost effective means of implementing planting projects, as the crew value was substantially greater than the crew cost, and thus was applied towards match. SFEG also worked with SLT to organize work parties at sites suitable for volunteers, accruing match from volunteer efforts and/or from plants donated via SFEG’s ALEA Community Planting grant.