The Nature Conservancy developed final designs and permits for all three phases of a 60-acre estuary restoration project located in the Skagit delta near Conway, Washington. Fish that will benefit from implementation of the design include Chinook, coho and chum salmon and bulltrout. The design included levee setbacks, installation of self-regulating tidegates and the removal of antiquated culverts and fish passage barriers. A feasibility study identifying a preferred restoration plan was completed in February 2007, a result of SRFB grant #04-1624P. As part of the final design, alternatives were evaluated against criteria for fish passage, habitat, flooding and drainage, and the alternative that maximized the benefits for all the criteria was selected for final design. In addition permit applications were submitted in preparation for construction. The engineering design predicted approximately 57 acres of freshwater tidal habitat will be restored, providing enough habitat to support the production of more than 16,000 Chinook smolts, improve water quality and improve fish access to the 22 square mile Carpenter Creek watershed. In addition, the restoration provides important flood protection benefits for residents and farmland in the watershed. The restoration of Fisher Slough was identified as a priority in the Skagit Chinook Recovery Plan, and was intended to break a long-standing deadlock between agriculture and conservation interests over estuary restoration and restore critical Chinook rearing habitat. Project partners include Dike District #3, Skagit County, the Skagit River System Cooperative, Drainage District #17 and Western Washington Agriculture Association.