This instream and riparian habitat enhancement project was implimented by the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association (NSEA). The aggregate area of channel islands in the North Fork Nooksack has been decreasing dramatically since the mid-1990s. The disappearance of channel islands implies a reduction in the protected back channels that provide the best rearing habitat for juvenile salmonids, and in the case of larger back channels, the best spawning habitat as well. Since the population of returning chinook adults can be closely related to the flood intensity during the incubation and rearing phases of their life cycle, we expect that a shift in habitat towards more protected back channels will have a demonstrable, positive effect on population abundance (Hyatt 2007). The objective of the project was to provide stable spawning and rearing habitat for ESA listed Chinook salmon and other salmonid species by protecting and enhancing channel islands in a 5 mile reach of the North Fork Nooksack River located near Kendall in Whatcom County. 16 existing LWD accumulations at the upstream extent and lateral margins of 2 existing North Fork channel islands were augmented by the addition of LWD and stabilized using pilings. The structures were designed to collect and trap additional wood during floods to encourage island growth, maturity, and stability