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Contact: Jeanne Roy
Patten, Maine – This year, Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument will build on past efforts to restore and improve aquatic passages (culverts and bridges) for Atlantic salmon with $138,461 in funds received from the Inflation Reduction Act. This restoration project is part of a nationwide effort to restore natural habitats and address climate change impacts. In fiscal year 2023, President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, will provide $52 million to the National Park Service to fund projects throughout the country related to ecosystem resilience, restoration, and environmental planning needs.
Over the past several years, park managers and staff have built durable bridges and culverts to improve Atlantic salmon habitat that has been degraded over time through aging infrastructure and effects from flooding. The additional funding will double these efforts by increasing the number of passage improvements and habitat restorations. Atlantic salmon will have greater access to breeding grounds, food resources and cool water refugia. Improved passage will also restore natural flow regimes and will benefit sensitive wetland resources, aquatic and terrestrial habitats and recreation sites up and downstream of the projects.
“We are pleased to enhance Atlantic salmon habitat for the benefit of the greater Penobscot River watershed,” said Superintendent Mark Wimmer. “Investments from the Inflation Reduction Act will help us provide this project with needed infrastructure for many years to come.”
The projects announced today infuse much-needed funding to put people to work addressing critical ecosystem needs to restore healthy and resilient park lands while benefiting communities surrounding parks. Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, the National Park Service is working to address the impacts of the climate crisis, including intensifying drought, wildfires, flooding and legacy pollution in national parks and other public lands. Resources are making significant strategic investments to repair critical facilities and infrastructure and enhance conservation through ecosystem restoration and recreation opportunities.
The full lists of fiscal year 2023 projects are available online: IRA Restoration and Resilience projects and BIL Ecosystem Resilience projects.
About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 425 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
Last updated: August 8, 2023