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Contact: Barb Maynes, 360-565-3005 Contact: Rainey McKenna, 360-565-2985
Environmental analysis for funding the Elwha River hatchery program has been completed and a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) has been released. The National Park Service (NPS) may provide direct funding and funding recommendations for the Elwha River hatchery programs as part of the Elwha River Restoration Project. The National Park Service has adopted the December 21, 2012 final environmental assessment released by National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for the five Hatchery and Genetic Management Plans submitted by the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for the Elwha River hatchery programs. More information about this project is available online at the NPS Planning Environment and Public Comment website at https://parkplanning.nps.gov. Restoration of the Elwha River ecosystem is an investment in the future that will result in ecological, cultural and economic benefits to the Olympic Peninsula and beyond. The Elwha is the largest watershed within Olympic National Park and was once one of the most productive salmon streams in the Pacific Northwest, home to all five species of Pacific salmon, as well as other fish species. Two dams, constructed in the early 1900s, previously blocked fish from all but the lower five miles of the river. Removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dam will restore the Elwha to its natural, free-flowing condition and will once again allow fish access to over 70 river miles of habitat now protected within Olympic National Park. Dam removal began in 2011. Elwha Dam has been completely removed, and only a portion of Glines Canyon Dam still remains. More information about this project is available at https://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/elwha-ecosystem-restoration.htm. |
Last updated: February 28, 2015