Mat-Su Basin Salmon Habitat Partnership

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Montana Creek on National ‘Waters to Watch’ List

        2014 “WATERS TO WATCH” PROVIDE EYE FOR THE FUTURE OF FISH CONSERVATION Broadly supported conservation efforts to increase fish populations and improve habitat conditions

(Washington, DC) – The National Fish Habitat Partnership (www.fishhabitat.org) has unveiled its list of 10 “Waters to Watch” list for 2014, a collection of rivers, streams, estuaries, lakes and watershed systems that will benefit from strategic conservation efforts to protect, restore or enhance their current condition. These waters represent a detailed snapshot of this year’s locally driven voluntary habitat conservation efforts in progress implemented under the National Fish Habitat Partnership by 19 regional Fish Habitat Partnerships throughout the country.

The objective of these projects—to conserve freshwater, estuarine and marine habitats essential to the many fish and wildlife species that call these areas home—is the foundation of the National Fish Habitat Partnership. Throughout the year, through the work of our partners, these projects will demonstrate how conservation efforts are turning around persistent declines in our nation’s aquatic habitats. Having featured 80 partnership projects since 2007, these “Waters to Watch” are proving that on-the-ground conservation activities and science-based strategies are truly making a difference in improving fish habitat.

“These projects are a model for how fish habitat conservation should be approached.” said Kelly Hepler, Chair of the National Fish Habitat Board.  “Often times these projects bring partners together that otherwise may not work together.  These efforts are all about working across boundaries and jurisdictions with a wide array of partners involved, working for the greater good of habitat conservation.”

The 2014 “Waters to Watch” list and associated Fish Habitat Partnerships:

1)Bear Creek, Colorado (Western Native Trout Initiative)
2) Boardman River, Michigan (Great Lakes Basin Fish Habitat Partnership)
3) Eel River Delta, California (California Fish Passage Forum)  
4) Lake Bloomington, Illinois (Reservoir Fish Habitat Partnership)
5) Milltown Island Estuary, Washington (Pacific Marine and Estuarine Fish Habitat Partnership)
6) Montana Creek, Alaska (Mat-Su Basin Salmon Habitat Partnership)
7) Muddy River, Nevada  (Desert Fish Habitat Partnership)
8) Nash Stream, New Hampshire (Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture)
9) Tolomato River, Florida (Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership/AtlanticCostal Fish Habitat Partnership)
10) Twelvemile Creek Watershed, Alaska (Southeast Alaska Fish Habitat Partnership)

For more information on project maps and descriptions of the 10 Waters to Watch list for 2014, Visit:  http://fishhabitat.org/waters-to-watch/2014

Visit the Waters to Watch Homepage for all of our projects from 2007-2014.
Visit, http://ecosystems.usgs.gov/fishhabitat/ to use our interactive habitat data mapper.

About the National Fish Habitat Partnership:
Since 2006, the National Fish Habitat Partnership has been a partner in 417 projects in 46 states benefiting fish habitat. The National Fish Habitat Partnership works to conserve fish habitat nationwide, leveraging federal, state, tribal, and private funding resources to achieve the greatest impact on fish populations through priority conservation projects. The national partnership implements the National Fish Habitat Action Plan and supports 19 regional grassroots partner organizations. For more information visit:

 

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Alaska Online Aquatic Temperature Site (AKOATS)

AKOATS  statewide stream and lake temperature monitoring inventory is underway! Got data? Need data?

Through a grant from the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Western Alaska Landscape Conservation Cooperative (LCC), University of Alaska Anchorage’s Alaska Natural Heritage Program is developing a comprehensive statewide inventory of current and historic continuous monitoring locations for stream and lake temperature. This project is one component of the LCC’s strategy to understand potential climate impacts to freshwater systems across Alaska.

Project Details

WHAT: This project is compiling a statewide catalog of monitoring locations using a common set of attributes. Future Landscape Conservation Cooperative LCC projects will entail gathering the aquatic temperature measurement data.

Please view our DRAFT version  web map  to see the current inventory which we are updating as data become available.

WHERE: All waters of Alaska.

WHO: AKOATS hopes to gather data from federal, state, local, tribal, academic, and non-governmental agencies monitoring aquatic temperatures.

HOW:  Through a grant from the US Fish and Wildlife Service on behalf of the Western Alaska Landscape Conservation Cooperative (WALCC), we are developing a comprehensive statewide inventory of current and historic continuous monitoring locations for stream and lake temperature. This project is one component of the LCC’s strategy to understand potential climate impacts to freshwater systems across Alaska.

DATA CONTACT: If you: have collected (past), are collecting (present), or plan to collect (future) stream or lake temperature data and would like to have your sensors incorporated into AKOATS, please contact Marcus Geist at mageist@uaa.alaska.edu or 907-786-6325.  We have developed domain driven (“picklists”) standards and templates to facilitate data compilation making your participation as easy as possible.

 

 

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Pending Funding Opportunity!

Since 2006, the Mat-Su Salmon Habitat Partnership, a National Fish Habitat Partnership, has offered funds in support of salmon habitat conservation activities and priorities, as identified in the Mat-Su Salmon Partnership Strategic Action Plan .  This summer the Partnership will again be requesting proposals for funding for fiscal year 2015. Stay tuned for the announcement on this website www.matsusalmon.org, the Partnership facebook page and email list serve. To sign up for email updates contact jspeed@tnc.org.

Learn more by reading the detailed guidelines applicable to proposals submitted in 2013 for fiscal year 2014 funds.

 

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See the Partnership’s updated Strategic Action Plan!

The Mat-Su Salmon Habitat Partnership has an updated Strategic Action Plan! Originally an 18  month long process involving many individuals and organizations that was completed in 2008, we have updated our Strategic Action Plan following five years of implementation.

This Strategic Plan, identifies some primary conservation threats to salmon and their habitats in the Mat-Su Basin, and  lays out conservation goals and strategies that the Partnership, or anyone else can do to help keep wild abundant salmon the basin.

Find the Mat-Su Salmon Partnership’s 2013 Strategic Action Plan, Executive Summary and Appendices here.

Click here to learn about some of our efforts to meet the goals of the Strategic Action Plan.

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Mat-Su Salmon Symposium

Join us November 13th and 14th, 2013 for the sixth annual Mat-Su Salmon Science and Conservation Symposium!

 This year’s theme will be healthy salmon, healthy communities. Keynote speaker will be David Batker, Co-founder, Executive Director and Chief Economist of Earth Economics. The Mat-Su Salmon Science and Conservation Symposium is an annual forum to share information about salmon and their habitat in the Mat-Su Basin. Presentations span a wide range of topics – fish passage restoration projects on Mat-Su streams and assessment of their benefits to salmon; studies about geology, erosion, and salmon distribution on the Matanuska River; wetlands mapping and management; green Infrastructure planning; salmon distribution throughout the Mat-Su Basin; conservation of public lands; and more!

New location!: Palmer Community Center (Depot), 610 S. Valley Way, Palmer, Alaska.

Presentation and poster abstract submissions due by September 30th.

Please note: General registration deadline has been extended to Monday October 28th.

No cost to attend.  Lunch and snacks provided. 

Learn more at https://matsusalmon.org/what-we-do/science-symposium/2013-2/

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