Stream Watch Volunteer Salmon Habitat Protection Program

During the summers of 2014 and 2015, Streamwatch volunteers were recruited and trained to work on three distinct waterways of the Kenai Peninsula: the Russian River confluence with the Kenai River, the Lower Kenai River, and the mouth of the Kasilof River. Freshwater sport fishing users were the target population of the Russian River and the lower Kenai River sites; a personal use fishery user group was the target of the Kasilof River site and constituted a distinctly different population of users. The issues of habitat protection, safe fish carcass disposal and fish handling were at the core of most volunteer-user contacts. Thousands of pounds of litter and used fishing line were properly disposed of due to this project and over 12 km of habitat protection fencing was installed (please note that fences do not run parallel to the river but follow the contours of paths and river access points, resulting in more miles of fencing than miles of stream treated). A suitable fish passage improvement project did not manifest during the project period, so the volunteers installed 46 m of spruce tree revetments for bank stabilization and fish habitat instead. Specifically, treatments were applied to each river as follows:
Russian River: Instream debris removal and habitat fencing
Kasilof River: Estuarine and instream debris removal and habitat fencing
Kenai River: Instream debris removal, habitat fencing, and bank restoration/stabilization

This project includes funding from PCSRF grants NA11NMF4380268 and NA13NMF4380259. The original end date was erroneously set for one year after the project was meant to be completed.

Under the direction of coordinators, Stream Watch volunteers will complete a myriad of salmon habitat conservation and restoration projects along the Kenai, Kasilof, and Russian rivers including the removal of debris and fish passage barriers and the installation of fencing to protect riparian and instream habitat. These rivers experience heavy fishing traffic, making habitat conservation and restoration efforts key to sustaining their abundant salmon runs.