FY14 Continued Dungeness (and ESU) Salmon Recovery Planning and Coordination

This ongoing project supported staff in the following areas:

(a) Design & planning of riparian habitat restoration & protection projects for streams & tributaries in the Dungeness & Sequim Bay watersheds. Tribal staff collaborated with partners on, as well as performed project management on its own, riparian habitat protection and restoration projects. This included providing technical support to partners on the Dungeness Levee Setback Project, which continued in its design phase. It also supported Tribal staff in conducting project management at a floodplain restoration and protection site in a mid-river reach of the Dungeness, as well as participation in planning, design and coordination of riparian project that resulted (with non-project funding) in installation of 11 logjams in the upper Dungeness watershed. Additionally, the Tribe was able to update its Recommended Land Protection Strategies for the Dungeness Riparian Area, a planning document for the Tribe and others for ongoing protection and restoration of riparian areas along the Dungeness River.

[Worktype: Coordination of implementation of a recovery plan].

In June, the Tribe obtained annual aerial photos for use in riparian planning efforts (e.g. tracking shoreline development or areas in need of protection, tracking shoreline erosion, etc.).

[Worktype: Habitat survey using remote sensing].

(b) Technical assistance by Tribal staff to restoration partners within various ESA-listed salmon recovery and watershed planning forums. The Tribe continued leading the monthly Dungeness River Management Team, which heard updates and discussed many salmon recovery, habitat restoration, and water supply topics relevant to the Dungeness watershed, including many projects led and presented by the Tribe. Tribal staff also participated in North Olympic Peninsula Lead Entity, which reviews potential restoration and protection projects, and Hood Canal Coordinating Council meetings, and planning and technical review meetings related to Dungeness Levee Setback Design.

[Worktypes: Coordination of implementation of a recovery plan; Evaluation of restoration plans/projects].

(c) Continued coordination of tribal activities related to ESA-listed salmonid recovery, and directed work by the Point-No-Point Treaty Council (Treaty Council). Treaty Council activities supported with this PCSRF allocation mainly included participation in the Hood Canal Coordinating Council, participating in the Citizens Advisory Group for the Lead Entity process, and in meetings of the Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Council, as well as the Treaty Rights at Risk initiative. Work tasks included evaluation applications for proposed habitat restoration and protection projects, project site visits, providing testimony at HCCB meetings, and scoring and ranking projects. Point-No-Point staff also attended Strait Ecosystem Recovery Network meetings, in which participants worked to submit documents (related to the Action Agenda) to the Puget Sound Partnership.

[Worktypes: Coordination of implementation of a recovery plan; evaluation/analysis of restoration plans and projects].

a) Design and planning of riparian habitat restoration and protection projects for streams and tributaries in the Dungeness and Sequim Bay watersheds. This planning work targets critical habitat parcels and stream reaches in efforts to halt or reverse the decline of healthy riparian corridor habitat. Benefits include:
• Eventual riparian and habitat improvements in lower Dungeness River.
• Spawning, rearing and refugia habitat improvements in the lower river diked reach.
• A better understanding of riparian planning needs and habitat changes by comparing aerial photos over time.

Dungeness riparian corridor restoration (including land protection strategies for specific riparian parcels), Dungeness floodplain restoration (including dike setbacks), lower Dungeness River restoration and large woody debris installation are all among the 10 strategic elements for recovery listed in the Dungeness Chapter of the Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Plan. Aerial photography is included in the “summary of Dungeness monitoring program” within the Dungeness Chapter of the Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Plan. As noted in APPENDIX A of the Puget Sound Chinook Salmon Recovery Plan, funding for staff capacity is an ongoing need to work on the numerous policies, programs and additional planning and coordination needed to move the entire Recovery Plan forward, especially with regard to enhancing habitat regulatory protections and incentive programs.

b) Technical assistance by Tribal staff to restoration partners within various ESA-listed salmon recovery and watershed planning forums.
The Tribe’s involvement in coordinating recovery projects with the community and local and federal agencies helps sustain partnerships and provide for efficiencies in accomplishing salmon recovery goals. Recommendations in the local watershed plan and the Recovery Plan are intended to improve water quality, in-stream habitat, in-stream flows, and aid in salmon recovery. On a regional scale, our continued participation in activities related to the Puget Sound Partnership, and the many other ongoing planning and salmon management forums, keeps us informed about and gives the Tribe a stronger voice in decision-making related to regional salmon recovery. Instream flow improvement is one of the 10 strategic elements for recovery listed in the Dungeness Chapter of the PS Salmon Recovery Plan, so participation in related forums is essential.

c) Continued coordination of tribal activities related to ESA-listed salmonid restoration, and directed work by the Point-No-Point Treaty Council (Treaty Council).
The planning/coordination activities conducted by Point-No-Point help protect natural resources and therefore tribal fishing opportunities, which directly address tribal treaty fishing rights.