FY 2017 Stillaguamish Riparian Restoration

The project provided funding for 6 acres of riparian/floodplain planting and invasive species control on land bordering Chinook spawning and rearing habitat on the North Fork Stillaguamish and Segelsen Creek. Project activities occurred on the newly acquired, 94-acre ANNO property. PCSRF FY17 funds were used to control invasive plants (primarily Himalayan blackberry, creeping thistle, and reed canary grass) and install 2,400 native trees and shrubs on the property. Invasive plants were controlled using power and hand tools along with targeted herbicide application. The 6 acres of floodplain/riparian habitat restoration occurred along 0.23 miles of streambank.

The ANNO parcels targeted for this project are in the first priority riparian restoration areas listed in the 2005 Stillaguamish Chinook Recovery Plan, which calls for over 8000 acres of riparian restoration by 2055. The proposed project will make incremental progress towards these goals and will primarily benefit Puget Sound (Stillaguamish) Chinook. However, the habitat improved by the proposed project is also home to ESA threatened Steelhead and Bull trout populations, in addition to Chum, Coho, Sockeye, and Pink salmon populations.