https://www.facebook.com/USFWS.AK.Fisheries.Habitat

Alaska

Fisheries & Habitat

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Mission:

Working with others to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife, plants 

and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service u Spring 2013 Issue 1
In Alaska, Service employees are devoted to habitat 

conservation partnerships, research, education, and 

monitoring. This bi-annual publication showcases 

the innovative, collaborative, and enthusiastic ways 

we deliver on-the-ground conservation and, more 

importantly, why that conservation matters. 

2 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Inside this Issue

Welcome / 3

Fish-Friendly Culverts Hold Tight Through 100-Year Flood / 4

Alaska’s Aquatic Invaders / 5

Alaska’s Fish Habitat Partnerships / 6

Uniquely Alaska: Logistics / 10

2012 Retirees / 11

News Briefs / 15

Spotlight on Technology: Video Weirs / 16

Land Use Planning and Salmon /17

Reconnecting with the Chena River / 18

Fish From Your Point of View! / 20

Feature Articles

Selawik Sheefish: Murky Future in a Changing Climate? / 7

Mat-Su Salmon: A Decade of Strategic Habitat Conservation / 12

Short Pieces

Libby Benolkin 

Jon Gerken 

Derick Hildreth

Doug McBride 

Meg Perdue

Jeff Adams

Jessica Armstrong 

Fred Bue

Randy Brown 

Jeremy Carlson

Bill Carter

Laurel Devaney

Ray Hander 

Aaron Martin

Cheryl Anderson 

Jeff Anderson

Jim Boersma 

Heather Fuller 

Ken Gates 

Anchorage Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Fairbanks Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Juneau Fish & Wildlife Field Office

John Hudson 

Kenai Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Neil Stichert 

Alaska Regional Office (Anchorage)

Jerry Berg

Mike Buntjer

Katrina Mueller

Cecil Rich 

David Wigglesworth

Gerald Maschmann

Jeremy Mears

Jeff Melegari

Mitch Osborne

Geoffrey Cook

Penny Crane

Jason Everett

Blair Flannery

Cara Lewis

Randal Logues

Jeff Olsen

Ora Schlei

Conservation Genetics Lab (Anchorage)

Suresh Sethi

Bill Spearman

John Wenburg

Bill Rice 

Theresa Tanner

Ken Harper

Steve Miller

ALASKA FISHERIES & HABITAT STAFF

Contact Katrina Mueller with comments 

or questions, or if you’d like to subscribe to 

Alaska Fisheries & Habitat News!

katrina_mueller@fws.gov / (907) 786-3637

Front Cover: Frank Berry, Jr. releases a 

Selawik River sheefish. Above left: juvenile 

salmon schooling at the confluence of the 

Russian and Kenai Rivers. Katrina Mueller/USFWS
3 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Alaska is a special place. For the residents who, after long cold winters, shed 

their parkas, put on their hip boots, and head to their favorite fishing grounds 

to fill the freezer and continue long-standing subsistence traditions, or enjoy 

catch-and-release fly fishing...and for visitors who come here from all over the 

world hoping to catch a king or silver salmon or watch bears, migratory birds, 

and other abundant wildlife. 

Covered with literally millions of pristine lakes, rivers, streams, wetlands, and 

estuaries, Alaska abounds with fish and wildlife. Its intact landscapes form the 

foundation of the fisheries that feed our nation—from the Bering cisco in New 

York City restaurants to the King salmon in Seattle’s Pike Place Market to the 

Copper River and Bristol Bay sockeye salmon in the seafood section of your 

local grocery store.

Alaska’s abundant variety of Pacific salmon and whitefish species are uniquely 

important to sustaining the Alaskan way of life and its economy. Alaska 

Natives rely on these fish for food and to sustain their traditions and quality of 

life. They have been listening to what fish and wildlife have been telling them 

for centuries—respect and care for fish and wildlife and they will provide for 

the needs of Alaska families and communities, now and in the future. Many 

Alaskans have jobs that are directly or indirectly related to the state’s robust fisheries. Conserving Alaska’s 

rich mosaic of intact, functional aquatic habitats goes hand-in-hand with conserving Alaska’s fish and the 

contributions they make to the state’s economy, subsistence activities, and diversity. 

While Alaska is fortunate not to have any of its fish listed under the Endangered Species Act, it is by no 

means immune to the stressors and rapid landscape changes that are impacting native fish elsewhere. 

Habitat degradation, fragmentation, and loss are the leading threats to North America’s native freshwater 

and diadromous fish species— approximately 40% are imperiled. Climate change, habitat fragmentation, and 

invasive species are already changing the vast Alaska landscape that shapes the diversity of habitats from 

which our incredibly valuable fisheries originate. 

In partnership with Alaska Native organizations, local and state governments, Fish Habitat Partnerships, our 

Refuges, and others, we have been working for many years to conserve fisheries and the habitats that support 

self-sustaining populations of native fish and wildlife. The strength of our programs lies in our staff’s expertise 

and ability to work with others to achieve conservation results, build local conservation capacity, and bring a 

strategic focus to projects that protect and restore priority habitats. Intact watersheds, good water quality, and 

robust fisheries attract tourists, create jobs, sustain our cultural legacy, and support businesses, all of which 

contribute to the state’s economy and to residents’ quality of life.

Going forward, we will continue to work closely with others to refine our conservation objectives in order to 

target our funding and staff time around those activities that will help conserve habitat conditions necessary for 

self-sustaining populations of migratory fish and other priority species. 

n 12,000+ rivers and more than 3 million lakes.

n over half of the U.S. coastline and two-thirds of its total wetland acreage. 

n sport anglers spent $1.4 billion in 2007 and supported over 16,000 jobs.

n the value of salmon at Alaska docks in 2012 exceeded $500 million.

ALASKA

WELCOME

Timothy Jennings

Assistant Regional Director,

Fisheries and Ecological Services

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Region 7
4 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Culverts channel streams under 

roads. We drive over dozens every 

day and don’t think much about 

them until there’s a problem—a 

washout, frost heave, or...blocked 

fish migration! 

While Alaska is 

known for extreme 

weather, 

Southcentral 

Alaska was hit 

particularly 

hard last fall 

with heavy rains, 

strong winds, and 

widespread flooding. 

Flood waters overtopped many 

roads, resulting in closures, 

erosion, culvert damage, and at 

least five undersized crossings 

becoming overwhelmed and 

carried downstream. 

But the 80+ road-stream crossings 

fitted with larger, fish-friendly 

For fish, swimming under a road needs to be as easy as swimming 

through other non-impacted stream reaches. Habitat through fishfriendly “stream simulation” culverts is engineered to mimic the 

natural stream channel and promote fish passage!

Fish-friendly culverts keep 

fish habitat and communities 

connected, no matter what 

the weather!

WIN-WIN!

structures in the MatanuskaSusitna Borough survived the 

flood with flying colors. These 

enhancements are the result 

of investments and leveraging 

of Service funds/staff time into 

partnerships and projects 

that improved fish 

passage where 

roads intersected 

anadromous 

waters (those 

that support 

fish like salmon 

that return to 

their freshwater 

birthplace to 

spawn). 

This recent flood event showed 

that road-stream crossings 

designed to let juvenile salmon 

move freely among important 

rearing habitats not only boost fish 

production, but are also immensely 

valuable from a road maintenance 

and public safety perspective!

USFWS Hydrologist/Fish Passage Engineer Bill Rice 

passes through a fish-friendly culvert in Wasilla, 

Alaska. K.Mueller/USFWS

Our Fish Passage Program partnered with the 

Mat-Su Borough to replace a 5 ft round culvert on 

Colter Creek with this fish-friendly 14 ft arch culvert 

following the 2006 floods. K.Mueller/USFWS

Bill surveys a fish passage barrier and road 

maintenance nightmare from a road that crosses Coal 

Creek. K.Mueller/USFWS

—Jim Jenson, Mat-Su Borough Director 

of Operations and Maintenance

the fish passage 

culverts definitely 

lowered the potential

“

for failure on many roads during 

these last floods”

Learn more about our Alaska Fish Passage Program!

http://alaska.fws.gov/fisheries/restoration/passage.htm
Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) are those non-native 

plants and animals that, once introduced to a waterbody, 

quickly become widespread and cause harm to economies, 

environments, and/or human health. 

Did you know? After habitat loss, invasive 

species are considered the second biggest 

threat to native species.

Did you know? Annually, AIS cost the U.S. 

tens of billions of dollars in damages and control 

n ELODEA is believed to be 

Alaska’s first non-native aquatic 

plant.

n EXTREMELY invasive: 

survives under ice/spreads by tiny 

fragments introduced by boats, 

trailers, float planes, equipment, 

and school/home aquariums.

n 15 confirmed infestations in

Anchorage, Fairbanks, Cordova, 

and Kenai Peninsula waters. 

n Shown to degrade salmon 

and grayling habitat. Also 

fouls boat propellers and float 

plane rudders, and impedes boat 

launching, navigation, and fishing. 

YOU CAN HELP!

n Support eradication efforts and

educate yourself and others about 

invasive species. 

n Teachers, students, aquarium 

hobbyists: don’t let it loose!

n Boaters: carefully inspect and 

remove any visible aquatic plants/

fragments from your boat and trailer 

before leaving waterbody. 

n Float planes: Before entering the 

aircraft remove visible plants and 

pump water from floats. Before takeoff

don’t taxi through heavy plant growth; 

raise and lower rudders. After takeoff

raise and lower rudders to free plant 

fragments while over the waters you 

are leaving or over land.

n Report sightings: Note location

(GPS or mark on map) and water 

depth/clarity. Take a specimen (photo 

at a minimum). Take as much of the 

entire plant as you can (including 

the tiny flower on a long thin stalk if 

present). Put in a zip lock bag, book, or 

wax paper and store in a cool place. 

Call 1-877-INVASIV.

Cut this out and put it in your boat/ 5 l Spring 2013 floatplane, or with your outdoor gear!

They hitchhike into Alaska via the 

pet trade and school aquaria kits; on 

marine debris/litter; in the ballast 

water of ships; and embedded in the 

soles of boots and on angling and 

hunting gear. Once here, they’re 

introduced into new waters by our 

boats and trailers, floatplanes, allterrain vehicles, pets, outdoor gear, 

or by aquarium owners with good 

intentions. From Elodea to zebra 

mussels, the arrival and spread of 

AIS is almost always at the expense 

of native species and associated 

goods and services.

Fortunately, Alaska’s aquatic 

invaders are (so far) still fairly 

well-contained. There is still a 

short window of opportunity to 

avoid the overwhelming economic 

and ecological impacts AIS have 

caused elsewhere—but only if we 

coordinate a very rapid response to 

prevent their spread.

In Alaska, our Invasive Species 

Program focuses on:

1) preventing AIS from entering 

Alaska and becoming established,

2) detecting and responding rapidly 

to those invasives that do, and

3) building awareness about AIS.

A dense infestation of non-native Elodea in 

Chena Lake near Fairbanks, Alaska. 

We do this via funding, technical 

expertise, and coordination support. 

For example, we’re currently: 

n coordinating early AIS detection 

and rapid response efforts,

n providing funding to the Alaska 

Department of Fish and Game to 

carry out their Aquatic Nuisance 

Species Management Plan,

n funding nearly a dozen coastal 

Alaska communities to set traps 

for European green crabs and 

settling plates for invasive 

tunicates that may be brought to 

Alaska by shipping traffic,

n facilitating development of 

a statewide communication 

strategy, and

n working with partners and 

other Service Programs to build 

awareness about and to eradicate 

or control AIS.

AISNVASION!

ELODEA

Learn more about our Invasive Species Program!

http://alaska.fws.gov/fisheries/invasive/index.htm

Invasive Species Program
6 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

The Southeast Alaska Candidate Fish Habitat Partnership seeks to foster cooperative fish 

habitat conservation in freshwater, estuarine and marine ecosystems across the southern 

panhandle of Alaska with a focus on the waters of the Alexander Archipelago.

Recognized Alaska Fish Habitat Partnerships 

1. Mat-Su Basin Salmon Habitat Partnership

2. Southwest Alaska Salmon Habitat Partnership

3. Kenai Peninsula Fish Habitat Partnership

Alaska’s Newest Candidate Partnership 

4. Southeast Alaska Fish Habitat Partnership

Alaska’s Fish Habitat Partnerships 

are part of a national network 

of voluntary, place-based 

collaboratives working to protect, 

restore, and enhance the Nation’s 

native fish and aquatic resources. 

Nurturing Capacity for Conservation

Fish Habitat Partnerships

Coordinator Corner

1

2

4

3

Other relevant sites:

National Fish Habitat Partnership: www.fishhabitat.org

Western Native Trout Initiative: www.westernnativetrout.org

 Like so many other places in Alaska, the southern panhandle is a unique and special place filled with many 

small vibrant communities with economies and ways of living linked closely to surrounding natural resources. 

Our communities share a deep relationship rooted in the bounties of intact and productive fish habitat. 

 While overall salmon and other fish populations remain strong here, localized declines and areas facing 

habitat degradation spurred the formation of the Southeast Alaska Fish Habitat Partnership, currently a 

“candidate” partnership under the National Fish Habitat Partnership architecture. 

 To date, most regional fish habitat conservation and restoration efforts in Southeast Alaska have been 

conducted unilaterally by large organizations such as the U.S. Forest Service or through small collaborative 

efforts with non-governmental organizations working with agency partners. Our newly formed partnership 

intends to build on these efforts by providing a framework for improved information sharing, developing 

regional conservation priorities, funding coordination and interagency/partner cooperation. 

 Making great strides over this last year our partnership is well on its way to building a strong network of 

regional partners, completing a regionally focused conservation action plan and providing facilitation services 

to partners and Southeast communities. Our partners share a belief that many benefits result when multiple 

partners come together to share resources, align strategic actions, and speak with a united voice about the 

conservation and value of productive and intact fish habitats at both local and regional scales. The success of 

our efforts relies on the breadth and common focus of our partners.—Deborah Hart, SEAFHP Coordinator

WHY are Fish Habitat Partnerships critical? Intact habitat is the foundation of healthy, robust native fish populations. 

In Alaska, our Fish Habitat Partnerships cover several distinctly unique regions for good reason: habitat loss is 

currently the leading cause of native freshwater fish extinctions in the U.S. Although much of Alaska still has 

intact habitats, the risk of losing key habitats in areas with increasing human population and/or development 

pressures is very real. Proactive actions, and the strength of public/private partnerships, will ultimately decide the 

future suitability and quality of Alaska’s habitats and dictate the resiliency of associated fisheries.

What are Alaska Fish Habitat Partnerships doing to move the conservation needle? 

n growing locally-relevant technical capacity and expertise to maximize on-the-ground conservation results,

n identifying and supporting projects that conserve priority habitats across Alaska’s massive landscape,

n leveraging resources to match federal funding initiatives, and

n providing a local and active forum for information exchange.

CONNECT with Alaska’s Fish Habitat Partnerships:

Mat-Su: www.matsusalmon.org; https://www.facebook.com/MatSuSalmon

Southwest: www.swakcc.org

Kenai: www.kenaifishpartnership.org

Southeast: www.seakfhp.org

Deborah Hart, 

Southeast Alaska Fish Habitat 

Partnership Coordinator
7 l Spring 2013

Fairbanks Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Did you know? In the Inupiaq language of Northwest 

Alaska, “Selawik” means “place of sheefish.”

Range

Sheefish are found in many of the 

Arctic and sub-Arctic waters of Asia 

and North America. Selawik Riverorigin sheefish spend their entire life 

within the Selawik River and the 

Selawik Lake/Hotham Inlet estuary 

system. Selawik sheefish have been 

captured as far west as the nearshore 

waters of Kotzebue Sound. They 

overwinter in Selawik Lake and the 

brackish waters of Hotham Inlet and 

spawn in the upper reaches of the 

Selawik River.

Spawning

Only two sheefish spawning grounds 

are known to exist in Northwest 

Alaska: in the upper Selawik and 

upper Kobuk Rivers. The Selawik 

River spawning grounds are located 

entirely within the Selawik National 

Wildlife Refuge. Adult sheefish may 

spawn every year or skip years to 

rebuild sufficient energy reserves to 

spawn again.

Why Sheefish?

Sheefish are one of the most important 

food fishes in Northwest Alaska’s 

Kotzebue region: they are caught and 

used year-round for subsistence in 

Kotzebue, Noorvik, Kiana, Ambler, 

Kobuk, Shungnak, Selawik, and other 

regional villages. Snapshot estimates 

of regional subsistence harvests are 

10,000–20,000 fish annually. 

Sometimes referred to as the Tarpon 

of the North, sheefish are also a much 

sought-after trophy sportfish due to 

their large size and fighting spirit. 

Sport harvest in Northwest Alaska 

averaged 1,000 sheefish annually 

from 2001-2010. Between 1967-2004, 

commercial harvests in the Kotzebue 

region winter fishery have varied 

widely from 19 to 4,000 fish annually. 

Sheefish from the Selawik and Kobuk 

Rivers make up these mixed stock 

subsistence, commercial, and sport 

fisheries.

Below: A mature Selawik River female is released by 

Service crew member Bill Carter. USFWS 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Adult males caught in the Selawik River typically range from 

2-3 feet in length and weigh 6-17 pounds. Females are larger, 

reaching lengths of nearly 4 feet and weighing 11-22 pounds.

Selawik Sheefish Feature

Murky Future in a Changing Climate?

Selawik NWR

Did you know? Sheefish were identified by Congress 

as a species of interest in the Selawik National 

Wildlife Refuge (encompasses over 2 million acres).

In spring, mature sheefish begin a 

prolonged migration up the Selawik 

River. Nonspawning adults and 

immature sheefish remain in the lower 

river system and estuary. By late 

September/early October, would-be 

spawners have congregated. They 

broadcast their eggs and milt over 

gravelly areas before ice-up and 

immediately migrate downstream to 

their overwintering grounds. 

Meanwhile, fertilized eggs settle 

into the spaces between gravels to 

mature. Hatching is believed to occur 

in late winter or spring and larvae 

are carried downstream with spring 

floods. 

Murky Waters?

In the spring of 2004, a large area of 

thawed permafrost slid and carried 

tundra and sediment into the normally 

clear Selawik River approximately 30 

river miles upstream of the sheefish 

spawning grounds.

Feature Scientific name: Stenodus leucichthys Other names: Sii (Inupiaq), Inconnu
8 l Spring 2013

The size of this “thaw slump” has 

continued to grow each year, resulting 

in large quantities of silt eroding into 

the river and creating highly turbid 

water in the summer months. At 

times, turbidity from the slump has 

extended over 100 miles downstream. 

When freezing temperatures resume 

in fall, the slump emits less sediment 

and water clarity improves. 

The impact to the Selawik River 

aquatic community is unknown.

Research in other areas has shown 

negative impacts from the silting of 

spawning habitat, especially for fish 

species that require gravel substrates. 

One concern for Selawik sheefish is 

that silt entering the river from the 

slump may fill in the spaces between 

streambed gravels that developing 

eggs need to overwinter successfully. 

The Question: Is the silt input from 

the slump impacting the Selawik 

River sheefish population? 

Methods

Given logistical challenges of sampling 

juvenile sheefish, the best way to 

begin answering this question was to 

assess the age structure of adult male 

spawners at the Selawik spawning 

grounds and estimate total spawner 

abundance. 

Collecting age samples

After arriving at the Selawik 

population’s spawning grounds (an 

adventure in itself, see page 10), a 

crew consisting of Selawik residents 

and Service technicians/biologists 

catch adult sheefish with rod and 

reel. The fish are reeled in quickly 

and sex is determined by external 

characteristics. Female sheefish are 

immediately released unless mortally 

hooked. Males are weighed, measured, 

then dispatched prior to otolith (inner 

ear bone) extraction for ageing. Their 

fillets are hung to dry (protected from 

predators by an electric fence) and 

transported to the Selawik community 

for subsistence purposes. 

For statistical purposes it is critical to 

obtain otoliths from 200 male sheefish 

per year, for three years, to help 

document the slump’s impact on future 

spawners whose age coincided with its 

inception and silt deposition over time. 

Since 2004, thawing permafrost has resulted in 

more than 760,000 cubic yards of sediment/tundra 

entering the Selawik River. That’s enough dirt to 

fill the Rose Bowl stadium almost two times. Or, 

roughly the same volume of dirt contained in 38,000 

loads from a 20 cubic yard dumptruck! 

Did you know? During the last 50 years, Alaska has 

seen some of the most rapid warming on earth. Impacts 

already being documented include thawing permafrost, 

eroding shorelines, and loss of sea ice. 

SELAWIK RIVER 

THAW SLUMP (2007)

Long-lived!

Sheefish, the largest member of the whitefish sub-family, don’t 

typically mature until 8-12 years old. Capable of living for 30+ 

years, the oldest Selawik River sheefish aged to date was 41!

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Magnified cross section of a sheefish otolith (inner ear 

bone). Ageing fish using otoliths is similar to ageing a 

tree by counting its rings. Inset: Two otoliths from a 

male sheefish (actual size). 

Counting Sheefish

After age sampling, the crew moves 

their camp just below the spawning 

area, deploys an imaging sonar unit 

(much like a doctor’s ultrasound) in 

the river, and waits for the sheefish 

that have spawned to head back 

downstream to the wintering grounds. 

Fish are digitally recorded as they 

pass the sonar unit 24 hours/day for 

about two weeks and then counted 

back at the Fairbanks Field Office.

2004

2012

2009

~900 feet

flow

At times, the Selawik River is very turbid from 

increased slump thawing. Steve Hildebrand/USFWS

Fairbanks Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Feature
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Preliminary Results & Next Steps

In 2011, otoliths from 193 males and 

seven females were collected. These 

fish ranged in age from 9-30 years 

with an average was 19.6 years. 

Spawner abundance was estimated 

at approximately 21,000 fish with the 

sonar. In 2012, otoliths were collected 

from 196 males and four females. 

Analysis of data from the 2012 field 

season is underway. The next two 

years of data collection for this study, 

and a complimentary set of age data 

being collected in cooperation with the 

Alaska Department of Fish and Game 

on the Kobuk River, will help bring 

clarity to this issue. Stay tuned!

This project is funded through the 

Federal Subsistence Management 

Program, Fisheries Resource 

Monitoring Program. 

Community Involvement and Benefits

During development of the Selawik 

Sheefish study plan, Fisheries staff 

consulted directly with the Native 

Village of Selawik. They attended 

council meetings and presented 

how the project sought to address 

changes in the Selawik River that 

were of concern to Selawik residents, 

the Fairbanks Field Office, and the 

Selawik National Wildlife Refuge. 

Staff explained to community 

members that obtaining otoliths 

from male sheefish had the major 

disadvantage of being lethal to the fish 

(due to their long lifespan, non-lethal 

methods like scale analysis cannot be 

used to accurately age sheefish). But 

advantages of the method included 

accurate ageing and that meat from 

these fish would in fact be saved 

and given to Selawik residents. The 

Selawik Village council considered the 

study’s implications for this important 

subsistence resource and approved 

the project. 

9 l Spring 2013

Crew member Dan Prince weighs a male sheefish.

K.Mueller/USFWS

Project lead Ray Hander takes a length 

measurement. K.Mueller/USFWS

Sheefish fillets that have been drying on fish racks 

are boated downriver to the Native Village of 

Selawik for subsistence purposes. K.Mueller/USFWS

Bottom Left: Selawik resident and crew 

member Patrick Foster reels in a sheefish. Dan 

Prince/USFWS

Fairbanks Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Feature

Learn more about our Alaska Fisheries Program!

http://alaska.fws.gov/fisheries/fish/index.htm
Uniquely

Alaska

10 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Essential camping items include zero degree 

sleeping bags, sleeping pads, and breathable/

fire-resistant wall tents for cooking and drying 

our clothes. D.Prince/USFWS

The Selawik River. K.Mueller/USFWS

Transferring gear at the Selawik airport. 

K.Mueller/USFWS

Almost to upper campsite. K.Mueller/USFWS

LOGISTICS

Like most of Alaska’s river systems, the Selawik is not accessible by road. It 

meanders from its origins in the Purcell Mountains through the heart of Selawik 

National Wildlife Refuge in an extremely remote area of Northwestern Alaska. 

Snowmachine, airplane, and boat are the only viable transportation options.

Getting There: Advanced planning, meticulous organization, and partnerships are the key to all remote 

field projects. With the arrival of our fisheries crew in Kotzebue, it takes well over a week to organize and 

move fuel and gear to our upper campsite (~150 river miles upriver from the Native Village of Selawik). 

It takes roughly seven hours to reach the uppermost campsite by boat and then roughly a day to set up 

camp. Refuge staff provide critical support including boats, aircraft, daily safety contacts, and lodging. 

We contract with the Native Village of Selawik for sampling assistance, transportation of supplies 

upriver, and transportation of sheefish meat back to the community. 

Self-Sufficiency: In September and October, temperatures can range from 5 to 50°F with any 

combination of rain or snow so we must always be ready to take on the elements. We must also be 

prepared for wildlife encounters (e.g., grizzly bears and moose), flooding, and boat/equipment repair.

Food and Field Gear: We air freight over a 

ton of field gear and groceries from the Refuge 

headquarters in Kotzebue to Selawik. Gear is 

moved by ATV from the airport to Refuge and 

Selawik contract boats. We need enough food and 

cooking fuel to feed 3-8 people for 4-6 weeks.

Water: We draw water from the river via a solar 

powered pump. We then filtered it and store it in 

containers at camp.

Shelter: Includes the Selawik National Wildlife 

Refuge bunkhouse in Kotzebue, a Refuge cabin 60 

miles upriver from Selawik, and tents beyond that. 

Fuel: Approximately 850 gallons are required 

to safely and efficiently transport our crew and 

gear between the Village of Selawik and several 

sheefish sampling sites (fuel in Selawik is $7/gal).

Waste Management: All non-burnable waste is 

back-hauled to Selawik for proper disposal. 
Dave started his career with the Service in 1982 in Fairbanks as a seasonal 

fisheries technician, where he would later master all aspects of sonar 

fishery techniques. His interest in quantifying salmon and whitefish returns 

led him to develop a video recording system for monitoring these runs 

at fishwheels in the Alaska portion of the upper Yukon River. Due to his 

early involvement with fishery investigations on the North Slope, he also 

pioneered a comprehensive interactive fish and limnology database that 

will serve as a foundation for future fishery studies across this region. The 

culmination of his career was marked by a ground-breaking investigation 

on Yukon River Chinook salmon that described the ecology of juveniles 

in the Alaska portion of the upper river and determined that adults were 

spawning over 1,200 river kilometers upstream. 

11 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Twenty eight years ago I won the lottery! I was hired straight out of graduate 

school and have worked in Alaska for the Service ever since. My career ranged 

from conducting fishery field projects in remote portions of the Yukon River 

to eventually coordinating the Service’s entire Alaska Fisheries Program. In 

my view, there is no place like Alaska to live, work, and find opportunities to 

contribute to a conservation legacy where, at a landscape level, fish populations 

and their habitats are still reasonably intact. That said, we should stay vigilant 

to keep Alaska's fishery resources on a sustainable trajectory. I leave the Service 

and the Alaska Fisheries Program knowing there's a great bunch of dedicated 

professionals hell-bent on sustaining Alaska’s fisheries. It has been a great ride 

and I look forward to enjoying Alaska on a full-time basis.

ROD SIMMONS, Alaska Fisheries Program Coordinator - Alaska Regional Office

The Service has been my home for the past 31 years. For the first six, 

I worked as a fishery biologist on the Columbia River investigating 

predation on juvenile salmon and steelhead during their downstream 

migration. Working with the tremendous fishery resources in Alaska 

was always a professional goal of mine, so in 1988 I accepted a fishery 

biologist job in Fairbanks and spent three years conducting coastal 

fisheries studies within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. My 

experience in Fairbanks was great except this interior Alaskan town 

was too far from the ocean which led me to the Kenai Field Office for 

the remainder of my career. As a field fishery biologist, I was involved 

with the development and execution of many fishery investigations 

but the most enjoyable and interesting were the telemetry studies 

I conducted on rainbow trout and Dolly Varden in the Kenai River 

watershed. These ground-breaking studies added tremendously to 

our understanding of critically-important spawning, rearing and 

overwintering habitats. I have spent the final years of my career with 

the Service as field supervisor for our Kenai Field Office working with 

a dedicated staff and managing a diverse program of work. My career 

with the Service has been wonderful—certainly not because the issues 

were always fun, but because of the incredibly diverse landscapes I 

experienced and the privilege of knowing and working alongside so 

many dedicated folks for whom I have infinite respect and admiration.

DOUG PALMER, Field Supervisor - Kenai Fish & Wildlife Field Office

2012 Retirees

DAVE DAUM, Fisheries Biologist - Fairbanks Fish & Wildlife Field Office
1,900: jobs supported 

$15,000,000: amount of state and local taxes generated annually

$64,000,000: amount of personal income for people who work in the Mat-Su Borough. 

$113,000,000: average amount anglers spend annually on sportfishing goods and services.

of the MAT-SU BOROUGH*

Sources: ISER 2009; ADFG 2012

PORTFISH ECONOMY

The basin drained by the Matanuska and Susitna Rivers covers approximately 24,500 square 

miles—roughly the combined size of Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts! 

Why Mat-Su?

The Matanuska-Susitna Basin 

is a special place where vibrant 

communities and resilient wild salmon 

are closely linked. In fact, it’s nearly 

impossible to imagine life in this 

region without salmon. Each summer, 

millions surge up the mighty rivers to 

spawn in a vast web of interconnected 

lakes and tributaries. Returning 

salmon bring an annual influx of 

nutrients to the region’s ecosystems. 

They feed our communities and the 

local economy too.

Signs of Stress

Although there are currently no 

Threatened or Endangered fish in 

Alaska, salmon populations in the 

basin are showing signs of stress. In 

fact, six are currently designated as 

“stocks of concern” by the State of 

Alaska. Failing to meet escapement 

goals for each of the last four years 

also means that Little Susitna 

River coho salmon qualify for 

stock of concern status. Associated 

sportfishing closures and restrictions 

on commercial fishing in Cook Inlet 

have raised concern among anglers, 

businesses, fisheries managers, and 

other stakeholders. 

12 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Anchorage Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Feature

Did you know? An average of over 50,000 coho salmon 

are harvested by anglers in the Mat-Su Borough* every year, 

supporting the region’s largest recreational fishery.

Mat-Su

A Decade of Strategic Habitat Conservation 

Mat-Su Salmon

BY THE NUMBERS

$ *In Alaska, Boroughs are the local 

government equivalent to a County. 

Coho salmon that have returned to spawn in Mat-Su waters are 

followed closely by hungry Dolly Varden char. Jeff Anderson/USFWS
13 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

While there continues to be much 

debate about the reason(s) for the 

declines, it is known that habitat 

loss and fragmentation associated in 

part with urbanization is a primary 

driver in the decline of freshwater fish 

nationally. Urbanization and related 

stressors are at play in the Mat-Su 

Basin, particularly in the PalmerWasilla core area. 

For example, increased road 

construction typical of urban growth 

often results in poor fish passage 

where roads cross streams. Of the 

nearly 700 road-stream crossings that 

have been surveyed in the Borough 

as of 2012, at least 65% present full or 

partial barriers between salmon and 

their spawning/nursery habitats. 

Now home to over 90,000 people, 

the Borough’s human population 

has nearly doubled in the past 20 

years. It’s Alaska’s fastest growing 

region and one of the fastest growing 

communities in the country. One 

scenario in the Borough’s buildout projections anticipates 400,000 

residents by 2060!

New roads, homes, schools, soccer 

fields, and shopping centers signal a 

new chapter for this region. Mat-Su’s 

increasing population will continue to 

put pressure on the region’s salmon 

and water quality, requiring strategic 

actions to protect important spawning 

and rearing habitat for salmon.

Salmon: Catalyst for Conservation

The Anchorage Field Office, in 

partnership with the Alaska 

Department of Fish and Game 

(ADFG), The Nature Conservancy 

(TNC), and others, have invested in 

conservation work in Mat-Su for many 

years. However, until very recently 

there was very little capacity and no 

coordinated effort to strategically 

conserve (and, where needed, restore) 

salmon habitat here. 

That changed with the formation of 

the National Fish Habitat Partnership 

(NFHP) in 2006. With it, the Service, 

ADFG, and TNC saw the opportunity 

to leverage past efforts and catalyze 

diverse interests around salmon—and 

the conservation of their habitat—

with formation of the Mat-Su Basin 

Salmon Habitat Partnership.

Anchorage Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Feature

People in Alaska refer to the Palmer-Wasilla core area as the 

“Mat-Su Valley” or, simply, “the Valley.” Here, traffic travels east 

on the Parks Highway through the City of Wasilla. K.Mueller/USFWS

In 2008 the Mat-Su Basin Salmon 

Habitat Partnership was born—the 

first of three Alaska partnerships 

to be formally recognized by the 

National Fish Habitat Partnership’s 

(NFHP) Board of Directors to date and 

one of the first designated nationally. 

Its vision—thriving fish, healthy 

habitats, and vital communities in 

the Mat-Su Basin—embraces NFHP’s 

mission to protect, restore, and 

enhance the nation’s fish and aquatic 

communities through partnerships. 

www.matsusalmon.org
The Partnership then set measurable 

objectives to address those threats 

and identified what specific actions 

would help meet the objectives and 

lead to the conservation of salmon and 

priority habitats. 

Conservation Design

Gathering baseline data about fish 

habitat use and developing tools 

to help guide project selection are 

important prerequisites to prioritizing 

on-the-ground projects. To this 

end, partners have invested energy 

into inventorying and mapping 

fish distribution and habitat use in 

vulnerable areas. Land use planning 

projections and broader threats 

assessments likewise inform project 

design and delivery. These upfront 

14 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Strategic Habitat Conservation

A vast landscape and incomplete 

information about salmon habitat 

distribution begs the question: Where 

will limited resources have the biggest 

impact on the conservation of salmon 

in the Mat-Su Basin?

To be strategic, the Partnership 

developed a Strategic Action Plan 

using TNC’s Conservation Action 

Planning (CAP) process. CAP includes 

elements similar to the Service’s 

Strategic Habitat Conservation (SHC) 

business model: 

Biological Planning 

First, the Partnership identified their 

priorities: all five species of Pacific 

salmon and the coarse landscape 

features (e.g., lowlands west of the 

Susitna River) that support the 

ecological processes, landforms, and 

vegetation that interact to shape 

salmon habitat. 

Next, the Partnership identified what 

stressors had the greatest potential to 

negatively impact or pose a threat to 

salmon and their habitat in the basin.

The Mat-Su Partnership currently 

focuses on addressing these threats 

to salmon and their habitat: 

n alteration of riparian areas

n filling of wetlands 

n impervious surfaces (e.g. parking lots)

n stormwater runoff

n septic systems

n poor fish passage at roads

n loss/alteration of water flow/volume

n northern pike 

Partnership actions moving the 

needle towards conserving priority 

species and habitats:

n voluntary conservation easements

n fitting road-stream crossings with 

channel-spanning structures

n re-vegetating denuded riparian areas

n submitting nominations to the State’s 

anadromous waters catalog

n tracking fish populations to pinpoint 

key habitats for conservation

Conservation Design Fish:

55 milimeter long juvenile coho salmon

Why design road-stream 

crossings to pass juvenile coho?

u This low performance swimmer 

wouldn’t win any sprinting, endurance, 

or jumping contests against adult 

salmon or resident char!

u Of all the salmon, coho spend the 

longest time in freshwater as 

juveniles and use nearly all accessible 

waterbodies in a watershed before 

migrating to sea. 

The connectivity needs for other fish 

are better met if restoration designs 

meet the needs of juvenile coho.

K.Mueller/USFWS

(ACTUAL SIZE)

Anchorage Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Feature

Chum salmon in Swiftwater Creek, Wasilla. K. Mueller/USFWS

investments really pay off when it 

comes time to choose where to put 

projects on-the-ground. Habitat 

restoration projects are then designed 

and implemented using accepted 

state-of-the-practice techniques. 

Conservation Delivery 

The beauty of a formal partnership 

like this lies in its ability to leverage 

the resources of its many partners 

(like staff time and expertise, funding, 

and equipment). Partners have, for 

example, mapped and assessed the 

entire current universe of road-stream 

crossing structures in Mat-Su (~700) 

and removed 81 fish passage barriers 

in the past decade.
15 l Spring 2013

News Briefs

The Partners for Fish and Wildlife (PFW) 

Program celebrated its 25th National 

Anniversary in 2012. The Alaska PFW Program 

& Coastal Program 2012-2016 strategic 

plans are now online: http://alaska.fws.gov/

fisheries/restoration/index.htm

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar 

designated Alaska’s Kenai River to be part of 

part of America’s Great Outdoors Rivers 

Initiative in 2012

The children’s TV show 

Aqua Kids shadowed 

Service employees & 

partners last July/August. 

Alaska episodes began 

airing in early 2013 and are 

available on YouTube and 

Vimeo.

The Nature Conservancy’s Corinne Smith was 

awarded NFHP’s Scientific Achievement Award 

at the 2012 Mat-Su Salmon Science and 

Conservation Symposium in November 2012. 

The Mat-Su Valley Coastal Conservation 

Partnership Team received the 2012 Coastal 

America National Partnership Award in 

February 2013 for its collaborative efforts to 

conserve coastal habitats. 

Invasive aquatic plants in the genus Elodea

have been confirmed in 15 Alaska waterbodies 

as of early 2013. 

Our Anchorage and Kenai 

Field Offices welcomed two 

Student Conservation 

Association interns, 

Adriana Amaya (left) and Ben 

Schubert, in January 2013.

Visit our youtube channel to see how Alaska 

staff connected people with nature and 

engaged Alaska’s youth in the Great Outdoors 

in 2012: http://youtube/rtBt3hhRI0o

The Service and ADFG co-hosted a free twoday fish passage workshop in Anchorage 

in March 2013 with over 40 attendees. 

Inquire with Katrina Mueller about upcoming 

workshops: katrina_mueller@fws.gov / (907) 

786-3637.

The Kenai Peninsula Fish Habitat 

Partnership held a two-day science 

symposium and introduced their new 

Conservation Action Plan in April 2013.

Momentum is building to create a coalition 

of property owners, businesses, NGOs and 

governments to protect, enhance, and benefit 

from the Chena River. The 2013 Chena River 

Watershed Summit took place May 1st.

K-12 Teachers/Students: 

entries for Wildlife Forever’s 

State-Fish Art Contest are 

due March 31st annually. 

http://alaska.fws.gov/

fisheries/fish/contest_art.htm

Our Juneau Field Office’s Habitat Restoration 

Program will be receiving an Alaska Chapter of 

the American Society of Landscape Architects 

GreenBelt Award in mid-May 2013. 

2013 Weed Smackdown events are 

scheduled for June 8 in Anchorage, June 15 in 

Fairbanks, and June 29 in Homer! 

Tracking Success and Adapting

So, how do we know if a conservation 

action has the intended positive 

impact? State-of-the-practice habitat 

restoration techniques mimic natural 

conditions. For example, habitat under 

roads is engineered to simulate the 

stream’s natural channel and, as such, 

should provide comparable swimming 

conditions. Presence of fish upstream 

after project completion further 

confirms adequate passage and project 

success. 

The Partnership adapts as new 

information is gathered. To this end, 

the Partnership sponsors an annual 

Salmon Science and Conservation 

Symposium with 100+ attendees. 

Here partners share new information 

about salmon and their habitat. 

Presentations span a wide range of 

topics, from fish passage to green 

infrastructure planning.

The Partnership is also updating 

its Strategic Action Plan to reflect 

changes in the status of salmon 

populations and their habitats, and 

to document achievements toward 

plan goals over the last five years. 

The updated plan will address 

new stressors including invasive 

species, climate change, large scale 

development projects, and riparian 

habitat alteration from all-terrain 

vehicles.

The whole is greater than the sum 

of its parts! In the last six years, with 

substantial support from the U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service, the Partnership 

has invested and leveraged several 

million dollars from federal and 

non-federal sources into actions 

benefiting salmon and their habitat.

These investments have resulted 

in partnership recognition for good 

science and on-the-ground results. The 

Partnership and its members have 

received multiple awards including 

the 2008 U.S. Department of the 

Interior Cooperative Conservation 

Award, NFHP’s 2012 Scientific 

Achievement Award, and the 2012 

Coastal America Partnership Award. 

The Partnership has also catalyzed 

establishment of a Great Land Trust 

presence in Mat-Su and a Borough 

commitment to share the costs of fish 

passage improvement projects. 

While significant progress is being 

made, some salmon stocks are still 

not meeting the State’s escapement 

goals. This underscores the challenge 

the Partnership and others have 

in identifying and addressing the 

root cause(s) for low returns. It also 

reinforces the importance of the 

Mat-Su Partnership and the national 

network of Fish Habitat Partnerships.

Anchorage Fish & Wildlife Field Office

Feature

Learn more about our Habitat Conservation Partnerships Programs!

http://alaska.fws.gov/fisheries/restoration/index.htm
For over a decade, our Kenai Office has been pioneering cuttingedge video technology to improve fisheries management decisions. 

Incorporating underwater video systems into monitoring and 

assessment projects at weirs has become an important tool 

allowing resource managers to do more with less.

Spotlight on Technology

n fish passage chute and weir

n underwater video camera and lights mounted in a sealed camera box filled with clear water. 

n digital video recorder with motion detection software 

n microwave equipment to transmit video signals from remote locations

n solar modules and thermoelectric generators for power generation

n willing landowner and partners!

VIDEO SYSTEM COMPONENTS & OPERATION

A resistance board weir consists of 

an array of rectangular panels made 

of evenly spaced PVC pickets aligned 

parallel to the direction of flow. The 

upstream end of each panel is hinged to 

a rail that is anchored to the substrate 

and the downstream end of the panel is 

lifted above the surface by a resistance 

board that planes upward in flowing 

water. When all components are installed, 

migrating fish are channeled through a 

narrow passage chute in front of the video 

box. Visit our USFWS Alaska YouTube 

channel to see a weir being constructed!

Significant cost savings 

Improved accuracy

Reduced carbon footprint

Footage of fish passing through the chute can be compressed using motion detection 

software. Staff can review 24 hours of fish passage in roughly 2.5 hours.

Microwaving video signals from multiple remote locations to one receiving point reduces 

power requirements at remote sites and minimizes travel to each location. 

Artificial lighting makes recording of fish migrations 24 hours a day, seven days a week 

possible (even during spring run-off or rain events that increase water turbidity). This 

translates into more accurate escapement estimates and monitoring of previously 

undocumented populations (e.g., steelhead trout in the Funny River).

Clear footage lets us determine sex ratios for each species, or the contributions of hatchery and wild salmon without handling the fish.

Better for fish

Kentaro Yasui 

Kenai Fish & Wildlife Field Office

16 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Land Use Planning & Salmon

Sandwiched between rugged coastal mountains and the Pacific Ocean, Southeast Alaska—including Alaska’s State 

Capital and second largest city (Juneau)—is accessible only by air or sea.

If you travel 10 miles northwest from downtown Juneau you’ll find yourself in the Auke Lake watershed, home to 

one of only three sockeye salmon populations accessible to visitors from the Juneau road system. Prior to the mid1970s, an annual average of more than 7,000 sockeyes returned to this watershed to spawn. Since the 1980s, adult 

returns have been stable, but at reduced levels.

The Auke Lake telemetry project builds 

on initial assessments conducted by 

the National Marine Fisheries Service 

(NMFS) to: 

n identify and map essential sockeye 

staging and spawning habitat within 

Auke lake and its tributaries, and

n identify and document sockeye 

spawning distribution and habitat use 

throughout the entire watershed.

2012 data show that returning adults 

used lake habitat up to 45 days before 

spawning. Tagged sockeye were 

documented using four discrete staging 

locations along the west and north 

shores. Spawning was documented 

in both the lake and a previously 

undocumented inlet stream. High use 

habitats—some in close proximity to 

areas of proposed development—were 

identified and mapped. This study 

will continue in the summer of 2013. 

Collaborators include NMFS and the 

University of Alaska, Southeast with 

support from the Alaska Sustainable 

Salmon Fund.

Right: GPS locations of radiotagged sockeye salmon in 

Auke Lake and inlet streams in 2012.

17 l Spring 2013

The Auke Lake shoreline is believed to provide important spawning 

and staging habitat for sockeye salmon. Today, approximately 50% of 

Auke Lake’s shoreline has been developed. 

To avoid further reduction in the capacity of Auke Lake watershed to 

provide quality habitat for locally-important sockeye salmon, our Juneau 

Field Office first partnered with the Juneau Watershed Partnership to 

complete the Auke Lake Watershed Assessment and Watershed Action 

Plan. In 2012, we began tracking the habitat use and movements of adult 

sockeye salmon to document the importance of Auke Lake spawning 

and staging areas using radio telemetry. In combination, the outcomes 

of these projects will inform future land use planning decisions about 

what habitats are most important to protect and restore as different 

development scenarios are considered.

Juneau Field Office staff track radiotagged adult 

sockeye salmon in Auke Lake. James Ray/USFWS

Auke Lake

Mendenhall 

Glacier 

Auke Lake

ShoreZone

Juneau Fish & Wildlife Field Office
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

In 2012, our Fairbanks office partnered with the Tanana Valley Watershed Association for year two of a citizen science 

project on the Chena River. This project seeks to build community awareness and stewardship of the River and its fish 

community. Participating youth and families use minnow traps to sample juvenile anadromous and resident fish in different 

sections of the River from May through October. Captured fish are identified to species, tallied, and released. Families report 

the best part of the project is getting outside each week and seeing children learn how to handle fish. 

TVWA

Reconnecting with the 

 Chena River

The 100 mile long Chena River flows through the heart of Fairbanks near its confluence with the Tanana River (a 

major tributary to Yukon River). Roughly the combined size of Maryland and New Jersey, the land area drained 

by the Chena River is home to approximately 100,000 people today—making it the most heavily-populated and 

developed area in northern Alaska. 

K.Mueller/USFWS

In the early 1900s, Fairbanks 

residents valued the Chena primarily 

as a transportation corridor for stern 

wheelers and water source for gold 

mining operations. However, it also 

supports incredible fisheries. Chena 

River Chinook salmon make up the 

second-largest annual run in U.S. 

waters of the Yukon River. This 

stock is important to subsistence and 

commercial users in the lower Yukon 

River and supports one of the few 

road-accessible salmon sport fisheries 

in interior Alaska. Today, river- and 

fishing-related tourism and recreation 

supported by the Chena provide 

substantial benefits to visitors and 

residents alike.

To help conserve the river for years 

to come and foster stewardship of 

its fisheries, our Fairbanks Field 

Office has been teaming up with 

local businesses, Chena riverfront 

landowners, and a variety of other 

partners (e.g., Fairbanks Soil and 

Water Conservation District, Alaska 

Departments of Fish and Game/

Natural Resources, Army Corps of 

Engineers, and Wounded Warriors). 

FairbanksFish & Wildlife Field Office

FOSTERING 

STEWARDSHIP

18 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

USFWS
Riverboat Discovery, a family-owned and operated business, provides boat tours of 

the Chena River and educates its passengers about the river’s history and its value 

to early settlers. Unfortunately, the Discovery’s use of thrusters for docking was 

causing erosion at its mooring site (left). 

With input and funding support from our Fairbanks Field Office, the owners elected 

to use a fish-friendly alternative to traditional metal sheet piling to prevent further 

erosion: locally acquired spruce tree root wads (left). Root wads not only prevent 

erosion from the thrusters, but also reduce winter ice scour and provide habitat for 

juvenile Chinook salmon and other riverine species. Interpretive signs will educate 

visitors about the value of their fish-friendly choice and the importance of conserving 

Chena River’s Chinook salmon fishery.

USFWS

USFWS USFWS

Left: Bioengineering is a great alternative to traditional bank stabilization techniques 

that use metal sheet piling or riprap. Partially submerged root wads buried deep in 

the bank address erosion issues and also provide great habitat for juvenile fish like 

Chinook salmon (below). 

19 l Spring 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Alaska (Region 7)

Originally a pump station which provided water for 

hydraulic mining operations near town, Fairbank’s 

Pump House Restaurant was facing an eroding bank 

just upstream from its summertime deck. Our Fairbanks 

office partnered with the landowner to develop an 

erosion control plan that incorporated natural bank 

stabilization techniques. Enhancing the Chena’s native 

streamside vegetation not only reduces erosion, but 

also benefits juvenile salmon and other native fish and 

retains the customers’ visual connection to the river. 

Vegetated banks provide habitat for fish and wildlife, and benefit landowners 

by preventing land loss in a way that’s aesthetically-pleasing.

USFW

PREVENTING 

S / K.Mueller

EROSION

FairbanksFish & Wildlife Field Office
ALASKA FISH & FISHERIES: Your Point of View!

Help celebrate and build appreciation for Alaska’s fish by sharing your fish photos! In particular, we are looking 

for photos that capture seasonal behaviors/habitats/life cycle stages of fish; fish underwater/held partially 

submerged; and Alaska’s unique fisheries. Contact Katrina Mueller (katrina_mueller@fws.gov / (907) 786-3637) 

or visit our “Fish From Your Point of View” webpage for details: http://alaska.fws.gov/fisheries/fish/contest_photo.

Curious Rock Greenling. Stephen Jewett/2012 submission

Dip netters at the mouth of the Kasilof River. 

Caz VanDevere/2012 submission

Keeping Subsistence Alive Through our Children. 

Rae Belle Whitcomb/2011 submission

Kenai River sockeyes. 

Kentaro Yasui/2011 submission

Deck Boss. John Matzick/

2012 submission