The ecosystems and salmon in alaskas yukon, kuskokwim and norton sound have served since time immemorial to sustain the wildlife and people of the region

This Cooperative Agreement award, totaling $798,922.66, was provided by the Bureau of Land Management's Alaska Region under the Good Neighbor Authority (CFDA 15.015) federal grant program. The award supports a two-phase approach to develop workforce capacity and technical expertise within Alaska for watershed restoration activities. The Salcha-Delta Soil and Water Conservation District (Salcha-Delta SWCD) will partner with the Bureau of Land Management to engage tribal entities interested in conducting restoration projects within the "Gravel to Gravel" geographic area. This initiative aims to restore heavily mined streams and improve watershed health and resilience, especially in areas with current or potential Pacific salmon habitat. The award period runs from September 19, 2024 to September 18, 2029, focusing on foundational science, restoration projects, and building the local capacity required to address the ongoing salmon crisis in Alaska.

Traditional foods including salmon, caribou, moose, and migratory birds have been vital to food security and indigenous cultures for the more than 100 tribes who have stewarded the regions lands and set up fish camps in its watersheds for thousands of years. New arrivals from the lower 48 came to use and rely on these same natural resources as they sought to build lives in the territory of alaska. As the territory of alaska was populated throughout the late 19TH and early 20TH centuries heavy emphasis was placed on the extraction of mineral resources. During the heyday of alaska placer mining, hundreds of miles of streams within the gravel to gravel keystone initiative geographic area were heavily mined. With a legacy of landscape scale disturbance, and a future of uncertain climate change impacts, there is an imperative to restore impacted areas to improve watershed health and resiliency, especially in areas with current or potential pacific salmon habitat. This will require immediate investments in the foundational science and projects needed to respond to the salmon crisis, while at the same time accomplishing stream restoration projects to heal the broader ecosystem. Additional workforce capacity and technical expertise must be developed within alaska in order to achieve the pace and scale of required restoration activities. The salcha-delta swcd will partner with the BLM to identify and engage tribal entities that have an interest in conducting watershed restoration in the gravel to gravel project areas. Participants will then work through a two phase approach involving skills development and application to a real-world restoration project.