NOAA is awarding federal funding in the amount of $2,332,854 to washington department of ecology under the FY2022 bipartisan infrastructure law national estuarine research reserve habitat…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is awarding $2,332,854 under the Office for Coastal Management federal grant program (CFDA 11.473) to the Washington Department of Ecology for a habitat restoration and conservation project at Padilla Bay in Skagit County, Washington. The three-year cooperative agreement will support the permanent protection of 74.5 acres of former and current tidal marsh, plus associated tidelands. This effort is part of a larger 105-acre tidal marsh restoration project being conducted in collaboration with the Skagit Land Trust. Funding will also cover baseline data collection and restoration design alternatives assessment. The project aims to increase climate resilience and reduce flood risk for nearby communities while restoring tribal cultural connections to the important historical longhouse site.

NOAA is awarding federal funding in the amount of $2,332,854 to washington department of ecology under the FY2022 bipartisan infrastructure law national estuarine research reserve habitat restoration and conservation competition. This award will result in the permanent protection of 74.5 acres of former and current tidal marsh, plus associated tidelands. This effort is part of a larger project, in collaboration with the skagit land trust, to restore up to 105 acres of tidal marsh to padilla BAY. For this project, critical baseline data will also be collected, as well as an assessment of restoration design alternatives. Future restoration at this site will likely increase climate resilience, including a reduction in flood risk for the only road and utility corridor that services 480 houses in the samish island community. The project will also restore tribal cultural connections with the site, which is near an important historical longhouse location. Access to the area, and the natural R