The national oceanic and atmospheric administration is providing $1,500,000 in federal funding to the city of homer through the FY2024 and FY2025 national estuarine research reserve habitat protection…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office for Coastal Management (CFDA 11.473) awarded $1.5M to the City of Homer through a Cooperative Agreement effective October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2028. The award funds shovel-ready land conservation projects within the Bridge Creek Watershed Protection District (BCWPD), with the primary objective of acquiring and permanently protecting priority land parcels to preserve Homer's primary drinking water source serving over 2,100 residential and commercial customers across Homer, Anchor Point, and Kachemak City. The project supports long-term ecosystem preservation by protecting significant bird and wildlife habitat, nursery habitat for juvenile salmon, and riparian zones essential to regional salmon populations and the Anchor River system. Properties acquired through this initiative will permit passive public use while mitigating potential degradation from development and sustaining surface and groundwater recharge into the Bridge Creek Reservoir.

Project implementation is conducted in partnership with the Kachemak Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (KBNERR) and includes a sub-award to Kachemak Heritage Land Trust, Inc. (awarded January 23, 2026). The sub-grantee will facilitate public outreach, conduct due diligence on land purchases, develop draft deed restriction language, and establish a site monitoring program consistent with NOAA requirements to monitor municipally owned lands within the watershed. These coordinated efforts align with Alaska's 19,000-acre Anchor River/Fritz Creek Critical Habitat Area Plan and regional watershed action plans, advancing coastal resilience through habitat protection and ecosystem conservation.

The national oceanic and atmospheric administration is providing $1,500,000 in federal funding to the city of homer through the FY2024 and FY2025 national estuarine research reserve habitat protection and restoration grant competition. This funding will increase the safety and productivity of coastal communities within coastal counties through habitat restoration planning, engineering and design projects, habitat restoration implementation projects, and land conservation projects. Specifically, the city of homer will use these funds towards shovel ready land conservation projects. The city of homer, alaska will acquire and permanently protect priority land in the bridge creek watershed protection district (bcwpd) to foster the long term preservation of the quality and quantity of its primary drinking water source, significant bird and wildlife habitat, and nursery habitat for juvenile salmon. The properties acquired will allow passive public use. This community project, led by the city of homer, will be conducted in partnership with the kachemak BAY national estuarine research reserve (kbnerr). Acquisition and permanent protection of priority parcels in the bcwpd mitigates potential degradation from development, supports salmon populations by preserving water flowing into the anchor river, and by preserving riparian and associated upland habitat essential for birds and wildlife. Continued supply of surface and groundwater recharge into the bridge creek reservoir ensures sustainability of the primary source of potable water for over 1,600 residential and 500 commercial customers, which includes residents of nearby cities including anchor point and kachemak city. The project is aligned with alaskas 19,000-acre anchor river/fritz creek critical habitat area plan, homer soil and water conservation district and cook inletkeepers anchor river watershed action plan, the khlt anchor river 5 year plan (2019-2023), and the state kenai area plans notations of significance of the anchor rivers tributaries and surrounding habitat being important for salmon, steelhead and dolly varden trout species.