OLYMPIA, Wash. – Communities throughout Washington state will be offered grant funds to support projects that protect rivers and improve streamflows. Okanogan County and the Methow watersheds will receive more than $1 million in grants due to the impact of recent fires in the area. Grants will also be available for some organizations in Spokane.
According to a press release from the Washington Department of Ecology, the state will invest up to $53.5 million for 25 high-priority projects in watersheds across Washington. This will mark the largest round of grants funded through the streamflow restoration law passed by the Legislature in 2018. The grants aim to support projects that increase water storage capacity, enhance fish habitat, acquire water rights, and improve water management and infrastructure.
State and local agencies, tribal governments, and nonprofit organizations are eligible to apply for these grants.
Among the projects selected for funding this year in eastern Washington is the Spokane Tribe of Indians’ Waikiki Spring Creek restoration and fish passage project, which will receive $411,807. This project aims to restore higher flows to a spring-fed tributary of the Little Spokane River by redesigning a non-functional wetland outlet. The new outlet will reestablish fish passage to the upper segment of Waikiki Spring Creek while maintaining the wetland water surface within the desired range. The proposal includes modifications to the channel to accommodate larger flows and enhance in-stream habitat for all age classes of trout.
Another project in the Spokane region is the Spokane Conservation District’s Marshall Creek Instream Flow Restoration Project, which will receive $710,000. This initiative aims to study and resolve existing flow issues through a feasibility study to develop science-based alternatives for restoration.
In Okanogan County, a project led by the Methow Salmon Recovery Foundation will receive $1,186,233 to restore streamflow and floodplain connections in degraded channels impacted by fire in the Okanogan and Methow River watersheds.
