| Highlights  NOAA and partners, McKenzie River Trust and the McKenzie Watershed Alliance, are increasing numbers of threatened Upper Willamette River Chinook salmon by restoring habitat in Oregon's McKenzie River watershed. In 2022, NOAA provided the McKenzie River Trust $1.7 million in congressionally-directed community project funding to restore 150 acres of floodplain habitat at Finn Rock Reach. Salmon are now successfully reproducing at the site. In addition, last year, the Office of Habitat Conservation awarded the McKenzie Watershed Alliance $7.6 million through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act. They are using the funds to restore lower Quartz Creek, a tributary of the McKenzie. Contact: Larissa Lee. |  Watch this new video about how NOAA and our partners are helping river herring safely reach their historic spawning grounds by restoring a degraded estuary in Wellfleet, Massachusetts. After decades of planning, we are moving forward with the Herring River Restoration Project, the largest salt marsh restoration effort in the northeast United States. NOAA's Office of Habitat Conservation awarded $14.7 million to the Town of Wellfleet, Massachusetts through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act. Contact: Steve Block. |  This year, NOAA is funding three projects to restore habitat through the coastal National Fish Habitat Partnerships. These projects will actively engage local communities–including anglers–who make critical contributions to fish habitat conservation nationwide. Nearly $175,000 will support habitat restoration and angler engagement projects in Oregon, Hawaiʻi, and South Carolina. Contact: Dani Weissman. |  In Buffalo, New York, an effort is underway to transform the city's largest waterfront park and better connect the local community to the Niagara River. NOAA funding is helping to build coastal wetland habitat and restore the shoreline in a portion of the park, which will protect the area from storms and flooding while providing habitat for native Great Lakes fish. Contact: Ryan Darnton. |  A recent NOAA-funded study by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science shows that living shorelines and marshes in the Middle Peninsula Habitat Focus Area are a tremendous ecological and economic benefit. Annually, these areas generate more than $6.4 million in economic value from recreational fishing. Contact: Kim Couranz. |  In May, the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington finalized a settlement with Crowley Marine Services, Inc., 8th Avenue Terminals, Inc. and the Washington State Department of Transportation. The settlement is on behalf of the Elliott Bay Trustee Council, which includes NOAA, the U.S. Department of the Interior, the State of Washington, the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, and the Suquamish Indian Tribe of the Port Madison Reservation. This settlement compensates for natural resource injuries resulting from hazardous substances released into the Lower Duwamish River in Washington. Contact: Megan Callahan-Grant. |  Throughout 2023, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill Trustee Implementation Groups approved two new restoration plans and 14 new projects. In the 14 years since the spill, the Trustee Implementation Groups have approved 342 different activities, including plans and projects to restore injured Gulf of Mexico resources. The combined allocated cost of restoration projects so far is $2.97 billion. The Deepwater Horizon Trustees continued the eighth year of post-settlement restoration in 2023. The annual financial summary and annual reports covering all of the Trustees' restoration activities are now available. Contact: Rachel Sweeney. | | | Habitat Across NOAA  Habitat restoration efforts on the Penobscot River in Maine will help the Atlantic salmon population recover and support ancestral traditions of the Penobscot Nation. Hear from Matthew Bernier, a marine habitat resource specialist in NOAA, and Chuck Loring Jr., a member of the Penobscot Nation and its director of Natural Resources to learn more. |  All throughout the month of June, NOAA spotlights ocean awareness and literacy with our Ocean Month celebration. Join along! |  NOAA Fisheries and partners are working with communities in South Carolina to get kids involved in fishing and environmental conservation. Hear about a pilot project led by Michael Hodges, a wildlife biologist and program manager for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources and Tia Clark, the owner and head crabber of Casual Crabbing with Tia. The project involves many partners and is supported by NOAA Fisheries in conjunction with the National Fish Habitat Partnership. | | | Announcements  Do you know someone who has demonstrated exceptional achievement and dedication to marine, coastal, or riverine habitat conservation? Nominate them for the 2024 Dr. Nancy Foster Habitat Conservation Award to be presented at the Restore America's Estuaries 2024 Coastal & Estuarine Summit in October. Nominations are due by July 1, 2024. | | | | |
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