Coho Restoration Tour

Coho fry on the Oregon Coast. | Photo by Conrad Gowell

District Coordinator Paul Engelmeyer of the Native Fish Society will lead a series of free tours, open to the public, to discuss the recently released Federal Coho Recovery plan. During the field trips attendees will view high quality and impaired habitat, restoration sites, experience population monitoring efforts, and discuss the history of fisheries management. Attendees should also be prepared to hike along a river with a day pack including rain gear, water bottles, and a packed lunch.

On the Oregon coast, coho hatcheries have been functionally eliminated, harvest has been significantly reduced, and habitat restoration communities are working hard to improve freshwater and estuarine conditions. Why attend? Environmental advocates can learn why NOAA believes Oregon Coast Coho have the highest chance of recovery of all threatened salmon in the Northwest.

During the June field trip, Engelmeyer will begin at Beaver Creek State Park. There Paul will talk about land-based conservation strategies, including conservation easements and landowner driven stewardship in coastal wetlands. Attendees will learn about the value of alternate life history patterns and how fish hatcheries heavily impacted the diversity of coho salmon. From there participants will head up to the headwater tributaries to gain a vista of current land management issues, including logging and agricultural practices that affect water quality and quantity.

A stop along the way will explain the benefits of in-stream restoration work completed by local communities in partnership with the Siuslaw National Forest. On the way back, participants will see what is being done in Oregon's Yaquina estuary to restore juvenile salmon nursery habitats and discuss the planning that is taking place to ensure these habitats persist with sea-level rise.

Paul Engelmeyer, manager of the Ten Mile Creek Sanctuary for the Audubon Society of Portland, who has been working on coho recovery for over 25 years, will also discuss what still needs to be done to keep Oregon Coastal Coho on the path to broad sense recovery. Please RSVP to Paul Engelmeyer. And for more information, visit HERE.