FORKS — Nolan Creek, about 25 miles south of Forks, is now short two culverts that blocked fish passage after work sponsored by the nonprofit group Hoh River Trust.
The trust contracted with J&D Enterprises, based in Beaver, to remove two large fish culverts — one concrete and one metal — that ran underneath an unused portion of U.S. Highway 101, said Mike Hagen, executive director of the Hoh River Trust.
The culverts — blocked with sticks, dirt and other natural debris — prevented salmon from reaching about 1.2 miles of otherwise good-quality habitat in Nolan Creek, Hagen said.
The old, unused section of Highway 101 was left vacant when the course of the road was shifted to its current location, Hagen explained.
Work to remove the two culverts, the metal one 35 feet long and the concrete one 55 feet in length, took about two days during the last week of August.
The Hoh River Trust’s original estimate for the project’s cost was $22,500, though Hagen estimates the final amount will be significantly less than that.
“That’s pretty small as culvert jobs go,” Hagen said.
The state Recreation and Conservation Office, a state agency that provides funding for myriad habitat restoration projects across Washington, is making money available for the culvert removal project, which has been on the Hoh River Trust’s to-do list for about three years, Hagen said.
With the culverts removed, Hagen said, crews will begin replanting native vegetation on the land where the passages once sat later this winter.
This project is one of many the Hoh River Trust has coming up for spring and summer of next year.
Five other projects
Hagen said the trust has five other major culvert-removal projects slated for 2013 in addition to the repair or removal of a number of old fish traps in the Hoh River basin.
“It’ll be a much bigger year for projects next year,” Hagen said.
“There are some very good projects coming out of the West End.”
Since its formation in 2004, the Hoh River Trust has used roughly $22 million in federal grants for land acquisition along the Hoh River.
The trust has bought 6,800 acres on either side of the river along its 56-mile course in west Jefferson County to help preserve the Hoh River basin in its natural state, Hagen said.
For more information about the Hoh River Trust, visit http://bit.ly/SjCY5h.
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Reporter Jeremy Schwartz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jschwartz@peninsuladailynews.com.
