Nearshore function for forage fish: Defining, protecting, and restoring the critical ecosystem of the Elwha nearshore and Salish Sea.
Presentation Abstract
Intertidal beaches within the Elwha nearshore are documented habitat for forage fish migration and spawning. Sediment processes of the Elwha drift cell, critical for forage fish spawning habitat, were historically altered by armoring of the shoreline, lower river alteration, and the in-river Elwha and Glines Canyon dams. The recent removal of these two dams, and the consequent release and transport of upwards of 2.5 x 106 m3 of fluvial sediment to the Elwha nearshore, has begun a partial restoration of sediment processes within the drift cell. This input of sediment is changing the characteristics of the beach substrate required for forage fish spawning habitat. Dam removal is just concluding and only approximately twenty percent of the total predicted sediment volume has been delivered to the Elwha nearshore. The distribution of this new sediment along the Elwha drift cell and the nearshore response are just beginning. This poster will summarize the results of four years of an ongoing, long-term assessment of forage fish spawning in the central Strait of Juan de Fuca, including the Elwha drift cell. We will provide observations of changes in forage fish spawning activity since dam removal. Understanding the implications of dam removal to the ecological functioning of the nearshore is important for full ecosystem restoration of the Elwha system, and for assessing the consequences of restoration projects throughout the Salish Sea.
Session Title
Session S-03D: Forage Fish Research and Protection in the Salish Sea
Conference Track
Species and Food Webs
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2014 : Seattle, Wash.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
1-5-2014 5:00 PM
End Date
1-5-2014 6:30 PM
Location
Room 6C
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events); posters
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Dam retirement--Environmental aspects--Washington (State)--Elwha Dam; Dam removal--Environmental aspects--Juan de Fuca, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.); Sedimentation and deposition--Environmental aspects--Washington (State)--Elwha Dam; Sedimentation and deposition--Environmental aspects--Juan de Fuca, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.); Forage fishes--Juan de Fuca, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.)
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Juan de Fuca, Strait of (B.C. and Wash.); Elwha Dam (Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Nearshore function for forage fish: Defining, protecting, and restoring the critical ecosystem of the Elwha nearshore and Salish Sea.
Room 6C
Intertidal beaches within the Elwha nearshore are documented habitat for forage fish migration and spawning. Sediment processes of the Elwha drift cell, critical for forage fish spawning habitat, were historically altered by armoring of the shoreline, lower river alteration, and the in-river Elwha and Glines Canyon dams. The recent removal of these two dams, and the consequent release and transport of upwards of 2.5 x 106 m3 of fluvial sediment to the Elwha nearshore, has begun a partial restoration of sediment processes within the drift cell. This input of sediment is changing the characteristics of the beach substrate required for forage fish spawning habitat. Dam removal is just concluding and only approximately twenty percent of the total predicted sediment volume has been delivered to the Elwha nearshore. The distribution of this new sediment along the Elwha drift cell and the nearshore response are just beginning. This poster will summarize the results of four years of an ongoing, long-term assessment of forage fish spawning in the central Strait of Juan de Fuca, including the Elwha drift cell. We will provide observations of changes in forage fish spawning activity since dam removal. Understanding the implications of dam removal to the ecological functioning of the nearshore is important for full ecosystem restoration of the Elwha system, and for assessing the consequences of restoration projects throughout the Salish Sea.
