ABOUT DAM TIME:

Tulalip Tribes Seeing Progress in Pilchuck River Salmon Restoration

In the summer of 2020, a chinook salmon was spotted in the upstream habitat of the Pilchuck River watershed for the first time in over 100 years. It wasn’t a miracle; rather, it was the result of a collaborative effort to remove the Pilchuck River Diversion Dam—decommissioned infrastructure that previously helped supply the City of Snohomish with water but prevented fish from reaching the most pristine habitat of the entire Snohomish River basin.

“The most functional habitat was essentially cut off,” explained Brett Shattuck, restoration ecologist for the Tulalip Tribes. Juvenile fish need cool water, abundant food, and access to side channels to grow and thrive. The dam was located two-thirds of the way up the Pilchuck River, southeast of Granite Falls, before the Tulalip Tribes partnered with the City of Snohomish to remove it in 2020. Since then, chinook, coho, chum, and pink salmon have all returned to these waters to spawn. According to Shattuck, virtually all the fish species found in the Snohomish River basin (of which the Pilchuck River is a part) are expected to increase over time.

That said, there is still much work to be done. “Over the last five years,” Shattuck underscored, “we’ve seen the lowest numbers on record.” The Pilchuck River dam removal is just one of many projects designed to improve fish habitat. “Skinny fish don’t survive,” which is why the Tribes work to recover tidal inundation in the estuary. Juvenile fish need the opportunity to grow big and fat before migrating out to saltwater.

The Tulalip Tribes continue to work with Snohomish County and the Snohomish Conservation District to secure funding for vital projects that have been in the pipeline for a long time. The County has already secured over $50 million for estuary projects, such as the Chinook Marsh Project, and the Tribes have also received $9.7 million to remove other barriers (mostly culverts) from the Pilchuck River watershed.

The Pilchuck River dam removal is just one example of how the Tribes work to improve our waterways for all. “Getting that done in such a timely way during the pandemic,” Shattuck said, “and implementing it at such a low cost [around $1 million] is another success.” The Tribes have worked with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) to monitor the site. “As we anticipated, sediment moved out and distributed very widely and didn’t contribute to issues with flooding.”

Whether upstream or downstream, the Pilchuck River dam removal has been a roaring success.