Wednesday, May 18th, 10:30-11:30am (Pacific)

Viable, self-sustaining salmon populations depend upon unobstructed passage to and from spawning and rearing habitats.  When culvert size relative to stream size is too small, the result is often a barrier to fish movement.  Climate change models project significant increases in stream flows in much of Washington but climate change information is rarely incorporated into culvert design. The Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife (WDFW) has regulatory authority over most culvert and bridge projects in Washington State. Currently, WDFW’s design guidelines do not incorporate future climate-related changes and impacts.

This project translates projected future changes in regional climate to stream width, a key parameter for fish passage culvert design and sizing. Join presenters from WDFW as they discuss their modeling results and ideas for how to apply them to site-scale decisions.

More about the project.