Salt & Little Colorado River Basins Fish Passage

Fisheries management, Habitat restoration, Resilience and risk mitigation

Salt & Little Colorado River Basins Fish Passage

Part of the Mount Baldy Headwaters Aquatic Connectivity & Climate Resiliency Project

States

Arizona

This project builds on the decades of devoted efforts among federal, state, Tribal, and non-governmental organizations to restore aquatic connectivity and organism passage in the headwaters of the Salt River Basin and adjacent Little Colorado River watershed. Efforts led by the White Mountain Apache Tribe to remove physical and thermal barriers on Tribal lands and national forests were critical in the recent delisting of Apache trout from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. Restoring aquatic connectivity will enhance ecosystem resilience to climate change climate change
Climate change includes both global warming driven by human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases and the resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns. Though there have been previous periods of climatic change, since the mid-20th century humans have had an unprecedented impact on Earth's climate system and caused change on a global scale.

Learn more about climate change by enabling fish populations to expand into new habitat as conditions change over time. Additionally, wet meadow restoration in headwater habitats will contribute to fire and drought resilience in the ecosystem.

Project Quick Facts:

Location: Arizona
Federal Investments to Date: $5,000,000
Non-Federal Investments to Date: $4,000,000
Total Restoration Costs: $19,000,000
Type of Barriers: Dams, Culverts, Hydrologic
Number of Barriers: 29
Stream Miles Reopened: 174
Acres Restored: 169
Project Leads: White Mountain Apache Tribe, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, State of Arizona, U.S. Forest Service
Partners Include: Trout Unlimited, Salt River Project, Freeport McMoRan
Federal Agencies Invested to Date: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Reclamation

Removing Barriers to Success

Ongoing partnership and collaborative investment, catalyzed by the BIL, are crucial to safeguarding the Apache trout’s status and advancing habitat restoration for this species and other sensitive species, such as the Loach minnow.

The Importance of Transformational Fish Passage Projects

This project is one of over 70 grand-scale, community-centric restoration projects, identified by the Federal Interagency Fish Passage Task Force, that not only rejuvenate ecosystems but also bolster the climate resilience and economies of communities across the country. Learn more about these ground breaking projects in our Reviving Rivers, Reconnecting Communities story map.

A pipe in the middle of a stream, providing a passage for water flow.

Image Details

The National Fish Passage Program combines technical expertise with a track record of success.

Implemented primarily through the Service's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Offices, the National Fish Passage Program provides financial and technical assistance to partners across the country. Since 1999, the program has worked with over 2,000 local communities, Tribes, and private landowners to remove or bypass over 3,400 barriers to fish passage fish passage
Fish passage is the ability of fish or other aquatic species to move freely throughout their life to find food, reproduce, and complete their natural migration cycles. Millions of barriers to fish passage across the country are fragmenting habitat and leading to species declines. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Fish Passage Program is working to reconnect watersheds to benefit both wildlife and people.

Learn more about fish passage and reopen access to over 61,000 miles of upstream habitat for fish and other animals. Staff have expertise in fish migration and biology as well as financial, engineering, and planning assistance to communities, Tribes, and landowners to help them remove barriers and restore rivers for the benefit both fish and people.

Fish passage project proposals can be initiated by any individual, organization, government, or agency. However, proposals must be submitted and completed in cooperation with a Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office. (Please note that fish passage projects being used for federal or state compensatory mitigation or required by existing federal or state regulatory programs are not eligible for funding through the National Fish Passage Program.)

CONTACT A FISH PASSAGE COORDINATOR IN YOUR AREA TO GET STARTED.

Facilities

Arizona Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office

The Arizona Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office – or AZFWCO as we are more commonly known – is part of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Fish and Aquatic Conservation Program. Established in eastern Arizona in 1956 as a fishery assistance office, AZFWCO has expanded to three stations, located...

Conservation Office

Flagstaff,AZ

Programs

A man is fishing in a boat with three young girls. The kids are excitedly pulling a fish out of the water.

Fish and Aquatic Conservation

The Fish and Aquatic Conservation programs work together to deliver resilient habitats, healthy fish, connected people, and strong partnerships. From habitat restoration to aquatic invasive species prevention, captive breeding to population assessment and monitoring, our programs are driven by the...

Program

Falls Church,VA

A person is walks through a large wide culvert that passes under a gravel road. A small river runs through the culvert.

National Fish Passage Program

Across the country, millions of barriers are fragmenting rivers, blocking fish migration, and putting communities at higher risk to flooding. Removing those barriers is one of the most effective ways to help conserve vulnerable species while building safer infrastructure for people. The National...