Chugach Partnership Improves Tonsina, Copper River Salmon Habitat
For more than 5,000 years, the Sugpiag have lived in Prince William Sound. Today, Chugach Alaska Corporation owns and manages almost 1 million acres of land in southcentral Alaska. This includes 378,000 acres of full fee estate and 550,000 acres of subsurface estate that span along the northern Gulf of Alaska from Icy Bay to lower Cook Inlet and across Prince William Sound including the Copper River and upper Copper Basin. It’s a vast area and vitally important to Chugach shareholders and descendants.
One example that illustrates how important the land is can be found in Chugach’ s mission statement, which states that Chugach is Committed to Profi tability, Celebration of Our Heritage and Ownership of Our Lands. Land is so important that it is one of the three pillars of the mission, and retention and stewardship of our lands is the focus of the Lands and Resources Department. Seeking opportunities that can add to the profi tability of the corporation and benefi t shareholders while conserving our resources can be challenging. Keeping in mind that how we manage our lands today will aff ect future shareholders and descendants is critical to consider.
Chugach owns more than 14,000 acres in the Copper River Basin and recently partnered with the Copper River Watershed Project to improve fi sh habitat on the Lower Tonsina River. The project is located on Chugach land within the highway right of way, the scope of which removed narrow undersized culverts on the Lower Tonsina River and replaced them with a single-lane bridge that spans at least two times the bankfull channel width. In addition, the project also improved riparian habitat by using spruce tree root wads which will help stabilize the bank, decrease erosion. Willow and alders were also planted in the vicinity to provide shade and cover that is critical for healthy salmon. By removing the culverts over 70 miles of spawning and rearing habitat is now open for chinook and coho salmon that migrate up the Copper River to the Lower Tonsina River.
The Lower Tonsina River bridge replacement and habitat restoration project is an excellent example of what can be achieved by forming partnerships. This project was accomplished through a partnership with a diverse group consisting of representatives from the Copper River Watershed Project, Chugach Alaska Corporation, US Fish & Wildlife Service, Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities (ADOTPF), Bureau of Land Management, Natural Resources Conservation Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries, and the Denali Commission. The project was the fi rst fi sh passage project in the United States that was funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, with additional funding from ADOTPF.
