ANCHORAGE – Today, Mayor Ethan Berkowitz, Anchorage Parks Superintendent Josh Durand, and Project Management and Engineering Director Jerry Hanson joined Trailside Discovery Camp students to highlight pro-salmon projects underway and planned in Anchorage. Municipal Project Management and Engineering (PM&E) and Parks and Recreation have completed or are currently in construction or planning phases on 19 projects that enhance salmon watershed habitat and access in the Anchorage Bowl.
"Big Wild Life means big wild salmon, and a healthy fish habitat is a part of our responsibility, because salmon are a part of our identity as a city and a state," said Mayor Berkowitz.
To view a map with descriptions and locations of the 19 salmon friendly projects, click here:
http://www.muni.org/Departments/project_management/Documents/FishFriendly.pdf
All these projects adopt some or all of the below basic policy principles:
Improving fish passage: removing and upgrading culverts, such as the work this summer on Chester Creek.
Capturing stormwater runoff: improving storm drains and building rain gardens to capture runoff, such as the rain garden recently installed below 3rd Ave above Ship Creek.
Adopting green infrastructure at facilities and roads: when constructing or renovating facilities, the Municipality will implement low impact development plans to stop runoff and pollutants from reaching our creeks; such as at Fire Station 9 with permeable driving surfaces and grass filter strips, and the infiltration system on the Folker Street project that stops pollutants going into Campbell Creek.
Restoring Creek Corridors: relocating creek channels to improve fish passage and flood control; such as the work done at Chester Creek and Muldoon road, using a combination of municipal and federal funds to relocate the north branch for improved fish passage.
For more information, contact Myer Hutchinson at (907) 343-7133.
###