Washington, D.C. (May 19, 2020) - The National Fish Habitat Partnership (www.fishhabitat.org) is excited to announce its list of “Waters to Watch” for 2020. This annual list represents a collection of strategic conservation efforts implemented on rivers, streams, estuaries, and lakes to protect, restore, or enhance fish habitat.

These voluntary, locally-driven projects represent some of the top conservation activities completed or in progress by 20 regionally-based Fish Habitat Partnerships throughout the country. These projects are carried out under the goals and objectives of the 2012 National Fish Habitat Action Plan. These conservation projects conserve freshwater, estuarine, and marine habitats essential to many fish and wildlife species. These activities are fundamental to the overall success of the National Fish Habitat Partnership that was established in 2006.

Over 120 Fish Habitat Partnership “Waters to Watch” have been featured since 2007 and demonstrate science-based, on-the-ground conservation efforts protecting or improving fish habitat across the United States. In 2020, the National Fish Habitat Partnership is featuring five retrospective “Waters to Watch,” reflecting on the continued progress of a conservation project featured in previous years. The National Fish Habitat Partnership is also proud to partner with the World Fish Migration Foundation and support World Fish Migration Day, scheduled for Saturday, October 24.

“The projects, which focus on the protection, restoration, and enhancement of fish habitats across the country, are a sampling of the top priorities of our partnerships,” said Ed Schriever, Chair of the National Fish Habitat Board. “The Waters to Watch campaign provides people an opportunity to learn about our projects in a more in-depth way, which exemplifies collaborative conservation involving many partners.”

Annually, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provides both funding and technical assistance to the 20 Fish Habitat Partnerships across the country to aid in implementing aquatic conservation projects nationwide. The work of the National Fish Habitat Partnership is also supported broadly by many federal, state, and local agencies as well as conservation organizations.

Learn more about the National Fish Habitat Partnership, partner projects happening across the U.S., and how to get involved on our Partnerships page; by visiting the following website: http://www.fishhabitat.org/the-partnerships/.
 

The 2020 “Waters to Watch” list and associated Fish Habitat Partnerships:
1. Bear River Estuary, Washington (Retrospective) – Pacific Marine and Estuarine Partnership
2. Boone River Watershed, Iowa (Retrospective) – Fishers and Farmers Partnership
3. Chipola River, Florida (Retrospective) – Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership
4. Deep Creek Town Diversion and Warner Basin, Oregon (Retrospective) – Western Native Trout Initiative
5. Maunalua Bay, Hawai’i – Hawai’i Fish Habitat Partnership
6. Minsi Lake, Pennsylvania – Reservoir Fish Habitat Partnership
7. San Juan and Santiago Watersheds, California – California Fish Passage Forum
8. San Luis Obispo Creek, California – Pacific Lamprey Conservation Initiative
9. Shoshone Springs, California (Retrospective) – Desert Fish Habitat Partnership
10. Tularosa River, New Mexico – Desert Fish Habitat Partnership

For more information on project maps and descriptions of the “Waters to Watch” list for 2020, Visit: http://www.fishhabitat.org/waters-to-watch/archive/2020

Visit the “Waters to Watch” page on our website to view our archived projects: http://www.fishhabitat.org/waters-to-watch/archive

Visit http://assessment.fishhabitat.org/, to use our interactive habitat data mapper, supported by USGS.

About the National Fish Habitat Partnership:
Since 2006, the National Fish Habitat Partnership has supported 935 projects benefiting fish habitat in all 50 states. The National Fish Habitat Partnership works to conserve fish habitat nationwide, leveraging federal, state, tribal, and private funding resources to achieve the greatest impact on fish populations through priority conservation projects of 20 regionally-based Fish Habitat Partnerships. For more information, visit:
http://fishhabitat.org/
http://www.facebook.com/NFHAP
https://twitter.com/FishHabitat