Restoring Salmon Habitat in Urban Estuaries
Can we recreate natural systems to establish a functional habitat for salmon in urban waterways?
Long Live the Kings (LLTK) is leading a partnership with Vigor and the University of Washington (UW)’s Wetland Ecosystem Team to evaluate the effectiveness of restoring habitat along the Harbor Island shoreline within the Duwamish estuary.
An Essential Waterway
The Duwamish estuary is a vital waterway in Puget Sound.
It is also home to many businesses and the diverse and historically marginalized communities of South Park and Georgetown. It also provides vital habitat for juvenile salmon migrating to the ocean.
However, over the past century of urban industrialization, the Duwamish estuary has lost 97% of the habitat it once provided these fish. Without functional estuary habitat, small salmon are less likely to survive to adulthood.
Vigor seeks to mitigate the impacts of a working shoreline by creating much-needed functional estuary habitat for juvenile salmon, and they have engaged LLTK and UW’s Wetland Ecosystem Team to evaluate the effectiveness of their restoration project.
A Damaged Ecosystem
Life returns to habitats soon after restoration.
The structure and dock that had previously existed on the site was demolished in 2021 and restoration was completed in the spring of 2023. Vigor staff are already reporting seeing fish, birds and seals using the new habitat. Long Live the Kings and University of Washington scientists conducted post-restoration monitoring in the Spring of 2024 and will continue in 2025. We hope to measure improvements in habitat function, showing before-after comparisons of shoreline vegetation, insect abundance, and presence and feeding of fish in the newly restored intertidal area.
Testing our Impact
Annual testing at the restoration site provides essential insights
Restoring habitat provides higher quality food for juvenile salmon, enabling them to grow and survive better. Comparing salmon and insect use before and after Vigor’s habitat restoration will provide insight into whether nature-based solutions are an effective technique for creating functional estuary habitat along working shorelines. If so, Vigor and Long Live the Kings plan to promote the effort and support other businesses and landowners interested in adopting similar restoration projects to support salmon recovery.