Spring 2026 Yukon River Drainage Salmon Habitat Restoration Online Newsletter
Introduction to the Spring 2026 (3rd) Edition
We are happy to bring you the third (Spring 2026) edition of our newsletter covering habitat restoration activities and topics related to Yukon River drainage salmon! This edition previews activities that are planned for the summer 2026 season and reports happenings that occurred since the previous newsletter. Below are some reminders about the newsletter goals…
Ta’an Kwäch’än Council salmon habitat enhancement
Ta’an Kwäch’än Council salmon habitat enhancement through beaver dam management Working with Yukon Territory summer students, Ta’an Kwäch’än Council’s Kadin Hare, and Lands and Resources team, were able to temporarily lower 5 beaver dams on Fox Creek to encourage fish passage in July 2025, just before the expected Yukon River Chinook salmon run. Ta’an…
Alaska Rivers Lab at UAF
From Gold Rush to Restoration: Monitoring Alaska’s Stream Communities Thomas F. House, Sarah Nyland, and Dakota Keller with Alaska Rivers Lab at University of Alaska Fairbanks In 2026, students from the Alaska Rivers Lab at the University of Alaska Fairbanks are continuing a diverse set of research projects across the Yukon River drainage, with a…
Denali National Park Eldorado Creek Reclamation Project Spring 2026 Update
Denali National Park Eldorado Creek Reclamation Project Spring 2026 Update The U.S. National Park Service is planning for renewed field efforts in 2026 at a former placer mine reclamation site in the Kantishna Hills near the end of the Denali Park Road. The project reach at lower Eldorado Creek lies within the Moose Creek floodplain…
USFWS Habitat Spring 2026 Updates
USFWS Habitat Spring 2026 Updates April community meeting in Emmonak, AK In April, Chandra McGee (USFWS) traveled to the village of Emmonak in the lower Yukon with Aditi Shenoy (Fairbanks Soil and Water Conservation District – FSWCD), Grace Kirkey (Yukon River Drainage Fisheries Association) and Kristen Reece (University of Alaska, Fairbanks) for a community meeting…
U.S. BLM Spring 2026 Updates
U.S. BLM Spring 2026 Updates The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will keep working to restore aquatic habitats affected by past mining in Alaska and will track progress to improve its restoration methods. Starting this summer, BLM will begin another phase of restoration at Nome Creek, focusing on areas upstream from previous projects (2023–2025). The…
UAF – IARC Spring 2026 Updates
UAF – IARC Spring 2026 Updates Our goal at the University of Alaska Fairbanks International Arctic Research Center is to document, quantify, and map cumulative effects of climatic, food-web, and habitat stressors limiting recovery of Yukon River salmon populations, with a focus on actions that managers and local communities can take to support salmon recovery.…
WCS Canada and University of Saskatchewan research
Wildlife Conservation Society Canada and University of Saskatchewan research on stressors affecting freshwater ecosystems across central Yukon using benthic macroinvertebrates Wes Moir (WCS Canada Weston Fellow and MSc student at the University of Saskatchewan) completed a study on how multiple stressors are affecting freshwater ecosystems across central Yukon Territory using benthic macroinvertebrates (“water bugs”). Benthic…
WCS Arctic Beringia: Supporting Yukon River salmon restoration for the benefit of ecosystems and communities
WCS Arctic Beringia: Supporting Yukon River salmon restoration for the benefit of ecosystems and communities The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) was founded in 1895 and is a global non-profit organization with a mission to save wildlife and wild places through science, conservation action, education and inspiring people to value nature. The Arctic Beringia Program of…
Seeing the Ecosystem Through a Networked Watershed
Indigenous Sentinels Network, Yukon River Drainage Fisheries Association, and Yukon River Inter-Tribal Fisheries Commission: Seeing the Ecosystem Through a Networked Watershed The Yukon River watershed is sustained through the many partners working together toward shared salmon and habitat goals. Rather than operating as one large program, this networked approach allows each organization to contribute its…
Alaska Department of Fish and Game Activities
Alaska Department of Fish and Game Activities Planned for Summer 2026 Fish Passage Surveys In the 2026 field season the ADF&G Fish Passage Program will continue culvert survey work in the Yukon River Drainage. Two technicians have been hired from the Fairbanks area. Last summer, technicians focused on surveying 142 culverts in Fairbanks, and along…
Yukon Territory: Other Happenings
Yukon Territory: Other Happenings Stranded fish rescue A Yukon First Nation is planning to salvage juvenile fish along the Yukon River for the anticipated high water in the spring. In previous years, gee traps and nets were used to capture fish stranded in pools as water receded and became disconnected from the river. Fish are…
Recent Relevant Scientific Publications
“Econometric Models for Estimating Costs of Salmon Habitat Restoration in the Northwest USA” “Disentangling Restoration Effects from Estuarine Gradients and Seasonal Variability: an analysis of Secondary Production and Chinook Salmon Diets in Tidal Wetlands” “Planning, Implementing, and Evaluating Stage 0 and Valley Bottom Restoration Projects: A Review With Lessons From the Grande Ronde Basin, USA”…
Are we missing any projects, or does any of this information need to be corrected? Please contact kfraley@wcs.org if so!
Arctic Beringia Fish Ecology 