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Bellingham Bay Demonstration Pilot

Habitat Action Team

 

One of the fundamental elements of the Bellingham Bay Demonstration Pilot Project is habitat restoration and protection.  The Habitat Action Team was formed in 1996 to help implement this component of the Pilot. The Habitat Action Team is made up of representatives from the Department of Ecology, Port of Bellingham, City of Bellingham, Whatcom County, EPA, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Department of Natural Resources, Puget Sound Water Quality Action Team, Lummi Nation, Nooksack Tribe, and RE Sources.

 

In 1998, the Habitat Action Team developed a Habitat Restoration Documentation Report that examined historic conditions in Bellingham Bay and identified potential habitat restoration and protection opportunities. 

 

Historic Conditions in Bellingham Bay

Looking at the types of habitat that have been lost and created over time in Bellingham Bay is an important step in habitat restoration and protection planning.  The Habitat Action Team compared pre-development habitat conditions in Bellingham Bay and determined that the majority of habitat losses in Bellingham Bay have occurred in the inner bay where several small estuaries exist.  The habitat losses in the inner bay have been characterized by the loss of estuary, eelgrass and nearshore intertidal habitats as a result of filling and dredging. 

 

Restoration Planning

Because the majority of habitat loss has occurred in the inner bay, the Habitat Action Team has focused its restoration planning activities on this area. The action team selected habitat opportunities using a baywide ecosystem approach with an emphasis on the following:

 

v     Recovery of eelgrass beds

v     Recovery of estuaries at the creek mouths (Squalicum Creek, Whatcom Creek, and Padden Creek)

v     Creation of intertidal and shallow subtidal migration corridors

v     Satisfying habitat needs of target marine fish and shellfish species (with the expectation that the habitat needs of non-target species will also be satisfied)

v     Removal of overwater structures

v     Beach restoration

v     Removal of beach debris

v     Removal of in-water fills

v     Shoreline riparian vegetation restoration and enhancement

v     Removal or modification of fish migration barriers or impediments

v     Substrate enhancement

 

Habitat Restoration Opportunities

Please note that the list of habitat restoration opportunities is not comprehensive and that the area of focus is inner Bellingham Bay.  The choices were based on the Habitat Action Team’s knowledge and expertise on resources and habitats in the Bay, historic and current day information and best professional judgment.