SEQUIM, WA — Crews have completed major construction efforts on a multi-year project to improve fish movement. The work removed barriers to fish under U.S. 101 in Jefferson and Clallam counties. The estimated $144.8 million project balanced the need for keeping people moving while excavating entire sections of the highway.
Work began in summer 2023 at Eagle Creek near Gardiner, Washington. Crews removed aging culverts that fish could not navigate at a total of six locations. Replacing these outdated culverts with new structures opens up a combined 15 miles of potential habitat for fish.
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) kept people moving during the work by building temporary two-lane bypass roads. While people used the bypass roads, crews dug through the roadway in each location. At five locations, workers built new bridges. The sixth location received a larger culvert. The project also included rebuilding streams to help fish at all life cycles.
Crews rebuilt streambeds at each location. Workers installed logs and root wads in the stream, which provides refuge and resting areas for fish. Native plants were also installed, providing important nutrients and shade. Workers recently finished landscaping and final touches.
The work is part of WSDOT’s commitment to remove barriers to fish under state highways. Since 1991, WSDOT has worked to improve fish passage and foster healthy waterways by removing barriers under the highway. In addition to WSDOT’s ongoing work to correct statewide barriers, a 2013 federal court injunction requires the state to correct barrier culverts to salmon and steelhead within the injunction area in western Washington.
