The North Olympic Salmon Coalition (NOSC) is starting a new estuary restoration project at the Pitship Estuary, an intertidal wetland located on the western (i.e., interior) side of West Sequim Bay Road, approximately 0.3 mile south of Pitship Point. A principal focus of the effort is to improve water movement between the estuary and the main body of Sequim Bay, immediately to the east of West Sequim Bay Road. The project is designed to replace an undersized culvert at the estuary mouth with a bridge to restore fish access and restore tidal connection to the estuary.
Dedicated to Restoring Salmon Habitat....
The environmental conditions within the marsh are degraded due to fill and because the culvert connecting Pitship pocket estuary to Sequim Bay is undersized. This inhibits the natural rise and fall of waters within the estuary on each tidal cycle and creates a fish passage barrier due to high flow rates. The culvert is prone to clogging which can back up water in the estuary on falling tides or prevent water from entering on rising tides.
This project fits into the Sequim Bay ecosystem restoration as a critical component of non-natal juvenile summer chum and Chinook rearing habitat improvement, forage fish spawning improvement, shellfish habitat improvement and restoration of nearshore processes.
