TNC ME Campaign Impact Report 2023 pages - Flipbook - Page 3
CLIMATE & RIVERS
BRINGING FISH BACK
TO THE SKUTIK RIVER
Along the border between Maine and New Brunswick, near the sweeping tides of
the Bay of Fundy, lies one of the most significant river restoration initiatives in the
North Atlantic. The Skutik River (also known as the
St. Croix) once ran silver with an almost unimaginable
abundance of sea-run fish, including alewives, Atlantic
salmon, American eel, sturgeon, and others. More
recently, the river has been blocked and degraded by
dams, overfishing, and water pollution. But now the
Passamaquoddy Tribe is leading partners, including TNC,
in advancing a restoration vision that is projected to bring
tens of millions of native fish back to the Skutik each year,
benefitting the human communities and natural ecosystems
that depend on these aquatic visitors.
Your support of the Join Maine campaign has already
provided critical capacity to launch this major restoration
initiative. With the first dam up from the ocean slated
for removal this year, the project team has assisted in
securing more than $20 million in federal funding to
improve fish passage at the next two upstream dams.
Once access is restored to critical lake and pond habitats
past the third upstream dam, scientists estimate annual
returns of between 27 and 89 million alewives.
Our Goals by 2024
Rivers
853 Miles
GOAL: AT LEAST 2,000 MILES
43%
Miles of rivers and streams protected and reconnected
8,319,239 Sea-Run Fish
GOAL: MORE THAN 15 MILLION SEA-RUN FISH
55%
Number of sea-run fish returning to Maine's rivers each year
A TOUR OF YOUR IMPACT | 3