The U.S. Department of the Interior announced approximately $38 million in funding has been allocated for fiscal year 2022 to help restore fish passages and aquatic activity.
According to an April 14 news release, funding for the National Fish Passage Program will be provided through President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and will fund 40 projects in almost two dozens states and U.S. territories. The program will receive $200 million in investments spanning the next five years.
“Across the country, millions of barriers block fish migration and put communities at higher risk of flooding,” DOI Secretary Deb Haaland said in the release. “President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in our nation’s rivers, streams and communities and help restore habitat connectivity for aquatic species around the country.”
The program will aim to restore fish passages by updating unsafe or obsolete dams, culverts, levees and other barriers in the nation's rivers and streams.
“Aquatic restoration projects funding by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law are important examples of how nature-based projects can enable ecosystems and communities to be more resilient to climate change,” Service Director Martha Williams said in the release. “In addition to providing benefits for fish and aquatic species, the National Fish Passage Program’s work to restore degraded and fragmented aquatic habitats decreases public safety hazards, improves infrastructure resilience and creates jobs, stimulating the local economy.”
A full list of the 40 funded projects can be found at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife webpage dedicated to the announcement.
