Evaluation of Life History Diversity, Habitat Connectivity, and Survival Benefits Associated with Habitat Restoration Actions in the Lower Columbia River and Estuary, Annual Report 2011

This report describes the 2011 research conducted under the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE or Corps) project EST-P-09-1, Evaluation of Life History Diversity, Habitat Connectivity, and Survival Benefits Associated with Habitat Restoration Actions in the Lower Columbia River and Estuary. The research was conducted by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (Marine Sciences Laboratory [MSL], Hydrology Group, and Ecology Group), in partnership with the University of Washington, School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences/Columbia Basin Research, and Mr. Earl Dawley. This Columbia River Fish Mitigation Program project, informally called Salmon Benefits, was started in fiscal year 2009 to evaluate and advance the state of the science regarding the ability to quantify the benefits of habitat restoration actions in the lower Columbia River and estuary to listed salmonids1.