Protecting and Restoring Anadromous Fish Habitat

The California Fish Passage Forum is a nationally recognized Fish Habitat Partnership as part of the National Fish Habitat Partnership. We are association of public, private and governmental organizations that connects project partners with long-term funding for fish passage projects, provides design and implementation assistance, and connects practitioners with options for streamlined permitting to restore connectivity of freshwater habitats throughout the historic range of target anadromous fish species including coho and chinook salmon, steelhead and sturgeon, and pacific lamprey.

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57 Projects

Since 2012, the Forum has supported 57 projects, varying from on-the-ground projects to design projects, and scientific assessments across the state of California.

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1.7M+ in Project Funding

The Forum has connected project partners with more than 1.7 million in combined project funding.

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50 Barriers Remediated

The Forum has supported the removal or remediation of at least fifty fish passage barriers in California, from small culverts to massive dam removals.

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295 Miles of Improved Access

Forum supported projects have
resulted in improved access to spawning and rearing habitat for threatened & endangered anadromous fish.

News and Announcements

Conservation and Fish Passage Job Opportunities

Please see the multiple job opportunities below. 1. The Salmon River Restoration Council is seeking a qualified and highly motivated individual to fill the position of Habitat Restoration Program Manager. This is by far SRRC's largest and most dynamic program and we are looking for a candidate who is comfortable with...

$36 Million Available for Fish Passage and River Restoration Projects as Part of President’s Investing in America Agenda

Interested parties should submit a Letter of Interest to the appropriate National Fish Passage Program regional coordinator, via email, by Nov. 17, 2023 October 11, 2023 Contact: publicaffairs@fws.gov Biden-Harris Administration Makes $36 Million Available for Fish Passage and River Restoration Projects as Part of...

2022 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting and Wildlife Watching Shows Economic Contribution of $395 billion to US Economy

Patricia AllenDirector of CommunicationsAssociation of Fish and Wildlife Agencies Washington D.C. (October 12, 2023)- The Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies is pleased to see the final report on the 2022 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, released today by the U.S. Fish and...

Next Forum Meeting November 7-8th, 2023 in Santa Rosa

After a long pause in in-person Forum meetings, we are pleased to announce that the next in-person Steering Committee meeting will take place Tuesday, November 7th at the California Dept of Fish and Wildlife office in Santa Rosa, CA. A project site visit is planned for Wednesday, November 8th. At this meeting, we want to...

Forum Announces FY24 Funding Opportunity

The Forum is pleased to announce the release of its Request for Proposals (RFP) for FY24 project funding available through the National Fish Habitat Partnership (NFHP). In FY24 the Forum expects to provide a total of roughly $150,000-230,000 to support eligible projects that will help advance the Forum's mission to...

California Fish Passage Forum Sees Generational Opportunity to Increase Fish Passage

On November 15, 2021, President Biden signed into law the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R. 3684) which provides a generational opportunity to not only create new infrastructure, but also repair the ecological damage of obsolete structures that have fundamentally changed our nation's rivers. This...

Forum Announces FY23 Funding Opportunity

The Forum is pleased to announce the release of its Request for Proposals (RFP) for FY23 project funding available through the National Fish Habitat Partnership (NFHP). In FY23 the Forum expects to provide a total of roughly $150,000-230,000 to support eligible projects that will help advance the Forum's mission to...

Lawrence Creek Named to NFHP’s 2021 List of “10 Waters to Watch”

Continuing the Forum's strong tradition of having nominated projects selected to the National Fish Habitat Partnership's (NFHP) annual list of 10 Waters to Watch, on September 25, 2021 the Lawrence Creek Off-Channel Habitat Connectivity Project (Lawrence Creek) was named to NFHP's 2021 list. Since NFHP...

USFWS Webinar: Putting Fish Passage Barriers on the Map:

On August 5, 2020, Forum signatory member, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) Pacific Southwest Region, held a webinar during which Cassandra Doll, a USFWS Directorate Resource Fellow, presented the findings of a comparative analysis of several fish passage databases from across the United States,...

Forum-funded Juvenile Fish Passage Criteria Assessment Project Helps Inform Update to NMFS Guidelines That Saves Taxpayers and Practitioners Millions of Dollars

In September 2019, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Southwest Region reissued the Guidelines for Salmonid Passage at Stream Crossings, originally issued in September 2001. While there has been extensive research done on the leaping abilities of adult salmonids, there is little information on the...