City Light staff recently got to share information about climate change and career options in the hydroelectric industry, as part of an ongoing effort to encourage interest in science, the trades and environmental issues.
The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration published a report on the historic populations of steelhead in the Puget Sound co-authored by Ed Connor, a senior fish biologist at City Light.
Careful planning, quick thinking and coordination with the Army Corps of Engineers prevented major flooding and salmon egg losses on the Skagit River after a massive Thanksgiving week storm dumped nearly 11 inches of rain near City Light’s dams.
City Light staff has just completed their tenth year of the “Homeward Bound” field trip, a program to give elementary school students an opportunity to witness the return of salmon to local rivers, and learn about natural sciences.
City Light acquired two properties on the Skagit and Sauk Rivers for fish habitat preservation.
Many Chinook salmon eggs laid in the Skagit River system last fall faced grim prospects for survival amid challenging water conditions. But a coordinated effort by Seattle City Light working with state and federal resource agencies and tribes along with an exceptionally wet March and April gave more than 300,000 of them the chance to grow up.
Seattle City Light recently purchased three separate riverfront properties to protect salmonid habitat in our region. The purchases cover 44.5 acres on Pressentin Creek, one acre on the Skagit River and half an acre on the Tolt River. The property on the Skagit River is adjacent to other protected parcels owned by City Light.
Seattle City Light was awarded a $982,999 grant from the Washington Salmon Recovery Board to acquire 113 acres of high quality habitat for Chinook salmon, steelhead and bull trout in the Skagit River system.
Fish biologists, power marketers and hydro operators at the Skagit performed a carefully orchestrated dance between July 15 and 17 to prepare the Gorge Dam spill gates for an inspection, seal rehabilitation, and a new coat of paint.
Natural Resources and Environmental Planning field surveys carried out this spring showed that steelhead redd (or nest) counts in the 27 miles of river below City Light’s hydroelectric project are 20 percent higher than any other year since 1997.
