Atlas, O’Neill Service Group and partners are driving Salmon recovery in the Pacific Northwest.
State and local habitat enhancement dollars are funding the rebuilding of critical infrastructure to better serve fish and human populations. Salmon are a critical part of the region’s ecology and culture; Atlas is positioned to be a part of its recovery.
Washington State Department of Transportation’s program to replace more than 400 non-conforming culverts beneath state highways is one of these programs. Atlas is developing National Environmental Policy Act documents, Section 404 and 401 permit applications, performing quality assurance and environmental/material testing for these projects to restore hundreds of miles of historic breeding and rearing habitat statewide. Fish have already returned to stream habitat above the repaired culvert replacements. Atlas is under contract for 35 culvert replacement projects in Washington.
As construction manager for King County, Atlas is also removing old levees and reestablishing critical floodplain habitat along the region’s major rivers. The levee setback program is a major win for both salmon and the local communities, improving flood protection function and reconnecting habitat. Historic runs of chum salmon are returning to newly created channels like the one at Lones Levee Setback and Floodplain Restoration Project.
Atlas looks forward to many years of important restoration in the Pacific Northwest.
Published by Engineering News-Record (ENR) – Environmental Management
On August 1, 2022