Alaska

Ai.Fish
Operationalizing Machine Learning in Alaska’s Fixed Gear Electronic Monitoring Program
Develop and deploy a cloud-based software system for processing electronic monitoring video data using machine learning, incorporate machine learning processing into data review, and conduct a study on the effects of using machine learning to assist review. Project will improve efficiency for data analysis in Alaska and disseminate best practices for implementing machine learning in data review in Alaska and other fisheries.
$250,000

Alaska Geographic Association
Anchorage Resident Watershed Connection - Monitoring, Restoration, Education and Recreation (AK)
Engage Anchorage residents in hands-on restoration projects, cultivating stewardship of local natural resources through watershed outdoor education, sportfishing and other conservation activities. Project will engage communities in environmental outreach, education, and training activities while also addressing priority habitat restoration.
$56,422

Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association
Improving Electronic Monitoring Image Quality using Machine Learning Onboard Vessels (AK)
Field test machine learning algorithms that detect common image quality issues seen in fisheries electronic monitoring and provide feedback to the vessel operator in real-time. Project will evaluate the software on operational electronic monitoring systems used in Alaska’s fixed gear and trawl programs.
$97,966

Aleutians East Borough
Improving Data Quality, Timeliness and Access for Full Scale Electronic Monitoring Implementation (AK)
Catalyze adoption of implemented electronic monitoring in the Western Gulf of Alaska pollock trawl fishery. Project will increase the level of monitoring, test the ability of installed electronic monitoring systems to work with other gears, improve catch reporting to support fisheries conservation and management, advance automation of salmon bycatch detection and counting, and develop new tools to more efficiently transfer and review data in Alaska.
$521,062

Anchorage Park Foundation
University Lake Shoreline Restoration and Wildlife Habitat Improvement (AK)
Restore 750 feet of eroding banks to improve water quality and riparian habitat in University Lake, fed by an anadromous stream in Anchorage, Alaska. Project will install a new toe, trench willows, regrade and revegetate banks using 450 native tree species, native grass seed, and 3,000 willow stems, and divert access from this key nesting area by training 52 high school aged students through the Youth Employment in Parks program.
$46,794

Copper River Watershed Project
Establishing a Temperature Monitoring Network for Salmon Conservation in the Copper River Watershed (AK)
Establish baseline watershed temperature conditions through the development of a region-wide monitoring network for the Copper River watershed to better understand Pacific salmon population responses to temperature changes in Alaska. Project will convene a Copper River Temperature Working Group to standardize temperature monitoring methodologies, identify current and future monitoring sites, and deploy and collect temperature data from 30 additional temperature monitoring devices in the watershed.
$53,606

Fairbanks Soil and Water Conservation District
Education and Outreach to Reduce the Spread of Elodea to Protect Pacific Salmon Habitat (AK)
Detect new invasive aquatic plant elodea infestations, in partnership with tribal and non-profit organizations, to prioritize treatment in seven communities within the Yukon-Kuskokwim Watershed, Alaska. Project will increase public engagement and awareness of elodea, share best practices to prevent spread, train tribal community members on identification and survey techniques, and provide natural resource employment opportunities to Alaska Native students through the Public Land Corps program.
$74,602

Kenai Watershed Forum
Fish Passage and Infrastructure Improvement in Lower Kenai River Tributary (AK)
Replace a perched culvert with a bridge to reconnect 0.85 miles of Pacific salmon stream habitat and open 1.24 miles of upstream and wetland habitat in Kenai, Alaska. Project will keep floodplain connectivity to accommodate anadromous fish passage to crucial rearing habitat for coho and sockeye salmon in the Lower Kenai River tributary.
$107,063

Manomet
Monitoring Habitat Use and Migration Pathways for Two Arctic Nesting Shorebird Species (AK)
Deploy GPS tags on whimbrel and American golden-plovers in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, two species identified as high conservation concern in Alaska. Project will use tracking data to identify post-breeding habitat use on the Arctic Coastal plain, establish general connectivity among wintering, migration, and breeding locations, assess threats to survival along migratory routes, and inform conservation decisions for each shorebird species.
$61,164

Native Conservancy
Restoring Pacific Salmon Coastline Habitat through Community Kelp Farms (AK)
Restore kelp beds along the coastline to protect Pacific salmon habitat in partnership with Alaska Native communities and local organizations in Alaska. Project will develop 20 kelp farms along 6,400 miles of coastline, train a local workforce to steward the kelp beds, conduct educational outreach on coastal restoration informed by traditional ecological knowledge, and provide internships for Native youth.
$159,764

Native Village of Napakiak
Restoration and Protection of Coastal Wetlands in Native Village of Napakiak (AK)
Prevent the contamination of the Kuskokwim River ecosystem by restoring 17 acres of coastal wetlands and riparian habitat in the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. Project will construct 12 nature-based natural infrastructure house pads from locally sourced sand and gravel; and revegetate the 7.6 acres by planting native grasses and local willow cuttings.
$3,000,000

Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition
Expanding Conservation Capacity (AK)
Build regional capacity to implement watershed restoration on the Tongass National Forest by engaging tribes, community groups, agencies, and other stakeholders in hands on restoration, stewardship, and trainings. Project will result in direct benefits to salmon and deer habitat on the Tongass National Forest and will increase agency and community capacity to improve watershed condition.
$25,000

Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition
Restoring Salmon Habitat in Halfmile Creek (AK)
Restore salmon habitat in Halfmile Creek on Tàan (Prince of Wales Island) in Alaska through the addition of large woody debris to create habitat complexity and rehabilitate stream function. Project will also provide a workforce development opportunity for an Alaska Native work crew focused on Klawock watershed stewardship.
$58,046

The Conservation Fund
Permanently Protect Sockeye Salmon Habitat in Pedro Bay Rivers (AK)
Permanently protect 44,173 acres within Knutson Creek, Pile River, and Iliamna River watersheds in Alaska through a conservation easement. Project will benefit sockeye salmon spawning and rearing habitat and prevent imminent threat of road and infrastructure development to establish an indigenous conservation area that connects 13.7 million acres of protected lands.
$500,000

The Nature Conservancy
Deploy Machine Learning for Electronic Monitoring of Fisheries (multiple states)
Develop, widely test and deploy open source computer vision tools which identify and trim video segments to reduce archival video storage costs for fisheries electronic monitoring. Project will employ a two-step process where detection of humans is completed during video review and trimming is done only after video review is completed to reduce risk of eliminating important fishing activity and to facilitate adoption by regulators.
$144,889

The Student Conservation Association
Supporting Alaska Regional High School Youth Crew on the Chugach National Forest (AK)
Support an Alaska Regional High School Youth Crew to conduct conservation work and educational programming on the Chugach National Forest, Alaska. Project will provide opportunities for Alaska Native and Alaska youth to work with U.S. Forest Service personnel through projects which focus on natural resource management, subsistence use, and recreational infrastructure.
$54,423

United Catcher Boats
Pre-Implementation of Electronic Monitoring in Alaska’s Pelagic Trawl Pollock Fishery
Evaluate the feasibility and cost-efficiency of a fully implemented electronic monitoring approach in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska pelagic pollock trawl fisheries. Project will expand on previous work to improve data quality, timeliness, and cost-efficiency for salmon bycatch accounting and quantifying groundfish discards to monitor compliance with retention regulations.
$905,084

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Region 7
Developing a Statewide Monitoring Framework for Aleutian Tern in Alaska (AK)
Develop and initiate a statewide sampling and monitoring strategy to address information gaps of Aleutian tern populations in Alaska. Project will finalize survey and colony count protocols, complete a shared relational database in preparation for the statewide survey, develop an Aleutian tern nesting habitat model to inform survey sampling design, and initiate a statewide Aleutian tern colony census.
$174,998

University of Alaska Anchorage
2022 NFWF Summer Scholars Program (AK, DC)
Support the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP) to identify and support underrepresented students for the 2022 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) Scholars Program. Project will fund a total of ten ANSEP university students who will work in these conservation-based NFWF internships in Washington, DC.
$352,810

University of Alaska Anchorage
Supporting Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program Students in Advancing Conservation (AK) - II
Support seven Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP) student internships with agencies and local organizations relating to fish and bird conservation projects across Alaska. Project will strengthen the existing pathway for Alaska Native youth to engage in on-the-ground conservation activities and gain exposure to careers in conservation through field work experience and acting as liaisons between resource managers and local communities.
$103,484