The Northwest Power Act directs the Northwest Power and Conservation Council (NPCC) and Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to consult with the region’s appropriate Indian Tribes in the development and implementation of the Fish and Wildlife Program.  The Power Act also calls for fish and wildlife management coordination to assist protection, mitigation, and enhancement of fish and wildlife resources in the Columbia River Basin.  The Cowlitz Indian Tribe is a federally recognized Indian tribe whose area of influence extends from the crest of the Cascade Mountains and Celilo Falls to Pacific County in Washington and Clatsop County in Oregon.  The northern area of influence extends to Thurston County in Washington and is bounded on the south inside Columbia, Washington, Multnomah, and Hood River Counties in Oregon.  Many culturally important landscapes and species to the Cowlitz People within its areas of influence are affected by the operations of the Federal Columbia River Power System (FCRPS).  The development of the FCRPS has adversely affected wildlife, resident fish, and anadromous fish resources along the entirety of the ancestral Cowlitz landscape including, but not limited to:  The Lewis River and its tributaries, the Cowlitz River and its tributaries, the Kalama River and its tributaries, as well as the Columbia River Estuary from Bonneville Dam to the Plume.

The Cowlitz Indian Tribe works with the NPCC, BPA and her partners to identify, develop and implement salmonid habitat restoration projects on the Lower Columbia River from Bonneville Dam to the Plume of the Columbia River, all located within the Cowlitz Tribe's Historical Area of Interest. One of these projects identified and developed through the Estuary process is a 232 acre floodplain project which occurs at the confluence of the Walooski River and Young's Bay near Astoria Oregon.

The Walluski-Youngs Confluence restoration project is sponsored by the Cowlitz Indian Tribe. The site has been purchased by Astoria Wetlands, LLC which will fund the site’s restoration design, permitting, and construction; the land’s title will be conveyed to the Tribe. The Tribe will provide perpetual stewardship of the site, manage the area, and provide access to the site for the Cowlitz and other Tribes’ cultural activities.

The project will restore tidal processes, a functioning tidal marsh system, and fish access to the historically estuarine portion of the site: 164.50 acres of isolated floodplain habitat. This site is characterized by an extensive dike along the perimeter that isolates the area and prevents daily tidal interaction with historical floodplain habitat that is now drained pasture land. The dike, which is privately owned and operated, is poorly constructed of unconsolidated materials and is eroding in extensive areas. Breaching the dike and further weakening it in selected areas will immediately restore tidal hydrology and, through time, promote more connectivity with the bay as the dike continues to erode.

Project Goals
The Walluski-Youngs Confluence project will restore and preserve 232 acres of estuary and upland areas in Youngs Bay to provide habitat and promote conservation. The project will meet these goals by increasing habitat diversity and complexity for juvenile salmonids at the site and improving connectivity to nearby restoration sites with Youngs Bay and the Youngs and Walluski River drainages by restoring access and tidal hydrology to the floodplain wetland, as well as current and new tidal channel networks. The project will enhance riparian/floodplain and upland habitats and site connectivity by restoring native plant communities and controlling non-native invasive species.
The Walluski-Youngs Confluence project will meet the Cowlitz Indian Tribe’s Natural Resources Department's goals of restoring and conserving landscapes and species integral to the cultural identity of the Cowlitz People. This project will restore critical habitat for salmonids and will also serve as important habitat for migrating waterfowl, deer and elk, and native plant communities that are culturally significant to the Tribe.

What this contract sets out to perform, in this first iteration, is to facilitate, develop and come into compliance with the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) authority to modify (in this case breach in several locations) a levee under the authority of USACE. This process is known as Section 408 Compliance. Section 408 is an intensive process that requires several steps and independent review to ensure that infrastructure and human safety drive the design process of any modifications to USACE authorized levees. This project will fund the design steps, review, coordination and technical assessments necessary to bring the Walluski-Young's Confluence Project into compliance with USACE Section 408 rules.