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 the Pacific Ocean.  The northern area of influence extends to Thurston County in Washington and is bounded on the south by Clatsop, Columbia, Washington, Multnomah, Clackamas 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.

The goal of this project is to conserve lands that support native fish, wildlife and plant species in the Columbia River estuary (CRE) for the purpose of ecosystem restoration and cultural continuity. The purpose is to increase the quantity and improve the quality of degraded aquatic and floodplain habitats within the Lower Columbia River mainstem and tidally influenced reaches of tributaries in both OR and WA from Bonneville Dam at RM 146 to the plume of the Columbia River, all located within the Cowlitz Tribe's Historical Area of Interest. 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. This project will allow the Cowlitz Indian Tribe to identify, develop, and implement habitat restoration activities throughout the lower Columbia River by funding activities which assess the feasibility of acquisition, implementation and management actions all necessary to successfully implement BPA's obligations under the 2008 BiOp and successive iterations.

This iteration of this contract allows the Cowlitz Indian Tribe to perform activities which will lead to the implementation of a floodplain reconnection project on the mainstem Columbia River known as The Shire. Extensive data gathering and modeling have been done onsite and design alternatives have been discussed with stakeholders. Final design, subject to BPA, USACE and the Services along with other permitting are required before construction can begin in 2021.