Appalachian Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office

The Appalachian Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office restores and protects important fish and wildlife habitats on private lands through partnerships. We help assess, plan, and conduct habitat restoration, including removing dams and replacing road-stream crossings and culverts with structures that are resilient to high water flows and allow better fish passage fish passage
Fish passage is the ability of fish or other aquatic species to move freely throughout their life to find food, reproduce, and complete their natural migration cycles. Millions of barriers to fish passage across the country are fragmenting habitat and leading to species declines. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Fish Passage Program is working to reconnect watersheds to benefit both wildlife and people.

Learn more about fish passage at all times of the year. 

Our office

• Restores habitat for fish and wildlife on tribal, county and municipal lands
• Provides technical assistance to private landowners on enhancing habitat for fish and wildlife on their property, including:
  • Restoring wetlands, riparian riparian
    Definition of riparian habitat or riparian areas.
    
    Learn more about riparian , in-stream and upland / forested habitats
  • Controlling invasive species invasive species
    An invasive species is any plant or animal that has spread or been introduced into a new area where they are, or could, cause harm to the environment, economy, or human, animal, or plant health. Their unwelcome presence can destroy ecosystems and cost millions of dollars.
    
    Learn more about invasive species
  • Planting native trees and shrubs
  • Fencing livestock out of stream and riparian areas 
• Cooperates with the U.S. Department of Agriculture on the Farm Bill Program, Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program, Environmental Quality Incentive Program, Wetlands Reserve Program and the Conservation Reserve Program.
• Works with others to remove barriers to fish passage, including replacing aging or undersized road-stream crossings with structures that are resilient to high flows
• Develops habitat restoration projects and secures funding through the the National Fish Passage Program, the National Fish Habitat Partnership, and Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program.
• Collaborates and strengthens partnerships within the Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture (EBTJV), the Atlantic Coastal Fish Habitat Partnership, and the Ohio River Basin Fish Habitat Partnership (ORBFHP).
• Conducts outreach and education with youth and their families on the unique natural resources of the central Appalachians, such as native brook trout, crayfish, freshwater mussels, and Appalachia’s amazing network of rivers, streams and springs which are vital to fish and wildlife, and humans.