The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

Knik Arm, Matanuska Susitna Basin Salmon Conservation Partnership © Beverly Chesnut

In the Matanuska-Susitna Basin, the magnitude of the landscape is matched only by the riches of its salmon streams. Each summer, millions of salmon return to the mighty Matanuska and Susitna rivers and the vast web of lakes and tributaries of the landscape we call home: The Mat-Su.

Those of us who live here know it is a spectacular place. It is an incredibly diverse landscape – beyond our shopping centers and neighborhoods lie the forests of birch and spruce and expanses of tundra that ultimately rise up to the snowy elevations of Denali, the Great One.

All five runs of salmon – Chinook, coho, sockeye, pink and chum – surge up the waters of the Mat-Su each year.  In the Susitna River drainage, from 100,000-200,000 king salmon return each year, making it Alaska’s fourth-largest king salmon fishery – among the largest in the world. Taken together, the annual pulse of Mat-Su salmon numbers in the millions.

It’s difficult to imagine life in the Mat-Su without salmon. Nature runs on salmon – and our economy does, too. Salmon feed families in more ways than one. Subsistence fishing is a vital tradition, while commercial fishing and sportfishing help anchor the local economy. 

Taking Action: Over the next five years, the Mat-Su Basin Salmon Partnership will:

• Complete a comprehensive assessment of Mat-Su watersheds, including a prioritization of fish habitat protections, restoration and enhancement needs;
• Coordinate an outreach and education campaign, and establish an organized network of volunteers, organizations, agencies and businesses working on watershed issues;
• Restore key fish habitat by revegetating damaged stream banks, creating fish-and-people-friendly fishing areas, removing barriers to fish passage, and reestablishing natural stream structure and flow;
• Protect threatened essential fish habitats and public access by working with willing landowners to acquire habitat and conservation easements;
• Improve management of habitat on public lands by increasing coordination between local, state and federal partners; and
• Leverage significant private and public funding in the achievement of the partnership goals for watershed and salmon conservation.

Partnership Updates

December 2006 Newsletter

April 2007 Newsletter

August 2007 Newsletter

July 2008 Newsletter

Strategic Action Plan of the Mat-Su Salmon Habitat Partnership

Read the partnership's complete strategic action plan  or the executive summary.

Partnership Members

(as of Nov., 2008) 

Alaska Dept. of Commerce, Community & Economic Development ▪ Alaska Dept. of Environmental Conservation ▪ Alaska Dept. of Fish & Game ▪ Alaska Dept. of Natural Resources ▪ Alaska Dept. of Transportation & Public Facilities ▪ Alaska Center for the Environment ▪ Alaska Outdoor Council ▪ Alaska Railroad Corporation ▪ Alaskans for Palmer Hay Flats ▪ Aquatic Restoration & Research Institute ▪ Bureau of Land Management ▪ Butte Area Residents Civic Organization ▪ Chickaloon Village Traditional Council ▪ ConocoPhillips Alaska, Inc. ▪ Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association ▪ Cook Inletkeeper ▪ Environmental Protection Agency ▪ Fishtales River Guides ▪ Friends of Mat-Su ▪ Glacier Ridge Properties ▪ Great Land Trust ▪ HDR Alaska Inc. ▪ Knik River Watershed Group ▪ Matanuska River Watershed Coalition ▪ Matanuska-Susitna Borough ▪ National Marine Fisheries Service ▪ National Park Service ▪ Native Village of Eklutna ▪ Natural Resources Conservation Service ▪ Palmer Soil & Water Conservation District ▪ Sierra Club ▪ The Conservation Fund ▪ The Nature Conservancy ▪ Upper Susitna Soil & Water Conservation District ▪ US Army Corps of Engineers ▪ US Fish & Wildlife Service ▪ US Geological Survey ▪ USDA Forest Service ▪ Wasilla Soil & Water Conservation District ▪ The Wildlifers