Historical Changes to Estuaries, Spits, and Associated Tidal Wetland Habitats in the Hood Canal and Strait of Juan de Fuca Regions of Washington State

Report and Data Available for Download

The Point No Point Treaty Council has completed a study comparing historical and contemporary habitat conditions in estuaries and other tidal marsh habitats of Hood Canal, western Admiralty Inlet, and Strait of Juan de Fuca regions of Puget Sound.  The main objectives of this project were to “re-construct” characteristics of the nearshore landscape as they existed prior to most development, using primarily the 1800s United States Coast and Geodetic Survey topographic sheets (“T sheets”), and to compare these historical conditions to those that we see today using air photo delineations of tidal wetland habitats.  Knowing what the nearshore looked like prior to shoreline development and learning the causes of habitat changes during the past 100-150 years can provide clues as to how various habitats may have functioned for salmon at that time compared with their function today.  We believe such information may be helpful to local communities and governments in prioritizing and designing habitat protection and recovery activities; additionally, the public can gain a greater appreciation for the changes that have occurred in our estuaries and shorelines during the past several generations.  As part of our study, we have included site specific as well as general recommendations for shoreline habitat protection and recovery.  The State Salmon Recovery Funding Board (SRFB) and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) funded this project.  If you have any questions regarding the project, including data requests, please contact Steve Todd (360-297-6526; stodd@pnptc.org) or Chris Weller (360-297-6532; cweller@pnptc.org).

Digitized historical maps (“T sheets”) are available for download as GIS shapefiles (geodatabase available by request) in the projection NAD 1927 UTM Zone 10N (meters).  These can be viewed in ESRI ArcView, ArcExplorer, ArcGIS, and ArcInfo programs.  Click the bulleted link below, and select from the table the zipped files (shapefile and metadata) for the T Sheets (by T sheet number) that you are interested in downloading:

·        Digitized Historical Maps (“T sheets”)      

·    Shoreline Alterations GIS Data    (Report provides description for the data)

Note: Georectified images of the original T sheets and a composite digitized T sheet geodatabase are available for much of the Puget Sound region, and can be downloaded from the UW Puget Sound River History website (http://riverhistory.ess.washington.edu/)

Digitized current day habitat delineations are available for download as GIS shapefiles (geodatabase available by request by contacting Nick Fitzpatrick at 360-297-6508 or nfitzpatrick@pnptc.org) in the projection NAD 1983 StatePlane Washington North (feet).  These can be viewed in ESRI ArcView, ArcExplorer, ArcGIS, and ArcInfo programs.  Click the bulleted link below, and select from the table the zipped files (shapefile and metadata) for the current day delineation (by sub-region) that you are interested in downloading:

·        Digitized Current Day Habitat Delineations