WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced that the Passamaquoddy Tribe will receive $7,741,450 in federal funding to restore fish access to migratory and spawning habitats. The grant from the Federal Highway Administration will replace four road-stream culverts in Downeast Maine, which will benefit a variety of fish species including Atlantic salmon, rainbow smelt, river herring, and American shad.

“Maine fish have long held cultural and economic significance for our state and the Pasamaquoddy Tribe,” said Senators Collins and King. “This federal funding will ensure that a variety of Maine fish, which are cornerstones of our ecosystem, have the ability to access critical migratory and spawning habitats. We’re grateful for this investment in the strength of Maine’s wildlife population.”

The replacement of these road-stream culverts in Washington County will open 265 salmon habitat units, 7,631 acres of alewife spawning habitat, and over 45 miles of spawning and migratory habitat for a variety of fish species.

Senators Collins and King have previously supported programs to ease fish migration routes. Recently, they also secured more than $22 million to remove dams and install fish ladders in the Penobscot and St. Croix Rivers allowing the endangered Atlantic salmon, along with other fish species and wildlife, to move along migrations routes with ease.

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