about zACH

Zach Moore is a fish biologist with a focus on fish habitat and restoration. From a young age, Zach has been interested in the study of animals and how to protect our state's native wildlife. He grew up in Gig Harbor, Washington and spent his childhood years running around on the Puget Sound beaches, poking creatures on the tidelands and learning as much as he could about the animals that lived in the areas around him. In addition to studying animals, Zach spends a lot of his free time with wild animals in wild spaces through fishing, hunting, and other kinds of outdoor adventuring. His home is filled with rescued animals and he works next to two pythons, a corn snake, three tarantulas, a leopard gecko, a Russian tortoise, and other creatures every day while he is at home. He also has a pet turkey named Larry! When he's not working or taking care of his exotic critters, he likes fly fishing, skateboarding, mountain biking, squishing his dog, and playing guitar.

In 2017, Zach and one of his collaborators published the result of two years worth of work assessing the state of fish barriers in the Puget Sound and Washington coast regions. There are several motivations for this work--one is that increasing the survival of salmon also increases the survival of important marine predators like orca whales. Another is that the treaty rights of Indian tribes in western Washington are at risk due to declining salmon populations. In the 1850s, 20 tribes in western Washington signed treaties with the US government agreeing that they would give up their land as they were guaranteed fishing rights and access. Unfortunately, the US's end of the treaty has not been held up consistently over the years. One thing threatening these tribes' right to fish is the fact that salmon populations are currently declining faster than we can protect them.

Zach and collaborators from different organizations and government agencies surveyed 61 sites and identified 33 barriers among those sites that block migratory fish passage. They estimated that, if those barriers were removed, it could open up sixteen miles of spawning habitat. When it comes to salmon spawning, every bit counts! Another goal of the project was to prioritize which barriers would have the biggest positive impact on salmon if removed. Unfortunately, there is not always enough money to remove them all.

On a more local level, Zach is now helping to assess, prioritize and remove salmon barriers within King County. This sort of work is a race against the clock. It's anticipated that the field crews will find over 1,000 barriers across King County. If 400 of those are prioritized to be removed or fixed over the next 30 years, it could potentially allow salmon to access up to 95% of the habitat that they currently can't reach in those areas. However, that is expensive and hard work that requires lots of different people and organizations, both governmental and private, to work together. With the amount of funding that is currently available, it could take 100 years, not thirty, to get through those 400 barriers, and scientists like Zach are worried that salmon might not be able to wait 100 years for improved access to spawning habitat.

Prioritizing barrier removal based on what will allow the most access to historic spawning habitat can help make sure we're making the most of the funding available--it's possible that it can even double the rate at which habitat is restored, compared to removing barriers in a random order! Another thing that can help is increasing funding. Having elected and appointed officials who care about habitat restoration and are willing to contribute government money to these sorts of projects is key. Every day people can help by understanding where the people we vote for stand on these issues, voting on legislation that funds and supports habitat restoration, and raising our voices to make sure promises are held and treaties with local tribes are honored.