Migratory Fish Restoration in the Susquehanna River

Resource Agencies have been implementing efforts to restore migratory fish to the Susquehanna River dating back to the mid-1800s, and those levels have been met with varying levels of success.  Since the 1960’s, a multi-state and federal group, currently known as the Susquehanna Anadromous Fish Restoration Cooperative, spearheaded a large scale restoration program, primarily focused on American Shad.  Restoration efforts included stocking juvenile shad, trap and transporting adults around the mainstem dams onto the spawning grounds and directing the four hydroelectric dams on the lower 60 miles of the mainstem to provide fish passage facilities.  This intensive restoration program culminated with peak American Shad passage at the Conowingo Dam in the early 2000s, followed by a steady decline in passage through 2015.  The cessation of the trap and transport program, reductions in shad fry stockings, and poor upstream passage efficiency at the mainstem dams have contributed to the current poor passage numbers at Conowingo Dam.  In an effort to reinvigorate restoration, efforts to improve fish passage have recently occurred at Holtwood Dam, with improvements to fish passage facilities at York Haven Dam and Conowingo Dam to be coming in the future.