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Bristol Bay Heritage Land Trust nominated for international award for river preservation

Bristol Bay Heritage Land Trust

A delegation from BBHLT will travel to Australia in September to present the organization's work before a panel of judges for the the Theiss International Riverprize. BBHLT was nominated for the award for its work protecting salmon and wildlife habitat on the Nushagak and Kvichak rivers.

Bristol Bay Heritage Land Trust has been nominated for the Theiss International Riverprize for its work protecting salmon and wildlife habitat on the Nushagak and Kvichak rivers. The award is given by the International River Foundation, a non-profit that promotes restoration and preservation of rivers.

In September, a delegation from BBHLT will travel to Australia to present their work before a panel of judges alongside three other finalists. The winners will receive about $200,000 Australian dollars, which is roughly $160,000 in American currency.

There are several specific accomplishments that BBHLT will put forward when it present its work. Chief among them is the conservation easement that it orchestrated with the Pedro Bay Corporation to protect islands in Lake Iliamna.

“Another is some conservation work that we’ve been working on for a long period of time with the village of Koliganek,” said BBHLT executive director Tim Troll. “Koliganek worked with us to create a conservation easement at the confluence of Harris Creek. Protecting those confluences is important for, actually, the future of salmon in Bristol Bay.”

If BBHLT wins the prize, then the money will likely go the preservation of their conservation easements.

“For every conservation easement that we take on responsibility for, and that’s a perpetual responsibility, we need to set aside money to help protect that easement in the future. So probably some of that money would go sort of in a reserve endowment to help have funds if we ever have to, in the future, defend those easements that we’ve acquired,” said Troll.

This is the second time BBHLT has been nominated for this award. In 2011, it was the runner-up.

Contact the author at avery@kdlg.org or 907-842-5281.