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Aquatic Organism Passage Monitoring & Assessment Protocol (aopMAP)

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Posted June 18, 2024

Live Online Training Session for aopMAP

In concurrence with FHWA Western Federal Lands, WSP and Natural Waters LLC will be holding live on-line training sessions on the aopMAP data collection protocols, highlighting how aopMAP provides field ready tools as an option for National Culvert Removal, Replacement & Rehabilitation Grant applicants. Register below:

Session #2 - September 12, 2024

Register Now

What is AOP and why is it important?

Aquatic Organism Passage (AOP) is a modern approach to the nexus of our highways and the aquatic environment along stream corridors. AOP water crossing structures provide for safe and resilient roadway corridors for the traveling public while also providing the needed nature like riverine conditions for the passage of native fish and other aquatic life species. Today, we are emphasizing the use of AOP structures from coast to coast as a key tool in the restoration of habitat for threatened native fish populations. Learn more

DOT Community Conversations: Removing, Restoring, and Replacing Our Nation's Culverts

Learn more about what culverts are, why they can present challenges for fishing communities and drivers alike and a new DOT program that can help remove, replace, or improve them.

Let's talk about culverts.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced a total of $196 million going to 59 Tribal, state, and local governments that will fix or remove 169 culvert barriers to improve fish passage. Outdated culverts and other infrastructure can cause roads to flood and severely restrict or altogether block fish passage, which is key to the health of fish runs and important to commercial and recreational fishing, and the health of Tribal communities. The projects also advance a key pillar of the America the Beautiful Initiative by increasing the ecological connectivity of rivers and streams and creating more climate resiliency in our landscapes and communities.

Shallow stream flows into a culvert

Benefits of Monitoring

Monitoring is an important component for AOP water crossings to function in a successful manner over their service life. Monitoring data provides owners with an understanding of the effectiveness of the AOP water crossings over time and helps readily identify emerging maintenance needs.

Shallow stream flows into a culvert

Benefits of Monitoring

Monitoring AOP crossings during their lifecycle from construction onward provides a key feedback loop into the design and construction processes allowing owners to potentially improve processes based on lessons learned from projects over time. Owners can benefit by lowered capital and maintenance expenditures as design and construction processes are refined.

Shallow stream flows into a culvert

Why use aopMAP for Monitoring

aopMAP provide field ready tools that have been tested nationwide for the monitoring of AOP water crossing structures. The aopMAP datasets are standardized to allow for determination of success of AOP projects and to facilitate the identification of best practices.

Shallow stream flows into a culvert

Grant programs and Monitoring

Recent AOP water crossing grant programs, including the FHWA National Culvert Removal, Replacement and Rehabilitation Grant program, either require monitoring or include monitoring as a grant selection criteria. aopMAP offers a set of field ready tools that can be utilized by infrastructure owners to help meet these grant criteria.

Did you know?

In the United States there are more than 2 million dams, culverts, and other barriers blocking fish migration patterns.
Source: NOAA
Atlantic Salmon were once found in every river north of the Hudson River. Today, less than one half of a percent of the population remains.
Source: NOAA
Reduced fish populations impact the entire ecosystem, from predators to insect populations.
Pacific salmon are distantly related to Atlantic salmon but they can not interbreed as these species have a different number of chromosomes.
Source: Pacific Salmon Foundation
Native Nations of the Pacific Northwest define themselves as Salmon People. They consider salmon to be an extremely important gift of food from the Creator, and each year they honor the salmon's sacrifice in special ceremonies.
Source: Pacific Salmon Foundation
Anadromous fish (such as salmon) reproduce in in cold freshwater stream but migrate and spend most of their lives in oceans where they accumulate most of their adult weight.
Salmon can migrate more than 1,800 miles upstream through freshwater to spawn (Yukon River). This is comparable to driving from New York City to Denver, Colorado.
Source: adapted from the Pacific Salmon Foundation
Salmon was the staple of traditional diets of Pacific Northwest Native people; researchers estimate that even as late as the 1940s, annual consumption was over 320 pounds per person.
Source: Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian