TFFJ contributor Russ Ricketts has been busy trying to raise money so he can get his science on. Rewind to TFFJ 6.2 Current Affair for an underwater look at Russ and his passion for river snorkeling and keep reading to learn more about his new projects.

Native Fish Society’s Wenatchee Watershed Cold Water Campaign will identify, assess and conserve critical cold-water habitats for threatened salmon, steelhead and trout in Washington’s Wenatchee River.

To accomplish this NFS Wenatchee River Steward Russ Ricketts, NFS staff and local partners seek to raise $20,000 to monitor 12 thermal refuges during the summer of 2017. As a result of this campaign, temperature, spatial, and species information will be crunched into a scoring system that will help wild fish advocates, fisheries agencies and habitat restoration partners prioritize habitat protection and restoration actions that best protect and enhance the Wenatchee’s cold water habitats.

As an additional outcome of this project, what we learn about identifying and protecting cold water refugia will be refined and passed along to our over 80 River Stewards across the Northwest, who can use the CWR toolkit and equipment from this campaign to conduct similar efforts in their own watersheds.

To donate to this campaign send supporters to our donate page, have them select campaigns and tick the box next to Wenatchee Watershed Cold Water Campaign. www.nativefishsociety.org/donate