The Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture (EBTJV) is the nation's first pilot project under the National Fish Habitat Initiative, which directs locally-driven efforts that build private and public partnerships to improve fish habitat. The long-term goals of the EBTJV are to develop a comprehensive restoration and education strategy to improve aquatic habitat, to raise education awareness, and to raise federal, state and local funds for brook trout conservation.

In 2005, in recognition of the need to address regional and range-wide threats to brook trout, a group of public and private entities formed the EBTJV to halt the decline of brook trout and restore fishable populations. The group spearheaded a range-wide assessment of brook trout populations and threats to brook trout and brook trout habitat in the Eastern United States (report forthcoming). Seventeen states are currently drafting strategies to prioritize policy changes and on-the-ground actions to improve water quality and restore brook trout habitat and populations in their individual state using locally-driven, incentive-based, and non-regulatory programs.

Click the links below for more information:

Distribution, Status and Perturbations to Brook Trout within the Eastern United States (Must read document to understanding the most critical impacts to native brook trout)

Status & Threat Assessment - West Virginia

Conservation Strategy - West Virginia

Interactive Mapping including West Virginia

The Home Rivers Initiative is a major grant program that put its first major brook trout conservation project within WV's borders covering the headwaters of the Potomac River.

Big Run Project

To contact Gary Berti, TU National Program Coordinator use the email address GBerti@tu.org.

Ongoing projects include:

• Big Run Phase 1 is complete except for some fill in tree planting at a later date
• Big Run Phase 2 will start this year and consists of tree planting only
• Whitethorn & Blackthorn fencing and tree planting continues this year
• Gravel Lick of Smith Creek should have waters development and fencing this year with tree planting done in the fall
• Spring Run will have structure work done this year
• Lower Big Run will have extensive temperature monitoring to pinpoint sections causing warming and identify spring seeps. There may be a work project schedule to do this during the Fall State WVCTU Council Meeting.

New projects include:

• North Fork of Lunice Creek landowners have contacted Gary Berti about restoration
• Abram Creek of the North Branch AMD is in the works and Lime Dozers and Lime Dumping will be used. (Metal will still be in the stream below the Dozers in the headwaters, this is being addressed by TU)

Here is the link for the Conservation Success Index (CSI). Be sure to check it out. There is an interactive mapping feature using detailed mapping overlays. At this time, WV BTB is trying to discover how you, the concerned brook trout conservationist, can provide input to the CSI. Details will be listed here when this discovery is made.

Click Here