Submitted by tara.granke on Thu, 2015-04-16 12:27 Southeast Conservation Project Vote Up Down +21 + DSC_9450.jpg 2015 is a very exciting year for the Southeast Conservation Project. Aquatic organism passage (AOP) projects are breaking ground on four sites which will reconnect over 11 miles of native trout stream. Follow our story here on the TU Blog and look for later posts on how to connect with us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Aquatic Organism Passage In the Southeast, TU strategically removes barriers to fish passage on our most climate change resilient watersheds. With federal, state, and local partners, TU surveys, designs, and implements restoration projects on the ground and educates professionals on best practices in road/stream crossing designs and construction. Habitat in Peril. Exploring Southern Appalachian backcountry streams in search of native brook trout transports an angler back in time, a time when the south was wild. These gorgeous and increasingly rare places where native trout thrive are some of the Southeast’s most pristine and sacred treasures—and all too rare. Over the years, our coldwater streams have suffered from numerous threats. Of these, stream fragmentation caused by poorly constructed road crossings is one of the most damaging, but preventable, problems that contributes to the precarious state of our mountain streams and aquatic wildlife. The Strategy. TU’s Southern Appalachian Coldwater Reconnection Project addresses this issue head on. We eliminate barriers to aquatic organism passage (AOP) by reconnecting fragmented aquatic habitats on climate resilient and native fisheries. We educate landowners, engineers, and decision-makers, and we advocate for better practices at road-stream crossings. As a result, the region’s coldwater wildlife are stronger, more resilient, and better able to survive into the future.