Across the West, many rivers and watersheds are fragmented by old diversion dams and other irrigation infrastructure. That’s a big problem for trout, which need access to the full range of river habitat in order to thrive. For Trout Unlimited, upgrading these obsolete or inefficient irrigation systems offers a tremendous opportunity to restore rivers. With the help of Orvis funding, TU recently completed an exciting “reconnection” project on the Salt River in west-central Wyoming that should boost both the fish habitat and the fishing. See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in science based, proven, fish protection. The Salt River is home to native Yellowstone cutthroat trout, as well as wild rainbows and browns. But they faced a big obstacle: an aging, solitary diversion dam imposed a two-foot-high vertical barrier to fish movement. While adult fish could likely clear the hurdle most of the year, smaller trout and other native species weren’t able to move upstream.
TU’s Jim Gregory, working with Wyoming Game and Fish and the Eastside Canal Company, saw a golden opportunity to retrofit the structure with a fish ladder and open up some 21 miles of mainstem river habitat. This fall, TU and its partners—including the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust and the U.S. Forest Service—constructed a rock-ramp type fish ladder on the southern side of the diversion structure that provides a low-velocity, low-gradient passageway using a design that is simple, stable, and low-maintenance. The completed ladder allows all native fish species to clear the diversion hurdle and access upstream tributaries—such as Willow Creek, Stump Creek, and Crow Creek—which provide critical spawning and rearing habitatfor native fish. Sometimes, as on the Salt River, removing a single barrier can dramatically improve miles of habitat for fish. TU is working on dozens of these infrastructure upgrade projects that offer some of the best opportunities to restore rivers for wildlife. As far as we know, no one is making any new rivers, but this might be the next best thing. For more information on the Orvis/TU Culvert Fund, visit the Orvis Commitment page. Randy Scholfield is the Director of Communications/Western Water Project for Trout Unlimited. |
Tag: pvc fish attractors
Michigan firm expanding with Fishiding Habitat products
This Michigan company has the help you need to manage your lake or pond. Get professional advice with proven results along with cost effective methods and products at Tri-county Aquatics.
Tri-County Aquatics, Inc. is a full service aquatic management company, specializing in superior waterway management programs. The friendly staff regularly controls nuisance aquatic vegetation, weeds, and algae in small backyard ponds, inland lakes, canals, marinas and other waterways. Tri-County Aquatics’ goal is to create a management program designed to control your specific aquatic need. With years of experience in the aquatics industry, These folks have the solution to your pond and lake needs.
See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in science based, proven, fish protection.
Tri-County Aquatics, Inc. services include, but are not limited to:
- Aquatic Vegetation Control
- Aeration Systems (sales, service, and installations)
- Floating Fountains (sales, service, and installations)
- Water Quality Testing
- Pond and Lake Consulting
- Fish Stocking & Population Management
- Equipment Sales
Pond & Lake Consulting
Problems with your pond or lake? Contact Tri-County Aquatics and have one of their trained technicians meet with you to set up the best management program for your waterway. Whether you’re dealing with nuisance aquatic vegetation, high bacteria levels, or just looking for a beautiful floating fountain or some professional advice, we can help you with any of your aquatic needs.
- Tri-County Aquatics, Inc. specializes in the control of nuisance aquatic vegetation in ponds, lakes, canals, marinas and many other waterways.
- Aquatic vegetation can inhibit the recreational uses of any waterway, and become very aesthetically unappealing.
- Tri-County Aquatics, Inc. has years of experience in the aquatics industry. Controlling aquatic vegetation is our specialty. With hundreds of water bodies being managed by us annually, we have the experience, knowledge, and tried management techniques to solve your waterway problems.
- Full service water testing for bacteria levels, organics, and total water quality index.
- The products used to control nuisance aquatic vegetation, whether herbicides or algaecides, are all approved and labeled for aquatic use by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Michigan Department of Agriculture. All waterway treatments and applications are performed by trained, state certified, and licensed applicators. We use specialized and waterway specific management techniques to manage your waterway in the most efficient and effective manner.
Leaser lake gets more fish habitat
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New Vessels for Aquaculture Regulation in British Columbia
CAMPBELL RIVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwire – Jan. 9, 2012) – The Honourable Keith Ashfield, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, welcomed six British Columbia-made vessels into the departmental fleet today.
“Our government is proud to ensure that Fisheries and Oceans Canada has the tools it needs to regulate the aquaculture industry in British Columbia and ensure that it operates in a sustainable and environmentally responsible manner,” Minister Ashfield said. “We are committed to an economically and ecologically viable fishing and aquaculture industry across Canada.”
The six vessels, of various sizes and construction, are dedicated to the B.C. Aquaculture Regulatory Program and carry out aquaculture regulatory and monitoring activities. Three of the vessels are used by aquaculture management staff for auditing and monitoring aquaculture sites, and three are used by aquaculture fishery officers for enforcement and compliance inspections.
As the majority of aquaculture operations are located along the coast of Vancouver Island and in mainland inlets, and most are inaccessible by car, ensuring DFO staff are able to move freely on the water is an important aspect of regulating the aquaculture industry in B.C. The new Conservation and Protection vessels will allow fishery officers to respond quickly to events or public reports of potential concerns at farm sites, while staff on the aquaculture management vessels can deploy tethered remote underwater vehicles for site inspections and conduct and analyze benthic (ocean bottom) sampling.
Nationally, aquaculture production has increased four-fold in the past 20 years. Approximately 70 per cent of all Canadian aquaculture products are sold to foreign markets, and the world increasingly depends on aquaculture as an essential food source. In fact, globally, half of all fish and seafood is now farmed. British Columbia contributes the most farm-raised fish and seafood to Canada’s output annually.
Backgrounders:
- SIX DFO AQUACULTURE VESSELS FOR B.C.
- FISHERIES AND OCEANS CANADA’S FIRST YEAR AS PRIMARY REGULATOR FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA’S AQUACULTURE INDUSTRY
SIX FISHERIES AND OCEANS CANADA AQUACULTURE VESSELS FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA
Fisheries and Oceans Canada has purchased six B.C.-made vessels to support its effective regulation of aquaculture activities in the province. As the regulator and manager of aquaculture in B.C., Fisheries and Oceans Canada is responsible for ensuring that the industry is abiding by the conditions of licence established for each aquaculture site in the province, adhering to the Pacific Aquaculture Regulations, and following strict guidelines for operations. These vessels will allow departmental staff to carry out these new duties.
Of the six vessels, three are being used by aquaculture management staff to undertake regular audit and monitoring activities at aquaculture sites, and three are tasked with aquaculture fishery officer enforcement activities.
Aquaculture Management Program
Three B.C.-made vessels, the Salmon Bay, the Sturgeon Bay, and the Oyster Bay, are being used by aquaculture management staff for audit and monitoring activities:
- Fish health management inspections
- Sea lice audits
- Stream surveys
- Benthic (ocean floor) sampling and remote-operated vehicle assessments
- Facility inspections
The three program management vessels are named after the three sectors of the fish farming industry: marine finfish, shellfish, and freshwater aquaculture.
The Salmon Bay and the Sturgeon Bay carry departmental staff to fish farm sites for the purpose of conducting finfish facility inspections, fish health inspections, and soft-bottom benthic sampling. In addition, the vessels can deploy a remote-operated vehicle, which is used to capture video of hard-bottom benthic (ocean floor) environments for assessment purposes.
The Salmon Bay has an onboard work station that supports field testing of various benthic samples and the collection of samples for future analysis.
The Oyster Bay is used primarily to transport departmental staff to and from aquaculture facilities to conduct fish health and shellfish farm inspections.
Enforcement Program
The regional Conservation and Protection Branch is operating its three new vessels to transport fishery officers to aquaculture facilities to conduct announced and unannounced site inspections and enforce compliance with the Pacific Aquaculture Regulations and the Fisheries Act.
The MacLeod Bay is a 9.7-metre rigid-hull inflatable boat. It is named for J. Ronald MacLeod, a retired departmental employee and Officer of the Order of Canada who was recognized for his contributions to Pacific fisheries.
The Weaver Bay is a 9.7-metre rigid-hull inflatable boat. It is named after Kenneth E. Weaver, a Pacific Region fishery officer who died in an airplane accident in the line of duty on September 2, 1948.
The Max Bay is a six-metre aluminum vessel. It is named after Max Tscharre, a well-respected retired fishery officer dedicated to the protection of fish and fish habitat. This vessel is the “sister ship” to the Oyster Bay, with similar design, features and equipment.
FISHERIES AND OCEANS CANADA’S FIRST YEAR AS PRIMARY REGULATOR FOR BRITISH COLUMBIA’S AQUACULTURE INDUSTRY
In December 2010, Fisheries and Oceans Canada assumed primary responsibility for the regulation of the aquaculture industry in B.C., including the licensing of marine finfish, shellfish, and freshwater aquaculture sites, as well as enhancement facilities. Staff were hired to implement and undertake the federal B.C. Aquaculture Regulatory Program, with the majority of positions located on Vancouver Island. The program provides economic stimulus to coastal communities, as its employees work to ensure that the aquaculture industry is operating in an environmentally sustainable fashion.
After its first full year in operation, the program has achieved success in a number of areas:
- A total of 104 inspections were conducted at marine finfish aquaculture sites by departmental field biologists and fishery officers to assess compliance with their site’s conditions of licence, and applicable acts and regulations;
- Conditions of licence inspections were conducted at 140 shellfish and 22 freshwater aquaculture operations, and fishery officers also conducted 18 compliance inspections;
- More than 65 marine finfish site health audits (including sea lice audits) were conducted;
- Benthic (ocean bottom) environmental audits were conducted at 23 operational marine finfish farm sites;
- An enhanced Atlantic Salmon Watch Program has surveyed six rivers for the potential presence of Atlantic salmon escapes;
- Two new freshwater aquaculture licences were issued;
- A pre-site audit was conducted for one proposed new farm site; and
- A total of 12 marine finfish licence applications and amendments were processed.
In 2011, the Department also initiated consultations on the development of draft Integrated Management of Aquaculture Plans. These consultations will continue in 2012: http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/consultation/aquaculture/index-eng.htm.
As part of its commitment to transparency, the Department undertakes regular public reporting of fish health, sea lice levels, disease presence, and other data on the environmental performance of the aquaculture industry in B.C. Information is regularly posted to the Department’s website: http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/aquaculture/index-eng.htm.
The British Columbia aquaculture industry provides an estimated 6,000 jobs and over $224 million in wages for British Columbians. Salmon farming has grown to take its place as the province’s largest agricultural export, generating $800 million in economic output. Cultured shellfish production has reached 10,000 tonnes with a landed value of $21.7 million.
See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in science based, proven, fish protection.
Contact Information
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Michelle Imbeau
Communications Advisor, Pacific Region
604-666-2872 or Cell: 604-219-5730Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Barbara Mottram
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister
613-992-3474
http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Nova Scotia cares about fish habitat
Nova Scotia Fish Habitat Assessment Protocol (NSFHAP)
Clean Nova Scotia, in collaboration with the NSLC Adopt-A-Stream, is working on the development of a standardized fish habitat assessment methodology for specific use in Nova Scotia. The methodology is intended to be used by the various groups involved in the protection, restoration, and assessment of aquatic ecosystems and will aid in the accurate assessment of fish habitat in our local rivers. This will help identify restoration needs, impacts of poor practises, and protection efforts.
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The methodology will incorporate the use of Habitat Suitability Indices (HSI) to provide meaningful and accurate results from data collection in the field. Habitat variables are assessed in the field and are related to water quality, river morphology and hydrology, river banks and riparian vegetation, and benthic macroinvertebrates. The methodology will be modular and varying in the level of depth required so groups with different resources are able to effectively assess their rivers. The methodology will enhance our understanding of fish habitat and populations, lead to effective restoration and protection projects, and improve the health of our aquatic ecosystems.
Counties receive several grants to improve fish habitat
Cowlitz County has a $204,000 grant to remove this bridge on Abernathy Creek.
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Several groups that work to improve habitat for endangered fish have been awarded more than $1 million for projects in Cowlitz County. Clark County projects on the Lewis River total $925,383 and money for work in Wahkiakum County totals $361,505.
The grants announced recently by the state Recreation and Conservation Office come from federal and state funds dedicated to fish recovery. The money for the grants comes from the federal Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund and from the sale of state bonds.
The level of fish funding for most parts of the state has decreased over the past few years. The statewide total of $30 million recently awarded compares to $32 million in 2010 and $42.8 million the year before, said Susan Zemek, communications manager for the RCO.
In addition, grants for fish habitat work in Puget Sound total $13.5 million this year, compared to $33 million a year ago.
Cowlitz County
• Reshaping Abernathy Creek, $486,305. The Cowlitz Indian Tribe will use this grant to remove an abandoned roadbed on the east side of the creek that inhibits full connectivity between the creek and its floodplain, and place logjams in the creek to increase habitat. The tribe will excavate channels through the former roadbed and place logjams in the main channel, allowing the river to meander. The work is on state land.
The tribe will contribute $85,819 in donations of cash, labor and materials.
• Removing an Abernathy Creek Bridge, $204,000. Cowlitz County will use this grant to remove a bridge on an abandoned portion of Abernathy Creek Road. The bridge is 6 1/2 miles up the creek, near Brentwood Road. The bridge constrains the channel and limits the creek’s ability to meander and connect with its floodplain. The county will install logs and tree root wads in the creek and replant its banks after the bridge is removed
Cowlitz County will contribute $36,000.
• Restoring Andrews Tree Farm waterways, $177,401. The Cowlitz Conservation District will use this grant to restore portions of the Coweeman River and a tributary, Turner Creek, on the Andrews Tree Farm. The district will install logs and whole trees in the streams to slow the river, encourage gravel accumulation and create places for salmon to rest and hide from predators. The district also will plant trees along stream banks to shade and cool the water.
The conservation district will contribute $40,000 from a state grant and donations of equipment, labor and materials.
• Restoring Nesbit Tree Farm stream, $89,100. The Cowlitz Conservation District will use this grant to restore a portion of the Coweeman River on the Nesbit Tree Farm, which is about 8 miles up Rose Valley Road. The conservation district will place logs and whole trees in the river to trap sediment on exposed bedrock to improve salmon habitat and cool the water.
The conservation district will contribute $20,000 from a state grant and donations of equipment, labor and materials.
• Restoring the Coweeman River, $124,000. The Conservation District will use this grant to place logs and whole trees in the Coweeman River on the Baxter and Andrews tree farms about 6 1/2 miles up Rose Valley Road to improve habitat for salmon. The logs and trees will slow the river, encourage gravel to accumulate and create places for salmon to rest and hide from predators.
The conservation district will contribute $24,500 from a state grant and donations of equipment, labor and materials.
Clark County
• East Fork of the Lewis River, $212,753. Clark County Public Works will use the money to grade the outlets of two side channels of the river, install logs and root wads that act as juvenile fish habitat, and remove invasive plants and replant with native species. The project will expand side channel habitat by 3,500 square feet. Clark County will contribute $61,891 to the project.
• North Fork of the Lewis River, $401,730. The Cowlitz Tribe will use the money to place logs and jams into two side channels of the river, remove invasive plants along the bank, and replant the area with native trees and shrubs. The tribe will contribute $91,400 from a local grant and donation of labor and materials.
• East Fork of the Lewis River at Daybreak Park, $143,900. Fish First will enhance two side channels of the river, install wood structures in the river for habitat, and replant streambanks with native trees and shrubs at the park. Fish First will contribute $26,100 in cash, labor and materials.
• Eagle Island-North Channel Restoration Project, $167,000. Lower Columbia Fish Enhancement Group will use the money to design a project to restore optimum water flows in the north channel of Eagle Island, which is located in the North Fork of the Lewis River near Woodland. Optimizing the water flow will improve 2.2 miles of high value fish spawning and rearing habitat below Lake Merwin. Pacificorp and the state departments of Natural Resources and Fish and Wildlife are partners.
Wahkiakum County
• Grays River, $226,180. The Lower Columbia Fish Enhancement Group will install wood structures on Columbia Land Trust property in the Grays River to reduce water velocity, create habitat diversity and collect sediments against the toe of eroding stream banks. The structures will create pools, collect flood debris and stabilize the river channel. Additional structures will be placed along more than a half-mile of shoreline to protect important chum salmon habitat in nearby Crazy Johnson Creek. The enhancement group also will remove non-native plants and replant the area with native trees and shrubs.
The enhancement group and Columbia Land Trust will contribute $76,300 in donations of equipment, labor and materials.
• Elochoman River, $135,325. The Wahkiakum Conservation District will use this grant to place logs and tree root wads in the Elochoman River, to slowing the river and creating places for salmon to rest and hide from predators. The logs and root wads also help stabilize the channel by reducing erosion and protecting young trees on the riverbanks. The work will improve salmon habitat along more than a half-mile of the river and create a streamside forest on 4.5 acres.
The conservation district will contribute $39,500 from federal and local grants and donations of equipment and labor.
Can I just toss my Christmas tree on the ice for fish habitat?
When the ice comes, the temptation to place fish attractors often comes to mind especially on a farm pond. If no ice, then a boat might be used. But just weighting down a couple of Christmas trees and dropping them in, may not achieve the best results.
DNR has this to say: There are many ways to recycle Christmas trees, but tossing on a frozen lake as a way of creating fish habitat has certain requirements — and an uncertain outcome. Instead of waiting for an iced-over lake to thaw so a single Christmas tree can sink to the bottom, Bill James fisheries section chief has this to say.
“They need to be designed, sized and placed appropriately to attract and hold fish.” He said, “Large hardwood brush piles work well and last for many years. Soft woods such as pin or spruce attract fish initially but deteriorate quickly. This is especially true if use Christmas tree are placed singly or just scattered about.”
State laws may apply, depending on the body of water. Discarding a Christmas tree on a private pond is at the owner’s discretion, but doing so on a public freshwater lake is governed by the Lake Preservation Act. See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in science based, proven, fish protection.
I have placed Christmas trees and have seen the results a couple of years later, both on farm ponds and Lakes when the water is down. Christmas trees tend to lay flat on the bottom and shortly become covered with sediment , offering little cover for fish.
On the other hand, a brush pile of hardwood limbs, wired together to maintain it’s shape will be there for years if weighted enough to stay in it’s location. For further info Google “Fish Attractors” . There are many home-made designs that work for years and do not deteriorate.
Take a look at fishiding.com. They make artificial fish habitat out of things like reclaimed pvc siding, saving landfill space and helping future generations of fish and fisherman alike.
Maryland population grows, don’t forget the fish.
About the Fisheries Habitat and Ecosystem Program:
“LAND CONSERVATION IS FISH CONSERVATION”
The Fisheries Habitat and Ecosystem Program (FHEP) is working to understand how habitat changes impact Maryland’s fisheries in the Chesapeake Bay. Our focus has been primarily on understanding how urbanization limits habitat for fish. See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in science based, proven, fish protection.
Maryland’s population and land use has increased significantly. The amount of land being developed outpaces population growth. Between 1973 and 2010, developed land increased by 154 percent while population grew by only 39 percent. By 2035, 1,000,000 new residents and 500,000 new homes will be added to Maryland according to the Department of Planning.
Studies by the Fisheries Habitat and Ecosystem Program have found strong links between increased development and declining fish habitat quality in tidal tributaries of Chesapeake Bay. These links have led to creation of thresholds and targets for development to consider when managing fisheries and planning for development. These thresholds and targets use impervious cover (hard surfaces such as pavement and rooftops that are impenetrable to runoff of rain and snow melt) as a measure of development. Impervious surface thresholds describe tipping points where habitat becomes poor for fish and shellfish. This is the upper limit of impervious surface. Development beyond this limit will severely limit habitat for fish and shellfish. Impervious surface targets describe a development level that can be considered safe for fish and shellfish habitat. These targets and thresholds are being communicated to planners and the public through a simple message, “land conservation is fish conservation!” as a reminder that forests, wetlands, other natural areas, and working farms are keys to productive Chesapeake Bay fisheries.
It is clear that development is a major threat to Maryland’s natural resources and the critical ecosystem functions provided by watersheds. The impact of development on aquatic habitats is quite well documented in the scientific literature. Impervious surface increases flow extremes (lower lows and more flooding), erosion, and sediment. As trees are lost, runoff temperature of water increases. Nutrients from developed lands can be as plentiful as nutrient inputs from agriculture and cause algae blooms that deplete oxygen. In winter, more roads require more salt that pollutes streams and kills freshwater organisms, including fish. Other pollutants such as toxic metals (lead for example) and organic pollutants (oil, grease, and pesticides) enter waterways in urban runoff and wastewater. Some compounds that enter wastewater treatment facilities may not be removed. These compounds may reduce success of fish spawning and make fish less safe to eat. Fish become less abundant and less diverse in polluted waters that result from high development and impervious surface.
“Every Maryland citizen lives within at least 15 minutes of a stream or river” – Maryland StreamHealth
The Fisheries Habitat and Ecosystem Program’s Mission:
FHEP Goals and Objectives
Our goal is to develop ecosystem-based fishery management strategies that will sustain fish communities in the future. In order to do this, we are working to identify fishery and ecosystem interactions with land use and water quality stressors. We work with the public and other local, state, and federal government agencies to enable Maryland’s Fisheries Service to develop ecosystem-based fishery management strategies that sustain services by fish (including shellfish) communities into the future. The role of others in ecosystem-based management is important since Fisheries Service (and even DNR) does not have authority to manage whole watersheds.
- 5% or less Impervious
Watersheds with 5% or less impervious surface represent target conditions. They have healthy fisheries. Habitat within the watershed is productive. Active engagement by the public and planning officials should be taken at this stage to protect, conserve, and sustain healthy fish habitat.
- 5% – 10% Impervious
Fish habitat in watersheds between 5% – 10% impervious surface may begin to decline. Fish reproduction may become less successful as spawning habitat becomes increasingly impaired. Habitat for juvenile and adult fish becomes increasingly compromised. The public and planning officials need to conserve remaining habitat, minimize additional impacts, and revitalize damaged areas.
- 10% or Greater Impervious
Watersheds with 10% or greater impervious surface are facing the “point of no return” of a tidal tributary to a very different and less productive status than when the watershed was less developed. Fish habitat is impaired from a variety of stressors at this stage and could be beyond the point of no recovery as development continues. Restoring a watershed to its target condition is very unlikely, but some functions might be reconstructed with limited positive success. Ecological reconstruction projects such as stormwater retrofit, impervious surface removal, or tree planting/revegetation can help mitigate impacts by reducing sedimentation and infiltrating groundwater. However, watersheds with greater than 25% impervious surface are highly altered systems, with little chance of restoring ecological integrity. Studies of restored streams do not show successful biological restoration in highly urbanized areas. In these cases, the public and planning officials should first restructure and redevelop areas of impervious surface in a watershed before attempting restoration projects.
What Can Fishermen Do?
Understand and learn what is happening in your backyard…
As fishermen, who use and enjoy Maryland’s natural resources, it is important for you to understand and learn what development and environmental impacts are occurring “in your own backyard.” The following links provide information and facts about the areas in which you may fish and-or live.
Fishermen and the public can get engaged in the planning process…
Fishermen are familiar with Maryland’s natural resources; however, there may be times in which you, as a fisherman, feel that you have no control in what is occurring around you and to your natural resources. If you are concerned you can engage in your county and watershed planning processes. The following links provide information and contacts that can help you take part in the development and land use decisions taking place in your watershed and community.
Hopes Raised for Lake Dredging and fish habitat
Photo by Mike Harris
Lake Gregory dredging tour
Phil Krause, county park planner, points to areas on a map of Lake Gregory where silt has built up over the past few years. Krause was conducting an orientation tour of the lake on Dec. 21 for representatives from California Fish and Game, Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board and Lake Gregory Improvement Committee.
A major step toward getting approvals to dredge Lake Gregory was achieved Dec. 21 when representatives from regional agencies visited the lake for an orientation tour.
On hand for the tour were representatives from California Department of Fish and Game, Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board, Lake Gregory Improvement Committee and county Regional Parks Department. A representative from the Army Corps of Engineers was scheduled to attend, but canceled at the last minute. See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in science based, proven, fish protection.
“The meeting was an excellent first step in terms of our working to get Lake Gregory dredged,” said Keith Lee, county regional parks director, who was present for the tour. “The different agencies’ representatives were incredibly helpful in providing solutions.”
The group assembled in the North Shore parking lot at 1 p.m., where Phil Krause, county park planner, started the tour with a briefing on past dredging efforts. He explained how silt and debris flowing into the lake from the silt basin near the new county library building has created large sand bars in the swimming area, limiting visitor access.
Another source for the silt is storm drains, especially those near the ball field.
After the briefing, the members walked over to the silt basin to see the area, then moved on to other areas around the lake, including areas near the Leisure Shores Community Center and the ball field where silting is a major issue.
“I think we’re moving along in a good way,” Lee added. “We won’t be able to get away from doing some California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) work, but we’re looking for ways to work together to dredge the lake and get it back to the condition that I think many in the community would like it to be in.”
Members of the Lake Gregory Improvement Committee who were on hand for the tour included Aaron Creighton, Rick Dinon (who leads the committee), Mick Hill and John Short.
“We have continually emphasized to the regulating agencies that Lake Gregory is not just a county asset, but an important asset to the Crestline and Lake Gregory community,” said Dinon. “The good news is that we’ve encountered a lot of cooperation.”
Committee member Aaron Creighton said he also was pleased with the response from the Fish and Game and Lahontan representatives who took the tour.
“We now have a vastly greater view of what needs to be done,” he said.
Creighton said that in order to get permitted by Fish and Game and Lahontan, the county has to be in compliance with CEQA.
“One of the tricky parts under CEQA is that if we remove habitat, we will have to mitigate the removal,” Creighton said. “There are two areas at Lake Gregory that need to be dredged, and the two have quite a lot of habitat.”
Part of the talk during the tour centered on creating separate habitat areas, and how it might be possible to make habitat areas protected. Other ideas included creating fish habitat areas in the deeper parts of the lake by depositing used Christmas trees weighed down by cinder blocks.
Creighton said one of the comments included that by pulling silt out of the lake, it would help improve the water quality.
“We will need an environmental impact report, and probably have to have a biological report,” he said. “We have heavy-duty problems at this lake.”
By Mike Harris, Reporter
Project aims to show crops, marshland can coexist for fish habitat and flood control
Paul Chinn / The Chronicle
A flock of birds flies over the Yolo Bypass near Woodland, where conservationists hope to restore ancient floodplains.
IMAGES
View All Images (5)Woodland, Yolo County —
Five acres of mud and rice stubble doesn’t look much like fish habitat, but the rectangular patch of summertime cropland is in the process of being converted to a teeming marsh filled with young salmon.
The conversion to wetland of the rice paddy at Knaggs Ranch, north of Woodland next to the Yolo Bypass, is an experiment that conservationists hope will eventually lead to the restoration of ancient floodplains all along the Sacramento and San Joaquin River corridors.
The small piece of soon-to-be-flooded cropland is an attempt to combine agriculture with habitat restoration, flood prevention with the creation of more floodplain.
“There is a real push to just build levees higher and bigger rather than really taking into account ecosystem functions,” said Jacob Katz, a biologist with the Center for Watershed Sciences at UC Davis. “We are hoping to say, ‘Look, this is how you do it. You can protect against flooding this way, too.’ ”
Breaching levees
The experiment, which involves the breaching of levees protecting the lower 5 acres of a 1,700-acre rice farm, is one example of the kind of innovation that conservationists hope will be inspired by California’s first ever attempt to create a systemwide plan to manage floods.
The $4.9 billion FloodSAFE initiative, which was created by the Central Valley Flood Protection Act in 2006, involves an ambitious program to increase public safety, promote long-term economic stability and improve environmental stewardship in the areas that have historically flooded during winter rains.
The state Department of Water Resources will issue a draft of its flood protection plan on Dec. 30, to be followed by a public comment period and hearings. The Central Valley Flood Protection Board, a panel of experts appointed by the Legislature, will have until July 1, 2012, to adopt the plan.
Salmon and rice
The document will set guidelines for flood protection and funding along the Sacramento River and around the Yolo Bypass, which was built almost a century ago as a relief valve for Sacramento River flood water. The specific programs will be developed by local and regional governments and communities.
The Knaggs Ranch study is being conducted by UC Davis, the state Department of Water Resources and rice paddy owner John Brennan, with support from Cal Trout and Trout Unlimited.
The plan is to trap the floodwater over the next month and, on Feb. 1, introduce 10,000 to 20,000 juvenile chinook salmon captured from the Feather River. Marshland habitat, including native grasses, is being restored inside the 5-acre plot.
Biologists will study the fish, waterfowl and nutrients in the water to determine the health of the wetland and to see how well the rice straw breaks down. One concern, Katz said, is that too much rotting rice straw could suck the oxygen out of the water and kill the fish.
Testing the waters
The researchers want to determine the right biological mix and, in collaboration with the owner, expand the off-season wetlands project to cover the entire 1,700 acres.
The hope, assuming all goes well, is that access points would eventually be designed so that migrating salmon in the Sacramento River could enter restored floodplains throughout the 59,000 acres of agricultural land in the Yolo Bypass and elsewhere along the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
It is important because the delta, built to funnel water through the 1,300-square-mile confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers, is the heart of California’s vast water network. The system of levees, dams, channels and pumps funnels snowmelt from the Sierra Nevada to 25 million people in the Bay Area, Central Valley and Southern California.
The network was designed not just to provide drinking water, but also to prevent the kind of epic flooding that once occurred regularly in the Central Valley. Flooding was so bad in the winter of 1861-62 that the entire Central Valley became a vast lake.
Flooded rice farms
The Yolo Bypass was approved in 1917 as an outlet for floodwaters every couple of years when the Sacramento River overtops what is known as the Fremont Weir. The land beneath the bypass, which is reserved for agriculture during the summer, becomes an inland sea during heavy flooding.
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Migratory waterfowl regularly visit the flooded rice farms and a small area of restored wetlands called the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area. Sometimes juvenile salmon spill over the weir into the bypass, but the area is not designed for fish, which often become trapped, when the water subsides, and die in evaporating pools.
Staggering fish migration
It is one of many reasons fisheries biologists believe California’s once vast population of chinook salmon has been declining despite an enormous yearly infusion of hatchery-raised fish. Only about 5 percent of the original Sacramento floodplains still exist, Katz said.
The creation of a statewide flood management plan is an opportunity to restore the floodplains where migrating fish historically rested, foraged for food and fattened up before returning to the river, Katz said. It would also stagger the migration over the course of the winter and spring season.
“Floodplains are important for foraging fish and for creating a more diverse portfolio of life histories,” Katz said. “By taking away floodplains and channeling them into rivers, we have taken that diversity away.”
The original idea behind the FloodSAFE initiative was to shore up the system of levees in the delta, which have failed 166 times over the past 100 years. The danger of flooding is now worse than ever, according to experts, who point out that the sea level is rising and land in the Central Valley is subsiding.
The state’s flood management plan, which could cost as much as $16 billion to fully implement, is expected to include a major expansion of the Yolo Bypass.
“By expanding the bypass we open the door for increased ecosystem restoration while getting the dual benefit of reducing flood risk,” said Michael Mierzwa, the supervising engineer and flood policy adviser for the Department of Water Resources. “The caveat that I put on that is that it is going to take decades to implement.”
Commitment in spotlight
The level of commitment to ecosystem restoration is the major concern among many environmentalists. Many local community leaders are vehemently opposed to converting farmland into wetlands. One big reason, Mierzwa said, is because both the agricultural land and the product grown on it are taxable. When you take a rice farm out of production, he said, you reduce the tax revenues which are, in turn, used to maintain the flood system.
The Knaggs Ranch experiment, Katz said, is designed to show how floodplain and habitat restoration can be accomplished without taking agricultural land out of production.
“We’re really talking about a paradigm shift in the way we push water around the landscape,” Katz said. “It’s going to be much cheaper to invest in a system that incorporates floodplain restoration now than it will be in the future. It will be better for ducks, better for fish and better for farms.”
E-mail Peter Fimrite at pfimrite@sfchronicle.com.
This article appeared on page A – 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/12/25/MNDK1MEG6S.DTL&ao=2#ixzz1hxOgl0e2