Watershed Restoration Overview and Effectiveness

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Watershed Restoration Overview and
Effectiveness Trinity River Restoration Program
First Annual Science Symposium Joshua
Allen, Assistant Planner Trinity County Natural
Resources Div. February 7, 2007
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Trinity ROD Watershed Components

• Preferred Alternative consists of the Flow
  Evaluation Alternative Additionally, this
  alternative includes a watershed restoration
  program identical to the watershed protection
  efforts identified in the Mechanical Restoration
  Alternative. (pg. 10)
• D. Watershed Restoration  The Trinity Management
  Council will guide an upslope watershed
  restoration program to address the problems of
  excessive sediment input from many of the
  tributaries of the Trinity River resulting from
  land use practices. The watershed protection
  program of the Preferred Alternative includes
  road maintenance, road rehabilitation and road
  decommissioning on private and public lands
  within the Trinity River basin below Lewiston
  Dam, including the South Fork Trinity River
  basin. Approximately 80 percent of the lands
  within the Trinity basin are federally managed of
  which the USDA Forest Service administers
  approximately 95 percent and the Bureau of Land
  Management administers five percent. Of the
  remaining 20 percent privately-owned land in the
  basin, approximately half (10 percent of the
  total) are industrial timberlands, with the
  remainder being small private holdings.
  Additional environmental planning and
  environmental compliance steps will be performed
  as necessary in order to acquire all the
  necessary permits and other authorizations prior
  to implementation of this portion of the
  Preferred Alternative. (pg. 14)

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Geographic Scope
The TRFES identified only River Miles (RM)
starting at Weitchpec (RM0) to Lewiston Dam
(RM112), and failed to identify the Lower
Klamath/Trinity as part of the overall river
system.
Trinity River Watershed
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Geographic Scope
Nothing in this ROD is intended to preclude
watershed restoration and monitoring below the
confluence of the Trinity and Klamath Rivers
watershed restoration and monitoring that benefit
Trinity River fisheries below the confluence of
the Trinity and Klamath Rivers may be considered
by the Trinity Management Council. (pg. 15)
Trinity River Watershed
Trinity River Restoration Program Area of Concern
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Trinity ROD Watershed Components, cont.

• Based on the information and analysis in the
  FEIS/EIR, full implementation of the Preferred
  Alternative is necessary to restore the diverse
  fish habitats in the Trinity River below Lewiston
  Damthe Preferred Alternative represents the
  appropriate action necessary to restore and
  maintain the Trinity Rivers anadromous fishery
  in accordance with the Departments statutory and
  trust responsibilities. (pg. 18)
• implementing the Preferred Alternative also will
  entail the development of more specific plans to
  implement non-flow related recommendations. (pg.
  18)

Is the Program meeting this goal? Amount
Budgeted for FY2007 330,000 Whereas, 550,000
is budgeted for Rotary Screw Traps!
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Grass Valley Creek

• Major contributor of fine sediment to the Trinity
  River
• 17,000 acres underlain by highly erodible
  decomposed granite
• Characterized by shallow landslides, gullying,
  large deep-seated landslides, and surface erosion
• Heavily logged over the last fifty years
• Has an extensive network of haul roads, skid
  roads, crossings, and landings created to
  facilitate timber removal
• Implemented in 1977.
• Cost to date 53 to 70 million

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• 17,000 acres (65) of the watershed area is
  underlain by deeply weathered, naturally
  decomposed granitic bedrock
• 8,300 acres (35) is underlain by bedrock
  comprising sheared rocks of ultramafic and
  metamorphic compositions

Trinity River Restoration Program Area of Concern
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Sediment Encatchments
Construction 19.5M Annual Maintenance
50k 1.8M yd³ Capacity Expected Life 160
years Completed in 1990 102,240 yd³ curbed to
date
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Sediment Encatchments
Construction 3M Annual Maintenance
100k Dredged every year by TCRCD 55k yd³
Capacity Upper Pond 20k yd³ Capacity Lower Pond
35k yd³ Capacity Expected Life 160
years Completed in 1988 1989 193,050 yd³
curbed to date
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Upper Hamilton Pond June 2006 9,000 yd³
dredged Summer 2006
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GVCWRP Project Success
Info provided by TRRP Evaluation of GVC
Watershed Restoration Activities Final Report,
Feb. 2004
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Five Counties Salmonid Conservation Program (5C)

•  5C Mission   "To strive to protect the
  economic and social resources of Northwestern
  California by providing for the conservation and
  restoration of salmonid populations to healthy
  and sustainable levels and to base decisions on
  watershed rather than county boundaries"
• http//www.5counties.org/

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5C Treated DIRT Sites - Trinity River
Sediment reduction projects undertaken on county
roads is based upon suggested treatments
prescribed by inventory crews trained by PWA in
county road erosion Direct Inventory of Roads and
Treatments (DIRT) methodology. Treatments
generally consisted of modifying road drainage
patterns to make the road more hydrologically
neutral (i.e. outsloping, installation of rolling
dips) and upgrading stream crossings to pass the
100 year flood flows.
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5C Fish Passage Improvements - Trinity River
Fish passage improvement projects are based on a
prioritized barrier inventory conducted by Ross
Taylor and Associates. Most projects have
accommodated for full passage.
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5Cs Current Projects

• Trinity Drinking Water Source Sediment Reduction
  Project (funded already, 550k)
• General Description This project will
  treat sources of erosion on county roads that
  have the potential to yield 74,490 yd3 of
  sediment to anadromous streams in the Trinity
  River watershed. These sources deliver upstream
  of drinking water intakes for major communities.
• Site locations Browns Mountain Road,
  Lewiston-Turnpike Road, Trinity Dam Boulevard,
  Roundy Road, Rush Creek Road, Viola Lane
• Summary of Treatments upgrade 34 stream
  crossings, install 4 emergency overflow culverts,
  install 2 wet crossings, install 3 drop and 1
  flared inlets, outslope 2.1 miles of road,
  install 101 rolling and 13 critical dips, install
  18 ditch relief culverts, clean 9 culverts,
  remove 5.8 miles of berm, install 0.2 miles of
  downspout, armor 5,550 ft2 of fill face, and
  rock 2.2 miles of unsurfaced roads.
• Indian Ck Rd (partially funded, but CONTINGENT
  on additional funding from TMC/TRRP)
• General Description This project is also a
  similar sediment reduction project, except it is
  not upstream of community drinking water intakes.
  Approximately 4,019 yd3 of potential sediment
  delivery to Indian and Cannon Ball Creeks will be
  treated.
• Site locations Between mileposts 1.52 and
  11 (near Bully Choop Mine).
• Summary of Treatments installing 4
  culverts at stream crossings upgrading 12 stream
  crossings, removing 240 ft of berm rocking
  3,000 ft2 of road installing 5 wet crossings
  installing 5 rolling dips and 12 critical dips
  and installing 2 emergency overflow culverts.

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5Cs Accomplishments

• All work was done between 2000 2006
• 22,958 yd³ total sediment reduced from entering
  the system 17,145 yd³ from DIRT 5,813 yd³ from
  Fish Passage
• 16 miles of stream/spawning habitat opened up
• 7.6 miles of County roads treated
• Very successful based upon long-term monitoring
  observation

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Trinity County Resource Conservation District

• The Trinity County Resource District focuses
  attention on land, water and related resource
  problems, develops programs to solve them, and
  enlists and coordinates help from all public and
  private sources that can contribute to
  accomplishing the district's goals. In addition,
  the district works to further conservation
  education in the community, coordinating
  educational programs and serving as a community
  clearing house for information and services.
• http//www.tcrcd.net/

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TCRCD Watershed Projects

• Grass Valley Creek Watershed (Completed)
• South Fork Trinity River Watershed (Ongoing)
• Fuels Reduction

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South Fork Trinity River Watershed
Restoration1997 to Present

• 1997 1998 Road Upgrades
• 1999 2003 Road Upgrades, Hydroclosure, and
  Decommissioning
• 166,261 yd³ of fill removed from stream crossings
• 193 miles of roads have been treated
• Awarded the US EPA Targeted Watershed Grant for
  work in the Hidden Valley Watershed with the
  Yurok Tribes Terwer Creek TRRPs Indian Creek
  Rehabilitation Projects

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Road Decommissioning Before
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Road Decommissioning During
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Road Decommissioning Done
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TCRCD Fuels Reduction

• Trinity County RCD's Goals for Forest Health
  include
• Facilitate countywide private land strategic plan
  for fuels reduction and forest health.
• Provide technical assistance to private
  landowners to improve forest health.
• Action Items Include
• Sponsor countywide strategic plan development for
  fuels management and forest health.
• Work with CDF to develop community fire
  management plans.
• Develop GIS data and analysis for planning.
• Facilitate neighborhood meetings to plan
  neighborhood fuels reduction projects.
• Participate in Trinity County Fire Safe Council
  to coordinate management of fire safety/forest
  policy on public and private lands.
• Develop timber management plans with landowners.
• Assist landowners in applying for state or
  federal cost share programs.
• Utilize Registered Professional Forester
  consultant to assist private timber owners to
  develop long term timberlands management plans.

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USFS Shasta -Trinity

• 2,000,000 was provided by TRRP from 1994 to 2001
  to decommission 58 miles of road.
• Nearly 1,200 miles of roads been inventoried for
  erosion control and rehabilitation needs since
  1996 by the Trinity County RCD.
• Close to 200 miles of Shasta-Trinity National
  Forest roads have had stream crossings upgraded
  (storm-proofed or hydro-closed), or the roads
  decommissioned since 1997 in the Trinity Basin at
  a cost of 4,430,000.
• 166,000 yd³ of fine sediment have been
  excavated and prevented from entering adjacent
  stream courses.
• Six Rivers NF believes they can easily use
  14,000,000 over the next 20 years for putting 30
  miles of road to bed and continuing their ongoing
  annual road 'storm-proofing' and maintenance
  activities on the West Side South Fork Trinity on
  down to the Hoopa Square.
• 30,000,000 is needed over the next 20 years to
  put 600 miles of road to bed
• 44,000,000 is needed to perform 88 fish
  passage stream crossing culvert upgrades to open
  up 100 more miles of anadromous fish habitat.

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Hoopa Valley Tribe

• Assessments done for Supply Mill Creeks by the
  late 1980s Trinity River Task Force funds used
  to implement those two projects
• Earliest examples of Road, Landing, and
  Streamcrossing assessments outside of Redwood
  Park at that time
• Assessments Prescriptions given by Pacific
  Watersheds Associates
• Implemented by local contractors
• Ultimately other assessments and restoration
  projects were done on Socktish, Pine, and
  Campbell Creeks
• In combination with the Tribe's forest roads
  program supported through timber harvest dollars,
  the watershed/road rehabilitation projects
  have realigned, upgraded, or put to bed a total
  of  approximately 200 miles of roadway since 1987
• http//www.hoopa-nsn.gov/

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Hoopa Watershed Restoration
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Yurok Tribe

• Restoration activities began in 1997
• McGarvey Creek has been primary focus of
  restoration and learning process
• 150,000 yd³ of sediment has been contained from
  McGarvey Cr.
• 60 miles of road has been decommissioned in
  McGarvey Cr.
• Terwer Creek is the US EPA Targeted Watershed
  Project that was successful in winning that grant
  with the TRRP Indian Creek Rehabilitation TCRCD
  SF Watershed Restoration Projects that will
  include road decommissioning, streambank
  stabilization, and riparian restoration
• 10 12 miles of road are decommissioned each
  year, for a total of 120 miles
• 700,000 yd³ of potential fine sediment releases
  has been contained since 1997
• Several miles of fish habitat have been opened
  through barrier modifications
• Riparian restoration also occurs through
  bioengineering for stabilization of stream banks
  and placement of in-stream structures to increase
  habitat complexity
• http//www.yuroktribe.org/

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Yurok Tribe Watershed Restoration
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Adaptive Management Lowden Fire Area
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Lowden Fire Slope Failure Area
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12 depth of decomposed granitics
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Debris flow across Old Lewiston Road
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Debris flow went through culverts then over the
road to continue on to the Trinity River
Unknown amount of sediment went into the river
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An estimated 8,000 yd³ was caught in the Dark
Gulch sediment basin
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• The Hamilton Ponds (RCD) agreement was modified
  to tend to Dark Gulch
• Cost 30,000
• 2,500 yd³ of sediment was removed and stored at
  the Bucktail site
• Due to limited funding, the problem was not fully
  fixed.
• The primary objectives being to prevent more
  sediment to the river, provide a future storage
  area for flows, reduce threats to the road and
  private residences
• Continual maintenance is in order due to nature
  of soils and site

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Potential Sediment Source Bar Complex Fire 2006
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• 100,414 acres burned
• Mostly low intensity fire that burned underbrush
  ground fuels
• Most of the area is rugged roadless wilderness
  areas
• There is a potential for sediment to be released
  based on USFS data
• Restoration would be difficult and could only be
  done by hand crews in the field

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Thank you and get out there to enjoy our
watershed
Canyon Creek
North Fork Trinity