Columbia Invasive Weed Control Partnership
The Columbia Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) began this project in 2001 using bio-control agents (weevils and beetles) to control Purple Loosestrife. The SWCD has worked actively every year since and has now established the Columbia Invasive Weed Control Partnership, which includes a variety of partners. The SWCD implements weed control using bio-control and mechanical means where appropriate and herbicides where that is more effective. They do community outreach through brochures, speaking engagements and a county fair booth. They are implementing a re-vegetation program to follow up in the areas where invasives are removed.
Partners include the Columbia SWCD (lead agency), Lower Columbia River Watershed Council, Scappoose Bay Watershed Council, Upper Nehalem Watershed Council, OSU Extension and Master Gardeners, Columbia County (Commissioners, Road Department and Land Development Services), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, Oregon Department of Agriculture, and Northwest Oregon Resource Conservation & Development.
Fish Barrier Removal Miller & Page Creeks
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New bridge on Miller Creek
(photos from the Lower Columbia River Watershed Council)
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The Clatskanie River flows into the Columbia River estuary about 35 miles from the ocean near the town of Clatskanie. The Clatskanie system, once home to sizeable populations of Coho, Chinook, chum, steelhead, and resident cutthroat trout, has been harmed by over-harvest and poor land-use practices. The Lower Columbia River watershed assessment rates the Clatskanie system as “high” in historical fish importance. Miller and Page creeks are the first two tributaries of the Clatskanie River, above tidewater, that offer significant salmonid habitat. Three culverts on Page Creek and one culvert on Miller Creek were restricting juvenile and adult fish passage to over 12 miles of stream habitat.
To fix the problem, a partnership was developed among the Lower Columbia River Watershed Council, Evenson Timberland Agency, Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, Fish America Foundation/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries, Georgia Pacific, Columbia Soil and Water Conservation District, U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
One of the Page Creek culverts was removed in 2003 and replaced with a bridge. In 2004, the two others were removed; one was replaced with a bridge, while the other crossing was abandoned. From July 15, 2005 to September 15, 2005, the Miller Creek culvert was replaced with a bridge. This bridge, like the first Page Creek bridge, utilized Hilfiker retaining walls. These walls minimize disturbance to the environment because they disrupt less area and facilitate re-vegetation.
Since implementation, the new structures have performed as intended. The removal of fish passage barriers provided almost immediate benefit to fish populations in the area. In the first season after the Page Creek barriers were removed, adult fish were using the newly-available habitat. Spawning salmon were observed above all the projects. On both Page and Miller creeks, the eliminated barriers were the only significant barriers in those systems; therefore, replacing them with bridges makes fish habitat in these tributaries available for all anadromous species in the Clatskanie River.
Flume Creek Restoration
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The new revegetated channel (photos by Lower Columbia River Watershed Council) |
Flume Creek is a tributary of the Columbia River. The Flume Creek Restoration Project, located at the mouth of Flume Creek, reconnected the creek to its historic channel, which had been closed by the placement of a road in the 1960’s. Flume Creek had been rerouted and was cut off from the adjacent wetland that it had previously nourished.
During the months of August and September of 2004, the road asphalt was removed and taken to an offsite disposal area. The road was excavated at the proposed culvert location and the trees removed and stockpiled for later instream use. The channel was excavated and the culvert foundation was laid. A 46 foot-long arched culvert, 11 feet by 16 feet, was installed in the roadway to restore flow. The culvert was assembled in the trench by the manufacturer’s recommendation. The site was backfilled and compacted.
The new channel was also excavated and the hardwood trees that had been removed were utilized to stabilize the bank and to provide in-stream fish habitat. This consisted of seven structures of four to five pieces of wood in each structure.
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife removed fish from the existing channel as it was blocked using the material excavated from the new channel when the stream was directed to the new channel. The exposed area was re-vegetated and the roadway was resurfaced.
The reconnection resulted in 14 acres of wetland area being nourished by Flume Creek. This provided off-channel habitat for migrating salmonids, and a refugia and rearing area for juvenile salmonids.
Nutrient Supplementation for Salmon Production
A member of the Clackamas County Environmental Youth Corps throws a Coho salmon carcass into Lost Creek. (photo by the Sandy River Basin Watershed Council)
This multi-year project used adult salmon carcasses to supplement essential nutrients in high priority treatment streams in the Sandy and Clackamas River basins on the Mt. Hood National Forest. Volunteers from local high schools distributed the surplus salmon carcasses from local fish hatcheries to increase the supply of marine derived nutrients, including nitrogen and phosphorous, available to juvenile salmon and aquatic organisms. In 2005, more than 120 volunteers helped to put a total of 20,800 pounds of fish into nine miles of streams. Additional distribution has been done using a helicopter with a bucket to drop large quantities of carcasses in sites that are difficult to reach. In 2005 the helicopter spread 49 tons of fish over 18 river miles.
To mimic the timing of natural returns of adult salmon, the work was done from early September through November. The salmon carcasses were stored in a refrigerated trailer truck until there were enough for a volunteer crew. Then containers full of carcasses were trucked to one of the treatment streams. The volunteers carried the fish to the stream and threw them into the water. Because the carcasses were not frozen, they lodged among rocks and logs in the stream similar to what happens to an adult fish that swam into the stream and died after spawning.
Monitoring results to date have shown a significant difference in the length of juvenile Coho salmon produced in streams where nutrient supplementation has been done. Juvenile salmon have a better chance of ocean survival if they leave their freshwater habitat at a larger size. The project has excellent community support as indicated by the large number of volunteers that have participated each year. Each volunteer work day included hands-on learning activities that increased the students understanding of salmon habitat and their personal role in watershed stewardship. Partners in the project included the Sandy River Basin Watershed Council, U.S. Forest Service, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Clackamas River Basin Council, Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, and numerous community groups.
Sandy Riverkeeper Program at the Resort at the Mountain
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| Culvert barrier before on Wee Burn Creek at Welches Road |
After bridge installation |
(Photos by the U.S. Forest Service)
The Sandy Riverkeeper Program at the Resort at the Mountain had three primary objectives: 1) Re-establish a natural floodplain and improve off-channel habitat and riparian conditions along the Salmon River and Wee Burn Creek, 2) Fully restore fish passage to Wee Burn Creek by replacing a partial-passage culvert barrier on Welches Road, and 3) Increase public awareness and stewardship of aquatic resources. This program began operating in 1997, with many improvements already completed. Each improvement was completed in partnership with other entities within the Sandy River Basin.
The Sandy Riverkeeper Program at the resort relied on a collaborative, partnership approach to restoring important habitat for Endangered Species Act (ESA) listed salmon and steelhead along the lower Salmon River. The project assessed a mile of habitat on Wee Burn Creek and completed the design for a side channel to be completed.
Additionally, the program provided educational themes and materials for visitors and users of this privately owned resort and golf course focusing on wise conservation and stewardship of both public and private lands within the Sandy River Basin. Over 50,000 rounds of golf are played at the Resort yearly. This provided a unique and exceptional opportunity to discuss and display the importance and benefits of maintaining and restoring aquatic and wildlife habitat on private lands while managing a thriving business.
The primary partners include the Resort at the Mountain ,Wolftree, Inc., Sandy River Basin Watershed Council, Oregon Trout, Inc., Wilderness Volunteers, Clackamas County, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, Pacific Bridge, Trout Unlimited, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The 2005-2007 Biennial Report provides more information about accomplishments in each watershed basin.
Return to watershed basin map
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