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Success stories — Hood River
The Hood River Fish Habitat Project is part of a cooperative effort to improve habitat conditions for fish in the Hood River subbasin. It is implemented jointly by the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The Hood River subbasin is located on the northern border in the central part of the state. The area supports a wide range of land uses such as orchard farms, pastures, forest, as well as growing residential development. At the same time, many streams within the subbasin are designated as essential habitat for steelhead trout, listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. Besides steelhead, coho salmon and resident trout are also targeted stocks of fish that would benefit from the project.
Some of the conditions identified as limiting fish production in the subbasin include the lack of instream habitat to support historic population levels of anadromous fish; degraded water quality, including a higher than preferred range in temperature in summer and early fall; low summer/fall instream flows; and increased sediment and turbidity. And at the top of the list is fish passage. "There are three major irrigation districts in the Hood River subbasin, and adult and juvenile passage is the number one problem for these fish," according to Mick Jennings the program's manager. Passage barriers affect fish both upstream and downstream. The upstream migration of salmon, steelhead, and resident trout is blocked or impeded at numerous locations by diversion dams and other structures, preventing fish from reaching their historic spawning and rearing areas. Downstream migrating salmon become diverted into irrigation canals and ditches because of the lack of screens, or inadequately screened water diversions. Since 1999, the program has completed a number of projects to address these limiting factors, including: the construction of a diversion and screen at the Phoenix Pharms recreational fish facility, that replaces and modifies several culverts to meet both upstream and downstream passage requirements; and an ongoing fencing project that will fence stream riparian from livestock. Thus far, several miles have been completed, including a wetland area. The fencing will enhance water quality, stabilize streambanks, and reduce sediment from bank erosion. The Hood River Watershed Group and Soil and Water Conservation District will plant native woody species to speed the recovery of newly fenced riparian areas, and develop and implement a volunteer-based water quality monitoring plan, assisted by the Department of Environmental Quality. They will also promote best management practices to agricultural and residential landowners. Perhaps most important was the construction and installation of a new fish screen and bypass system on the mainstem Hood River. The Farmers Irrigation District Fish Screen Replacement Project replaced two obsolete and non-compliant screens with a system that meets or exceeds state and federal fish protection standards. This summer, work will begin to replace insufficient culverts with structures that will enable fish to pass year-round on Evans Creek and Baldwin Creek. |
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