Sandy River Basin Partnership
Majestic. Wild. Lush. Dense. Diverse. Powerful. “Fish full.”
This is how we’d describe northwestern Oregon’s Sandy River Basin.
We know its waters. We’ve spent summer mornings and afternoons knee deep in their cool depths. We’ve studied and monitored them – collected and analyzed data. We’ve protected the native fish that call them home.
The Freshwater Trust has been building log jams, placing boulders, replanting native species and reconnecting channels in the basin for nearly a decade.
Follow the meanders of tributaries in the basin, and you can see our impact – out of the water in the form of towering, stacked logs, and in it, where coho, Chinook, steelhead and trout swim.
“These fish are proof,” said Mark McCollister, habitat restoration director, pointing to Chinook rearing underneath a wood jam that was constructed a few years back. “Proof of a plan being carried out and proof of a difference made.”
Reversing history
McCollister’s excitement comes from the fact that it hasn’t always been like this.
Timber harvests, the removal of large wood to reduce flood risks, increased recreation and development, forest fires, and road construction took a toll on the basin for years.
In 1964, the Army Corps of Engineers straightened sections of the Salmon River and removed large wood from the floodplain. A national movement to remove woody debris and meanders was thought to prevent flooding. In actuality, water was carried through the river system faster, exacerbating the problem.
These historic actions also decreased habitat diversity and as a consequence, native fish populations – so much so that Sandy River salmon and steelhead were listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1998.
“You could say it was a catalyst,” said McCollister. “A moment to recognize how significant the population decline was and an opportunity to reverse what we were doing.”
A dozen groups with one goal
A partnership of public and private organizations not only recognized the need for restoration but responded with a grand goal: Identify and implement every known restoration action in the basin.
“We couldn’t let this stronghold disappear,” said McCollister. “We’re talking about one of the most important habitats in the Pacific Northwest.”
Mark McCollister, Habitat Restoration Director.
Over a dozen groups with commitment and expertise, including The Bureau of Land Management, The Sandy River Basin Watershed Council, The Forest Service, Portland General Electric, The Freshwater Trust, the Portland Water Bureau and the Nature Conservancy, became the Sandy River Basin Partners.
“We’ve always been driven to reclaim the legacy of the basin,” said McCollister.
Together, The Freshwater Trust and the other Partners developed and executed upon one of the first comprehensive and science-driven plans for achieving that.
“If we were going to really recover fish habitat in this basin as a whole on a timeline that mattered, it had to be done strategically,” said David Primozich, conservation director for The Freshwater Trust. “Our actions had to be thought out and thorough.”
By using fish surveys and modeling, partners evaluated the spawning and rearing patterns of the endangered fish and identified what they refer to as “strategic actions guided by science.” Sites and projects were prioritized based upon what would have the greatest ecological impact. These actions embody the Quantified Conservation method used by The Freshwater Trust. This method is about using data and technology to ensure that every restoration action translates to a positive outcome.
Three focus areas
Engineered log jam on Oregon’s Still Creek. To date, 196 large wood structures have been installed on the Salmon River and Still Creek.
The Partners have primarily focused on three subbasins of the Sandy: Salmon River, Still Creek and the lower mainstem Sandy River corridor. All three watersheds are anchor habitats for salmon and steelhead.
The Salmon River begins on the south slope of Mt. Hood and flows for 33 miles before entering the Sandy River. Still Creek is a tributary to the Zigzag River located within the Mt. Hood National Forest near the town of Rhododendron. The lower mainstem Sandy is one of the most significant migration corridors for fall Chinook salmon.
The Partners use a hierarchical approach to prioritize the type of conservation and restoration projects within these three areas.
“Restoration usually happens where it’s possible – where there’s an opportunity – not necessarily where it’s most needed or where native fish will benefit the most,” said Primozich. “We came up with a list of places, goals and actions in the basin – an overall plan – and started to chip away at them together as a partnership.”
To date, 26 side channels have been restored on the Salmon River. 196 large wood structures have been installed on both the Salmon River and Still Creek. More than 3,000 pieces of large wood have been placed in the two waterways.
Decades ago, large wood was taken out of rivers across the nation to prevent flooding. In actuality, it exacerbated the problem and decreased habitat diversity. Installing log jams is one of the things we do to fix a river. Here are a few reasons why.
“All of this has been done with the ultimate goal of bringing fish back here to a watershed where they once flourished,” said McCollister. “Restoration is sort of a working assumption that if you rebuild it, they will come back.”
Seeing is believing
For this basin, that assumption has been proven true – in spades.
Bruce Zoellick, a fish biologist for the Bureau of Land Management, has been closely monitoring the Salmon River by snorkel for the past several years.
Zoellick spotted 64 redds, gravel nests where fish lay their eggs in 2012. In 2014, there were 115, and in 2016, 137 – a number that he calls a world record.
The redds are expected to become thousands of adult fish in the coming years. And miles of river and stream will have been restored to welcome them.
Additional results from these projects and others can be seen in The Freshwater Trust’s interactive Uplift Tool.
“The beautiful piece about all of this is really the partnerships that were formed to get these types of results,” said McCollister. “It’s a unique thing, and something that should be replicated elsewhere.”
The Forest Service agreed when it awarded the Sandy River Basin Partners the National Rise to the Future Award. This award is given by the USDA Forest Service each year for outstanding restoration accomplishments.
“The Partners have worked collaboratively to implement numerous successful and technically complex restoration projects,” said Lisa Northrop, Forest Supervisor in the Mt. Hood National Forest.
The Freshwater Trust, the Sandy River Basin Watershed Council, Oregon Department Fish and Wildlife, Portland Water Bureau, and USDA accepted the award on behalf of the group in May 2016.
The Oregon State Lands Board, USDA and American Fisheries Society have also recognized the group’s work.
Collective work with collective backing
Collaboration has been a force driving impressive results on the ground.
But it’s also been behind the scenes.
A widespread array of foundations and businesses have financially backed the restoration of river mile after river mile and ensured monitoring will continue on project sites.
“We have identified what is broken about our rivers, what fish species and their life stages are affected by the degraded rivers, what needs to be done to fix them, and also importantly, approximately how much it will cost,” said Greg Wanner, supervisory fish biologist with the US Forest Service.
Since 2007, the Partners have guided more than $10 million in restoration investment to the basin. Funders have included the City of Portland, Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Ecotrust, NOAA Restoration Center, Boeing Company, US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Wells Fargo, Patagonia, The Standard, Campbell Global, The Boeing Company, Carol and Velma Saling Foundation, and Pacific Power Blue Sky Habitat Fund.
“Funders are attracted to our planning and track record implementing successful projects,” said McCollister.
This past summer, Wells Fargo provided $64,000 as part of their Environmental Solutions for Communities grant program.
The City of Portland’s Water Bureau recently granted The Freshwater Trust $100,000, an investment in the basin that provides drinking water for the Rose City and more than 900,000 Oregonians.
“We’ve been very successful at cobbling together numerous funding sources to put together world-class restoration projects,” said Wanner. “I’ve had people tell me: This is the template for how all restoration work should be done.”
Work to be done
Still Creek is a tributary to the Zigzag River, located within the Mt. Hood National Forest.
There is more to be done – probably decades of it.
The Sandy River Basin Partners have plans to finish existing restoration work on Still Creek and Salmon River and then begin on other tributaries in the basin.
If you visit the Sandy during the right time of year, juvenile fish will be rearing in side channels. Fish will be spawning in gravel recruited from log jams. Adult salmon and steelhead will be swimming in restored pools.
“This is an example of how much can happen when a community sees value in restoring their local watershed,” said McCollister. “The powerful results happening here belong to many, and that makes it something really special. We have and always will do more together.”
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