# Presentation: 080702

## Status and restoration effectiveness monitoring for salmonid populations in the Columbia River BasinChris Jordan and Stephen KatzNorthwest Fisheries Science Center, Seattle WANick BouwesEco Logical Research, Inc. Logan UT Collaborators from: WDFW, ODFW, IDFG, USFS, USFWS, USEPA, USBoR, BPA, NPT, YN, CT, SB, CTWSR, WDEcy, ODEQ, IDEQ, UW, OSU, PBI, CCD, CCPUD, Terraqua, BioAnalysts, Quantitative Consultants..... 

**Notes:**
a Biological Opinion authored by NOAAF describs how we must mitigate for the impacts of the mainstem Snake and Columbia River dams on salmon and steelhead listed under the ESA.  Part of the mitigation, to make up for these impacts, is to improve spawning and rearing habitat in the tributaries.  Part of this BiOp calls for the development of a research, monitoring, and evaluation program throughout the Columbia River basin referred to as the Federal RME program.  This program will be used to describe the status and trends of these fishes and their habitat, identify mitigation opportunities, and evaluate the response to mitigation actions.

## determine population status and trends
establish baseline for causal relationships between habitat attributes and population response
assess impacts of habitat restoration
development and testing of sampling protocols

- establish baseline for causal relationships between habitat attributes and population response
- assess impacts of habitat restoration
- development and testing of sampling protocols

**Tributary Research Monitoring and Evaluation Objectives**

**Notes:**
The main objectives of the Federal RME program for tributaries of the Columbia River Basin is to collect information to: 

determine the current status and trends of salmon and steelhead.  This information is used by the Technical Recovery Teams to determine whether ESU need to be listed or delisted under ESA, and the required improvement in population survival needed for recovery. 

establish mechanisms by which fish interact with their environment so that we can prescribe effect management to enhance population productivity and

resolve critical uncertainties that influence our ability to make proper decisions (e.g. does increase channel complexity lead to increase in juvenile abundance or a redistribution of juvenile densities).

asses whether stream restoration projects are resulting in a benefit to a population

develop and test whether sampling methods are providing an accurate picture of reality and if the information is useful in telling us something of importance. 

## The Columbia River Basin

**The Columbia River Basin**

**The Columbia River System**
** ****58 million hectare **** ****drainage area, **
**4****th ****largest in North America**
** ****7 states, 13 reservations, 1 province**
** ****> 400 dams: 11 mainstem**
** ****150 hydroelectric projects**
**  ****5 species of salmon            **

**Notes:**
Here is the study area 

As you might imagine the scale of which we must develop a RME program is huge and crosses several juridictional  boundaries

## Columbia River Basin

**Columbia **
**River**

**Snake **
**River**

**Notes:**
Although there are several RME efforts throughout the CRB, there is little communication between them and each with different goals.  The FRME goal is to implement an RME program throughout the CRB that is somewhat standardized between subbasins, designed in such a way as to address multiple information goals. Development of a comprehensive RME program will be a learning process, and thus going through the trials and errors at the scale of the Columbia River Basin would be impractical.  Therefore, it was agreed that development of a CRB RME program will occur three Pilot subbasins, the Wenatchee, Salmon, and John Day Basins.

## 105-106

***spatial scale***
***(m)***

**basin**
**(*****John Day*****)**

**subbasin**
**(*****Middle Fork***** *****John Day*****)**

**watershed**
**(*****Long Creek*****)**

**reach**
**(*****1 km of Long Creek*****)**

**monitoring and experimental sites**

**Scale Hierarchy**

**Biological Hierarchy**

**population**
**(*****John Day spring Chinook*****)**

**sub-population**
**(MF *****John Day spring Chinook*****)**

**local groups**

**small groups**
**or**
**individuals**

***10******5******-10******6***

***10******2******-10******4***

***10******0******-10******1***

**Notes:**
RME efforts need to address multiple scales to provide an overall understanding of the factors limiting salmon and steelhead distribution and production over different levels of demographic organization.   landscape/landuse patterns relative to the distribution of the John Day salmon and steelhead populations. This provides the context to view watershed/reach scale habitat information and fish subpopulations – maybe most relevant to a salmonids needs through a majority of the life history.  Understanding the mechanisms by which physical and biological interactions likely will occur at smaller scales and require directed research.   The goal is to not only describe interactions between physical and biological properties within a level but also between level, thus the hierarchical design.

## Landscape
soil type
geology type
precipitation
topology/hydrology
air temperature
precipitation
stream temperatures
fire impacts
landslides
flood events
beaver ponds

- soil type
- geology type
- precipitation
- topology/hydrology
- air temperature
- precipitation
- stream temperatures
- fire impacts
- landslides
- flood events
- beaver ponds

**Land use patterns**
- agriculture
- grazing
- forestry
- mining
- urbanization
- road density
- culverts/passage barriers

**basin/subbasin monitoring**

**Notes:**
Currently, the program is attempting to describe landscape patterns for much of the CRB; such as ... 
In addition, anthrogenic land use patterns are also being described such as....

## Satellite Data

**Landsat Data **
**1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000**

**15 scenes per year / 75 total                                    June-September Acquisition**

**Notes:**
Remote sensing place a key role in assessing landscape/land use patterns.  Landsat data has been acquired for the whole CRB over a 16 yr time period to determine how these features change over time. In addition, high resolution Ikonos data has been collect in a portion of this coverage.  We always talk about changes to populations through time but rarely do we do this for large scale information.  This is an attempt to do that and relate this to change is fish population. 

## Slide 8

**Notes:**
We believe there are physical and biological characteristics of water

## physical dimensions and instream habitat characteristics
gradient
depth
pool area
riffles
structure and substrate
channel type
valley type
temperature
oxygen

- gradient
- depth
- pool area
- riffles
- structure and substrate
- channel type
- valley type
- temperature
- oxygen

- riparian characteristics
- vegetation type and extent
- density
- canopy cover
- water use (points of collection and return)
- diversions and barriers
- primary/secondary production
- sediment input
- salinity/toxins

**watershed/reach/site scale ****habitat monitoring**

**Notes:**
we can still use remote sensing to get at some this information. 

## LiDAR

**Notes:**
LiDAR provides other information that can be used to 

## Thermal infrared imagery

**Thermal infrared imagery**

## habitat monitoring protocol comparison

- compare protocols from 9 different programs – PIBO, AREMP, EMAP/EPA, ODFW, WDE, CDFG, R6, Wenatchee....
- make comparisons at 12 reaches – 4 step-pool, 4 pool-riffle, 4 planebed complexes
- LiDAR taken at all 12 sites
- compare to intensive survey, i.e. “truth”

## Information type
spawner abundance and distribution
juvenile abundance and distribution
juvenile survival
juvenile growth
juvenile movement/behavior
production (smolts/spawner) 

- spawner abundance and distribution
- juvenile abundance and distribution
- juvenile survival
- juvenile growth
- juvenile movement/behavior
- production (smolts/spawner)

**Salmonid monitoring**

- Sampling method
- weir counts
- redd survey
- screwtraps
- snorkeling/seining/
- electroshocking
- PIT tagging/PIT tag detectors

**Notes:**
Within the pilot projects there are fish and habitat monitoring programs currently underway.   Here is a list of information types that describe status and trends or response variables to management and mitigation actions.  I would like to summarize this information by scale but in the interest of time suffice it to say that much this information can be used across a large range of scales.  Ultimately, our progress towards restoring these populations will likely be assessed by changes in production. 

This information is collected using a combination of...  PIT tag technology has added tremendously in our ability to assess these information types.  In fact, PIT tags can be used to some extent to address all these information types.  

## Wenatchee River Basin Pilot Project

**50** **EMAP sites for physical and biological stream reach habitat metrics (~EMAP indicators) and fish density stratified by stream order and gradient**
**60 headwater streams samples quarterly for organic matter input to fish bearing streams stratified by ecoregion and land use**
**25 miles of spawning ground index surveys done weekly**
**25 EMAP sites for spawning surveys outside of index areas samples monthly**
**5 smolt traps running “continuously”**
**5 water quality monitors w/ 5 sensors logging hourly, plus monthly water grabs for chemistry**

- Smolt trap and water quality sites

## 23,126 projects in 35,696 locations

**A “quick” survey of habitat restoration projects across the PNW**

**Notes:**
This may look like a childs attempt at cake decorating with sprinkles .. But really...
Yellow projects= multiple times. Gives you an idea of the number of projects that are doing many things at once.
Barrier removal projects in red.. Mainly west of the cascades, same goes for sediment reduction
Large numbers fo upland management and no much else in southern OR, ID, al of MT

## A loosely organized network of Intensively Monitored Watersheds

**Lemhi R.**

**Lower SF John Day R.**

**Upper MF John Day R.**

**Lower Entiat R.**

**Libby, Gold and Beaver Cks. In Methow R.**

**Nason, Peshastin and Chiwawa Cks. In Wenatchee R.**

**E. & W. Twin, Deep Cks.**

**Germany, Mill, Abernathy Cks.**

**Skagit R. Estuary**

**A loosely organized network of Intensively Monitored Watersheds**

**Little Anderson,**
**Seabeck, Stavis,**
**Big Beef Cks. **

**Tucannon R.**

**Scappoose R.**

**EF Lobster Ck.**

**Cummins,**
**Tenmile Cks.**

**Hinkle Ck.**

**WF Smith R.**

**NF Nehalem R.**

**Winchester Ck.**

**Mill Ck. Siletz**

**Mill Ck. Yaquina**

**Cascade Ck.**

**EF Trask R.**

**Hollow Tree Ck. – SF Eel R.**

## Lemhi Basin as an 

**Lemhi Basin as an **
**Intensively Monitored Watershed**

## weir

**weir**

**PIT tag detector**

**screw trap**

## fixed snorkel/seine/electrofishing sites

- Lemhi Basin

- 0                    10                   20
-                       km

**fixed snorkel/seine/electrofishing sites**

**+ 50 EMAP site**
**+ redd census**

## Integrated Status and Effectiveness Monitoring Program

**Integrated Status and Effectiveness Monitoring Program**

** ****Landscape Classification for entire Columbia River Basin**
** ****Subbasin scale population and habitat status**
** ****Intensively Monitored Watersheds within subbasin**

## Conclusions

- Pacific Northwest Salmon populations are in trouble.
- We are spending tons of money on restoration with little understanding of effectiveness
- Assessing response of salmon to restoration actions needs to be done large spatial and long temporal scales
- The IMW effort is a regional public-private-tribal science collaboration that is attempting to implement these large-scale experiments
- Time line for this project:
- We will have salmon management results in 3-5 generations, but
- We will have restoration planning results in 1-3 years.
- Future directions:
- Continue to expand the scientific, experimental approach to restoration evaluation
- Continue to expand the collaborative approach to restoration design, implementation and evaluation.