Clear Creek Restoration Program

Public Meeting

Sacramento, CA

Presented by

Tom T. Kisanuki

Bureau of Reclamation - Program Lead

and

Matt R. Brown

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Program Co-Lead
Background

Authority of the CVPIA Program

• Section 3406 – Fish, wildlife and habitat restoration

• 3406 b(12) – specific to Clear Creek (e.g.)

• - flows for spawning and incubation

• - flows for rearing and out-migration

• Section 3407 – Restoration fund
Map of Clear Creek “plumbing”

Map courtesy of USFWS. 
Background

Purpose of the Restoration Program

• Restore salmon and steelhead in Clear Creek

• “Develop and implement a comprehensive program...”

• Flows for spawning, incubation, rearing, and outmigration

• Instream flow studies

• Removal of McCormick-Saeltzer Dam

• Channel restoration

• Fish passage
Background

Nature of Problems Being Addressed

• Declines in anadromous salmonids

• Whiskeytown Dam – blocked sediment & fish migration

• Stream channel impacts from placer and dredger mining

• Historic mining tailings and mercury-laden sediments

• Impacts from gravel mining
Accomplishments FY 2012

What Actions Were Taken?

• Program management and technical support

• Restoration actions (e.g.)

• Gravel injections – 10,000 tons 

• Revegetation – “Phase 3B” project area

• Monitoring and Modeling

• IFIM (flow and habitat modelling/evaluation)

• Fish passage/population estimates

• Spawning surveys

• Sediment transport and mapping gravel (spawning habitat) 

• Compensation costs (Saeltzer-McCormick Dam)
Accomplishments FY 2012

What Funding was Obligated or Expended?

• Funding level of $905,000 ($800k Restoration, $105k WRR)*

• $796,247 was expended

• $109,145 carryover into FY13 was authorized

* Funding level used for planning purposes
Accomplishments FY 2012

What Were The Results?

• On-going program activities

• Planning for future actions

• Coordinated inter-agency planning and cooperation

• Clear Creek Technical Work Group 

• Federal landowners are NPS and BLM

• State landowners are CDFW

• Continued successful restoration efforts
Successful Restoration Efforts

CDFW Grandtab data
Carcass surveys

Fish weir

Gravel injection

Photos by CDFW and CDWR
Accomplishments FY 2012

What Data Were Used?

• Historical databases

• Current real-time data

• Streamflows, biological counts, surveys, monitoring

• water temperature

• Multi-agency data collection

• Calif. Dept. of Fish and Wildlife

• Bureau of Reclamation

• Point Reyes Bird Observatory

• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

• Bureau of Land Management

• Consultants

(note: not all are funded thru CVPIA)
Accomplishments FY 2012

What Monitoring Was Done?

• Biological monitoring

• Anadromous Fish: Juvenile, adult, spawning/redds

• Physical and Geomorphic monitoring

• Flow, water temperature

• Sediment and gravel transport

• Vegetation

• Growth/survival/condition in re-vegetated areas
Accomplishments FY 2012

What Modeling and Conceptual Models Were Used?

• Overall program

• CCDAM (Clear Cr Decision Analysis and Adaptive Mgmt Model)

• AFRP Plan Actions identified a limiting factor model

• Specific activities employ Adaptive Management process

• CCDAM-2 models sediment budget – predicts needed gravel

• USGS models for gravel transport rates

• IFIM (instream flow incremental methodology)

• Evaluates habitat as a function of flow for fish life stages

• Monitoring/Modeling results used to design future work
Overview of FY 2013 Plans

Status of Activities Planned For 2013?

• Administrative/Procurement/Contracting

• Environmental compliance & planning actions 

• NEPA for EWP action – (high flow releases 7 out of 10 yrs)

• Long-term gravel/mercury abatement project (40 yr gravel supply)

• Programmatic permits (gravel injections and instream habitat)

• Monitoring of fish populations

• Monitoring of geomorphic processes

• Finishing up on-going projects (e.g.)

• Parkway & Floodway projects – nearing completion
Overview of FY 2013 Plans

What Funding is Projected For 2013?

• Restoration Fund Currently projected at: $ 555,000

• State In-Kind Contribution of: $ 3,942,628

• State Cash contribution of: $ 169,601

• Carryover of FY12 funds: $ 109,145

• CDFW – Non CVPIA funds (not cost-shareable)
Adaptive Management

Lessons Learned & Value of Adaptive Management

• Water temperature management/compliance

• Decisions as it relates to active restoration work

• React to changing conditions and/or circumstances

• Changing actions to improve fish habitat

• Beneficial to improving scientific methods 

• Maximize available resources
Closing Comments

• Recent declines in Central-Valley wide salmon populations

• Resilience of Clear Creek salmonids

• Major events (e.g.) Moon Fire 2008, Dale Fire of 2012

• Long-term gravel project (Hg abatement/40 yr supply)

• Importance of flows

• Importance of water temperatures

• Environmental Water Program – “geomorphic flows”
Dale Fire burned 1,200 acres Photos by CDFW 
Questions/Discussion

Photo by BOR
Thank You!

Gravel injection site below Placer Bridge

Photo by BOR