Calapooia Watershed Council

Working to Improve the health of the watershed

habitat restoration

Middle Reach Restoration

In spring 2008, the Council completed the OWEB-funded Calapooia River Middle Reach Project Implementation Plan. The Middle Reach of the Calapooia, spanning from Sodom Dam (RM 28) to the former Brownsville Dam site (RM 36), has been identified as “dynamic river corridor for protection and restoration” (Calapooia Watershed Assessment, 2004).

The Project Implementation Plan identifies over 50 potential restoration projects in this eight-mile reach and prioritizes them according to parameters such as fish habitat, water quality benefits, risk of failure, cost, and landowner participation. This project prioritization is necessary for the Council’s precision application restoration approach as opposed to an opportunistic method of restoration. The Middle Reach was divided into four sub-reaches for detailed analysis. Implementation of identified projects is expected to benefit cutthroat trout, lamprey, and rearing juvenile ESA listed spring Chinook salmon and winter steelhead, as well as migratory birds, western pond turtles, and various amphibian species.

Progress:

  • Eight land owners/managers working to restore land in sub-reach 1.
  • Five sub-reach 1 landowners participating in riparian enhancement/ re-vegetation (3 of them are also enrolled in CREP) = total acreage = 32.5
  • Two sub-reach 1 landowners participating in side channel wood placement projects to improve in-stream habitat
  • Two sub-reach 1 landowners allowing access for the in-stream projects to occur
  • Recruited all landowners in 1.63 mile long sub-reach 3 to pursue OWEB-funded restoration designs by River Design Group, Inc. for their floodplain habitat
  • Recruited 2 landowners in sub-reach 3 to enroll in conservation easement programs (CREP) in critical floodplain habitat areas
  • Recruited 4 landowners in sub-reach 2, including the City of Brownsville, to pursue funding for floodplain restoration designs and/or conservation
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