The Scope of Work and budget presented in this document represent the activities associated with the Coeur 'd Alene Tribe's resident fish enhancement project on Hangman Creek within the Spokane Sub-basin corresponding to the contract period May 1, 20012 to April 30, 2013.  Total amount of this budget request is $300,000  Project 2001-032-00 has entered the Implementation Phase of the Project after an Assessment Phase starting in 2002.

Objectives include:
o Identify if naturally reproducing rainbow trout in Hangman Creek within the CDA Reservation are Redband trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss gairdneri)..
o Determine areas that are in need of restoration to supply spawning and rearing habitat for Redband and other naturally reproducing trout.
o Develop an educational outreach program to facilitate a “holistic watershed protection process.
o Implement a habitat/in-stream restoration strategy that will provide self-sustaining, naturally reproducing, and harvestable populations of native trout.
o Implement a monitoring and evaluation program to determine the effectiveness of habitat/in-stream restoration project.


The Hangman Creek watershed has experienced land use changes that have resulted in degraded in-stream habitat for fish and other aquatic species.  Conserving habitats in the upper tributaries is a priority along with increasing distribution. The primary method of accomplishing this will utilize beaver. Beaver influenced channel and floodplain morphology and vegetation historically, but alteration of their habitat and trapping have substantially reduced their influence and the ability for their populations to rebound.  The absence of large wood as a dam foundation and impacts to the availability of suitable dam-building material in the riparian zone have influenced the resilience of beaver dams currently, which tend to blow out during high flow and/or ice melt.  If conditions could be made more favorable for their re-establishment, it is likely that channel conditions and in-stream habitat could be restored closer to the pre-settlement state, thereby restoring fish habitat, the riparian zone, and the floodplain in the process.

Reaching the goals of the objectives include the following techniques:

1) Implementing designs for restoration using beaver: WE D will provide installation of large woody debris structures that attract or support existing beaver dams on a reach of Sheep Creek thru tribal allotments A336/340 that will enhance hydrologic and riparian conditions. We expect beaver activity will agrade the stream banks to normal hydrologic function. With that in place riparian restoration can proceed to ultimately provide better canopy and bank stabilization. With a healthy riparian complete with species that beaver need, we can expect stable conditions. This follows up on a contractor designs for projects for a Conceptual Restoration Design for Sheep Creek Allotment 336 and 340 completed in the previous contract by R2 Resource Associates, and the commendation for assigning priority for this reach by a report provided by Herrera Environmental Consultants, entitled "Recommendations for Beaver Habitat Restoration in the Upper Hangman Watershed". WE's E and F will provide riparian enhancement at the same location. WE G will provide a temporary source of food and building materials for beaver by providing clipping at key locations at known beaver activity

2) RME activities will involve a continuation of; 1) fish habitat surveys to track spawning and rearing conditions available to salmonids; 2) Continuous temperature monitoring throughout the watershed, discharge and hydrolab monitoring; 3)Summer backpack electroshock surveys and spring migration trapping.


3) WE J will begin a new protocol for the project which involves uses PIT tag technology to monitor seasonal movements of redband trout in specific reaches of the upper Hangman watershed. A fixed PIT-tag station will be installed in Indian Creek during the contract previous to this SOW. A second system will be installed at a time it is feasible. Current testing indicates that in order to monitor seasonal movements into restored tributary reaches (e.g., lower Sheep Creek), PIT-tag antenna may need to be affixed to the log-jam analog structures that will be installed (WE D) to create a suitable antenna configuration for effective interrogation.


This project will be working with it's sister project (2001-033-00) administered by the Coeur d 'Alene Tribe's Wildlife Program to restore Hangman Creek's streams and wetlands. 2001-033 is currently managing a property purchased downstream of the priority area of the Fisheries portion 2001-032-00. The primary goal of 2001-033-00 is to purchase easements on priority lands for restoration.