Introduction

Meadow Creek is spawning and rearing habitat for Snake River Basin summer steelhead and redband trout.   According to fish distribution maps, Snake River Basin rearing spring chinook salmon habitat is located approximately .5 mile downstream of the project area.  However, Meadow Creek within the project area is considered designated critical habitat for spring chinook salmon, since it is accessible to juveniles as rearing habitat (Biological Assessment for the Starkey Grazing Allotment, 2006).  In addition, chinook smolts have been located up to Ray Creek, which is located in the middle of the project area (refer to attached map).  
The summer steelhead and spring/summer chinook are federally listed under ESA as threatened species. Redband trout are on the Regional Forester's Sensitive Species List.  

Historic timber harvest removed larger conifers from the valley bottom, reducing the future recruitment of large wood to the stream. This project will rehabilitate the floodplain and instream habitat through planting, large wood/boulder additions, exclosure re/construction and riparian pasture fencing.

Existing condition

The Meadow Creek Project is broken into 3 reaches.  The valley bottom is forested, and riparian vegetation consists of shrub species, primarily willow and alder, with sedges and grasses.  Conifers consist of Englemann spruce, lodgepole pine, Douglas-fir, western larch, and ponderosa pine.  Historic timber harvest, including splash dams removed larger conifers from the valley bottom, reducing the future recruitment of large wood debris to the stream.  

In the early 1990’s the Wallowa-Whitman cooperated with Bonneville Power Administration to add structural complexity to the Meadow Creek.  Large wood and rock structural elements were added to the river channel. Most of the structures constructed were log sills that spanned the entire channel on the level.  The majority of the structures are no longer present, due to high flow and ice scour events.  

A stream survey of Meadow Creek was conducted in 2011.  Stream survey results indicate poor numbers of pools per mile and moderate amounts of large wood within the medium size class (see Table 1 below for stream survey results).  The Rosgen Class for reaches 1 & 3 are dominated by a C4 channel with some stream segments exhibiting B channel characteristics in reach 1.  Reach 2 is dominated by a B4 channel with some C channel characteristics.   Large and medium size classes for wood are poor for all three reaches.  However, reach 3 is more of a meadow system, where large wood has naturally been in low numbers.  The number of pools per mile is low and width to depth ratios are high for reaches 1 & 2.  Personal observation agreed with the stream survey results.  Reach 2 has poor habitat complexity and pool quality and could be improved dramatically through wood placements.
  
The objective is to improve spring/summer chinook habitat, summer steelhead habitat, specifically through improving or increasing the following habitat elements.

• Increase quantity and quality of pools within Meadow Creek
• Increase fish cover
• Increase habitat complexity
• Increase forage availability
• Increase residual pool depth
• Increase number of large and medium pieces of large woody debris in the stream
• Increase spawning gravel recruitment
• Improve stream shade
• Improve floodplain and riparian function
• Increase riparian vegetation
• Improve ungulate grazing management to enhance the salmon and steelhead habitat elements

Meadow Creek Large Woody Debris Phase II Actions

The Meadow Creek Large Woody Debris Phase II Project would place wood within 3.25 miles of Meadow creek for a total of 30 structure sites.   Planting will occur for on approximately 3 miles.  Two stream exclosure fences would be removed and reconstructed (1 mile of stream excluded) and an additional stream exclosure fence would be constructed (.15 mile of stream excluded). Approximately, one mile of pasture fence will be reconstructed.  Two riparian pasture fences will be constructed for a total of 3.3 miles of new construction.  Nine small, 1 hectare, exclosures (.25 miles of new exclosure construction per exclosure) will be constructed in Pastures 2, 3, and 5 for monitoring effects of ungulate herbivory.  A new cattle grazing system would be completely changed throughout Meadow Creek to meet habitat recovery and enhancement objectives for salmon and steelhead.  Research and appropriate funding will be in place to detect impacts and take corrective action on changes to the grazing system, if needed (see attached letter documenting research support).