The Grande Ronde and Umatilla Fish Habitat Improvement Programs support the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's (ODFW) efforts to restore riparian and instream habitats in the Grande Ronde and Umatilla basins as mitigation for fisheries losses resulting from development of the federal Columbia River Power System. The Programs focus on the protection, enhancement, and restoration of habitats utilized by Federal Endangered Species Act listed Umatilla River summer steelhead, Snake River spring/summer Chinook salmon and Snake River summer steelhead, while benefiting many other species of fish and wildlife. These activities are guided, in part, by Recovery Plans, Subbasin Plans, Oregon plans and policies, and current research. Restoration activities are implemented under both short and long-term cooperative agreements with landowners. Past work includes: construction and maintenance of grazing control fences and off-channel livestock watering facilities; construction of side channels, alcoves, and large wood structures to increase habitat diversity; installing native plants to restore riparian ecosystems; management of noxious weeds; restoring fish passage; and improving stream and floodplain connectivity.

On July 1, 1984 the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) entered into an intergovernmental contract to initiate fish habitat enhancement work in the Joseph Creek subbasin of the Grande Ronde River Basin in northeast Oregon. Habitat enhancement work has expanded to include the Upper and Middle Grande Ronde rivers, Catherine Creek, and the Wallowa River subbasin. The primary goal of "The Grande Ronde Basin Fish Habitat Enhancement Project” is to create, protect, and restore riparian and instream habitat for anadromous salmonids, thereby maximizing opportunities for natural fish production within the basin. This project was originally implemented  to support the Northwest Power Planning Council's (Council) Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program’s Measure 703 (C)(1), Action Item 4.2, and continues to be implemented per revisions of the Fish and Wildlife Program as offsite mitigation for mainstem fishery losses caused by the Columbia River hydroelectric system. Since initiation of the Grande Ronde Fish Habitat Improvement Project in 1984, more than 75 projects have been completed on over 100 miles of streams restoring 3,800 acres of riparian and instream habitat.

A comprehensive effort to restore anadromous fish populations in the Umatilla Basin has been underway since the mid-1980’s. Actions taken to restore salmon and steelhead populations in the Umatilla Basin include flow restoration, passage improvement, habitat restoration, and hatchery operations. The Umatilla Anadromous Fish Habitat Program (UAFHP) was initiated in 1987 following a directive by the Northwest Power Planning and Conservation Council, which called for the rehabilitation of salmon and steelhead populations in the Umatilla River. The goal of this program is to restore riparian and stream ecosystems on private lands within the Umatilla Basin to insure the continued persistence and conservation of native fish and wildlife species. The UAFHP has focused on the Birch Creek watershed and upper Meacham Creek watersheds.

Based, in part, on BPA funding decisions, the GRFH and UAFHP programs were combined in April 2018. The Grande Ronde and Umatilla Fish Habitat Program (GRUFH) is comprised of four full time employees. Habitat work will be focused in the Umatilla Basin, and the Upper Grande River and tributaries, primarily Catherine Creek.

GRUFH will continue to partner with other local agencies including the Umatilla Basin Watershed Council and Umatilla County Soil and Water Conservation District, along with the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) and other ODFW programs to secure funding to implement habitat and passage projects in the Umatilla basin. These other partners have the ability to secure grant funds which ODFW does not qualify for or have budgets which allow for direct project implementation.

Project activities planned for this contract period include coordination with Grande Ronde and Umatilla basin partners, project planning, design review, permitting and construction, and inspection and maintenance of projects with current ODFW agreements. Continued coordination with landowners, and pursuit of additional projects, project design, and project implementation funding will also occur.

The Crow Creek-Krebs project will be completed in 2018, including constructing one off-site gravity fed watering system, overseeing construction of two solar watering systems, re-contouring 1,560' of streambanks, and riparian planting. Project fencing on Crow and West Fork Pine creeks was completed in 2017. A 15-year conservation easement has been signed protecting 40 acres.

Project fencing will be completed for the Wallowa-Baker project.

Funding has been received from OWEB to replace 1.7 miles of 30-year old fencing on our Fly Creek-Smith project. Fencing will be replaced in 2018. A 25-year easement is in place with the landowner.

Permitting and technical assistance will be provided for the Brownell Dam Removal project, to be completed in the summer of 2018. Staff will complete project permitting. Staff will also work closely with CTUIR and the ODFW John Day fish screening and passage program (BPA contract #1993-066-00) in providing oversight throughout construction and ensuring that permitting requirements are met.

Dillon Dam was removed from the Umatilla River in the summer of 2017. The bank upstream of the dam has been severely eroded by water backed up by the dam during high winter and spring flows. The pool created upstream of the dam provides holding habitat for upstream migrating salmon and steelhead and essential habitat for a variety of other fish and wildlife species. To protect the pool and prevent further bank erosion, large wood habitat structures will be installed in 2018. Riparian planting will also occur.

Design funding was received from BPA, ODOT, and OWEB for Phase 1 of a fish habitat restoration project on the Hall Ranch, located on Catherine Creek. 80% Phase 1 designs were completed. 30% Phase 2 Habitat Designs will be completed with available funding. Funding will be pursued and multiple grant applications will be submitted for Highway 203 relocation designs and for completing Phase 2 habitat designs. Partial project implementation funding has been secured for Phase 1. However, BPA, ODFW, and the GRMW have decided to forgo completion of Phase 1 project designs and construction of Phase 1 in favor proceeding with Phase 2, which includes relocating Highway 203. Program staff will work to secure design and implementation funding for the Phase 2 project.  Program staff will continue working with OSU to develop a grazing management plan for the project area, and to identify local wood sources for habitat restoration implementation.

Project design funding was received from OWEB for the Upper Grande Ronde-Bowman Project, from BPA for the Catherine Creek State Park Project, and from BPA and OWEB for the Wallowa-McDaniel Project. Program staff will be the lead on project design for all three projects. Program staff will oversee project design, surveys, data collection, and permitting for each of these projects. Program staff are working with Doug McDaniel on a grazing management plan and easement for the project area. Staff hope to have 30% designs for each project by the September funding cycle. Program staff will pursue restoration funding for all three projects in September 2018 or March 2019, for 2019, 2020, or 2021 implementation.  

The Wallowa-Baker Phase 2 restoration project will be implemented in 2019. Immediately upstream is the Wallowa-Baremore project. Design funding will be sought for the Wallowa-Baremore project in September 2018, with the goal of securing implementation funding in spring 2019. This would allow both projects to be constructed concurrently, decreasing construction costs for each project.

Due diligence monitoring will occur for our Ladd Creek Channel Reconstruction and Wetland Restoration Project. Oregon Department of State Lands (DSL) required compensatory mitigation of 35 acres of enhancement to PEM C wetland habitat and 8 acres of creation of palustrine open water/riverine/impounding wetland habitat for the Ladd Creek Project. DSL also required 10 years of monitoring the project. GRFH began pre- implementation monitoring for the Ladd Creek project in 2007. Post-project implementation monitoring was begun and 2010. With the completion of project construction in the fall of 2014, monitoring was expanded in 2015. Monitoring in 2018 shall include willow, trench willow, sedge plugs, and potted plant survival estimates, photo points, measuring solar radiation input, and measuring water levels and inundation of wetland ponds. Program staff will collect, enter, and analyze data and complete an annual monitoring report for DSL.

The DSL permit for the Ladd Creek project requires a wetland delineation to ensure required compensatory mitigation is met. A SOW and request for bid will be prepared and a consultant hired to conduct the wetland delineation in 2018.

Inspection and maintenance of projects with easements will be on-going, including maintaining project vegetation, monitoring for and removing trespassing livestock, maintaining and repairing/reconstructing fence lines and off-site water systems, and maintaining reconstructed stream channel and instream structures. These activities will be conducted throughout the year to comply with ODFW agreements and esasements.

Maintenance will be conducted on 30 miles of fence, 12 off-channel watering structures, and 1,900 acres of riparian and stream habitat with the Grande Ronde Basin. Trespass livestock will be investigated and removed.

Maintenance will be conducted on the 267.7 acres of riparian and stream habitat within the Umatilla River Subbasin, including 19.28 miles of fence, 12 off-channel watering facilities, and 130 acres of native vegetation to meet program objectives. Staff will investigate for trespass cattle on all riparian fencing projects.

Riparian planting, watering and regular maintenance will occur at multiple project sites. Trees planted in 2016 at the Low and Hamby sites along Birch Creek will be monitored for growth and survival. A new planting technique called deep planting, as well as a new irrigation technique called deep pipe irrigation, will be used at Birch Creek to increase survival and planting success. These two techniques have been used with great success in very arid climates to promote plant growth in areas where water is limited.

Weed spraying will be conducted by staff on 12 projects in the Umatilla Basin. Weed spraying, if necessary, will be contracted out for projects in the Grande Ronde Basin.

Two temperature probes will be operated and maintained to monitor status and trends of water temperature in the headwaters of Meacham Creek.

Photographs will be taken at approximately 100 photo point locations.

Staff will continue to work with landowners on future projects and renewing cooperative agreements. Easements and new projects on the Upper Grande Ronde, Catherine Creek, Umatilla River, Birch Creek, and Meacham Creek will be pursued. Program staff are currently pursuing the Wallowa-Baremore, Catherine Creek-LDS, Catherine Creek-Tule Lakes, Beaver Creek-Merlo, and Upper Wallowa-Fish Passage projects. Staff are also working on a culvert replacement project on Coon Creek in the Willow Creek Subbasin. Staff will work with Conrad Wyss on a potential dam removal and habitat restoration project and with the City of Pendleton on removal of several unused pipelines which cross the Umatilla River and are fish passage obstructions.

Staff will participate on the BPA Catherine Creek and Upper Grande Ronde ATLAS Science Technical Advisory Committee and Implementation Team. Staff will assist with identifying high priority project opportunities, selection of opportunity leads, and opportunity development.

Staff will participate in monthly Union County Coordination and Focused Investment Partnership meetings coordinated by the GRMW.

Staff will participate in Umatilla Basin habitat restoration associated meetings and maintain coordination with Umatilla Basin partners. Staff will attend Umatilla Basin Water Restoration Team meetings.

Staff will continue to coordinate and provide technical assistance to other agencies throughout the Grande Ronde and Umatilla basins to complete fish habitat restoration projects. Coordination with basin partners will remain a priority.

Staff will oversee project construction on Crow Creek-Krebs, Fly Creek, Brownell Dam, and Dillon Dam. This will include leading fish salvage operations and conducting turbidity monitoring for the Brownell and Dillon Dam projects.

Education and outreach activities will occur as time allows. Anticipated activities include participation in academic programs including career days and Watershed Field days.

GRFH staff will maintain equipment used by the Program for implementing this SOW.