Hancock Springs

A natural lab for studying the roles of physical habitat, nutrient availability, and non-native species to inform river restoration

John JorgensenYakama Nation Fisheries

Today’s talk will cover:

- The regional problem: Reduced natural production- Factors limiting natural production- An integrated restoration approach- Discussion of Hancock Springs- Summary and Conclusions- Q&A/Discussion

Hancock Springs (RM 59)

The Problem

Salmon production and population declines

Salmon population declines are often due to cumulative effects of many factors

Biomass Reductions

Gresch et al. 2000

Factors limiting natural production“The Big 3”:

1. Habitat loss and degradation2. Loss of marine derived nutrients (MDN)3. Deleterious presence of non-native fishes

Upper Columbia Natural Production Restoration Program

Goal: To identify, test, evaluate, and implement measures to increase natural production of anadromous salmonids in the Upper Columbia River Basin.

Upper Columbia Natural Production Restoration Program

Current Projects: • Upper Columbia Nutrient Enhancement Project (Twisp River)• Hancock Springs Project (Today’s talk)

Hancock Springs Project

Goal: Use Hancock Springs to quantify separate and combined effects of habitat restoration, nutrient addition, and non-native fish removal on natural production of anadromous salmonids.

Hancock Springs Project

Obj. 1: Evaluate fine scale responses to a series of restorative treatments

Hancock Springs Project

Obj. 2: Understand the contributions of spring creeks in Upper Columbia tributaries

Hancock Springs Project

Obj. 3 Use results to guide larger restoration actions

Project Area

Physical Conditions

Biological Conditions

First Phase (Hand Work)

Natural Production in HS

Hancock Springs 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

No. Steelhead Redds

0 0 23 13 8 14 6*

No. Spring Chinook Redds

0 0 0 0 0 20 2*

* low redd numbers in 2011 due to mandatory fish exclusion for restoration construction

Natural Production

Second Phase

Channel Reconfiguration

Channel Excavation

Re-building stream banks

Vegetation/Stabilizing Banks

Supplementing Riffles

Adding LWD

Changes

Before After

Reach 1 (control); Reach 2 (Treatment )

2012 SpawningSteelhead Redds (treatment 7) (control 0)Chinook Redds (treatment 12) (control 1)

Reach 1(treatment ) Reach 2 (Control) DEMCHaMP Digital Elevation Model

Steelhead Spawning 2012

Benefits/Opportunities

HS provides a thermally and hydrologically stable stream-scale system for evaluating restoration treatments that address the “Big 3” limiting factors,not feasible at larger river scales:

Physical habitat restorationNutrient additionRemoval of non-natives (brook trout)

Benefits/Opportunities

HS provides the opportunity to quantify effects of various restoration treatments within and between treatment and control reaches in ways not feasible at larger river scales.

HS serves as a communal stream scale research facility to help researchers collect data to asses ecological functions associated with restoration measures and to validate ecological models.

Project history/Treatment structure

2005: Habitat in HS was determined to be prohibiting natural production; restoration potential identified

2006-2011: Initial and engineered habitat restoration in Reach 1 completed in 2011.

Treatment structure

2012-2014:

Physical and biological monitoring in Reach 1 (treatment) and Reach 2 (control) implemented to evaluate responses to habitat restoration.

1. Do nutrient concentrations appear to substantially limitnatural production?

2. Does the presence of brook trout substantially restrict natural production?

Adaptive ManagementDefine problem

Assess problem

Adjust treatment

Design treatment (solution)

NoExperimentally

Implement treatment

Treatment successful?

Evaluate treatment

Monitor treatment

Yes

Implement treatment as management

action

Treatment structureOption 1 Option 2

2011 Habitat restoration 2011 Habitat restoration

2014 Nutrient addition 2014 Brook trout removal

2016 Brook trout removal

Treatment structureOption 1 Option 2

2011 Habitat restoration 2011 Habitat restoration

2014 Nutrient addition 2014 Brook trout removal

2016 Brook trout removal

Subsequent restoration treatments depend on outcomes of 2012 - 2014 nutrient and brook trout assessments

Consistent physical habitat and biological monitoring occurs annually in both reaches

Biological monitoring

Isotopes

Fish sampling

BMI/Drift sampling

Primary production

Water Chemistry

Habitat monitoring

Bank stability, undercut banks

LWD, pebble counts, pool tail fines

Habitat type (pool, riffle) shading

Stage, discharge, temperature

Summary and ConclusionsMitigating multiple ecological limitations in altered habitats often requires an integrated approach of multiple treatments

Hancock Springs provides a unique and valuable opportunity to study the separate and combined effects of habitat restoration, nutrient addition, and removal of non-natives.

Initial results have been encouraging

We look forward to collaborating with others to collectively contribute to the science of river restoration and increased natural production.

Questions?

Trophic level/Function Biological Metrics Water quality/Nutrients Dissolved oxygen, temperature, alkalinity, TP, SRP, TDP, TN, NO2+NO3, TN:TP,

SIN/TDP Periphyton Algal community composition (% composition by taxonomic order) Primary production Chlorophyll a, Chlorophyll b, Total chlorophyll (a+b) accrual rate Benthic macroinvertebrates

19 individual and aggregated taxa and functional group abundance, biomass, and richness metrics (See Appendix 6 for a list of all metrics)

Secondary production Secondary production estimates (Benke and Huryn 2007) Fish Performance and biological

condition Aggregated and single species abundance, biomass, length, weight, and biological condition (K), growth, survival, diet composition, abundance by habitat type

Annual production Redd counts, carcass counts annual smolt production, egg to emigrant survival, peak outmigration timing, outmigration duration, number of outmigrants

Habitat MetricsHabitat type (pools, riffles)Large woody debrisPebble countsPool tail finesChannel cross sectionBankfull stageStream bank stabilityUndercut banksStream shading