Slide 1

Rob Van Kirk Dept. of Mathematics Humboldt State University Irrigated Eden and the Charmed Goose: A Thematic History of Water and Fisheries Management in the upper Snake River Basin

Slide 2

Fisheries management Water management Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer Nonnative species Hydrologic regime Natural Resource Management Paradigm

Slide 3

Approach Theme: dominant societal view of natural resources Simplify and idealize to elucidate unintended consequences Emphasize story rather than details A new twist on Goose that Laid the Golden Egg problem Recommendations to avoid further consequences in the face of: 1.Loss of native species 2.Suburban/exurban development on irrigated lands

Slide 4

Upper Snake River Basin Henrys Fork Watershed Teton Valley

Slide 5

Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer (ESPA) Boggs et al., In Press, J. American Water Resources Assoc.

Slide 6

ESPA Annual Water Budget: Mean 1958-2007 Based on Johnson et al. 1999, J. American Water Resources Assoc.

Slide 7

Surface Water System Drainage area: 35,800 mi 2 (93,130 km 2 ) Irrigated area: 2.4 M acres (9750 km 2 ) 9 major storage reservoirs; capacity 4 M a-f (5 x 10 9 m 3 )

Slide 8

Basin Annual Water Budget: Mean 1958-2007 Estimates based on USGS, USBR, and IDWR data

Slide 9

1865 1910: (Euro-American) Settlement 1865: Earliest water right claimed 1910: Bureau of Reclamation begins reconstructing Jackson Dam Natural Resource Paradigm: Develop and use Water ManagementFisheries Management Conditions Unallocated water Available land (Semi-)Arid climate Abundant native trout Actions Divert water Build canals Claim water rights Commercial harvest Promote recreational angling opportunities Consequences Reduced streamflow Aquatic habitat decline Decline in native trout populations

Slide 10

1910 WWII: Reclamation Phase I WWII: Reclamation projects deferred until after War ends Natural Resource Paradigm: Conservation sensu T. Roosevelt Water ManagementFisheries Management Conditions [All natural flow allocated] [Declining native trout] Actions Reclamation Act Build storage reservoirs Govt. helps reclaim Eden from the desert* End commercial harvest Build hatcheries Stock nonnative trout Consequences Increased diversion, aquifer recharge/outflow Flow regime shifts from runoff to GW-dominated Increase in catchable fish numbers Further decline in native trout populations [Brackets indicate consequence of previous management actions] *Fiege, M. 1999. Irrigated Eden. University of Washington Press, Seattle.

Slide 11

WWII 1976: Reclamation Phase II 1976: Last big USBR ProjectTeton Dam fails on June 5 Natural Resource Paradigm: Increased use of science/technology Water ManagementFisheries Management Conditions [Available groundwater] Cheap electricity High-lift pumps [New reservoir and spring habitats favor nonnative species] More anglers Actions Finish dams Pump GW, expand irrig. Aquaculture claims 1000 Springs flow Respond to increasing angler demands Stock even more nonnative fish Consequences GW levels and aquifer discharge decline Stocking masks large- scale habitat degradation/alteration

Slide 12

1976 1993: Conservation Natural Resource Paradigm: Modern Conservation/Env. Protection with heavy federal influence Water ManagementFisheries Management Conditions [Water use > supply] [Decreased GW levels] Periods of drought [All habitat degraded] [Nonnatives decline] Decreased $ for stocking Actions Increase efficiency No more GW pumping except single-home use Wild Trout management Habitat restoration Minimum flow concept Consequences Further decline in GW Conflict between GW and SW users Conflict w/ env. groups New constituency for wild trout experience Conflict between anglers Conflict with water users 1993: Henrys Fork Watershed Council formed

Slide 13

1993-2008: Re-Settlement 1993: Dot.com economic boom starts 2008: Economic recession Subdivisions platted in agricultural regions of Henrys Fork Watershed

Slide 14

1993-2008: Re-Settlement Natural Resource Paradigm: Collaboration and local control Water ManagementFisheries Management Conditions [Continued conflict] [More GW decline] [Nonnatives recover] [Natives face extinction] Increased value of fishing/river recreation Actions Conjunctive mgmt. Farmers sell land for re-settlement NGOs gain influence Members are re- settlers Flow/habitat restoration to prevent ESA listings Consequences Killing the goose that laid the golden egg??? Conflict: wild trout versus native trout

Slide 15

Killing the Goose that Laid the Golden Egg: Development vs. Natural Environment Preston, C.R. 2005. Saving the charmed goose: reconciling human demands with inherent limitations in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Yellowstone Science 13(4):5-14.

Slide 16

Irrigated Eden Today

Slide 17

A New Twist on Killing the Goose: Development vs. Irrigated Eden Will replacement of irrigated agriculture with suburbia destroy the resources that the re-settlers value (and need)? Abundant ground-water (recall the single-home exemption!) Lush, verdant, open landscape with lots of water Wetlands, fish, wildlife and other ecosystem services

Slide 18

Subdivisions on lands served by the Henrys Fork/Teton canal system

Slide 19

Measurements of loss in irrigation canals and calculated budget for a single canal company.

Slide 20

Some conclusions Thematic history reveals parallels between water and fisheries mgmt. Loss of native trout due as much to fisheries management as agriculture Increases in irrigation efficiency have reduced GW-associated resources Canal system remains as largest source of aquifer recharge Ecosystem services provided by irrigation-dependent ground water and wetlands are poorly understood and not acknowledged or appreciated Irrigation-dependent systems are not native, but they provide valued resources Loss of irrigated land to development could reduce these resources

Slide 21

Some Recommendations Inventory and understand ecological systems associated with irrigation Expend native species restoration resources only where they are likely to succeed (ironically, below big federal dams where flow regime can be shaped) Acknowledge value of and protect nonnative ecosystems everywhere else Build developments around canal system; keep canals viable! Continue to irrigate in developments: use same surface water for landscaping Restrict ground water to culinary use Keep water rights with canal companies, which issue shares to new owners

Slide 22

Friends of the Teton River Greater Yellowstone Coalition Henrys Fork Foundation National Science Foundation The Nature Conservancy Trout Unlimited U.S. Department of Agriculture U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Major Funders

Slide 23

Selected References Battle, L., R. Van Kirk, W. Schrader. In press. Effectiveness of flow management and rainbow trout harvest on long-term viability of native Yellowstone cutthroat trout in the South Fork Snake River. Wild Trout X Symp. Boggs, K., R. Van Kirk, G. Johnson, J. Fairley, P. Porter. In press. Analytical solutions to the linearized Boussinesq equation for assessing the effects of recharge on aquifer discharge. J. Amer. Water Resources Assoc. Fausch, K., Y. Taniguchi, S. Nakano, G.D. Grossman, and C.R. Townsend. 2001. Flood disturbance regimes influence rainbow trout invasion success among five holarctic regions. Ecol. Appl. 11:1438-1455. Fiege, M. 1999. Irrigated Eden. Univ. of Washington Press, Seattle. Fredericks, J., B. Schrader, and R. Van Kirk. 2004. A collaborative, multi-faceted approach to Yellowstone cutthroat trout conservation in the South Fork of the Snake River, Idaho. Proceedings of the Wild Trout VIII Symp.:158-166. Johnson, G., W. Sullivan, D. Cosgrove, and R. Schmidt. 1999. Recharge of the Snake River Plain Aquifer: Transitioning from incidental to managed. J. Amer. Water Resources Assoc. 35:123-131. Koenig, M. 2006. Habitat and biotic factors influencing distribution and recruitment of juvenile cutthroat trout in the Teton River, Idaho. MS Thesis, Utah State Univ. Loomis, J. 2006. Use of survey data to estimate economic value and regional economic effects of fishery improvements, N. Am. J. Fish. Manage. 26:301307. Mitro, M., A. Zale, B. Rich. 2003. The relation between age-0 rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) abundance and winter discharge in a regulated river. Can. J. Fish. Aq. Sci. 60:135-139. Peck, D., and J. Lovvorn. 2001. The importance of flood irrigation in water supply to wetlands in the Laramie Basin, Wyoming, USA. Wetlands 21:370-378. Preston, C. Saving the charmed goose: reconciling human demands with inherent limitations in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Yellowstone Sci. 13(4):5-14. Van Kirk, R., L. Battle, W. Schrader. 2010. Modelling competition and hybridization between native cutthroat trout and nonnative rainbow and hybrid trout. J. Biol. Dynamics 4:158-175. Van Kirk, R. W. and L. Benjamin. 2001. Status and conservation of salmonids in relation to hydrologic integrity in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Western N. Am. Nat. 61:359-374. Van Kirk, R., and M. Gamblin. 2000. History of fisheries management in the upper Henrys Fork watershed. Intermountain J. Sci. 6:263-284. Van Kirk, R., and C. Griffin. 1997. Building a collaborative process for restoration: Henrys Fork of Idaho and Wyoming. Pp. 253-276 in J. E. Williams et al., editors. Watershed Restoration: Principles and Practices. Am. Fish. Soc.