The South Fork Trinity River and its watershed has been the focus of considerable past research and monitoring. Yet, in spite of the relatively large amount of information that has been collected, much of which as been summarized in this report, a great deal about the river's physical and ecological processes still remains unknown. Only through redoubled efforts, and additional applied research and long-term monitoring of conditions and processes, will we begin to understand the complex changes and causes-and-effects that continue to occur in the South Fork Trinity River basin.
The options available for monitoring hillslope, stream channel and biologic conditions in the watershed are numerous (MacDonald et al., 1991). Some study and monitoring methods described below represent a continuation of current, accepted sampling regimes. Other unused techniques have not been employed to the degree that is needed to understand and evaluate watershed and fish population changes. Still other, newer techniques are listed and described as possible candidates for future inclusion in the restoration program.
Below are listed specific topics where research and monitoring should be continued or expanded to verify watershed and biological trends. These areas of investigation include channel and riparian changes, water quality and quantity conditions, fire effects, stream habitat quality and the need for a common method to store and exchange resource data and findings.
Recommendations.
I. Channel Changes and Channel Characteristics
A. A network of long-term, repeatable channel cross sectional and longitudinal profile surveys should be established within Key Watersheds and sub-basins, and along several sections of Hayfork Creek and the main stem of the South Fork Trinity River, to document bed elevation and channel changes through time. Sites should be re-surveyed annually, indefinitely. The length of each monitoring reach should average at least 25 channel widths.
B. Within each surveyed reach, several permanent sites should be established where both channel and bed material characteristics are quantified. These include particle size distribution of surface versus sub-surface sediments, annual depth of scour and residual pool depth and volume. Channel bed and bank stability ratings, as well as riparian cover, should also be quantified.
II. Long Term Analysis of South Fork Watershed and Riparian Conditions
A. Historical aerial and ground photography should be analyzed to determine changes in stream channel dimensions, the relative role of various sub-watersheds in producing sediment through time and to quantify the quality and extent of riparian conditions and canopy closure through time. This data will provide clues as to the desired future channel conditions, and assist in defining measurable objectives for the watershed and stream channel recovery program.
B. Watersheds throughout the South Fork basin should be flown to obtain aerial photography of existing watershed conditions at least every five years, or following storms with return intervals greater than 10 years. Once the photo images are obtained, funding for qualified professionals must be available for analysis of the images. The analysis will permit the systematic quantification and documentation of channel, riparian, and hillslope changes which have occurred during the interval.
III. Water Quality and Quantity Information Needs
A. Permanent year around water quality and summer low flow monitoring stations should be established at several selected locations throughout the South Fork Trinity River basin, to track changes through time, and to provide a measure of restoration program successes or failures. Some of these sites could be located at the cross-section monitoring reaches discussed above.
B. Water quality and flow monitoring sites should be established in Hayfork Creek both above and below Hayfork Valley, and at selected tributary locations. Year around baseline data should include: streamflow, temperature, dissolved oxygen and conductivity. Flow meters should also be established on major diversions to quantify current extraction rates, as well as quantify gains in water yield to stream channels resulting from more efficient uses of water. This will permit isolating the role of land use activities in the valley on water quantity and quality.
C. Develop and implement a sampling program in the main stem of Hayfork Creek to identify the magnitude, seasonal variablity and location of potential water quality problems. Water samples will receive a full spectral analysis of water chemistry, biology and organics. Samples should be collected periodcally, two to three times during summer low flow conditions.
D. Funding for professional staff to analyze the data in a timely manner is essential to fisheries recovery.
IV. Fire Effects Monitoring Program
Monitoring sites established by Shasta-Trinity National Forest following the 1987-88 fires have become a short, but important data base in selected areas of the South Fork watershed.
A. We recommend that the USFS continue to fund the established monitoring program over the next ten years. Isolated, potential future effects associated with the fires, as opposed to other lingering or additional land use impacts, are very important to distinguish in order to chart fisheries and stream recovery in the watershed. It is especially important to re-measure the sites following better than average water years, such as experienced in 1992-93.
V. Monitor Aquatic Insects and Amphibians
A. The community structure of aquatic insects should be sampled to depict the health of the streams using methods similar to those described in Lauck et al. (1990). A comprehensive inventory of aquatic invertebrates, principally insects, will provide an excellent tool for identifying both point source and non-point source pollution problems in the South Fork Trinity River basin. Undisturbed or lightly disturbed watersheds, such as Miner Creek and Jims Creek, may be used as control streams to help define natural community structure and diversity.
B. Amphibian surveys of indicator species should be included in long term monitoring strategies. These indicator species might be especially useful for assessing the health of Key Watersheds.
VI. Sharing Information Through a Geographic Information System (GIS)
The system currently being explored for use in the Klamath River basin would allow access to information by all agency personnel and interested public in a personal computer (PC) environment using DBase IV, Paradox and PC-ARCView.
A. The South Fork Trinity Restoration Program should encourage all agencies involved in the basin to begin sharing of all data through a GIS, and to standardize collection of information to insure compatability.
A comprehensive fisheries restoration program that restores watershed health and water quality in the South Fork Trinity River basin will require a significant amount of resources. A South Fork Trinity River Program might win some support from the Trinity River Restoration Program if it is re-authorized, but such support will only be a fraction of what is needed. Successful models from other locations in northern California suggest that obtaining the resources may be possible if community cooperation is achieved (Plumas Corp., 1988; Mendocino RCD, 1983). This plan encourages community members to view fisheries restoration as an additional mechanism to leverage resources to aid local economic development.
Citizens of the basin have an opportunity to join in a "state-of-the-art" plan to restore biodiversity that could be a major source of employment. Because of the widespread support both at the Federal and State level to find locally based solutions to the biodiversity problem (Wheeler, 1991), proposals for funding various aspects of the restoration program should be favorably considered. Actions taken to restore salmon and steelhead will help end the critical water shortage and abate water quality problems in Hayfork Valley. Erosion control and prevention will not only prevent loss of fish habitat, but also conserve valuable forest soils, insuring future silvicultural productivity. Cooperative strategies involving volunteers can also help achieve restoration objectives.
Not only would salmon and steelhead restoration in the South Fork Trinity River basin be greatly aided by increased water quantity and quality in Hayfork Creek, but improved efficiency of water use is also needed to help supply water for other beneficial uses (Trinity Co., 1988). The Resources Guide to California Agricultural Irrigation Services (QEI, 1989) lists many agencies or entities that provide funding or technical assistance to help increase efficiency of water use. The USDA Soil Conservation Service (SCS) provides technical assistance in the planning, design, installation, and operation of agricultural irrigation systems at no charge. The USDA Farmers Home Administration (FHA) gives low interest 40 year loans, at the Government's cost of borrowing, for developing irrigation systems.
The USDA Agricultural Stabilization Conservation Service (ASCS) administers the ongoing Agricultural Conservation Program (ACP) to bring matching funds to solve soil, water, and related pollution problems with enduring conservation practices. Recipients of program funds must be agricultural producers and are eligible for a 50-75% cost share. Funding is available for irrigation water conservation including purchase and installation of pipelines, return systems, some land leveling and other water saving measures. Installation or improvement of water impoundment reservoirs that help control erosion are also funded under the ACP. The ASCS relies on the technical support services of the SCS for project designs.
Technical assistance and training for agricultural producers to evaluate their irrigation practices is available from a variety of sources. The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) Office of Water Conservation (OWC) has a Mobile Irrigation Management Laboratory to help growers evaluate irrigation practices on site. The CDWR California Irrigation Management Information System (CISMIS) can measure evapotranspiration of crops and pasture so that farmers and ranchers can fine tune their water application according to soil types and other factors. The University of California Poly Technic Institute at San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly) offers classes and has recently developed a computer program in cooperation with CDWR/OWC to help groups of farmers analyze irrigation issues such as scheduling, uniformity, efficiency, and drainage problems
. Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) offers technical advice to its customers on irrigation management to advance energy conservation, including testing pump efficiency. The U.C. Cooperative Extension also offers a variety of aid to growers with all aspects of their irrigation practices including energy issues, system design, scheduling and management. Since the U.C. Cooperative Extension has recently reduced staffing for the Hayfork Field Office, this latter source of expertise may no longer be available.
There are natural economic incentives for farmers and domestic users to increase efficiency of water use. Anyone using an electrical pump to draw water from a stream can save money on utility bills if water conservation measures are implemented. If an old irrigation ditch needs constant tending, it may make good business sense to replace it with a piped diversion, particularly if financing and cost sharing are attractive. Several ranchers in the Hayfork basin have already been participating in the ACP program to improve the productivity of their land and to conserve water.
If the South Fork community becomes involved in a fisheries restoration program through the Trinity County Resource Conservation District (RCD), it may offset the loss of the UC Coop Advisor by adding SCS staff (see section on Recent Developments, below). This strategy is patterned after the successful Tomki Creek Watershed Restoration Plan (Mendocino RCD, 1983) on the Eel River which provided additional staff to support restoration through the Mendocino County Resource Conservation District.
SCS staff might help the community explore diversifying agricultural activities to include crops that have high value but low water use. It is possible that increased efficiency of water transportation and application could actually allow for increased agricultural productivity and increased stream flows. Computer analysis of water application scheduling by Cal Poly and DWR might help coordinate withdrawals and water use in Hayfork Valley and prevent streams from being de-watered. In this way, water saved through increased efficiency of use will benefit fisheries.
A bill has been introduced in Congress (H.R.498) that would provide a 75% tax credit for implementation of water conservation measures. If this bill passes, it would offer still another mechanism to fund water conservation in the South Fork Trinity River basin.
Problems have been identified in Hayfork Creek and its tributaries related to lack of riparian vegetation. Loss of riparian vegetation can cause a stream to erode its bed, leading to subsequent streambank erosion problems. In some cases, stream down cutting can cause a drop in the local water table, which leads to reduced range land productivity on lands adjacent the stream.
Solutions to these problems are both technically simple and of low cost, and can often be implemented using volunteer labor. Restoring streamside trees can prevent sedimentation of streambeds and provide shade to keep stream temperatures cool. Trees in the riparian zone prevent loss of valuable agricultural land during flood events, so they also help farmers and ranchers. Healthy riparian zones can also feed adjacent pastures through capillary action of tree root systems and help support a healthier forage base.
Numerous funding mechanisms and cooperative strategies for restoring riparian zones are available. The California Department of Fish and Game has money for fencing of riparian zones to exclude livestock. In recent years, the State Water Resources Control Board has been administering grants from the EPA to abate non-point source pollution (319H funding) that can include riparian restoration. The ASCS funds revegetation of stream side zones under the ACP (70% cost-sharing) to prevent soil loss on these extremely erodible sites. As places where cattle have access to streams are reduced, ACP funds can also be used for building stock watering ponds away from streams and riparian zones.
Volunteer labor, as well as the CCC, can make significant contributions to riparian restoration projects on publicly managed lands, as well as private lands. As part of the Klamath River Restoration Program, volunteers planted 10,000 trees along the Shasta River on the A.C. Marion Ranch. The project was carried out in cooperation with Trout Unlimited (TU), a conservation oriented angler organization which provided project participants with a $1 million liability insurance policy and indemnified the land owner. Students from local elementary or high schools or 4H programs can also plants trees or help install fencing.
The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) may also become involved in major projects to restore the riparian canopy in forested watersheds. These efforts may be funded through special appropriations in Congress (see Watershed Restoration Section below). Riparian restoration on private forest lands and on Hayfork Creek and its tributaries qualifies for funding under ACP and the Forest Improvement Program through the ASCS.
The decrease in silvicultural productivity on South Fork Mountain due to soil compaction and other factors was documented by California Department of Water Resources (1979; 1982). Funds from the California Forest Improvement Program (CFIP), administered by the California Department of Forestry (CDF) and the Federal Forest Improvement Program (FIP) and Agricultural Conservation Programs (ACP), administered by USDA ASCS, could be used to help restore soil stability and silvicultural productivity on South Fork Mountain and other private lands within the basin. Projects that are eligible include tree planting, thinning or conifer release, and erosion control. CFIP and ACP funding sources also allow payment for professional services needed to prepare applications. These latter two sources also allow fisheries or wildlife habitat improvement projects to be funded under cost- sharing agreements.
Only ACP allows participation of large land holders, including forest products companies. CFIP limits candidates to those holding 5,000 acres, or less, while FIP excludes timber companies and usually limits cost sharing to land owners with 1,000 acres or less. CFIP supplies an 75% cost share with no maximum cost for projects and allows a match to include labor, materials, or cash. CFIP monies are currently low due to State fiscal problems. The FIP also provides 75% of project costs, with a maximum benefit to the land holder of $10,000 annually. Planning is supposed to be supplied by State or Federal foresters, but cost sharing by the land owner can include materials and labor similar to CFIP. The ACP has a maximum cost contribution of $3,500 per year.
A suggested target for riparian restoration should be South Fork Mountain tributaries. Riparian restoration, if successful, would decrease tributary temperatures and prevent further erosion. CDF should encourage and support studies to document current channel conditions and to assess the stability of streambanks in tributaries flowing off South Fork Mountain, and to evaluate the feasibility of this restoration strategy. ASCS gives a high priority to funding for replanting trees in erodible areas, so funding for inner gorge stabilization of streams on private lands would be favorably considered for cost sharing. Inner gorge failures are frequently triggered by timber harvesting or logging road failure. Consequently, up-slope erosion control is also a component of riparian protection and restoration. Preventing mass wasting certainly helps to improve future timber yields. Chapter 17 continued