KLAMATH RIVER: 'Granddaddy of fish projects'; Coastal conservancy sees big role in possible Klamath dam effort

ARCATA -- Members of the California Coastal Conservancy envision the agency playing a key role in decommissioning and removing dams on the Klamath River, an effort whose time they said has come.

”This is the granddaddy of all fisheries restoration projects,” said conservancy Chairman Doug Bosco at a meeting here.

Bosco also voiced hope that dam owner PacifiCorp -- now owned by billionaire Warren Buffett's MidAmerican Energy Holdings -- would agree to an arrangement that would make whole its customers and others that see some benefit from the four dams in question. Bosco said that if Buffet can give 85 percent of his estate to charity, as he's recently done, the renowned investor should be willing to play a part in restoring the river's struggling salmon runs.

The conservancy also heard an update on studies now under way to study sediment trapped behind Iron Gate and Copco I dams.

Conservancy project manager Michael Bowen passed around a container of muck from Iron Gate Reservoir, material that's being tested for toxins like mercury and cyanide to determine if it's safe to remove the dams.

”I can't vouch for its contents,” Bowen said about the fine, gooey mud. “I hope it's clean.”

There may be as much as 4.8 million cubic yards of sediment trapped behind Iron Gate Dam, and more than 10.3 million cubic yards behind Copco I, the first dam built on the river in 1917. Bowen said there does not seem to have been much historic mining activity in the vicinity of the dams, which could mean that lab tests only find contaminants from upstream agricultural practices.

The dams block salmon at Iron Gate Dam -- 109 miles up the river -- from reaching some 300 miles of spawning grounds. Today, many of those areas would need to be restored to be of value to salmon, but experts estimate that under restored conditions, fish populations could average 149,000 to 438,000. This year, fewer than 30,000 salmon are expected to run upstream, a number too low to allow commercial fishing along 700 miles of the West Coast this year, and which limits tribal and sport fishing.

The PacifiCorp project produces only about 150 megawatts of electricity, and as part of applying for a new 50-year license, may have to provide passage above the dams for salmon. That may cost up to $200 million under demands by the U.S. Interior Department. The company is appealing those demands, proposing instead to trap fish and truck them over the dams.

Settlement negotiations are also ongoing, parallel to the relicensing project.

Conservancy Executive Officer Sam Schuchat said he doesn't believe the dams themselves have a high value, though their removal could be expensive. Estimates have reached about $150 million for such a project. #

State aid proposed for salmon fishermen; After federal snub, governor backs $35 million package

(06-30) 04:00 PDT Sacramento -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced a $35 million state aid package for salmon fishermen on Thursday, while blasting the federal government for not helping the beleaguered West Coast fishing industry.

Schwarzenegger and two state senators said they will push for urgency legislation authorizing aid for commercial fishermen and other businesses affected by the near-closure of the commercial salmon fishing season by federal officials.

"The federal government's decision to severely limit salmon fishing along the West Coast has had a terrible effect -- it's had a devastating impact on the fishermen, the community and their families," Schwarzenegger said. "It will literally wipe them out if they don't get help."

Representatives from California and Oregon have been pleading with the federal government to declare a federal disaster and help the coastal fishing industry.

"What is really outrageous is that the federal government made this decision and recognizes the devastating impact but will not issue a disaster declaration until next spring," Schwarzenegger said.

The aid package will include $5 million in cash assistance, $20 million in no-interest loans and up to $10 million in small-business loans. Schwarzenegger also extended the state's declared disaster area to other three counties, including San Luis Obispo.

Congressional representatives from California and Oregon slowed work in the House of Representatives on Wednesday until Republican leaders agreed to $2 million in economic relief -- far short of the $81 million that had been sought.

Zeke Grader, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations, said the state aid will be "extremely helpful."

"This gives a clear message to the federal government that this is a serious problem, and it should embarrass the federal government into doing what it should have done a year ago," he said.

Schwarzenegger has made several requests of the Bush administration that have not been fulfilled, including a call for a federal disaster declaration for the state's aging levee system and demands that the federal government reimburse the state for the cost of incarcerating illegal immigrants.

"This is almost like a tale of two Republicans -- one competent and one incompetent," Grader said.

Because of low numbers of chinook salmon from the Klamath River, the Pacific Fishery Management Council, a federal agency, called for strict reductions in the commercial catch this year.

Fishermen's groups argue that the poor condition of Klamath salmon is the result of years of federal water mismanagement, including diverting the flow of water from the river to farmers. In 2002, more than 33,000 salmon died because of low water, high temperatures and disease. Large die-offs of young salmon have followed in recent years.

Grader and other fishermen said the next step is for the state to take the lead in fixing the Klamath River once and for all.

"Now we need to see restoration activity on the Klamath so we don't have to see this aid be necessary again," said Duncan MacLean, a commercial fisherman and the California salmon troll adviser to the fishery management council.

State Sens. Wes Chesbro, D-Arcata (Humboldt County), and Sam Aanestad, R-Grass Valley (Nevada County), will co-sponsor the emergency legislation authorizing the funds. But because lawmakers adjourned Thursday a week early for their summer vacation, the measure will be considered in August.

"We have a comprehensive bipartisan plan to protect the lives of people on the coast," Chesbro said. "The administration in Washington single-handedly created this disaster, but now it's up to the state to help its people."

Aanestad was also critical of the federal government.

"This is just another case where the federal government is causing a problem and not solving the problem," he said. "Once again, the state has to bail out what should be a federal responsibility." #

SALMON ISSUES:
Editorial: Trolling for assistance; Salmon fishermen deserve some help

Sacramento Bee – 6/30/06

By now, it's clear that thousands of salmon fishermen and owners of related businesses face economic ruin this year in California and Oregon.

To protect runs of fish in the Klamath River, commercial fishermen are limited to taking 75 salmon per week from the ocean in a shortened season. It's not enough to pay for fuel, even with salmon prices topping $20 per pound in some markets.

Fishing advocates are seeking $81 million in disaster aid from the Bush administration for affected communities. The Commerce Department is balking, saying it can't release such aid until the reduced season ends and the economic impact is calculated.

Rebuffed, the House passed an amendment Wednesday that specifies $2 million for salmon relief. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced yesterday he would seek $35 million in state funds to help the industry.

It's hard to know why the Bush administration is balking. Some have suggested the White House doesn't want to appear to be accepting responsibility for a Klamath fish kill three years ago that led to the current salmon collapse. All we know is the White House moved quickly to help fishing communities on the Gulf Coast devastated by Hurricane Katrina. It should do the same for suffering salmon ports on the West Coast.

At the same time, environmentalists and fishing advocates need to stop blaming the Bush administration for all the woes of the Klamath River. As the National Academy of Sciences pointed out a few years ago, Klamath salmon are dying a death of many, many cuts -- including logging, erosion and hydroelectric dams. Water diversions from the federal irrigation project in Oregon are part of the problem, but not the only one.

Disaster aid, of course, is just a Band-Aid for fishermen. What they really want is a Klamath River that supports healthy stocks of salmon. As they fight over aid payments for fishermen, California, Oregon and the White House need to keep their focus on the bigger challenge ahead. #

Tribe wins greater say on Klamath River

Federal agencies agreed Wednesday to give the Yurok Tribe a larger role in managing the Klamath River, where water diversions and habitat loss have depleted salmon runs.

The tribe will have a seat at the table with federal agencies that manage the river, including the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Fish and Wildlife Service. Previously, it was a bystander.

"We believe the tribe's role and input is going to be more valuable than ever to help restore a healthy Klamath River and stabilize basin communities," said Troy Fletcher, a tribal member who works on resources issues.

The Yurok Tribe owns 13,000 acres on the Klamath River below the town of Weitchpec in Humboldt County.

Salmon are a key food and cultural resource for tribes. Declining salmon threaten tribal health and have also triggered fishing limits that threaten coastal towns in California and Oregon.

"It is a new beginning in our relationship, one that will greatly benefit both the tribe and the important resources of the Klamath basin," said Kirk Rodgers, Bureau of Reclamation regional director. #

FISH FIGHT TURNS BITTER; Demanding $81 million in aid for struggling salmon fishermen, angry West Coast lawmakers stage protest in House -- and get $2 million; FEDERAL LIMITS: Restrictions to protect Klamath stocks are squeezing the industry

(06-29) 04:00 PDT Washington -- Lawmakers from California and Oregon, angry at the Bush administration for refusing to aid struggling Pacific Coast salmon fishermen, brought the House to a standstill Wednesday -- ultimately forcing GOP leaders to offer a small amount of economic relief.

The issue has simmered for months as West Coast fishermen have struggled to cope with the nearly complete closure of the salmon season by federal officials, who are trying to protect critically low salmon stocks in the Klamath River.

Lawmakers have been urging Congress to pass an $81 million relief package for fishermen and fishing-related businesses along the California and Oregon coasts to address the economic fallout of closing the fishery.

"The administration is refusing to even look at it," Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, said on the House floor. "The Republican Congress is ignoring the fact that working families are being displaced, being put out of jobs and going bankrupt."

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski have declared state disasters for coastal fishing communities and are urging Congress to offer economic relief. But the White House so far has refused to declare a disaster, and until Wednesday House GOP leaders opposed economic assistance.

"It's just unfair that this would happen, especially when this is a disaster that was created by the Bush administration," said Rep. George Miller, D-Martinez. "They ought to take responsibility; they ought to be held accountable for their actions, and they ought to provide relief for these hard-working families."

In protest, Miller and other lawmakers used procedural moves to slow the House to a crawl. All morning, lawmakers labored through a series of 15-minute "motion to rise" votes that delayed action on a spending bill for the Commerce, Justice and State departments.

West Coast lawmakers won a small victory and ended their protest when the House passed an amendment specifying $2 million for disaster relief for salmon fishermen. The money is seen as a placeholder so California and Oregon senators can seek to add more disaster aid to the bill later in a conference committee.

The troubles for West Coast fishermen stem from the poor state of wild salmon stocks in the Klamath River near the California-Oregon border.

Chinook -- or king -- salmon are bountiful this year off the Pacific Coast, but most of them are from the Sacramento River. Salmon from the Klamath River are at perilously low numbers, and because Klamath and Sacramento fish intermingle in the ocean, the Pacific Fishery Management Council, a federal agency, called for strict reductions in the commercial catch to protect the threatened Klamath stocks.

Fishermen's groups argue that the poor condition of the Klamath salmon is the result of years of controversial federal water management decisions.

Much of the river's flow is diverted to farmers, and four hydropower dams along the river warm the water, killing salmon through disease or parasites. In 2002, more than 33,000 salmon died because of low water, high temperatures and disease, and large die-offs of young salmon have followed in recent years.

The restrictions by federal authorities sharply limited the season, banned fishing in some areas and allowed commercial fishermen to catch only 75 fish each week, which fishermen's groups and state officials say is economically unfeasible.

"No one can afford to go far out and catch 75 fish, so no one is fishing," said Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore.

Zeke Grader, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations, said fishermen in California coastal communities such as Bodega Bay, Half Moon Bay, Fort Bragg and Eureka have seen their incomes plummet as the harvest of salmon has dropped by as much 90 percent.

"The younger people, who still have boat payments, they aren't going to make it," Grader said. "It's pretty bleak."

The issue came to a boil Tuesday at a meeting on Capitol Hill between lawmakers and officials at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which oversees fisheries, including the agency's administrator, Conrad Lautenbacher. According to Congressman Thompson, agency officials said they wouldn't be able to declare a disaster until next year after the salmon season had ended.

Lawmakers were irate. DeFazio asked why the agency didn't just cancel the salmon season so fishing communities could qualify for disaster relief.

A spokesman for the agency said lawmakers were mistaken and that officials could declare a fishery disaster at any time based on data they receive from the state about salmon populations. NOAA spokesman Jordan St. John added that the agency was trying to allow limited fishing to keep the industry alive.

"The original discussion was to close the entire fishery," St. John said. "At the request of fishermen's groups and some of the very same members of Congress, they worked out some way to keep the season partially open so there could be fishing."

But Thompson said the agency's plan has been a disaster for fishermen, who have invested thousands of dollars in fishing permits, fuel, bait and payments on their boats. Federal officials are opening areas off the coast for two weeks at a time, but there's no guarantee there will be fish in those areas during those windows, he said.

"I think the fishing industry is going to evaporate," Thompson said. "It's not just the people who are going out fishing. This has an impact on the whole community."

Grader said he hopes for a technological solution: Fishermen are starting to use new technologies that can distinguish between the salmon from the Sacramento River and those from the depleted Klamath River.

"We've been trying to use modern technology to do a better job," he said. "But we've gotten no help from the agencies. There's no leadership."

By the numbers
80 million
Amount, in dollars, fishermen expect to lose this season

100 million
Average year's dollar value of the commercial salmon fishery in California

2 million
Amount, in dollars, of aid approved by the House of Representatives

29,000
Number of spawning salmon expected to return to Klamath River this year

637,000
Number of spawning salmon expected this year in the Sacramento River system

Source: Pacific Coast Federation of Fisherman's Associations #

$2 million netted for fishermen

EUREKA -- Congressman Mike Thompson and other West Coast representatives would not take no for an answer this week when it came to securing emergency aid for area fishermen.

The group was told by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration on Tuesday that no money and no disaster declaration would be forthcoming, at least until next February, to help fishermen deal with a severely curtailed commercial salmon season.

Lawmakers originally asked for $81 million, but settled for $2 million after a strange legislative display in which the lawmakers used procedural votes to force action on an amendment Wednesday.

”What we decided to do was pull out all the plugs,” said Thompson, D-St. Helena.

The $2 million may sound like little compared to the original amount requested, but it gets the foot in the door, said Thompson's press secretary, Matt Gerien, and allows for the U.S. Senate to provide even more money down the legislative line.

The $2 million comes from the U.S. Commerce Department's administrative funds and goes into NOAA's general fund to help with fishermen.

Thompson's measure passed on voice vote as an amendment to an annual spending bill funding the departments of Justice, Commerce and State. The underlying bill was expected to pass this week.

Eureka fisherman David Bitts said Thompson and his staff have been working hard on this issue.

”His persistence looks like it may pay off,” Bitts said. “If it happens, it's going to happen in spite of NOAA fisheries and not because of them -- this not-till-February thing is basically thumbing their nose at fishermen.”

First District Supervisor Jimmy Smith also credited Thompson and his staff, as well as other West Coast lawmakers.

”This is good work,” Smith said.

Thompson downplayed the victory Wednesday and said the work would only be done when the fishermen get the aid they need and the Bush administration takes responsibility for the problems it created in the Klamath Basin.

Thompson said he met with Sen. Dianne Feinstein on Wednesday, and that she committed to supporting the funding on the Senate side, and to finding even more money.

Thompson said the difficulty has been exacerbated by the fact that only a few congressional districts are affected by this, and that Republicans are reluctant to support help for the fishermen because it “would be an admission that the Bush water policy caused this problem.”

So it came time to take drastic action, he said.

”We created some ... civil disobedience,” Thompson said. #

Mattole River salmon restoration efforts seeing record returns
Eureka Reporter – 6/28/06

A tour Friday of the Mattole River watershed near Petrolia highlighted the successes, as well as ongoing challenges, of the bevy of agencies working to restore critical fish habitat and the vital salmon runs in the damaged watershed.

Elected officials representing Eureka, Arcata and state legislative offices, as well as natural resource managers, conservationists and commercial fisheries experts attended the tour led by local experts, who explained the history of the region’s innovative, community-based efforts to restore and protect the watershed that was once home to thriving salmon and steelhead populations.

With no real reference point by which to gauge healthy population numbers, conservationists are optimistically announcing that last year’s spawning run of Chinook salmon in the Mattole river was probably the best salmon return seen in 25 years, which is due in part to restoration efforts.

Participants in the all-day tour visited a downstream migrant trap, a fish-rearing facility, riverside habitat improvement projects and the Mattole River estuary; the tour was presented by the Institute for Fisheries Resources, Americorps Watershed Stewards Project, the Mattole Salmon Group and the Mattole Restoration Council.

Mattole Salmon Group volunteer David Simpson explained to guests the volunteers’ restoration efforts on the 64-mile Mattole River watershed, which lies in one of the most seismically active and geologically unstable regions.

With its considerable rainfall in the winter, the area is one of the more erosion-prone areas in the world.

Simpson described the Mattole Restoration Project as the longest lasting and probably the most successful watershed-wide citizen-run program for the restoration of an entire natural system in North America.

“By 1975, it became apparent that the once great king and coho salmon runs in this watershed were in rapid decline,” Simpson said.

Stepping in to correct the problem, the Mattole Salmon Group, Simpson said, conducts “emergency operations” seeking not only to restore a few pockets of salmon, but to achieve the full recovery of abundance.

Although there has been disagreement about why the runs have declined, Simpson said biologists generally agree that more than 25 years of intense timber harvesting and road-building activity, as well as two back-to-back 100-year storms, are to blame for the massively altered watershed that has seen huge amounts of sediment accumulated in the river.

“We cannot restore everything at once,” Simpson said. “All we can do is give the salmon a fighting edge — as it were — while the system responds to a different management regime and a long healing process, which nature is good at, given half a chance.”

Although the lower river and the estuary still have significant problems with high water temperatures and other factors, Simpson said the group has seen recovery in the Mattole’s tributaries and the main river is beginning to clear itself up.

At the site of a fish-trapping device on the river, four miles from its opening to the ocean, Mattole Salmon Group member Reed Bryson explained to the tour participants the seasonal migrant trapping, which has been in operation April through July since 1996 to track and monitor juveniles that are migrating out of the watershed.

“With this trap, we are collecting information on the health of individual Chinook, by their size and presence of any disease characteristics and also monitoring the health of the overall run by determining the number of fish that are coming down throughout the season and developing an estimate of (the total number of fish leaving the river into the ocean).”

In light of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s recent disaster declaration for the 2006 salmon fishing season, government officials are acknowledging that it has become impossible to ignore the critical role for restoration to maintain healthy and abundant salmon populations.

Connie Stewart, an aide to 1st District Assemblymember Patty Berg, who attended Friday’s tour, called the Mattole project the model for salmon restoration efforts in the country.

Berg has been on the front line locally in the fight for securing disaster aid for fishermen affected by the recent decline in salmon runs in the Klamath River watershed and has also called for more restoration funding.

“The governor has offered loans to fishermen, but we also want to get those loans extended,” Stewart said. “The loans were only offered in 10 counties — Trinity County wasn’t included and San Luis Obispo wasn’t included.” #

Thompson introduces amendment for fishing assistance; NOAA says no aid until February; governor joins call for relief

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- North Coast Congressman Mike Thompson late Tuesday introduced an amendment to an appropriations bill to try to obtain assistance for coastal salmon fishermen.

The congressman's action came after he and other members of Congress met with officials of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

”A group of us met with NOAA fisheries today and they told us they aren't going to do anything for us,” Thompson said Tuesday in a telephone interview.

Thompson said NOAA told the congressional delegation there would be no assistance until February.

”We are going to try to get an amendment passed for $81 million needed for disaster relief” in the Commerce Appropriations bill, Thompson said. He added, however, “We don't think in our wildest dreams that it will pass.”

The attempt, he said, is to “tell our story that this administration is ignoring us up and down the coast.”

Thompson also referred to a letter from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez, which Thompson said is “the best letter out of his office about anything.”

In his letter, Schwarzenegger said: “I cannot understand why another day needs to pass without a declaration of disaster for California's salmon fishing season. Fishermen who rely on a full season to pay the bills have been restricted to approximately 20 percent of their normal season. It is within your authority to declare a disaster. I urge your immediate action to provide the relief necessary to fishermen, business owners and fishing-dependent communities. Without your assistance, those who rely on commercial salmon fishing may lose their boats, permanently shut their doors or be forced out of their livelihoods.”

Last week, NOAA spokesman Jordan St. John said the fact that there is limited fishing allowed this year makes it difficult to determine whether there is a real, not just projected, effect on the industry, which he claimed is a requirement under the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Act. Only then can the U.S. secretary of commerce make a declaration, he said, adding that such a determination is in progress.

Schwarzenegger's letter, dated Monday, follows an earlier push for a disaster declaration by him and the governor of Oregon. #

Delay in salmon fisheries aid prompts anger

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration said in a heated meeting with West Coast House members Tuesday that there will be no economic aid until at least February for salmon fishermen idled because of the collapsing Klamath River fishery.

"This is NOAA saying to the fishermen of California and Oregon: Drop dead," snapped Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, after the closed meeting with Conrad Lautenbacher, head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The virtual closure of the West Coast salmon season is affecting fishermen from Monterey to Portland.

"This has hurt communities just as seriously as Hurricane Katrina," said Rep. Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara. "We have fishermen in San Luis Obispo suffering, not being able to make their boat payments, not being able to continue their family businesses. Our communities need help, and they need it now."

Thompson and Capps were among a half-dozen House members appealing directly to Lautenbacher and the Commerce Department for $81 million in disaster aid for the fishermen and dependent communities. The meeting followed a letter from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the Bush administration Monday expressing deep frustration over the delay.

"I am at a loss as to what further information you need so that our fishing-dependent communities can become eligible to receive disaster assistance," the governor said.

The House members said they were told no disaster declaration would be coming until at least February, after the closure of the season and enough time for the administration to calculate actual damages.

Lautenbacher declined to confirm that, saying the agency was "still working with the congressional delegation."

But that's not what the angry House members said.

"We have fallen into a bureaucratic black hole," sighed Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore.

The Commerce Department announced in May that it was slashing the commercial salmon season by 80 percent because of poor returns of fish to the Klamath River, where a huge die-off three years ago was blamed on Bush administration policies that favored farm irrigation over downstream water quality.

Despite a regional office approving a disaster declaration, top officials in Washington have held up a final decision. Many believe that their decision is influenced at least in part by the fact that a disaster declaration would implicate the administration's controversial water policy.

According to a Congressional Research Service memo to Thompson, there are no formal established procedures for fishery disaster declarations and the time for making them varies dramatically. For example, it took less than a week to issue such a declaration for fishermen affected by Hurricane Katrina.

Thompson said he and fellow lawmakers would try to add $81 million in disaster aid to a 2007 spending bill for the Commerce Department this week, but that effort is likely to be challenged in the Republican-led chamber. #

WATERSHEDS CELEBRATED: River restoration projects celebrated

On Friday, the Mendocino County Resource Conservation District (MCRCD) hosted the Navarro and Russian River Watersheds Restoration Projects Landowner Recognition and Tour.

Attendees included state Assemblywoman Patty Berg, D-Eureka, and representatives from state Sen. Wes Chesbro's and Congressman Mike Thompson's offices, as well as project managers from the California Department of Fish and Game, the Department of Water Resources and the State Coastal Conservancy.

"The tour is a wonderful opportunity to share with these people what we do," MCRCD Board Chair Geri Hulse-Stephens said. "I really appreciated how we can work together with people from Sacramento like Patty Berg who really care about conservation."

The tour, organized in recognition of the partnerships between private landowners and agencies that made the projects possible, highlighted five restoration projects that have been put in place over the last few years -- three in the Navarro River watershed and two in the Russian River watershed -- as well as the Navarro River Resource Center, which offers information to local landowners and citizens.

The MCRCD has been actively involved in restoration projects since the early '80s, according to Executive Director Janet Olave. It offers technical and financial support for projects to improve erosion control, water quality and fishery habitat restoration. The district covers 84 percent of the county's 2,246,400 acres, with the incorporated cities the only areas excluded.

"We try to broker the services of many different entities including the federal government, to work here locally," Patty Madigan, watershed programs manager for the MCRCD said. The projects shown on the tour were funded by a number of agencies, including the State Coastal Conservatory, U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife, Department of Water Resources, California Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Total funding amounted to $547,300 between the six projects.

According to Contracts Administrator Cassandra Thatcher, the MCRCD applies for grants to fund projects on private land. Olave explained that private land can be anything from land owned by a corporation to a state park. The MCRCD, she said, is introduced to possible projects in a number of ways, including through the Navarro River Resource Center, referrals from other agencies and also word of mouth.

Both Thatcher and Olave called the MCRCD one of the area's best kept secrets, because often the projects go unnoticed.

"A lot of times these projects go unseen, so this was a real chance to let people know about them and let those involved gain some recognition that they don't always get," Nicole Porter, resource technician for the MCRCD said. "It was great that all the representatives came out to support our effort and that is something that is really needed right now in natural resources."

Berg also echoed the need for more money for restoration projects.

"We need more money to be invested in restoration and more wonderful people like we have here today," she said.

The all-day tour began in the Navarro watershed area at Robinson Creek, where invasive plants had been removed and replaced with native riparian plants. The other Navarro restoration projects included streambank restoration to decrease the amount of sediment entering the channel at Upper Rancheria Creek and giant reed removal from the headwaters of the Navarro River watershed.

Feliz Creek in Hopland, a part of the Russian River watershed, was bolstered with willow baffles and brushes as well as large rocks to slow water velocity against the eroded streambank. According to Derek Acomb from the California Department of Fish and Game, the vegetation also benefits a number of animals in the area by adding protection. The site is located on land owned by the Solar Living Center.

Bob Gragson, executive director of the Solar Living Institute, was on hand. He was appreciative of the work the agencies have done.

"I appreciate it even more now having gone through the flood in January and seeing the importance of stopping erosion and maintaining water ways." Gragson said. "This also fits into what we're about here: sustainability."

The other Russian River watershed project, re-vegetation and restoration at McNab Creek at Bonterra Vineyards, included planting willows to stabilize banks and laying rock to slow the speed of water through curves. Trees were also planted to give shade and improve habitat for fish, according to Chad Boardman of Bonterra Vineyards.

"I think it's just wonderful to have these kind of people dedicated to working hard, and in a team approach, to improve the land for our future generations," Berg said. #

NORTH COAST SALMON RUNS: Salmon disaster drumbeat deepens

The federal government has put a different spin on a North Coast congressman's outrage over an apparent delay in disaster relief for California salmon fishermen.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Washington, D.C., office insists it's still studying the extent of the economic impacts of widespread salmon fishery closures, and claimed that Rep. Mike Thompson or other members of Congress don't need a disaster declaration to push for relief.

NOAA spokesman Jordan St. John said the fact that there is limited fishing allowed this year makes it difficult to determine whether there is a real, not just projected, effect on the industry, which he claimed is a requirement under the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Act. Only then can the U.S. secretary of commerce make a declaration, he said. That's in progress, he said.

St. John also said that Congress has on several occasions appropriated money without a disaster declaration.

”It doesn't trigger anything,” St. John said, “and it's not a prerequisite for anything either.”

NOAA's take on the situation has made Thompson and salmon fishermen hoping for assistance bristle.

Eureka commercial fisherman Dave Bitts said the West Coast fishery this year is an unquestionable disaster, and said that the current administration simply views the existence of salmon and salmon fishermen as inconvenient. He scoffed at NOAA's view of the disaster declaration.

”That's very interesting,” Bitts said. “You don't need the fire department to put out the fire -- you've got a hose.”

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently pushed for a disaster declaration, as did the governor of Oregon. The state set up loan guarantees for fishermen who can't borrow from banks. Bitts said he doesn't know anyone using the program, but added that Schwarznegger's request of the federal government was extremely important.

Thompson said Thursday that NOAA headquarters had overruled a disaster declaration request from a West Coast office, and planned to put off the declaration until February. Without a declaration, some $80 million in relief included in legislation is unlikely to get to fishermen, he said.

On Friday, Thompson said it is possible to appropriate money without a declaration, but a similar request several years ago by both Republican and Democratic senators was viewed as premature.

”NOAA's part of the equation,” Thompson said. “It's sad because they have a responsibility to the resource and those who make a living off the resource.”

The Sustainable Fisheries Act, an amendment to the Magnuson-Stevens Act, only says that once the secretary makes a determination that there is a disaster, he can make money available for affected states. The only applicable prerequisite is that the secretary must be sure that providing the assistance wouldn't worsen the disaster.

Sustainable Fisheries Act

FISHERIES DISASTER RELIEF -- (1) At the discretion of the Secretary or at the request of the Governor of an affected State or a fishing community, the Secretary shall determine whether there is a commercial fishery failure due to a fishery resource disaster as a result of –

(A) natural causes;

(B) man-made causes beyond the control of fishery managers to mitigate through conservation and management measures; or

(C) undetermined causes.

(2) Upon the determination under paragraph (1) that there is a commercial fishery failure, the Secretary is authorized to make sums available to be used by the affected State, fishing community, or by the Secretary in cooperation with the affected State or fishing community for assessing the economic and social effects of the commercial fishery failure, or any activity that the Secretary determines is appropriate to restore the fishery or prevent a similar failure in the future and to assist a fishing community affected by such failure. Before making funds available for an activity authorized under this section, the Secretary shall make a determination that such activity will not expand the size or scope of the commercial fishery failure in that fishery or into other fisheries or other geographic regions.

(3) The Federal share of the cost of any activity carried out under the authority of this subsection shall not exceed 75 percent of the cost of that activity. #

NEW HATCHERY PROGRAMS: California DFG releases plan for hatchery enhancement

There appears to be good news for the fishermen and women in the state of California. The California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) released a plan to fully implement the hatchery enhancements called for in Assembly Bill 7.

The bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Dave Codgill of Modesto, will take effect on July 1. Apparently, Governor Schwarzenegger has made a decision to implement AB 7 fully, showing his commitment to restore California’s hatchery system and wild trout program.

This restoration is important not only to anglers but to the economies and communities that rely on them. This is especially true in an area such as ours that has such a high tourist trade. Fishing is a much bigger part of the equation than many realize.

AB 7 added Section 13007 to the California Fish and Game Code in 2005 and requires DFG to deposit one-third of sport fishing license fees in the Hatchery and Inland Fisheries Fund (HIFF) beginning July 1.

HIFF funds may be used upon appropriation by the legislature to support DFG programs related to the management, maintenance and capital improvements of California’s fish hatcheries, the Heritage and Wild Trout Program and enforcement activities.

The fund will also support other activities eligible for revenue generated by sport fishing license fees.

Schwarzenegger has proposed full funding in this budget year for implementation of AB 7 and has included additional funding to DFG from the General Fund. In keeping with the Governor’s signing message, this action will ensure that the implementation of AB 7 will not impact other programs, said DFG Director Ryan Broddrick.

Funding
The funding of AB 7 is subject to approval by the Legislature in the annual budget process. The Senate and Assembly Budget Subcommittees are currently considering approval of the Governor’s request for full implementation.

I was happy to see that the Governor has recommended additional moneys from the General Fund in addition to one-third of the funds from license sales. With license sales apparently declining, less funding would have been available to fund the projects if he had not taken this measure.

As I have commented before, the budgetary model for the DFG needs to be changed. The resources are everyone’s to enjoy, not just hunters and fishermen. It is crazy for the Department to be dependent on just fishing and hunting license sales.

I discussed this model briefly during the warden parity article I recently wrote. Incidentally, this issue of warden parity is another critical one.

Need for change
If you folks have not written your letters to the Governor and your Legislators, please do so. We must keep this issue square within the cross hairs so they will not forget about it during the budgetary process. The future protection of our natural resources in the state depends on this “thin green line.” Please write those letters now!

California’s trout resources are found in more than 3,000 natural lakes, 625 man-made reservoirs and more than 18,000 miles of cold-water streams. This includes 7,763 miles of salmon and steelhead water.

DFG stocks six species of trout and chars — rainbow, brown, cutthroat, golden, brook and lake trout (Mackinaw) — and three species of salmon.

Kokanee (non-anadromous sockeye salmon) are stocked in 24 reservoirs, Chinook salmon in another 12 reservoirs and a domesticated strain of Coho salmon has been stocked in Lake Oroville.

Wild, native and introduced trout, including 11 identified subspecies of heritage trout, are found in California.

Bruce Ajari is a Truckee resident and regular fishing columnist for the Sierra Sun and other area newspapers.

The key issues AB 7 addresses include:
• Attaining the increase state fish hatchery production goals relating to the release of trout.
• Funding permanent positions, seasonal aids and other activities in the Hatchery and Heritage and Wild Trout Programs.
• Allowing DFG the ability to initiate and manage the restoration of naturally indigenous genetic stocks of trout to their original California source watersheds.
• Authorizing the use of funds in the HIFF to be used for the purpose of obtaining scientifically valid genetic determinations of California native trout stocks. #

WATERSHEDS RULING:
Editorial: A close call for the Clean Water Act; JUSTICE KENNEDY RIGHTLY FENDS OFF ATTEMPT TO UNDERMINE PROTECTION OF U.S. WATERWAYS

The most alarming aspect of Monday's U.S. Supreme Court decision on the Clean Water Act is that four justices were ready to put one of the nation's most successful environmental laws through the paper shredder. As the first environmental case of the Roberts court, it gives us plenty of reason to worry that longstanding protections to our water, air, endangered species and public lands could be in jeopardy.

Only moderate Justice Anthony Kennedy, a California native, stood in the way of a decision that would have put at risk 150,000 miles of the state's protected streams and would have endangered waterways that provide drinking water to one in three Americans.

Kennedy agreed with the four conservative justices that two developers, including one who filled in protected wetlands in Michigan without a permit, were entitled to have their cases reviewed by lower courts. But he strongly rejected an opinion signed by the same four justices that would have created an entirely new, unscientific definition of what is and what is not a protected wetland.

Congress must now clarify Kennedy's ruling by passing the Clean Water Authority Restoration Act, which has been introduced in both houses and enjoys bipartisan support. The bill would make clear that the protections of the Clean Water Act are meant to be broad, just as Congress intended when it passed the landmark law in 1972, and just as the law has been interpreted by federal agencies under Republican and Democratic administrations alike.

The Clean Water Act protects from pollution the ``waters of the United States.'' That includes rivers and lakes, as well as wetlands that are adjacent to them. The Michigan developers argued that the wetlands on their property were excluded because they were connected to major rivers not directly, but rather through a drainage system and intermediate tributaries.

It doesn't take a hydrologist to understand that a pollutant dumped into those wetlands will flow into the tributaries and eventually into the river. And to believe the law excludes those wetlands is to believe polluting major rivers and lakes is perfectly OK -- you just have to do it from a distance.

Congress passed the Clean Water Act after the heavily polluted Cuyahoga River near Cleveland caught fire. At the time it passed, between 60 and 70 percent of the nation's lakes, rivers and coastal waters were deemed to be unsafe for fishing and swimming. Thirty year later, only 39 percent of rivers, 45 percent of lakes and 51 percent of estuaries remained unsafe, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

That represents a significant improvement in the quality of life of millions of Americans. The cleanup of America's waters, however, remains a work in progress that must be allowed to continue. A return to wholesale pollution of rivers and streams is in no one's interest. #

NIMBUS FISH HATCHERY:
Scientists to visit lake for hatchery virus clues; Samples from fish caught at Folsom to be tested for link to Nimbus outbreak

Sacramento Bee – 6/16/06
By Edie Lau, staff writer

An investigation into a disease outbreak at Nimbus Fish Hatchery this spring will bring state scientists to Folsom Lake on Saturday looking for blood.

Fish blood, that is.

Tresa Veek, an associate fish pathologist, will be at Granite Beach with colleagues from the Department of Fish and Game asking anglers for blood, tissue and organ samples from salmon and trout they catch that morning.

Fish and Game officials will collect the samples, a process that should take about five minutes, Veek said; all fishermen need do is bring over live fish, or fish that have been preserved on ice.

Veek said live fish are preferred because blood coagulates quickly in dead fish. She noted that salmon and related fish are not supposed to be kept live after being caught, but wardens will make an exception to the rule to support the investigation.

The department is trying to determine the source of the virus that caused an epidemic of infectious hematopoietic necrosis, which killed about 2 million juvenile chinook salmon at the hatchery this spring.

The outbreak is now largely over. The roughly 3 million survivors are being transferred to San Francisco Bay, said Bob Burks, hatchery assistant manager. The juveniles swim out to sea, where they spend two to five years before returning inland to spawn.

However, more disease outbreaks in the hatchery could be in the cards if the virus entered Nimbus via the American River from fish planted by the state in Folsom Lake.

The virus is endemic to California and may be harbored by healthy adult salmon and trout. Scientists will be able to tell if that's the case in Folsom by looking for antibodies in the blood.

"We really want to know whether we can expect to get infected again next year," Veek said. "If it's in the water supply (of the hatchery) and there are plenty of hosts in the lake … we could be infected for two, three years in a row."

Another possibility is that the virus was introduced by salmon that swam in from the ocean last year to spawn. As happens every year, hatchery workers brought those fish into the facility to collect their sperm and eggs.

"If it was something we did, we can be extra-careful in our procedures in spawning, and hopefully this will never happen again," Veek said.

Department officials say the virus causes illness only in certain species of salmon and does not make people sick, neither by coming in contact with the germ nor by eating fish that have been infected.

Veek said the sampling station will be set up from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday on the grassy area at the north end of Ramp B. To reach Ramp B, take Douglas Boulevard east to the lake entrance, pass the kiosk, and turn right at the second stop sign. #

COHO SALMON: Editorial: Saving Nemo; Why recovery plan is needed for coho, steelhead and Chinook

(a) A bunch of kids splashing, throwing rocks and building dams in a stream where fish are spawning.

(b) Dirt from an unpaved farming road that runs off into a stream, reducing water clarity and covering the gravel where the fish lay eggs.

(c) Contaminants from leaking septic systems, outhouses and trash on the banks of the Russian River.

The answer is: (d) all of the above. In a world of limited resources, a more important question is which of these factors (and dozens of others, including gravel mining, disposal of treated wastewater, summer dams and logging operations) are worse?

Even more important, which of these factors can be changed relatively quickly - and which changes will provide the biggest bang for the buck?

Without knowing the answer to these questions, regulators and local governments have taken a scattershot approach to fish recovery.

For this reason, the Board of Supervisors was right on Tuesday to approve $400,000 to develop recovery plans for steelhead trout and chinook salmon. This money is in addition to $200,000 approved three months ago for a recovery plan for coho salmon.

Ideally, the studies - which will be conducted by the National Marine Fisheries Service - will provide a blueprint that will guide future restoration efforts and spending decisions.

Because the three species range throughout Northern California, the plans won't be specific to the Russian River watershed but will focus on the threats faced by the fish in a geographic area that ranges from Santa Cruz to near the Oregon border.

So far, Sonoma is the only county that has contributed cash to the project. Hopefully this will change as other governments recognize the wisdom of focusing recovery efforts on those projects that are doable, affordable and sustainable over time. #

COHO SALMON: State court backs coho protection rules

A Sacramento court has upheld decisions by the California Fish and Game Commission to list coho salmon in Northern California as protected under state law.

Judge Gail Ohanesian in Sacramento Superior Court ruled late last week that the commission and the California Department of Fish and Game acted within the law to list the fish as endangered between San Francisco Bay and Punta Gorda, and as threatened above Punta Gorda to the Oregon border.

The case was brought by the California Forestry Association and others, including the Greater Eureka Chamber of Commerce. The plaintiffs contended that the 2002 and 2004 decisions by the state were an abuse of discretion and unsupported by evidence. They argued that the California Endangered Species Act doesn't allow listing population segments of a species, as the federal Endangered Species Act does.

But Ohanesian said that there was no further definition of a species or subspecies under the state law, and noted the federal definition.

”The court finds that the concept of 'species' is a scientific one, not a matter of common understanding among those not trained in biological science,” Ohanesian wrote.

She also wrote that the record contains a large amount of information that supports that coho has been removed, or is in serious decline, from its entire California range.

Conservation groups who intervened in the case said they hoped the decision would allow industry and environmental interests to work together to restore coho salmon.

”This was a biologically sound decision,” said Tom Weseloh with California Trout. “Now the courts have said it's not only biologically sound but also legal.”

J Warren Hockaday, executive director of the Eureka Chamber of Commerce, said the board believed that the state listing was duplicative of existing federal regulations. It joined the suit as a show of support for the timber industry, Hockaday said, concerned that some of its members would see significant costs from the state's actions.

Ohanesian found that the state acted according to its policy because federal protection had not proven adequate to prevent the decline of coho.

The California Forestry Association did not return the Times-Standard's phone call by deadline. #

SALMON ADVOCATES: A testament to fish passing; Humboldt-produced DVD spreads salmon success stories

Eureka Times-Standard – 6/11/06
By John Driscoll, staff writer

Some of the techniques developed to help salmon and steelhead find their way back into coastal streams in Northern California are being exported through a multimedia DVD meant to spread homegrown success stories around the country.

The DVD produced by geologist and videographer Thomas Dunklin of Arcata follows the progress of four projects to replace barriers to migrating fish, using video, time-lapse photography, music and other methods from several sources to give a well-rounded view of the efforts. More than 100 miles of stream habitat has been opened in Humboldt, Del Norte, Trinity, Mendocino and Siskiyou counties since government and private biologists and engineers began identifying culverts and other fish-blocking infrastructure, especially ones hurriedly put in place following the 1964 flood.

Using video and the other techniques to document the projects is an effort to bring a concept writer and biologist E.O. Wilson called consilience, Dunklin said. It means, essentially, a leaping together of information.

”Video, in a way, is a consilience engine,” Dunklin said.

Digital media allows examination of problems, projects and results in a way that it could never be examined before. And instead of having to go through a production house, the Apple computer and accompanying technology put the power to edit the reams -- or megabytes -- into the hands of the people, Dunklin said.

With it, fish advocates have been helping to bring funding for steelhead to the species' southernmost range, Ventura County. The U.S. Forest Service has also taken up the concept of barrier removal for aquatic species on a national level, Dunklin said.

The effort was born out of the Fish Xing project, which began in 1998 to identify barriers in the five counties. Hydrologists Mike Furniss and Mike Love, Humboldt State University engineer Margaret Lang, and private fish biologist Ross Taylor were among those to begin the assessment, and help lead the way to begin replacing culverts and bridges. The Five Counties Salmon Restoration Program became a conduit for state and federal funds to the projects, many of which were nearly instant success stories.

In several places, salmon immediately gained access to spawning grounds that had been off limits for decades. These were places where Dunklin had videotaped salmon fruitlessly leaping against culverts and slamming into the banks. But after the projects were complete, Dunklin was able to record salmon swimming freely upstream to spawn.

At the celebration of the 100th mile of habitat to be opened up, Dunklin's videos struck a chord with the California Department of Fish and Game and the National Marine Fisheries Service, which asked Dunklin to put together a DVD to share the success stories. California Trout also contributed to the production.

Dunklin said there is much more work to be done. The likely sequel to the fish passage success stories, he said, is fish passage nightmares, like dams that are far more significant barriers to salmon and steelhead.

”We're barely scraping the surface of dams, diversion and other types of fish passage issues,” Dunklin said. #

LAKE RED BLUFF STURGEON: Red Bluff Diversion Dam's impact on sturgeon to be studied

RED BLUFF -- Lake Red Bluff, home to summertime water recreation and boat drags, may be nonexistent in a few years because of the green sturgeon.

That fish will be listed as threatened as of July 6, said Mike Aceituno, area supervisor in Sacramento for the National Marine Fisheries Service.

That could mean the Red Bluff Diversion Dam would have to remain open so the fish can spawn.

It won't happen immediately. "For the next 18 to 24 months, there is no prohibition on activities and the current operation of the Red Bluff Diversion Dam," Aceituno said

Officials don't know how big of an impact keeping the dam open would have on fish.

"We don't have any numbers of how many green sturgeon go up and down the river," said Melissa Neuman with the fisheries service from Long Beach. "Spawning is variable from year to year, but we do know there are green sturgeon in the river in Tehama County."

When the Red Bluff office of the Bureau of Reclamation conducted its Environmental Impact Report in 2002-2003 on salmon and water for agricultural use, the report did not include the green sturgeon.

The EIR was conducted because the three small pumping plants currently in use to get water to farmers are not sufficient.

"The bureau already addressed economics of the city and county in its EIR, now the EIR needs to be revised to include the green sturgeon,"

Aceituno said.

Passage for the sturgeon is not the same as for salmon, Aceituno said.

"Sturgeon do not like the stair step fish ladders," Aceituno said. "They are bottom swimmers and prefer a flat or slight incline. Sturgeon do not jump like salmon."

Neuman said the green sturgeon come to fresh water to spawn every couple of years. The sturgeon season is late March to early August.

The Red Bluff Diversion Dam currently operates with the gates open from mid-September through mid-May to allow salmon passage and are closed to form Lake Red Bluff in the summer.

Closing the gates at the diversion dam will be looked at if it appears that operation is causing jeopardy to the green sturgeon.

"Threatened is not as serious as endangered," Aceituno said. "We have a little more flexibility."

For the latest news and information on the green sturgeon, go to www.swr.nmfs.noaa.gov. #

CLEAN-UP OF IRON MOUNTAIN MINE: Wounds heal in tainted mine; Iron Mountain cleanup earns sparkling report

Redding Record-Searchlight – 6/12/06
By Marc Beauchamp, staff writer

A new federal study praises the ongoing cleanup efforts at the sprawling Iron Mountain Mine, the notorious environmental Superfund site 9 miles northwest of Redding.

The 17-page report, published recently on the Environmental Protection Agency Web site, said remediation and pollution-control efforts at the 4,400-acre site have reduced by 95 percent the discharge of toxic copper, cadmium and zinc into area streams and the Sacramento River.

In recent years, those efforts have included construction of the 151-foot-high Slickrock Creek Dam to capture acidic runoff for treatment, diversion of clean water around the site, the capping of 400,000 cubic yards of arsenic-laden tailings, and expansion of a 6,500-gallon-per-minute plant to treat acid mine drainage. During the winter rainy season, the plant can handle more than 5 million gallons of contaminated water a month. Rainfall at the desolate site can top 70 inches annually.

"We’ve been more successful than we thought we’d ever be — and the river is definitely healthier for it," said Rick Sugarek of the EPA’s office in San Francisco, who has worked on the Iron Mountain project for two decades. "It was a really nasty problem. Twenty years ago we thought, ‘What are we going to do with this?’"

Extensive mining of Iron Mountain for silver, copper, gold, iron, zinc and pyrite — beginning in the 1890s and lasting until the early 1960s — left mountains of tailings, scarred the slopes and fractured the bedrock overlying extensive underground mine workings.

"The mountain is falling in on itself," said John Spitzley, a civil engineer with the CH2M Hill engineering firm who oversaw much of the remediation work. "Some 30 to 40 acres at the top of the mountain is moving."

The open wounds on the mountain allowed water, oxygen and microbes to react with sulfide ores (mostly pyrite), dissolving heavy metals in the ore and creating acid mine drainage.

Some water at the site is as corrosive as battery acid, Spitzley said on a recent tour of the site, which in parts resembles a Martian landscape.

The report, a "case study" by the EPA’s abandoned mine lands group, contains a photograph of a shovel left standing overnight in green liquid flowing from one of the mine portals. "The next day, half of the shovel had been eaten away," the caption noted.

Before the cleanup began, Iron Mountain discharged, on average, 650 pounds of copper, 1,800 pounds of zinc and 10,000 pounds of iron per day. That was "at least equal to all the combined industrial and municipal discharges to the San Francisco Bay and Delta Estuary System," the report said.

While not a threat to Redding’s drinking water, because of the dilutive effect of the Sacramento River and removal of the metals in the city’s water-treatment plant, the acidic runoff periodically killed salmon, trout and other aquatic life.

Nearly all the acid mine drainage now is collected and treated on-site, the EPA report said. About 10 people work at the treatment plant and elsewhere on the site. The plant, about half a mile past a fortified gate at the end of Iron Mountain Road, is staffed around the clock. Iron Mountain was added to the EPA’s list of environmentally toxic Superfund sites in 1983.

In 2000, the EPA reached a nearly $1 billion settlement with one of the mine’s owners, Aventis CropSciences USA Inc., to fund the cleanup for the next 30 years.

Despite the encouraging progress, the report warns that containment and cleanup efforts must continue for a long time to come.

Scientists estimate that at current erosion rates, Iron Mountain "will continue to produce acid mine drainage for 2,500 to 3,000 years, until the estimated 12 million tons of sulfide deposits remaining in the mountain have weathered away."

NORTH COAST SALMON: Siskiyou reels in salmon aid; Nine other counties will share state loans totaling $9.2 million

Redding Record-Searchlight – 6/9/06
By Dylan Darling, staff writer

Although it's 20 miles from the Pacific Ocean at its westernmost point, Siskiyou County will get help from the state to cope with the economic impact of a restricted salmon fishing season.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger this week declared a state of emergency in Siskiyou and nine other counties, opening the door for $9.2 million in loans for salmon-related businesses and anglers.

The other counties -- Del Norte, Humboldt, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Cruz and Sonoma -- all border the Pacific Ocean. Siskiyou County was included because the Klamath River runs through it, said Steve Martarano, spokesman for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

It is not yet clear how the assistance is to be divided up.

The Klamath has been at the heart of the current crisis. Low numbers of nativerun chinook salmon are expected in the river this fall, and since there's no way out in the ocean to distinguish a Klamath salmon from any other, the federal government has limited commercial fishing along 700 miles of coastline. The ban runs from Point Sur near Monterey to Cape Falcon near Astoria, Ore.

The low Klamath numbers are the result of recent fish kills brought on by bacteria and disease, as well as a lack of good spawning grounds.

There will be a limited season in September off Fort Bragg; in July, August and September in the ocean near San Francisco; and in May, July, August and September in the Monterey area, according to the Pacific Fisheries Management Council, the federal agency that sets ocean fishing seasons. This year's catch should be 40 percent of the usual commercial harvest.

In addition to the federal limits, the state Fish and Game Commission -- which sets regulations for fishing and hunting -- has called for a ban on recreational fishing in the Klamath this fall, Martarano said. The proposed ban is undergoing legal review, but looks likely.

"There is not going to be any fall fishing along the Klamath," he said.

An exception is the Karuk Tribe, which will maintain its legal right to catch fish for traditional purposes. But tribal members expect this year's haul to be especially low.

Fishing guides based in Siskiyou County will take an economic hit, as will river resort owners. "The disaster for fish on the Klamath River affects all of those people," said Marcia Armstrong, chair of the Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors.

Communities along the Klamath River already have a 19.6 percent unemployment rate -- mostly because of the effects on the logging industry from federal protection of the Northern spotted owl. Armstrong said unemployment could increase if there isn't a fall salmon season.

Armstrong said she was pleased Schwarzenegger lumped Siskiyou in with the coastal counties that will receive assistance. Ron Reed, cultural biologist for the Karuk Tribe, said he also appreciates the help. But he added that more needs to be done to mend the problems -- such as dams blocking salmon from upstream spawning grounds -- that led to the low numbers of Klamath salmon in the first place.

"I don't need a loan, I need a fish to eat," he said. #

WATERSHED PROJECT FUNDING: DWR awards $9 million in grants to study, restore, and protect watersheds

News Release, Department of Water Resources – 6/5/06
Contact: Stefan Lorenzato, (916) 651-9617

SACRAMENTO -- The California Department of Water Resources, Division of Planning and Local Assistance, has awarded nearly $9 million in CALFED grants to 28 watershed projects throughout the state.

The money comes from the sale of $3.4 billion in bonds approved by voters as Proposition 50 in November 2002.The projects range from evaluating the condition of watersheds to programs that educate the public about their local watersheds.

A watershed is a region draining into a creek, river, river system or other body of water. In California, there are about 1,500 watersheds. Some are as big as the Sacramento River watershed that drains much of Northern California; others are as small as Laguna Creek watershed, which drains several miles in Sacramento County.

Key to the projects is local involvement. For example, the city of Folsom will use its grant to plan improvements to the Alder Creek watershed. And KIDS for the BAY will use the money it receives to educate children about the watershed of Codornices Creek and how its health affects salmon and steelhead migration from San Francisco Bay.

Originally, 128 local groups asking for a total of $40 million applied for Proposition 50 watershed grants. The list of 28 grant recipients is on-line at: http://www.watershedrestoration.water.ca.gov/watersheds/grant.cfm

The Department of Water Resources operates and maintains the State Water Project, provides dam safety and flood control and inspection services, assists local water districts in water management and water conservation planning, and plans for future statewide water needs. # www.water.ca.gov

SACRAMENTO RIVER CONSERVATION EFFORT: River forum good neighbor policy up for OK

Chico Enterprise-Record – 5/18/06
By Heather Hacking, staff writer

After years in the works, guidelines for how to be a good neighbor when it comes to agriculture, development and wildlife habitat have been completed and are up for approval later this month.

The Sacramento River Conservation Area Forum has been working on the good neighbor policy, sometimes with people disagreeing on what should or shouldn't be included in the guidelines. Manager Burt Bundy said most in the group are happy with the way the document came out.

One of the concerns highlighted in the good neighbor policy is that when habitat restoration occurs, farmers nearby could experience pests and predators that wouldn't exist there if the land was used as farm land. Some in ag are also concerned that threatened and endangered species on habitat could cause regulatory problems for farmers.

The document also spells out ways in which farming and habitat can also be compatible, especially compared to having the land developed for business or residential.

Although the SRCAF is not a government body, and therefore isn't an enforcement agency, the forum recommends that before any land use or management changes, landowners should communicate with neighbors who could potentially be affected.

According to the plan, discussions with SRCAF and neighbors will result in actions to minimize impacts, and communication should continue until the project is completed.

The good neighbor policy also asks the property owner consider a contingency fund to deal with unforeseen impacts to neighbors.

Bundy said the policy doesn't spell out specific requirements for property owners, but the hope is that potential problems can be worked out before a project is built.

Bundy said the SRCAF is a nonprofit group, and can't dictate to government agencies such as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or state Department of Fish and Game. However, through the good-neighbor policy they can ask landowners to weigh in a number of neighbors' concerns.

He conceded that not everyone who worked on the policy will be completely happy with it.

One critic is Jeff Sutton, president of the Family Water Alliance, a property rights advocacy group.

Although he's not perfectly pleased with the draft policy, he said it is a good starting point. He wishes the document had more teeth in it.

The trend of converting agricultural lands to habitat continues, with the use of public funds, Sutton said. If the public wants these projects it needs to take into consideration economic losses when wildlife eats crops or when counties lose property tax funds.

Until something more substantial is established, Sutton said he believes there should be a moratorium on all new habitat restoration.

BACKGROUND: The Sacramento River Conservation Area Forum is a group of landowners and public members from seven counties who have an interest in land along the Sacramento River. The group helps guide preservation of habitat and re-establishment of the river ecosystem.

WHAT'S NEW: The group has been working on a "good neighbor policy" to help property owners communicate with neighbors when property is converted from one use to another. To receive an e-mail copy of the policy, send an e-mail to Burt Bundy at bundy@water.ca.gov.

WHAT'S NEXT: The group meets May 25, starting with a tour of the Llano Seco Riparian Sancutary. A board meeting will follow at 4 p.m. with a barbecue to after at 6:15 p.m. Donations for the barbecue are welcome.

FISH FARMING OFF CALIFORNIA COAST: Fish farm regulations await signature; Nation's first bill to apply environmental rules to aquaculture

San Francisco Chronicle – 5/18/06
By Jane Kay, staff writer

California will become the first state in the nation to adopt comprehensive controls on future fish farming in its coastal waters, if Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signs a tough set of environmental standards that state legislators have approved.

The Sustainable Oceans Act would install provisions for siting and operating aquaculture businesses that produce finfish -- such as halibut, bass or tuna -- for the retail market. About 100 aquaculture businesses operate in California, but none of the farms raise finfish. Farm-raising salmon or genetically engineered fish is illegal in the state.

SB201, by state Sen. Joseph Simitian, D-Palo Alto, requires the state to prevent fish farms from interfering with wildlife and marine habitats or with commercial fishing. Farms would have to minimize the use of fish meal and fish oil taken from the ocean, and prevent the spread of disease or the escape of fish into the environment. Regional water-quality boards would issue permits and regulate against pollution discharges to the ocean.

The governor has until Wednesday to sign or veto the bill, 12 days after the Legislature passed it. An unsigned bill would become law. A representative of the governor said the bill hadn't reached the governor's desk, and he hadn't taken a public position.

Applicants for fish-farming leases now go to the state Fish and Game Commission; no environmental standards must be met before the commission considers granting a lease.

The California Aquaculture Association, a trade group, said the state's fish farming businesses grow freshwater fish, aquarium stock and aquatic plants. Industry officials say the demand for farmed fish will increase as more people learn about the health benefits of fish and wild ocean supplies are taxed.

State waters extend from the shore to 3 miles out, where federal waters begin and extend another 200 miles to sea. International waters lie beyond that.

The bill was ready to go last fall, according to Simitian's staff, but Resources Secretary Mike Chrisman expressed interest in working with the parties on the bill's content. Chrisman attended the last two of about a half-dozen meetings among representatives of the state Fish and Game Department, environmental groups and the aquaculture and commercial fishing industries.

The Pacific Coast Federation of Fisherman's Associations, a commercial fishermen's group, and the nonprofit Ocean Conservancy, Natural Resources Defense Council, Environment California, Bluewater Network, Environmental Defense and Sierra Club California supported the bill. The aquaculture industry was neutral. Sandy Cooney, a spokesman in the Resources Agency, said Chrisman didn't have a position on the bill.

Richard Matteis, who represents the aquaculture association in Sacramento, said the industry removed its opposition to the bill "after the latest amendments and some clarification by the senator over a couple of remaining issues.''

Aquaculture businesses still have concerns over some parts of the bill, Matteis said, and will be active in discussions about state regulations if it becomes law.

Tim Eichenberg, Pacific Region director of the Ocean Conservancy, said the environmental groups want to see standards set.

"We want to put these standards in the bill so when consumers buy these products they can be sure that they (the farmed fish) aren't harming the marine environment,'' Eichenberg said. He said fish farming may be a cause for depleted ocean fisheries rather than a solution. Using chopped up ocean fish to feed farmed fish depletes the net protein production of the ocean, he said.

The pressure to pass a California aquaculture bill has increased in recent months, as Congress considers legislation that would put the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in charge of developing a permit and leasing system for fish farms in federal waters.

The supporters of the state bill say the federal legislation, backed by U.S. senators Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, and Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, doesn't contain strict environmental controls. The federal legislation is before the Commerce Committee's National Ocean Policy Study Subcommittee. #

SALMON: Guest Opinion: It takes a watershed to sustain our salmon

San Francisco Chronicle – 5/17/06
By Peter Moyle, professor of fisheries at the University of California at Davis

ONE OF the special things about California is that we still have large salmon spawning in some of our rivers, the southernmost populations of the species. The presence of salmon defines the nature of the rivers as "salmon streams," invoking images of wildness and abundance.

Yet today salmon fisheries are being shut down as our rivers lose their wild salmon, the result of decades of neglect of rivers and watersheds.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the Klamath River, where Chinook and coho salmon are at low ebbs of their populations.

Given the complexity of the problems besetting Klamath River, it is going to take a long time to bring back the salmon to historic numbers, assuming our society has the will to do so. In the meantime, we need to protect the few remaining healthy populations in California, to make sure the salmon are not forgotten and to make sure that we have sources of fish for damaged rivers as they recover.

For example, the continued protection of the beautiful and little appreciated Smith River, the next major river north of the Klamath, is an investment that will help sustain salmon fisheries in California and will also support recovery of the Klamath River.

The Smith River is a stronghold for salmon, steelhead and cutthroat trout in California; at least five species in multiple runs use the river. It is unparalleled in its combination of natural river flows, protected habitat and healthy fish populations. Much of this watershed is within the Smith River National Recreation Area and the Redwood national and state parks, but not all. We now need to protect the entire watershed, to make sure that the Smith remains an example of what a healthy river is like. The Smith can also become our salmon insurance policy, a potential source of wild fish for restoration of other watersheds such as the Klamath.

Right now, we have an opportunity to further secure the Smith River as a refuge for wild salmon. Thanks to the action of three hard-working organizations, Western Rivers Conservancy, California Trout and the Smith River Alliance, the public has the rare opportunity to purchase the lands surrounding Goose Creek, the Smith's largest tributary and an important spawning area for salmon.

The timber company owners of the 9,500-acre Goose Creek property made the decision to sell the land and the nonprofit guardians moved quickly to forge a deal to add it to the Smith River National Recreation Area.

Thanks to support from many individuals and organizations, including Del Norte County, more than half of the purchase has been completed with funds from the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund. Sens. Dianne Feinstein Barbara Boxer and Rep. Mike Thompson all deserve credit for their diligent work to make this happen. But $2.7 million is still needed to complete the acquisition, and, this year, no funds have been allocated in the federal budget for Goose Creek.

The need for forward-thinking restoration measures to recover California's northern salmon populations has never been more evident.

Protecting Goose Creek is an important action we can take now with long-term, positive consequences for the Smith and Klamath rivers.

Those of us who continue to be optimists about the restoration of California's rivers see this as a major, highly visible step toward reversing decades of abuse of our salmon rivers. #

SUPREME COURT RULING: Ruling Favors Rivers Over Power Dams; The Supreme Court says states may protect the waterways by requiring a steady flow at hydroelectric plants, which tend to harness it

Los Angeles Times – 5/16/06
By David G. Savage, staff writer

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court sided with the environment over electric power Monday, ruling that state regulators may require a steady flow of water over power dams to benefit fish and kayakers.

The unanimous decision holds that states may protect the health of their rivers, even though hydroelectric dams are regulated exclusively by the federal government.

The dispute arose over five