Nehalem Watershed Restoration Tour 2007

1. Nehalem Watershed Restoration Tour 2007 10 years of watershed restoration and native salmon recovery… Welcome… Sponsored by: Upper and Lower Nehalem Watershed Councils Funded by: Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission Photo by Don Best

2. Who: • The Upper Nehalem Watershed Council • Established in January of 1996 • Recognized by Columbia County - Board of Commissioners in July 1996 • Recognized by Clatsop County - Local Government Group in August 1997 • The Lower Nehalem Watershed Council • Established in 1997 • Recognized by Tillamook County - Board of Commissioners 1997 a diverse representation of the stakeholders groups who have interest in the health and productivity of the Nehalem watershed…

3. Where: • The Nehalem Basin North Pacific Coast of Oregon • Temperate rainforest ecosystem • 4th field - 17100202 - HUC • 855 square miles, 599,660 acres • 1,258+ miles of salmon bearing streams • 37% public forest land • 50% private forest land • 13% agriculture and rural residential, • Towns/cities = Timber, Vernonia, Mist, Birkenfeld, Jewell, Elsie, Hamlet, Nehalem, and Wheeler

5. Why: • UNWC mission:The Upper Nehalem Watershed Council is a dedicated and dependable grassroots organization with a proven track record of success and measurable results. We value productive forests; cool, clean, clear water; sustainable ecosystems; and healthy communities full of informed citizens. We are working diligently to reforest our waterways and improve salmon habitat in respectful cooperation with local stakeholders. • LNWC mission:The Lower Nehalem Watershed Council is dedicated to the protection, preservation and enhancement of the Nehalem watershed through leadership, cooperation and education. The Councils strive to meet the goals of the Oregon Plan for Salmon and Watersheds

6. What we do: • Public Outreach and Education • Partnership Building • Watershed Assessment/issue ID • Action Plan Development • Water Quality/Quantity/Biological Monitoring • Riparian Restoration • Salmon Habitat/Passage Improvement • Project Effectiveness Monitoring • Noxious Weed Control • Organizational Development • Fundraising • Accountability

7. Watershed Outreachreaching out to the watershed community… Vernonia Salmon Festival Forestry and project tours Council sponsored: Public forums Landowner workshops Council presentations Displays at public events Project tours Newspaper articles Publications River exploration Hands-on Volunteer tree plants

8. Hands-on EducationOregon Youth Conservation Corp… Learning as they go… Involving local youth in hands on watershed restoration since 1997

9. Watershed Assessmentconditions of the the past vs the present… present forest cover field verification present view

10. Riparian Conditions Analysisunderstanding the present, planning for the future…

11. Watershed Health Monitoringfrom the headwaters to the bay, and all points in between… • Volunteer monitoring - 10+ years All data collected using state protocols Volunteers trained by DEQ staff Partners: U and L NWC volunteers, landowners, DEQ, EPA, ODFW, Xerces Society, Contractors and the City of Vernonia, Nehalem and Manzanita DEQ assisted councils in developing a Quality Assurance Project Plan

12. Water Quantityfrom draught to flood… Rock Cr Gauge Nehalem USGS Gauge UNWC installed RC gauge for City of Vernonia`s Water Curtailment Plan Low flows limit salmon rearing potential Volunteer flow monitoring High flows accelerate soil erosion, cause property damage and disturb salmon redds

13. 1996 precipitation 1996 storm approaches Average rainfall Partners in flow monitoring: OWRD, USGS, ODFW, City of Vernonia, City of Nehalem, Water Watch, and volunteers

14. Water Qualitycool clean clear water, good for all… • Beneficial uses

15. Water Quality – Temperaturefinding the heat sources… Cooler water benefits all life… humans, salmon, insects, amphibians Forward Looking Infra-red Partners:Nehalem Valley Chapter - Izaak Walton League, DEQ, BLM, volunteers and landowners Sites: 80+ basin wide Duration: 15 yrs of data collection North Coast - Temperature Total Maximum Daily Load Established 2002 302.9 stream miles impaired

16. Water Quality – Temperature The Nehalem is water quality limited from the headwaters to the bay…

17. More temperature…

18. Water Quality – Turbidityfinding the source of sediment… Partners: UNWC and LNWC Volunteers, DEQ staff Sites: 100+ Duration: 7yrs

19. WQ – Bacteriaprotecting beneficial uses… DEQ TMDL data 10 miles of fecal coliform impairment Dedicated volunteers collected bacteria samples from 15 lower Nehalem sites: 1/mth for 6 yrs

20. Biological - Aquatic Habitatassessing quality of habitat…locating and prioritizing project reaches… Partners: Boswell associates, OWEB, ODFW, council volunteers

21. Biological - Salmon Presencenative salmon populations persist in the Nehalem… a precious resource…

22. Biological - Macro invertebratemacros “tell all” about water quality… all we need to do is listen… Lab: sort and ID Field collection Bugs do not lie…

23. Watershed Restorationunderstanding the watershed is the first step…

24. Riparian FencingLandowner cooperation is key to water resource protection… Happy “Free to Grow” Cows 15 miles of riparian fence installed in cooperation with local Landowners

25. Riparian Reforestationgrowing strong… Partners: OWEB, DEQ, BLM, NRCS, ODF, FSA, ODFW, VCLC, VHS, Landowners. Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program 9 new sign-ups 400+ acres in reserve 200,000+ native trees and shrubs planted 95+ UNWC cooperators, to date

26. North Coast Native Plant Cooperativegrowing native plants from seed to riparian planting stock… Partners: Tillamook Bureau of Land Management and Watershed Councils = Yamhill, Tillamook Bay, Nestucca, Lower and Upper Nehalem, Scappoose Bay and Soil and Water Conservation District`s = Tillamook, Clatsop and Columbia, and Tillamook Estuary Partnership. Nursery meets all our riparian restoration needs!

27. Native Coho – Recoveryraising salmon in the wild… Born to be Wild… Nehalem “Native” Coho

28. Salmon Habitat Improvementbuilding habitat, increasing salmon production… Partners: Longview Fibre Co, Weyerhaeuser, Forest Systems, Oregon Wildlife Heritage Foundation, ODFW

29. Salmon Passageremoving barriers one crossing at a time… Examples of Council barrier removal projects implemented to date… Before Before Before More in the works… During During After Reflection Creek Partners: Longview Fibre Co., Forest Systems, ODOT, County Rd. Departments, USFWS Wonderland Rain Forest After After East Humbug Cedar Creek

30. More on salmon habitat…

31. Noxious Weed Control • Beautiful Invaders Purple Loosestrife Scotch Broom Yellow Flag Iris Beware: Beautiful invaders coming to a watershed near you… English Ivy

32. Nehalem Knotweed Controleradicating Knotweed from the headwaters down to the bay… Sea of Knotweed Stem Injection “Knot” in the Nehalem! Partners: North Coast Weed Management Area Group Nehalem Knotweed Task Force Clatsop SWCD, ODA, OSU Extension, UNWC, LNWC, Columbia SWCD, NRCS, and Landowners

33. Nehalem Bay Estuarywhere the river meets the sea… • Assessment Critical salmon habitat • Assessment partners (recent): • DLCD - Oregon Coastal Management Program - • Dynamic Estuary Information System • OWEB – Estuary Assessment • USFWS – Estuary Assessment

34. Nehalem Bay Clean-upEstuaries - the most abundant habitat in the world… Estuary Clean-up results, average per biennial event: Volunteers = 120+ Solid Waste = 65 cubic yards Scrap Metal = 400 lbs Recyclables = 120 gallons Hazardous Waste = 20 gallons

35. Volunteersmake the watershed world go round… we could not do it with out them… Annual value of Volunteer contributions to U&L Nehalem Watershed Council projects is: $60,000+

36. Natural Resource Advisorsonly the best for the Nehalem… • OWEB • ODFW • DEQ • NRCS • BLM • OWRD • ODA • USFWS • DSL • NOAA • ACE

37. Educatorsit takes a village to save a watershed… • Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board: watershed health, salmon recovery, grant management • Oregon State University: Extension, Stewardship - group facilitation, watershed health seminars • Portland State University: graduate students - watershed assessment public education • University of Oregon: RARE internship program - action plan development – public outreach • Department of Environmental Quality: water quality monitoring and data analysis • Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife: salmon recovery and stream restoration training • Oregon Water Resources Department: hydrology training, flow monitoring, water law • Oregon Division of State Lands: wetland ID and protection • Oregon Department of Forestry: forest health, riparian restoration, Oregon forest Practice Act • Natural Resource Conservation Service: river restoration, conservation planning • Oregon Department of Agriculture: noxious weed control, farm conservation practices • Nehalem Valley Izaak Walton League: public education on local watershed health issues • River Network: River Rally workshops - wide range of watershed health organizational training • Oregon Trout: Salmon Watch, River Keeper: citizen and youth salmon and river interaction • Xerces Society: macro invertebrate collection and ID, project development training • Technical Assistance Community Services: non-profit development training • Ford Family Foundation: Ford Institute Leadership Program • Coal Creek Education Foundation: ecosystem, botany, creativity • Vernonia Outdoor School: ecosystem, watershed and water quality classes for local students • Oregon Forest Resources Institute: forest health, salmon recovery, tours • Vernonia Community Learning Center: local outreach - hands-on restoration classes for local youth • Vernonia and Neahkanie School Districts: hands-on watershed health for students • Oregon Youth Conservation Corp: hands-on restoration training for local youth • Boy and Girl Scouts of America: hands-on local environmental learning projects for youth

38. Funders • OWEB = $1,620,000.00 • DEQ = $395,208.00 • NRCS = $128,500.00 • ODFW Restoration and Enhancement Board = $39,000.00 • BLM = $239,897.00 • PSMFC = $2,300.00 • USFWS = $44,130.00 • River Network = $8,000.00 • Ford Family Foundation = $4,000.00 • Oregon Wildlife Heritage Foundation = $6,000.00

39. Recipients Thank you!!!

40. Thank you for joining us! There is no place like home…