Scott River and Shasta River

Instream Flow Study Plan Development Orientation Meetings

November 13 and 14, 2012

Scott River Meeting

• November 13, 2012• Fort Jones Community Center

6-8 pm11960 East Street - Fort Jones, CA

Shasta River Meeting

• November 14, 2012• Holiday Inn Express Yreka

6-8 pm707 Montague Road - Yreka, CA

Agenda

• Introduction• Background information• Introduction of the Project Team• Purpose of the meeting• Overview of our process• Milestones• Questions

Priority Streams List 2008Priority Streams List for Instream Flow Assessment Prepared by the Department of Fish and Game Pursuant to Public Resources Code (PRC) Section 10004. August 8, 2008.

Rank Stream or Watercourse DFG Region and County 1 Butte Creek 2

Butte 2 Tuolumne River (below La Grange Dam) 4

Stanislaus 3 San Gregorio Creek (lower) 3

San Mateo 4 North Fork of Navarro River 1

Mendocino 5 Big Sur River 4

Monterey 6 Santa Maria River 5

Santa Barbara 7 Redwood Creek (tributary to Maacama) 3

Sonoma 8 Bear River (below Camp Far West) 2

Placer and Nevada 9 Shasta River

1

Siskiyou 10 Carmel River 4

Monterey 11 Santa Margarita River 6

Riverside 12 Merced River (below Crocker-Huffman Dam) 4

Merced 13 Redwood Creek (tributary to Napa) 3

Napa 14 Scott River 1

Siskiyou 15 Mattole River (near Whitethorn) 1

Humboldt 16 Dry Creek (tributary to Napa River) 3

Napa 17 Deer Creek (tributary to Yuba River) 2

Nevada 18 Mojave River 6

Riverside 19 Carpinteria Creek 5

Santa Barbara 20 Santa Ana River 6

Riverside, San Bernardino 21 Middle Fork Feather River 2

Plumas 22 Dos Pueblos Creek 5

Santa Barbara

Background

• Shasta River and Scott River identified as high priority watersheds

• Ongoing declines in the fish salmonid population

• Recent efforts to initiate a regulatory frame work were unsuccessful

• Addressing the problem will require all interests participate

Project Objectives

• Explain the process• Recruit the participants and interest groups• Identify issues and concerns• Collect information• Define future study needs through

collaboration

What are we addressing?

• What are the economic and environmental effects of alternative land and water uses?

• What Best Management Practices can be shared between public and private land managers?

• How can water availability be improved for both agriculture and salmonids?

Priorities

• Coordination with participants to lay the groundwork for identification of flow regimes strategies that will improve watershed conditions for fish

• Ensure that participants have multiple opportunities

Public Resources Code 10000-10005: Division 10. Streamflow Protection Standards

• “The Director of Fish and Game shall prepare proposed streamflow requirements, which shall be specified in terms of cubic feet of water per second, for each stream or watercourse identified pursuant to Section 10001.”

• “Upon completion of the proposed streamflow requirements …. the Director shall transmit these … requirements to the State Water Resources Control Board.”

• The State Water Board shall consider these requirements when exercising its water rights authority

Flow Studies Planned, Underway, and Finishing on DFG Priority Streams in 2012/2013

Studies Planned:Scott River Shasta River Deer Creek (Delta Trib)Middle Feather River (Delta Trib)Lower Bear River (Delta Trib)

Studies Underway:Big Sur RiverLower Butte Creek (Delta Trib)Merced River (Delta Trib)Stanislaus River (Delta Trib)Tuolumne River (Delta Trib)

Studies Finishing 2012/2013:Santa Maria RiverShasta River Canyon Reach

Adult Coho Salmon

Limiting Factors/Issues for Coho Salmon in the Scott River

• Water temperature• Groundwater extraction• Lack of flood plain connectivity• Altered flow regime• Lack of riparian habitat on mainstem• Sediment load• Fish passage barriers

Limiting Factors/Issues for Coho Salmon in the Shasta River

• High water temperature• Low dissolved oxygen• Interception of groundwater/springs• Limited riparian habitat• Fish passage barriers• Nutrient loading • Recruitment of spawning gravels• Siltation of gravels

Estimate of Unimpaired and Impaired Monthly Flows in the Shasta River (Presented by B. Bennet, DWR, Lower Klamath Basin Science Conference, June 2004)

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep

Month

Mea

n M

onth

ly F

low (C

FS)

Impaired Unimpaired

Project Team

• CA Department of Fish and Game Neil Manji, Regional Manager Curtis Milliron, Fisheries Program

Manager Jennifer Bull, Project Manager Mark Wheetley, Project Lead

Project Team

• CA Department of Fish and Game Technical Support Provided by:

Caitlin Bean Bob Hughes Robert Holmes Bill Chesney Gary Smith

• Normandeau Associates, Inc. Curt Thalken, Project Manager Karen Ciocia, Facilitator Thomas Payne, IFIM Expert Kyle Brown, Project Assistant

Project Team

Objectives

• Identify stakeholders/interests partnerships• Collect information• …. minimize impacts on water diversions land

owners and available water needs to best serve stakeholders partners

Overview of Process

• Orientation Meetings Introduce the process and project team Present the timeline Opportunity for answering questions Ask for workshop participants

Instream Flow Incremental Methodology

• Problem/Issue Identification• Study Planning• Study Implementation• Alternatives Analysis• Problem/Issue Resolution

Current Project

Legal Institutional Analysis Model

• A process for identifying different points of view, resulting in a common framework for future action

• A participatory tool that:– Helps parties plan for participation in a negotiation– Predicts behavior based on past history– Examines likely negotiation strategies

• Results in appropriate communication and negotiation strategies for a given issue

Overview of Process

• LIAM Workshops – December 4 and 11 Legal Institutional Analysis Model (LIAM) Successfully used in other states Designed to enhance issue identification,

stakeholder participation, and common understanding

Structured Process All day workshop with 2-4 person teams

working together

• LIAM Workshop Summary Meetings – December 6 and 13 Project Team summarizes results from LIAM

workshops Less formal than workshop – drop by format Opportunity for public comment and

additional questions

Overview of Process

LIAM Meeting Sign-Up Webpagewww.normandeau.com/scottshasta/

Scott Watershed• LIAM Workshop Meeting for the Scott River watershed is scheduled for December

4, 2012, 9 AM to 4 PM, at the Fort Jones Community Center.• A LIAM Workshop Debrief and Presentation for the Scott River watershed is

December 6, 2012, 4 PM to 7 PM, at the Holiday Inn Express Yreka.

Shasta Watershed• LIAM Workshop Meeting for the Shasta River watershed is scheduled for

December 11, 2012, 9 AM to 4 PM, at the Holiday Inn Express Yreka.• A LIAM Workshop Debrief and Presentation for Shasta River is scheduled for

December 13 , 2012, 4 PM to 7 PM, at the Holiday Inn Express Yreka

Note: Attendees would be expected to attend both the workshop and debrief meetings for either watershed workshops

• Expert Science Technical Team Made up of scientists and stakeholder ,

agricultural representatives and partners Sifts through all information gathered, as

well as existing information on which recommendations are based

Develops study plans

Overview of Process Upcoming Actions

• Web page www.normandeau.com/scottshasta

• Emailscottshasta@normandeau.com

Overview of Process

Milestones

• Orientation Meetings - November 2012• LIAM workshops- December 4 and 11, 2012 • LIAM summary meetings – December 6 and

13, 2012• Expert Science Technical Team – January to

April 2013• Study Plan Presentation – Spring 2013

Stakeholder Input Needed

• Anyone else we should be including?• Workshops – who signs up and how• Stakeholder committee• Expert Science Technical Team• Web site feedback loop• Email comments, questions

LIAM Meeting Sign-Up Webpagewww.normandeau.com/scottshasta/

Scott Watershed• LIAM Workshop Meeting for the Scott River watershed is scheduled for December

4, 2012, 9 AM to 4 PM, at the Fort Jones Community Center.• A LIAM Workshop Debrief and Presentation for the Scott River watershed is

December 6, 2012, 4 PM to 7 PM, at the Holiday Inn Express Yreka.

Shasta Watershed• LIAM Workshop Meeting for the Shasta River watershed is scheduled for

December 11, 2012, 9 AM to 4 PM, at the Holiday Inn Express Yreka.• A LIAM Workshop Debrief and Presentation for Shasta River is scheduled for

December 13 , 2012, 4 PM to 7 PM, at the Holiday Inn Express Yreka

Note: Attendees would be expected to attend both the workshop and debrief meetings for either watershed workshops

Questions?

Thank you!www.normandeau.com/scottshasta

Email questions and comments to scottshasta@normandeau.com