Public Meetings Begin

The first meetings have been held and we had great turnouts for both. I have tried to summarize some of the main items discussed. If I missed anything, please comment here and I will incorporate that information into our notes.

Derek Risso, with Ecosystem Sciences, began by presenting four maps to illustrate the changes in the area in the past sixty years. These were 1946 aerial photos aligned with 2009 aerials.

His observations included: there are many places where the stream has been straightened and oxbows have disappeared; there is a clear increase in agriculture and increased segmentation (and reduction) of wetlands. There were some areas where riparian cover has been reduced and others where it has increased. There are many more ponds. He was quick to state, however, that these changes are not unique to Silver Creek--we see these changes everywhere in the west. He also wanted to make sure we understood that the aerial photos are just that—photos. They are a snapshot in time and are a way to start the conversation, not a tool to draw final conclusions.

In Picabo, Mark (ESF) posed the questions, ”Where do you think the sediment is coming from?”, and ”How can be best address temperature in your opinion?”. Answers varied. Here were a few thoughts:

● Most of the sediment was remnant from early years of grazing mis-management and it just has not moved,
● The inputs today are minimal with the exception of runoff events (such as the flood in 2006),
● Some sediment comes from the die off of the aquatic vegetation in the winter.

Other issues that came up from the sediment discussion were that the sediment was the main contributing factor to the degradation. Moving sediment through the system is not as easy as it sounds, and neither is pulling it out. The sediment load does move, but not very quickly, and it has completely changed the cross section of the channel.

At both of the meetings, Bill Platts did an amazing job of explaining the Silver Creek system and why this project is different from other projects he has worked on. First, it is a unique system—there is not another one like it and therefore, in order to really enhance it we need to know: 1.) what it was at genesis, 2.) what it is now, and 3.) what it wants to be. This is key, I think—what does it want to be? What can it be? What is its potential? Well, hopefully we will get one step closer to understanding!

ESF was also very clear that this is a different project in that most of the enhancement projects they work on they are starting with very little. They used the example of the Owens River, for instance, where no water was even left in some of the tributaries. When the situation is that bad, you have only got one place to go- better! At Silver Creek, we are starting with a pretty darn good system. It is incredibly productive. So, here, they want to ensure they ”do no harm”’.

”Do no harm” ties directly into the question that was raised, “What is the purpose of this whole project?“ and ‘Will The Nature Conservancy follow through on their own property with enhancements?“ The idea is that enhancement projects are prioritized—the areas in most need of enhancement and the areas where we will get the best return on investment will be identified. We will be looking at the Preserve and are prepared to implement enhancement projects that are priorities on the preserve. But we want to be thoughtful about them--and that is why we are looking at the whole watershed, not just the Preserve. We need to make sure what we do on our property does not have a negative impact downstream and what is happening above us does not negatively impact us.

Some other great questions that came up were:
What if the priorities are not fixable (for instance, a landowner does not want to do anything)? Mark’s answer to this was that we will do what we can and we will be patient. If we can’t fix it today, then we will work on what we can fix and wait for a future opportunity to fix the other priority.

What about the bigger picture issues such as land use in the valley? This plan will not be the plan that the county needs to deal with upcoming issues such as conjunctive water management and changing land uses. However, it will serve as a model for how to do a watershed plan, give the county guidance, and be a tool for them as they look at policy and larger future changes. Bill said several times that - every aquifer has a threshold of how much water can be taken out of it. We have lost aquifers all over the country because of overuse. We need to know our threshold here and not pass it. It is not uncommon for spring creeks to completely dry up within 10-15 years when the threshold of use has been passed. We need to ensure that this never happens at Silver Creek!!