Water Modeling

Amazing how cold it can be at the end of April at Silver Creek! The wind cuts through clothing like nothing. And this is the week that Maria Loinaz scheduled to come to the valley and install monitoring devices for her pHd studies!

Originally from Puerto Rico, she is doing her pHd research in Denmark focusing on groundwater and surface water modeling. She chose the Wood River Valley as a research location because of the unique nature of the area—the groundwater and surface water are closely tied together, it is a world class fly fishing destination, and there are environmental stressors effecting the system (in particular sediments, nutrients, and temperature). There have been models of the Wood River water system done before but the unique thing about Maria’s is that she is coupling the water model with an ecological model. She will be able to see how changes to the system (such as temperature, land use changes, etc) will affect the ecosystem and specific habitats.

Stay posted!

The Meetings continue

I enjoyed two great meetings this week and look forward to the last one of this series tonight. These meetings are open houses and meant to be forums for discussion. So far, we have talked more about silt and added a few topics--- for instance, shoudl the tributaries be managed differently than the main stem of Silver Creek?

Ecosystem Sciences Foundation has been knee deep in data and studies, and also knee deep in Silver Creek. Some of their VERY PRELIMINARY observations and discussion topics are as follows:

• The majority of sediment deposits in Silver and most tributary streams are “legacy” sediments from the early years of livestock grazing. Relatively recent studies seem to confirm this and that a sediment balance has been reached in Silver Creek in that the annual sediment inputs may equal the annual sediment exports.
• Current sediment sources occur during spring runoff from agriculture fields adjacent to streams that are not adequately buffered with riparian vegetation. Other sediment sources such as airborne (losses during tilling), bank erosion, muskrat activity, etc., are far less significant than the overland runoff.
• The average and minimum annual summer temperatures in Silver Creek are well below threshold temperatures for all trout life stages. Maximum summer temperature, generally at dusk, are high yet still below the threshold temperature for trout. Rapid temperature decline beginning at night fall ameliorates adverse affects on trout. In fact studies show substantial trout feeding activity at night.
• Neither temperatures nor sediments are currently having an adverse affect on Silver Creek trout populations; however, there is small margin for additional temperature increases or sediment deposition before a “tipping point” is reached in which trout numbers, recruitment and growth are adversely affected.

These are discussion topics only as ESF may revise them based on further investigation!!! Stay posted!

For the meetings in May, we can look forward to seeing these maps:
• Watershed Map: Basic map of what area will be included as
the “ecosystem”
• River-Tributary Map: Bellevue triangle including Big and Little Wood river connections
• Groundwater: Basic local of the aquifer(s) in triangle and major wells
• Land Use: Color coded for ag, rural, urban, preserve, etc
• Irrigation System: Use hydro graphics to map major canals and diversions
• Landform and Vegetation: riparian, etc
• Fish Habitat: Pools, riffles, runs
• Sediment Inputs: Using info from Goodman and Griffith/Minshall studies
• Sediment Deposition: Major sites of deposition in Loving, Silver
• Thermal Conditions: Using thermal imagery, temp data from data loggers)
• Steam Widening 1946 overlay on 2009 (with quantification)
• Buffer Zones: areas where ag land and tributary interface are or are not adequately buffered
• Stream Restoration: Map restoration projects as length of stream to illustrate connectivity and isolation
• Priority Areas: sediment input, channel overwidening, diversions/backwater, ponds, deposition zones, thermal loading, etc


What do we need now???
Your comments and old photos! Please use get us your comments, thoughts, photos, and information as soon as possible.
Thank you and hope to see you tonight at the Nature Conservancy office in Hailey at 116 1st ave. north, 5:30 pm.
Dayna

Restoration and Values

Brown trout photo by Paddy McIlvoy

To restore, or not to restore.
To enhance, or not to enhance.
These are the questions...

As we gather information from people around the area, I am amazed at how much we all want generally the same thing for Silver Creek--- for it to be a healthy, resilient, functioning, amazing place for future generations to enjoy as we have. It seems we all have a little different way of getting there, and where we focus our energy may be different, but the end goal appears to be very much the same.

We all value things uniquely no doubt. Values are difficult to quantify and interpret, but realizing the diverse environmental philosophies can tell us a lot about the values people hold regarding nature and restoration and how receptive they will be to changes (or to no changes!). Erik Katz (2000), a noted critic of restoration, frames the philosophical questions of restoration:

"Why is the restoration and management of nature a philosophical issue?
Why, indeed, should any environmental policy be a matter of concern for philosophers? The obvious reason is that any human activity is subject
to ethical analysis and justification—we need to see what values are promoted
or retarded by particular policies. But even more basic than the ethical
analysis is the philosophical search for meaning. What is the essential
character of a given human activity? What does it mean to say that we humans
are restoring natural ecosystems? What are we doing when we restore the
natural world? In asking these questions, I am not seeking a detailed description
of the science and technology of the restoration process—I am seeking the
philosophical meaning of the restoration of nature" (37).

These philosophical questions require us to question our relationship to nature when we attempt to restore it.

In posting this blog, I hope to be a little provocative-- we want to hear everything. What do you value about Silver Creek? What would you like to see inhe future? All of your comments are welcome and encouraged!

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!!

Meet Ecosystem Sciences

Meet Ecosystem Sciences
How ever it is described - restoration, rehabilitation, enhancement or recovery – the transformation of ecosystems from degraded conditions to functionality is a new, exciting and evolving field of knowledge. It is the amalgamation of ecology, biology, sociology, planning, architecture, and natural resource management. Advances in high tech tools like Geographic Information Systems provide platforms for usually desperate professions to form interactive teams. Ecosystem degradation is no longer addressed through isolated parts, but can now be approached wholistically. Nor is ecosystem restoration just a non-urban application. City landscapes are as integral to the whole ecosystem as are undeveloped or rural areas. Our organization, Ecosystem Sciences, is fortunate to have had opportunities that have placed us in the forefront of this evolving science, and allowed us to make significant and seminal contributions.

Ecosystem Sciences was formed over 15 years ago in response to the need to restore the Owens River Valley ecosystem in California. Although little was known at that time about how to reconnect uplands with bottomlands to restore riparian and river ecosystems to functional conditions, we learned early on that many fields of knowledge would be needed to achieve success. Perhaps the number one lesson learned in those early days was to focus on eliminating the causes of degradation not just treat symptoms. We learned that interventions within stream channels are relatively short-lived without interventions in land and water management that permanently remove the perturbations. Restoration of river, riparian, range and upland ecosystems throughout the Eastern Sierras grew into the largest ecosystem restoration effort outside of the Everglades. The project is on-going, we are still learning, and we have applied the scientific and technical advances gained to other ecosystem projects in western USA and internationally.

When Ecosystem Sciences was first formed, we recognized that technology transfer of what we were learning would be especially important in developing countries where the struggle toward sustainability and resource restoration is monumental. Relying on our many years of experience working in developing countries through the World Bank, USAID, and other international organizations, we also formed Ecosystem Sciences Foundation, a non-profit (501c3) arm of the firm, to advance technology transfer and assist other non-profits with comparable missions. Since then we have established a foundation office in Mexico where we have won an environmental award for our projects to improve water resources at the village level. We have established partnerships with the Overbrook and Tinker Foundations to sustain our Mexico programs. In Idaho, the Foundation has worked to provide scientific support for the listing of Big Lost River mountain whitefish as a threatened or endangered species. We developed an urban ecology design manual for the Treasure Valley to include Boise and other municipalities along the Boise River corridor, which won both regional and national awards from the American Society of Landscape Architects. Working with The Nature Conservancy on Silver and Loving creek is a natural fit between our mission and TNC’s mission. Our Foundation is self-endowed with monthly contributions from employees and monthly and annual contributions from Ecosystem Sciences.

Ecosystem Sciences Foundation team for the Silver-Loving creeks project will be led by myself (Mark Hill) and Bill Platts. Bill is undoubtedly Idaho’s most distinguished environmental scientist. He has studied, fished, or hunted more Idaho watersheds and streams than anyone alive. At his retirement from the US Forest Service in 1988, Bill was Chief of Research for the Intermountain West. He has written more research papers on riparian and river ecosystems and fisheries than any other American scientist, and is a recipient of the Earl Childs Award from Oregon’s High Desert Museum as well as numerous other awards and honors over his long career. Bill and I have worked together since his retirement and he has been my mentor, inspiration and teacher for over 20 years. I like to paraphrase Mark Twain when asked the difference between me and Bill; I say Platts knows everything there is to know and I know the rest.

While doing doctoral studies in 1978 one of my professors from Michigan State University called and asked if I would take on a research assignment in Bangladesh. The World Bank was initiating its First Fisheries Development Project and needed a young scientist who wouldn’t mind a lot of privation for little pay. Sounded like just the job for me. This lead to a 10-year career with the World Bank that gave me opportunities to work on some of the world’s largest river systems and most complex environmental issues in Asia and Africa. My most memorable professional experience came many years after leaving the World Bank. The Mekong River Commission asked me to write a detailed report on the ecology of the Mekong River and its fisheries from Burma to the South China Sea. The exploration took 3 months and I was the first scientist to go to places in Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam since the war ended and describe the river and its aquatic resources. I was further honored by the Cosmos Club (founded by John Wesley Powell) in Washington, D.C. to present a paper on my findings and discoveries.

In addition to Bill and I, the work on Silver Creek will include our core team members who each have over 15 years of experience with river ecosystems and restoration. Tim Maguire, Zach Hill, and Shannon Campbell are currently working on a large project for the UN and the United Arab Emirates developing an atlas of how environmental changes have occurred and affected water resources in 22 Arab countries. In order to meet the challenges of this project, we have the latest equipment and computer systems for GIS and analysis of remote imagery, which we will apply to Silver and Loving creeks. Derek Risso, along with Bill and I, is involved in a Habitat Conservation Plan for several threatened and endangered species including the Greater Sage Grouse and two native fish species. We augment or team with associates from universities in Idaho and Oregon to meet special expertise needs and assist with other elements of our projects.

For anyone who is interested in learning more about Ecosystem Sciences and Ecosystem Sciences Foundation please visit our web site (www.ecosystemsciences.com) where you can get details on all of our projects and credentials of our team members.

Thursday is the first Silver Creek Public Meeting!

We are looking forward to the first public input session this Thursday! It will be casual—a way to meet the consultants, voice your concerns or comments, and hear about the project approach. They will be talking about changes in the watershed over the past sixty years illustrated with images of 1946 aerials photos overlaid with 2009 aerials. If you have not had a chance to see the 1946 aerials- check them out at http://www.sscmapping.com/, they are pretty amazing!

The meetings this week will be held at the Picabo store at noon and the Hailey office at 3:30 pm (116 1st ave. N.) and will be the same format, so don’t feel like you need to come to both.

See you soon!