2022-10-24-minutes-public-works-study-session

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Gold Creek Bull Trout Bull trout were listed as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1998 and the entire eight miles of Gold Creek was recognized as critical habitat. Since 1984, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) have monitored bull trout in Gold Creek using spawning Tedd surveys. From 1984 to 2020, redds in Gold Creek ranged from 2 to 51 (Figure 6). Low numbers of spawners expose the population to extirpation from a single stochastic event (e.g. landslide, drought) that could eliminate the spawning run entirely. In the last five years (2016-2020), an average of 11 redds were observed, with 2 recorded in 2017. According to WDFW monitoring estimates, Gold Creek bull trout population consists of less than 50 spawners; a self-sustaining population needs at least 500 spawning adults. Although their abundance is low, Gold Creek bull trout numbers are relatively robust compared to other nearby populations. Gold Creek has been identified as a top priority for recovery of bull trout in the Upper Yakima River. Of the other populations in the Upper Yakima River, three are extirpated (Cie Elum, Teanaway, and Waptus) and the other two populations, Box Canyon and the Upper Kachess, have annual redds numbering less than 10. With such low numbers across the Upper Yakima River bull trout populations, limited gene flow between populations is a concern. In order to prevent Gold Creek's bull trout population from being extirpated, major ecological restoration needs to occur. Time is of the essence. Two recovery programs have been implemented to reduce the decline of bull trout in Gold Creek. Yakama Nation (YN), WDFW, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and Mid -Columbia Fisheries have partnered to implement a bull trout rescue -and -rear program. The program collects juveniles in the dewatering reach of Gold Creek during the summer, rears them over the winter at YN's La Salle hatchery, and then re -introduces them the following spring. Since 2019, 358 juveniles have been collected from Gold Creek, with over -winter survival at the hatchery increasing from 73% to 96%. Over the coming years, they expect to see these fish mature and return to Gold Creek to spawn. The second recovery method is USFWS' trap and haul program. A small percentage of bull trout are entrained at the Keechelus Dam and are unable to return to their natal stream to spawn due to a lack of fish passage facilities at the dam. During their migration, USFWS traps bull trout below the dam and transports them above the dam, which has been a successful operation as the transported bull trout have been observed spawning in Gold Creek multiple years in a row. Coupled together, the two recovery programs and the proposed habitat restoration actions provide a unique opportunity to reinvigorate Gold Creek bull trout. The rescue -and -rear program increases the number of potential spawners, the trap and haul program increases the number of spawners, and the habitat actions proposed here would increase the odds of spawning success once they arrive, in addition to providing habitat complexity for juvenile rearing. Restoration Actions Since 2012, Kittitas Conservation Trust (KCT) has been working with Natural Systems Designs to monitor and collect data in Gold Creek Valley for geomorphic, hydrologic, hydraulic, and habitat assessments to understand the current dewatering and habitat conditions in Gold Creek. Based on these assessments, four restorations actions have been developed to effectively restore natural flow and improve the instream habitat of Gold Creek: RM 1-2 instream restoration, RM 2-3 instream restoration, Gold Creek Pond restoration, and Hell's Pond restoration. These four restoration actions can happen concurrently or linearly, depending on the funding available. Fill from the instream work can be used to fill the ponds, limiting the transportation time and off-site materials needed, drastically reducing the total cost of implementation. 3