https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9S81Gfl4ak
2013
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Fall Chinook doing their thing in the Shasta is amazing. This video was made during a banner return year (2012), the returns have bounced all over since; last year’s return was a mere 20% of 2012.
Fall Chinook fry bail from the Shasta for the sea before irrigation season begins and the water quality declines into the fatal for salmon range; this dynamic more than any restoration effort has allowed Fall Chinook to persevere.
Shasta restoration is a key part of Klamath recovery because its year round glacial springs offer potential (and historical) productivity far beyond any other Klamath tributary. The Shasta restored is potentially a natural Klamath mega hatchery.
For us Steelheaders the plight of Shasta Coho offers a more complete picture of Shasta River water conditions and restoration success. Both Steelhead and Coho need 18 months to grow in the Shasta before they can survive the journey to the sea. Tragically, water conditions in the Shasta, due to agricultural over allocation and pasture wastewater, kill most of the Steelhead and Coho babies before they grow big enough to leave for the ocean. Coho returns since this video document a continuing collapse in the Shasta: the 33 that returned to spawn in 2019 represents extinction. Steelhead returns are also very poor.
Guaranteed flow from Dwinnell Dam, which currently captures and diverts all the spring/summer mountain runoff into irrigation canals, is essential for recovery. The glacial springs that make the Shasta such potentially and historically ideal salmon habitat need help too. Most springs are dammed at the source into irrigation ponds and run through multiple pastures before the water reaches the river as warm sewage unfit for anything but more irrigation.
CalTrout’s work at the former Nature Conservancy property (now owned by CADFW) is one very small piece of the Shasta recovery puzzle; even that now may be in jeopardy. CADFW now owns that property and has stated its intention to continue grazing leases and has proposed a resumption of streamside “flash” grazing for “vegetation management”. Considering the entire Shasta Valley is devoted to agriculture why do state lands essential for salmon recovery need to be anything but a dedicated salmon refuge?
The collaborative approach (notice most videos show idyllic scenes of cows and horses) aimed at forging agreements with ag have failed to create fish friendly Shasta River conditions; the proof is in the collapsed Coho and Steelhead returns. Mandated flow and enforced water temperature standards need teeth before the Shasta recovers into the year round fish rookery habitat it once was. Litigation, similar to that which led to guaranteed water for Putah Creek, may be the only way to motivate ag users into sharing precious water with our fish friends.
Andy Marx
Andy -
You are very knowledgeable. Thanks for writing that. I saw a presentation at the Davis Fly Fishers a few years ago on the Shasta. Seems like there is a solution that would work for fish and the ag landowners. It could take a lawsuit to get something done.
I am excited that there is lots of tributary work going on today.
Will be exciting to witness the dam removals on the Klamath river.
It would be wonderful if we could get the Silver saloon numbers up in California.
I guess they were in many smaller. shorter coastal rivers 100 years ago.
The Shasta is in my backyard and I have fished it for many years. Andy is spot on about the fall Chinook/King salmon being relatively unaffected by agricultural water use. The Shasta River Coho/Silver salmon have been on the brink for many years. Summer habitat has improved incrementally but one has to wonder if that's enough.
The Shasta River rainbow trout (RBT) population is actually quite healthy and displays at least four or five different life history strategies including running to the ocean. There are fewer steelhead due in part that the watershed being much smaller (compared to the Scott and Salmon). Another potential factor to consider is that there's a robust resident trout population in the upper river that steelhead frequently interbreed with. A CDFW fisheries scientist (Chris Adams) learned quite a bit about RBT's while he was working on monitoring juvenile coho movements in the upper watershed.
Finally, restoration totaling into the millions of dollars has been spent in the past 25 years primarily on irrigation dam removal and riparian fencing along with the Shasta Big Springs Ranch acquisition. CDFW is currently in the process of restoring Little Springs Creek, a spring fed tributary which for over 120 years was used for irrigation. The creek now provides cold water habitat for juvenile Coho, Chinook and RBT's.
While things do remain somewhat tenuous for anadromous fish in the Shasta (especially coho), I would not be concerned about continued grazing on Shasta Big Springs Ranch. My understanding is that grazing will occur in the dry land sites and if done properly, can provide tremendous habitat benefits. TNC utilized water (in a fish friendly manner) to manage a commercial grazing operation which is now dedicated in stream for fish. The aforementioned Little Springs Creek was actually dewatered for irrigation by TNC for a number of years before CDFW found fish (including juvenile coho). In TNC's defense, they thought a lava ridge provided an impassable fish barrier. As it turned out - fish figured out how to get around it - amazing! Thank goodness CalTrout, TNC, state and federal agencies and private landowners continue to work on improving this amazing watershed for fish!
Thanks for sharing all this information guys! I too am really excited at the prospects with the Klamath dams coming down, coupled with habitat restoration work. I’m not holding my breath on Coho recovery, but that would be just amazing to see here in California (again).
Bob I agree with, "Thank goodness CalTrout, TNC, state and federal agencies and private landowners continue to work on improving this amazing watershed for fish!" Pre Dwinnell the Shasta saw an estimated 2000 steelhead return to spawn, a recent count I saw was 200; I believe we can do better.
The instream flow dedication by TNC is a great step. There needs to be some guarantee fish get the benefit from those who selflessly sacrifice a portion of a water right for fish. Currently the dedicated flow is available to the next downstream riparian pumper and the middle Shasta is the dead zone that needs constant flow to improve. Most summers involve period where the Shasta's flows crash into dewatered range.
I'm advocating for mandated flows from Dwinnell Dam and fish passage for access to the upper watershed. I also believe the water quality waivers for dissolved oxygen and temperature have gone on for too long and those standards need to mean something for the sake of the fish.
Andy
Andy, I can easily envision a run of 2000 or more adult steelhead prior to Dwinnell, especially utilizing the spawning and summer rearing habitat in the upper Shasta River and Parks Creek. Something else is going on with RBT's in the Shasta as the lower river is at times plugged with juveniles, some which are obviously well into the becoming smolts and quite large (2 plus years old). I have never figured out why these fish haven't translated to more adult steelhead. The lower Shasta summer dead zone comes alive during the fall and winter months and fish move down (from the upper watershed) and up from the Klamath to forage on bugs and presumably chinook alevins. The last I heard, Chris Adams was still analyzing data he collected while working on the coho project. He's busy with Lake Superior brook trout so it may be awhile before he publishes something, if ever.
I applaud you for advocating dedicated flows along with fish passage - both lofty goals... especially if the agricultural community is going to be kept whole. The balance between fish and water needs has always been a precarious one, especially in California and particularly in the Klamath Watershed. There's been tremendous improvement throughout, but as you point out, there is still so much left to do.