Fish Restoration Program Agreement Implementation Strategy for Habitat Restoration and Other Actions for Listed Delta Fish

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | March 6th, 2012

The Fish Restoration Program Agreement (FRPA) (Appendix A), between the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) and the Department of Water Resources (DWR), was signed on Octob

The Fish Restoration Program Agreement (FRPA) (Appendix A), between the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) and the Department of Water Resources (DWR), was signed on October 18, 2010. FRPA addresses specific habitat restoration requirements of the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) biological opinions (Biological Opinions) for State Water Project (SWP) and Central Valley Project (CVP) operations. FRPA is also intended to address the habitat requirements of the DFG Longfin Smelt Incidental Take Permit (ITP) for SWP Delta operations. The primary objective of the FRPA program is to implement the fish habitat restoration requirements and related actions of the Biological Opinions and the ITP in the Delta, Suisun Marsh, and Yolo Bypass and is focused on 8,000 acres of intertidal and associated subtidal habitat to benefit delta smelt, including 800 acres of mesohaline habitat to benefit longfin smelt, and a number of related actions for salmonids. DFG and DWR intend that habitat restoration actions implemented in compliance with the USFWS biological opinion that also meet the habitat restoration requirements of the ITP will operate to satisfy the acreage requirements of the ITP. The purpose of this Implementation Strategy is to describe the process by which DWR and DFG will implement the FRPA program, and to satisfy Section B of FRPA. Section B of FRPA requires DWR, with assistance from DFG, to develop an Implementation Schedule that will identify restoration actions, estimated costs, targeted acreage, and a timeline for DWR’s implementation of restoration actions to satisfy DWR’s obligations under the Biological Opinions and ITP. Appendix B lists the specific habitat restoration requirements of FRPA, the Biological Opinions, and the ITP that pertain to this program. This document lays out the strategy to address these requirements. In addition, DWR and DFG will complete the necessary environmental compliance documents to implement site specific habitat restoration projects; this may include tiering from existing programmatic documents where appropriate. Pursuant to FRPA, DFG will work cooperatively with and assist DWR in establishing the management and financial framework necessary to implement the FRPA program. DWR, with assistance from DFG, will begin a process to fund, plan, and implement actions, including aquatic habitat restoration to benefit delta smelt, longfin smelt, and winter-run and spring-run Chinook salmon (hereafter referred to as Covered Fish Species) to mitigate impacts to these species caused by the SWP Delta operations. Specifically, these actions include: • Delta Smelt Biological Opinion Reasonable and Prudent Alternative (RPA) Component 4; • NMFS Biological Opinion RPA Actions 1.2.6 and 1.6.2 in partnership with the US Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation); • NMFS Biological Opinion RPA Action Suite 1.6 and 1.7. FRPA will not be lead, but will provide funding and technical support assistance only; • ITP Condition 7. DWR’s obligations focus on delta smelt, longfin smelt, and winter-run and spring-run salmon, and may also benefit steelhead, sturgeon, and other native fish species.

Fish-Habitat Relationships Along the Estuarine Gradient of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, California: Implications for Habitat Restoration

Estuaries and Coasts (Springer) | June 6th, 2018

Estuaries are highly variable environments where fish are subjected to a diverse suite of habitat features (e.g., water quality gradients, physical structure) that filt

Estuaries are highly variable environments where fish are subjected to a diverse suite of habitat features (e.g., water quality gradients, physical structure) that filter local assemblages from a broader, regional species pool. Tidal, climatological, and oceanographic phenomena drive water quality gradients and, ultimately, expose individuals to other habitat features (e.g., stationary physical or biological elements, such as bathymetry or vegetation). Relationships between fish abundances, water quality gradients, and other habitat features in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta were examined as a case example to learn how habitat features serve as filters to structure local assemblages in large river-dominated estuaries. Fish communities were sampled in four tidal lakes along the estuarine gradient during summer-fall 2010 and 2011 and relationships with habitat features explored using ordination and generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs). Based on ordination results, landscape-level gradients in salinity, turbidity, and elevation were associated with distinct fish assemblages among tidal lakes. Native fishes were associated with increased salinity and turbidity, and decreased elevation. Within tidal lakes, GLMM results demonstrated that submersed aquatic vegetation density was the dominant driver of individual fish species densities. Both native and non-native species were associated with submersed aquatic vegetation, although native and non-native fish populations only minimally overlapped. These results help to provide a framework for predicting fish species assemblages in novel or changing habitats as they indicate that species assemblages are driven by a combination of location within the estuarine gradient and site-specific habitat features.

Fishes, Hydrology, and Ecology of the Klamath River Basin

National Academy of Sciences (NAS) | February 11th, 2008

The Klamath River basin in southern Oregon and northern California is the focus of a prominent conflict over competing uses for water in the American West. Management mea

The Klamath River basin in southern Oregon and northern California is the focus of a prominent conflict over competing uses for water in the American West. Management measures for the protection of threatened and endangered fish species in the basin that have left less water available for irrigation have increased tensions among farmers and other stakeholders and brought into question the scientific justification of these measures. Two National Research Council studies evaluate a series of federal scientific assessments and recommend scientifically justified approaches to the problem.

Flow Augmentations Modify an Estuarine Prey Field

University of California, Davis (UC Davis) | June 15th, 2023

Flow Recommendations to the State Water Resources Control Board

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) | May 22nd, 2008

Pursuant to Public Resouces Code (PRC) Section 10001, in the early 1980s, the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) in coordination with all regional DFG offices, identified

Pursuant to Public Resouces Code (PRC) Section 10001, in the early 1980s, the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) in coordination with all regional DFG offices, identified 21 streams and watercourses for which minimum flow levels needed to be established in order to assure the continued viability of stream-related fish and wildlife resources. Over approximately 20 years, DFG investigated the instream flow needs of these listed streams and watercourses.  The investigations included field studies, data analyses, and consultations with local, state, and federal agencies and interested individuals and organizations.  As a result of the investigations, DFG prepared instream flow recommendations for the listed streams. The attached transmittal summarizes the flow recommendations prepared by DFG pursuant to PRC 10000.  Submission of these recommendations to the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) complies with PRC Section 10002. As will be evident upon review, the attached flow recommendations are intended to supplement, but not replace, current administrative records.  The attached flow recommendations should not be implemented by the SWRCB without further investigation and consideration of supporting information that would identify constraints or limitations that qualify each recommendation. In addition, as noted on each recommendation, some studies were done many years ago using early methods.  DFG has established an administrative file in the Water Branch that contains the resource documents cited in the flow recommendations.

Flows and Fishes in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta

Delta Stewardship Council (Delta Council) | August 1st, 2015

Record-low counts of Delta smelt at a time of persistent drought underscore the importance and challenges of managing freshwater flows for the benefit of fishes in the Sa

Record-low counts of Delta smelt at a time of persistent drought underscore the importance and challenges of managing freshwater flows for the benefit of fishes in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta while also meeting human demands for water. Understanding the effects of water flows on fishes is central to understanding how the Delta ecosystem functions and is key to achieving the state’s coequal goals of “providing a more reliable water supply for California and protecting, restoring and enhancing the Delta ecosystem … in a manner that protects and enhances … the values of Delta as an evolving place”. The economic, ecological, and social costs of scientific uncertainty in water management controversies are significant - and to some degree unavoidable. Scientific findings that relate fishes and flows increasingly guide decisions on how to manage flows for the well-being of threatened or endangered species in the Delta. Many studies – and management decisions – rely on correlations between water flows and fish populations. But the decisions warrant fuller understanding of precisely how the flows affect the fishes. Knowledge of these underlying mechanisms is likely to facilitate adaptive management by clarifying uncertainty and risk, by creating specific expectations for outcomes and by strengthening testable hypotheses. This report therefore recommends, first and foremost (there are other recommendations as well), redoubling effects to identify causes and effects concerning fishes and flows in the Delta.

Flows and Fishes in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Research Needs in Support of Adaptive Management

Delta Stewardship Council (Delta Council) | August 15th, 2015

Food Web Fuel Differs Across Habitats and Seasons of a Tidal Freshwater Estuary

Estuaries and Coasts (Springer) | July 11th, 2020

Estuarine food webs are fueled by multiple different primary producers. However, identifying the relative importance of each producer to consumers is difficult, particula

Estuarine food webs are fueled by multiple different primary producers. However, identifying the relative importance of each producer to consumers is difficult, particularly for fishes that utilize multiple food sources due to both their mobility and their generally high trophic levels. Previous studies have documented broad spatial differences in the importance of primary producers to fishes within the Upper San Francisco Estuary, California, including separation between pelagic and littoral food webs. In this study, we evaluated the importance of primary producers to adult fishes in three closely spaced subregions that represented disparate habitat types (a tidal wetland channel, a turbid backwater channel, and a deep open-water channel), each a potential outcome of local restoration projects. Using stable isotope analysis coupled with a Bayesian mixing model, we identified significant differences in primary-producer contribution to fishes and invertebrates across habitats and seasons, especially in the relative contribution of submersed aquatic vegetation and phytoplankton. Most fishes utilized multiple primary producers and showed little segregation between pelagic and littoral food webs among habitats. Availability of primary producers differs seasonally and across multiple spatial scales, helping to buffer environmental variability and thus enhancing food web resilience. Ecosystem restoration may improve with emphasis on restoring a wide variety of primary producers to support consumers.

Fragmented kelp forest canopies retain their ability to alter local seawater chemistry

Nature Portfolio (Springer Nature) | July 20th, 2020

Kelp forests support some of the most productive and diverse ecosystems on Earth, and their ability to uptake dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) allows them to modify loca

Kelp forests support some of the most productive and diverse ecosystems on Earth, and their ability to uptake dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) allows them to modify local seawater chemistry, creating gradients in carbon, pH, and oxygen in their vicinity. By taking up both bicarbonate and CO2 as a carbon source for photosynthesis, kelp forests can act as carbon sinks, reducing nearby acidity and increasing dissolved oxygen; creating conditions conducive to calcification. Recent stressors, however, have reduced kelp forest canopies globally; converting once large and persistent forests to fragmented landscapes of small kelp patches. In a two-year study, we determined whether fragmented kelp patches retained the ability to alter local seawater chemistry. We found that diel fluctuations of multiple parameters of carbonate chemistry were greater in the kelp canopy than in the kelp benthos and in adjacent urchin barrens, consistent with metabolic activity by the kelp. Further, kelp fragments increased pH and aragonite saturation and decreased pCO 2 during the day to a similar degree as large, intact kelp forests. We conclude that small kelp patches could mitigate OA stress and serve as spatial and temporal refugia for canopy-dwelling organisms, though this effect is temporary and confined to daylight hours during the growing season.

Franks Tract Futures

Delta Stewardship Council (Delta Council) | April 26th, 2022