Will Tidal Wetland Restoration Enhance Populations of Native Fishes?

University of California, Davis (UC Davis) | July 31st, 2003

Restoration of tidal wetlands might enhance populations of native fishes in the San Francisco Estuary of California. The purpose of this paper is to: (1) review the curre

Restoration of tidal wetlands might enhance populations of native fishes in the San Francisco Estuary of California. The purpose of this paper is to: (1) review the currently available information regarding the importance of tidal wetlands to native fishes in the San Francisco Estuary, (2) construct conceptual models on the basis of available information, (3) identify key areas of scientific uncertainty, and (4) identify methods to improve conceptual models and reduce uncertainty. There are few quantitative data to suggest that restoration of tidal wetlands will substantially increase populations of native fishes. On a qualitative basis, there is some support for the idea that tidal wetland restoration will increase populations of some native fishes; however, the species deriving the most benefit from restoration might not be of great management concern at present. Invasion of the San Francisco Estuary by alien plants and animals appears to be a major factor in obscuring the expected link between tidal wetlands and native fishes. Large-scale adaptive management experiments (>100 hectares) appear to be the best available option for determining whether tidal wetlands will provide significant benefit to native fishes. Even if these experiments are unsuccessful at increasing native fish populations, the restored wetlands should benefit native birds, plants, and other organisms.

Winnemem Wintu Salmon Restoration Plan for the McCloud River

Winnemem Wintu | February 1st, 2016

The National Marine Fisheries Service 2009 Biological Opinion for salmon specifically calls out for volition passage alternatives to be investigated and considered. [The

The National Marine Fisheries Service 2009 Biological Opinion for salmon specifically calls out for volition passage alternatives to be investigated and considered. [The Winnemem Wintu] have not seen any real evidence that the Pilot Project is even considering this option. Fortunately, the Winnemem Wintu Tribe has a solution to the above, a full repatriation and restoration of the Salmon to the McCloud River, their Spiritual and Cultural home. It is those Spiritual and Cultural ties and beliefs that have sustained us thus far, and will continue to sustain us as we bring our NUR (Salmon) back home. We therefore request that the following Spiritual, Cultural and Practical Fish Restoration Plan be included in the Pilot Project Plan and submitted out for public comment and consideration.

Workshop on Delta Outflows and Related Stressors Panel Summary Report

Delta Stewardship Council (Delta Council) | May 15th, 2014

This report was prepared as part of the State Water Resources Control Board’s (“Board”) process of developing and implementing updates to the Bay-Delta Plan and flo

This report was prepared as part of the State Water Resources Control Board’s (“Board”) process of developing and implementing updates to the Bay-Delta Plan and flow objectives to protect beneficial uses in the Bay-Delta Watershed. The focus of this report is Delta outflows and related stressors. The report is based upon reading extensive background materials selected by the Delta Science Program as well as materials identified by individual Panel members to be relevant, a two-day public meeting that included a number of presentations and during which public comments were received by the Panel, review of some of the materials provided during and after the meeting, and the Panel’s internal discussion and deliberations. The Board conducted a review of the current 2006 Bay-Delta Plan in 2009 and determined that Delta outflows and other requirements for the protection of fish and wildlife beneficial uses should be considered for revision. “Delta Outflows and Related Stressors” was further identified by the Delta Science Program as one of four topics emerging from a series of Board workshops in 2012 for which additional workshops should be conducted to provide input on the best available scientific information. Delta outflows and their management have been the subject of extensive scientific and management discussion for decades. A benchmark in this discourse is the report from a series of technical workshops facilitated by Dr. Jerry Schubel (Schubel et al. 1993). Schubel notes in the preface to that report that estuarine standards are required to protect the estuarine ecosystem from “further degradation” until “debate and disagreement over the relative importance of the benefits of low salinity habitat and therefore of flow, on the one hand, and of the liabilities of the physical diversion of a portion of that flow and the associated processes of entrainment of organisms, on the other,” can be resolved with a degree of scientific certainty acceptable to the Board. To some extent, this Panel has been asked to revisit whether standards for Delta outflow are still required, and to identify the degree of scientific certainty regarding the importance of Delta outflow to the ecosystem relative to other stressors.

Workshop on the Interior Delta Flows And Related Stressors Panel Summary Report

Delta Stewardship Council (Delta Council) | August 6th, 2014

On April 16 and 17, 2014, the Delta Science Program convened an expert Panel (the Panel) and a workshop to identify the best available science to inform the State Water R

On April 16 and 17, 2014, the Delta Science Program convened an expert Panel (the Panel) and a workshop to identify the best available science to inform the State Water Resources Control Board’s (the Board) decisions regarding interior Delta flow requirements to protect beneficial uses of water in the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Estuary (Bay-Delta Plan). This workshop and others were convened to provide advice to the Board on issues important to updating the 2006 Bay Delta Plan. At the workshop, the Panel (consisting of the authors of this report) heard presentations from a variety of experts on Delta flows and on species and ecological responses to flow. The Panel was also provided with a selection of scientific reports relevant to the effects of interior Delta flows on fish and their environment in the Delta. This report is informed by both the written and oral information provided to the Panel as well as by other publications that the Panel felt were necessary to satisfy its charge.  The Panel did not make a thorough independent search of the literature on the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to determine if there were additional publications that were relevant to its charge. In this report we summarize what is known about the direct and indirect relationships between interior Delta flows and listed fish species. We then use this knowledge to address a set of specific questions posed by the Delta Science Program and the Board.

Yolo Bypass Juvenile Salmon Utilization Study 2016— Summary of Acoustically Tagged Juvenile Salmon and Study Fish Releases, Sacramento River, California

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | September 12th, 2017

The Yolo Bypass is a flood control bypass in Sacramento Valley, California. Flood plain habitats may be used for juvenile salmon rearing, however, the potential value of

The Yolo Bypass is a flood control bypass in Sacramento Valley, California. Flood plain habitats may be used for juvenile salmon rearing, however, the potential value of such habitats can be difficult to evaluate because of the intermittent nature of inundation events. The Yolo Bypass Juvenile Salmon Utilization Study (YBUS) used acoustic telemetry to evaluate the movements and survival of juvenile salmon adjacent to and within the Yolo Bypass during the winter of 2016. This report presents numbers, size data, and release data (times, dates, and locations) for the 1,197 acoustically tagged juvenile salmon released for the YBUS from February 21 to March 18, 2016. Detailed descriptions of the surgical implantation of transmitters are also presented. These data are presented to support the collaborative, interagency analysis and reporting of the study findings.

Yolo Bypass Salmon Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Analytical Tool Review

Delta Stewardship Council (Delta Council) | October 1st, 2017

NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) have issued a Biological Opinion (BiOp) on the long-term operat

NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) have issued a Biological Opinion (BiOp) on the long-term operations of the Central Valley Project (CVP) and State Water Project (SWP) that includes Reasonable and Prudent Alternatives (RPA) designed to alleviate jeopardy to listed species and adverse modification of critical habitat. NMFS’ RPA requires the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) to increase juvenile flood plain rearing habitat and improve adult fish passage for ESA-listed salmonids and sturgeon. The BiOp requires seventy-three (73) habitat restoration actions, five of which are specific to the Yolo Bypass. The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and Reclamation have developed project alternatives for the Draft Yolo Bypass Fish Passage and Habitat Restoration EIS/EIR focused on the following two Yolo Bypass actions, which are the subject of this review:  - Increase seasonal floodplain inundation in the lower Sacramento River Basin  - Improve fish passage throughout the Yolo Bypass Alternatives The alternatives developed to address these two actions consist of a notch in the Fremont Weir, with alternative locations and configurations (width and weir-crest elevations), designed to increase the frequency and duration of hydraulic connectivity between the main-stem Sacramento River and the Yolo Bypass and to improve fish passage. Six alternative locations / configurations for a notch were identified.

Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Final Environmental Impact Statement / Environmental Impact Report (Chapters 1-8)

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | May 1st, 2019

The Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Project (Project) has been developed to improve fish passage and increase floodplain fisheries rearing habit

The Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Project (Project) has been developed to improve fish passage and increase floodplain fisheries rearing habitat in the Yolo Bypass and the lower Sacramento River basin. The United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), as the Federal lead agency under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), as the State of California (State) lead agency under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), have prepared this joint Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) to assess impacts of the Project. The Project actions would implement Reasonable and Prudent Alternative (RPA) action I.6.1 and, in part, RPA action I.7, as described in the 2009 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Biological Opinion and Conference Opinion on the Long-Term Operations of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project and the 2012 Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Implementation Plan (Reclamation and DWR 2012).  Authority for combined Federal and State documents is provided in Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Sections 1502.25, 1506.2, and 1506.4 (Council on Environmental Quality’s Regulations for Implementing NEPA [CEQ Regulations]) and California Code of Regulations (CCR) Title 14, Division 6, Chapter 3 (State CEQA Guidelines), Section 15222 (Preparation of Joint Documents). This document was prepared consistent with United States Department of the Interior regulations specified in 43 CFR, Part 46 (United States Department of the Interior Implementation of NEPA, Final Rule).  This EIS/EIR evaluates reasonably foreseeable potential direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts on the environment that could result from implementing the Project alternatives. In addition, this EIS/EIR includes feasible mitigation measures to avoid, minimize, rectify, reduce, or compensate for adverse impacts. 

Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Final Environmental Impact Statement / Environmental Impact Report (Chapters 9-12)

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | May 1st, 2019

Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Final Environmental Impact Statement / Environmental Impact Report (Executive Summary)

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | May 1st, 2019

The Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Project (Project) Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) addresses methods to

The Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Project (Project) Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) addresses methods to improve fish passage and increase floodplain fisheries rearing habitat in the Yolo Bypass to benefit Sacramento River winter-run Chinook salmon, Central Valley spring-run Chinook salmon, Central Valley steelhead, and Southern Distinct Population Segment of North American green sturgeon. The Project actions would implement Reasonable and Prudent Alternative actions I.6.1 and I.7, as described in the 2009 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Marine Fisheries Service Biological Opinion and Conference Opinion on the Long-Term Operations of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project and the 2012 Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Implementation Plan.  This EIS/EIR has been prepared according to requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act and the California Environmental Quality Act. Direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts resulting from the project alternatives on the environment of the region are evaluated.  Full document files: Chapters 1-8 Chapters 9-12 Chapters 13-26 Appendices and drafts

Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Implementation Plan

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | September 21st, 2012

Significant modifications have been made to the historic floodplain of California‘s Central Valley for water supply and flood damage reduction purposes. The resulting l

Significant modifications have been made to the historic floodplain of California‘s Central Valley for water supply and flood damage reduction purposes. The resulting losses of rearing habitat, migration corridors, and food web production for fish have significantly hindered native fish species that rely on floodplain habitat during part or all of their life history. The Yolo Bypass (Bypass), which currently experiences at least some flooding in approximately 80% of years, still retains many characteristics of the historic floodplain habitat that are favorable to various fish species. In approximately 70% of years, Fremont Weir overtops, joining flows from western tributaries. In approximately 10% of years, localized flooding is due to western tributary contributions only (DWR 2008, Woodland gauge, unpublished analysis). The primary function of the Bypass is flood damage reduction, with most of it also managed as agricultural land. The Bypass has also been identified by several State and federal entities as a potential site for habitat restoration to ease pressure on and increase benefits to threatened and endangered fish species. On June 4, 2009, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) issued its Biological Opinion and Conference Opinion on the Long-term Operation of the Central Valley Project (CVP) and State Water Project (SWP) (NMFS Operation BO). The NMFS Operation BO concluded that, if left unchanged, CVP and SWP operations were likely to jeopardize the continued existence of four federally- listed anadromous fish species: Sacramento River winter-run Chinook salmon, Central Valley spring-run Chinook salmon, California Central Valley steelhead, and Southern Distinct Population Segment (DPS) North American green sturgeon. The NMFS Operation BO sets forth Reasonable and Prudent Alternative (RPA) actions that would allow continuing SWP and CVP operations to remain in compliance with the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). This Yolo Bypass Salmonid Habitat Restoration and Fish Passage Draft Implementation Plan (Implementation Plan) was prepared jointly by the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) to address two specific RPA Actions set forth in the NMFS Operation BO: RPA Action I.6.1: Restoration of Floodplain Rearing Habitat, through the increase of seasonal inundation within the lower Sacramento River basin; and RPA Action I.7: Reduce Migratory Delays and Loss of Salmon, Steelhead, and Sturgeon, through the modification of Fremont Weir and other structures of the Yolo Bypass. As mandated by the NMFS Operation BO, this Implementation Plan describes the activities, process, and timeline required to implement actions to address the requirements of RPA Actions I.6.1 and I.7. Major California restoration planning efforts over several decades (e.g., CALFED, the Bay Delta Conservation Plan) have focused on the Yolo Bypass as a prime area of the Sacramento Valley for enhancement of seasonal floodplain rearing habitat. The Yolo Bypass is generally seen as one of the best places in the lower Sacramento River Basin on which to focus implementation resources in order to achieve implementation of floodplain enhancements because of these efforts. Some of the technical foundation for these efforts has been well laid and interaction with stakeholders and local property owners has been initiated and is on-going. Implementation procedures related to RPA Action I.6.1 within the NMFS Operation BO specify that this Implementation Plan include an evaluation of options to "increase aquatic inundation of publicly and privately owned suitable acreage within the Yolo Bypass." Therefore, this Implementation Plan focuses on restoration of floodplain rearing habitat within the Yolo Bypass to address RPA Action I.6.1. However, the planning and environmental compliance process will consider a reasonable range of alternatives for implementing this RPA action. Additional discussion regarding the availability and suitability of areas for seasonal floodplain inundation is provided in Section 6: Proposals to Refine the RPA Actions.