BPA Fish and Wildlife FY 1997 Proposal

Section 1. Administrative
Section 2. Narrative
Section 3. Budget

see CBFWA and BPA funding recommendations

Section 1. Administrative

Title of project
North Fork John Day Area Riparian Fencing

BPA project number   9303800

Business name of agency, institution or organization requesting funding
USFS

Sponsor type   OR-Federal Agency

Proposal contact person or principal investigator

BPA technical contact   Andy Thoms, EWP 503/230-5827

Biological opinion ID   None

NWPPC Program number   3.1D.1, 7.6B.5

Short description
Resetting and construction of seasonal electric fence and construction of barb wire exclosure fence.

Project start year   1993    End year   

Start of operation and/or maintenance   2001

Project development phase   Implementation

Section 2. Narrative

Related projects
Funds from Project 84-008-00 North Fork John Day Anadromous Fish Habitat were transferred to this project.

Project history
The project was proposed in 1993 to determine if seasonal electric fence would make effective livestock exclosures for riparian protection. The technique has proven effective and the project has expanded in scope.

Biological results achieved
Project monitoring has shown that electric fence at remote locations can be effective livestock exclosures. Water temperature, photo point, and fish observational monitoring is being conducted to document the effects of plant community and aquatic habitat recovery.

Annual reports and technical papers
Progress reports are due bi-monthly and Opac billings are due quarterly.

Management implications
Since 1993, approximately 76 miles of seasonal electric fence has been constructed to protect an estimated 60 miles of riparian habitat. Monitoring results from 1994 have documented a 98% effectiveness in excluding livestock from riparian areas. The riparian fence allows management the flexibility to protect multiple riparian sites and sites with investments while continuing to graze traditional areas.

Specific measureable objectives
N/A

Testable hypothesis
N/A - This project is not a study

Underlying assumptions or critical constraints
N/A

Methods
N/A - This project is not a study proposal

Brief schedule of activities
Major project tasks in the years 1997 to 2000 include new barb wire fence exclosure construction, maintenance of existing barb wire exclosure fence, and resetting and maintenance of seasonal electric fence exclosures. The operations and maintenance phase of the project is planned to start in 2001. Annual operation and maintenance will entail resetting and maintenance of electric fence exclosures and maintenance of barb wire exclosure fence.

Biological need
The North Fork John Day River is home to the one remaining totally wild run of summer steelhead trout and spring chinook salmon within the Columbia basin. Portable electric fence and barb wire exclosures allow management to continue grazing traditional areas while protecting and restoring aquatic habitat.

Critical uncertainties
N/A - This project is not a proposed study

Summary of expected outcome
The expected outcome of this project is the recovery of stream adjacent vegetation along selected reaches of tributaries of the North Fork John Day River. The recovery of stream adjacent vegetation will lead to improved aquatic habitat with the expected outcome of increased production of wild steelhead trout and spring chinook salmon. Improvements are expected in both spawning and rearing habitat for salmon and steelhead.

Dependencies/opportunities for cooperation
There are no anticipated actions or events that may affect the project’s timing or budget.

Risks
There are no known risks associated with implementing the project.

Monitoring activity
A modified Hankin and Reeves (1988) US Forest Service Region 6 stream inventory protocol will be used to assess instream characteristics. Data obtained will include stream surface shading, habitat types, width/depth ratio, bank cover, erosion, and other instream characteristics that can be altered by domestic livestock use. Temperature data and photo points pictures are collected and evaluated with data collected in prior years. Data other than temperature and photo point is valuable baseline data for historical comparison. Analysis of the baseline data compared to documented recovery will take 5 - 10 years to quantify aquatic habitat improvement.

Section 3. Budget

* For most projects, Authorized is the amount recommended by CBFWA and the Council. Planned is amount currently allocated. Contracted is the amount obligated to date of printout.

Funding recommendations

CBFWA funding review group   Bonneville Dam - Priest Rapids Dam

Recommendation    Tier 1 - fund

Recommended funding level   $80,000

BPA 1997 authorized budget (approved start-of-year budget)   $80,000