RSSHistoric run: Coho re-enter Taneum Creek
Dam removal gives migratory fish access to waterway for first time in 100 yearsYakima Herald-Republic
E-mail
Print
Comments
More 'Local'
- Avalanche control impedes traffic
- Right Pro Hardware closing after 15 years
- Wapato homicide is county's 20th this year
- Woman's family sues for medical negligence
- Recount for Selah CIty Council race is Dec. 7
- Shortfall may force budget cuts in Wapato
- Local job growth gets a financial lift
ELLENSBURG, Wash. -- One more piece of the Yakima River Basin salmon recovery puzzle -- this one marked Kittitas County's Taneum Creek -- will be fitted into place today.
Coho salmon will be released in the creek where the removal of an old irrigation dam is giving migratory fish access to parts of the creek for the first time in more than a century.
The 11 a.m. release will mark the conclusion of a six-year effort involving numerous federal, state, tribal and private partners and a substantial financial investment to restore access to a 30-mile stretch of the creek.
"This is a good example of how a diverse group of people can find common ground and get something done that needs to get done," said David Gerth, executive director of the Kittitas Conservation Trust, a nonprofit group that grew out of development of the Suncadia resort near
Cle Elum.
The irrigation dam, located about 12 miles west of Ellensburg, was a water source for the Bruton Ditch, which served a group of five water users.
But the 8-foot-high dam blocked passage for fish, and a recently added fish ladder never worked well. The dam is now gone, replaced by a channel that mimics natural conditions for fish, said Walt Larrick, assistant manager of a federal Bureau of Reclamation program that seeks to improve fish habitat and stream flows in the basin.
"We won't be worried about people having to manage those little fish ladders. There will be a natural channel that fish can use as they always have used in the past," he said.
Removing the blockage on Taneum Creek is just one of numerous projects under way or completed in the Yakima River Basin to improve habitat for fish.
The $600,000 Taneum Creek project included a state Salmon Recovery Funding Board grant, a pipeline to serve the Bruton irrigators installed by the Bureau of Reclamation, and fish recovery work being done by the Yakama Nation.
Dave Fast, a senior research scientist for the Yakamas, said tributaries like Taneum are critical to fish recovery because they provide the habitat for spawning and rearing of fish.
While coho are the species being released, a major focus of the project is steelhead trout, listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.
Taneum Creek flows already have been improved by the nonprofit Washington Water Trust's purchase of water from the Taneum Canal Co. upstream of the Bruton Ditch.
Water that historically was diverted by the Bruton users will now be delivered via a pipeline installed by the Bureau of Reclamation.
Dawn Wiedmeier, the bureau's acting area manager in Yakima, said the pipeline from the Kittitas Reclamation District will deliver water to the Bruton users under pressure, eliminating the need for pumps.
The Bruton water right, about 2 cubic feet per second, will be left in the creek to help fish.
* David Lester can be reached at 509-577-7674 or dlester@yakimaherald.com.
Why are the Yakama's involved with a waterway that is off their reservation? Are there not other people that have the "expertise" to handle this issue? What is the cost per fish--$10,000 each?
Report ViolationSo when are the Yakama going to re-establish the salmon runs on the Ahtanum Creek? The headwaters of the South Fork are on the reservation...
As a child in about 1963, my mom and I were fishing just behind the Tampico store and my mom caught a salmon! Well, she got it out of the water, it flopped around on the bank a couple of times, then got back in the creek and was gone. My mom and I just stood there looking at each other in disbelief.
It was probably one of the last salmon to ever swim the Ahtanum.
Posting Guidelines - Updated Aug. 21 2009
Readers are encouraged to use these forums to discuss issues affecting the
Yakima Valley. Debate the ideas presented in stories and other comments, but
refrain from personal attacks and offensive remarks aimed at others; e.g.,
you may call an idea idiotic, but don't say the person is an idiot. The
Herald-Republic reserves the right to remove any comment for any reason.
Examples include material that is obscene, encourages illegal activity or
stereotypes based on race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs and
other factors. Continued violation of these guidelines can lead to
suspension or revocation of your ability to post comments. If you believe a
comment is inappropriate, you can bring it to our attention by clicking the
"report violation" link by each comment. Guidelines revised Aug. 21, 2009.
Registered User?
