Blackberry Creek Bridge Aquatic Organism Passage

The Blackberry Creek Bridge Aquatic Organism Passage project to replace an aging, fish-blocking culvert is a high priority for migratory fish within the Elk River Watershed on the southern Oregon coast. Blackberry Creek is a north-facing sub-watershed, providing cold water refugia for smolts escaping warmer summer temperatures of the mainstem. Removing the barrier creates access to this cold-water habitat, helping to boost ecological resilience. The Blackberry Creek culvert is the only known remaining barrier for ESA-threatened Southern Oregon/Northern California Coast (SONCC) coho salmon migration on National Forest lands within the Elk River Watershed. Replacing Blackberry Creek culvert with a bridge will benefit several anadromous fish species, at all freshwater life stages, by opening access to the full extent of habitat for spawning, rearing, and migration. It will also benefit resident native fish and aquatic organisms. The project entails removing one in-stream barrier–an impassable culvert–and associated log weir where Forest Road 5325 crosses Blackberry Creek. The culvert will be replaced with a bridge and instream habitat will be restored through the placement of large wood and boulders. Project partners include the National Forest Foundation (project management, procurement, contract administration), USDA Forest Service Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest (designs, permitting, technical oversight, fish salvage, monitoring), and the Curry Watersheds Partnership (community outreach, monitoring).

The Blackberry Creek Bridge AOP project will benefit salmon and steelhead by eliminating the final fish passage barrier on NFS lands within the Elk River watershed, opening access to the full extent of habitat for spawning, rearing, and migration. The target salmon and steelhead that will benefit from this project include SONCC coho salmon, Chinook salmon, and Klamath Mountains Province (KMP) steelhead. SONCC coho are at risk of extinction within the Elk River Watershed. This project will help SONCC coho to gain access to additional high-quality habitat upstream of the project site. Chinook salmon and Klamath Mountains Province (KMP) steelhead will gain access to two miles of high-quality habitat. The placement of large wood in the stream channel around the road crossing will improve instream salmon and steelhead habitat. Blackberry Creek is a north-facing sub-watershed, providing cold water refugia for smolts escaping warmer summer temperatures of the mainstem. Removing the barrier improves access to this cold-water habitat, helping to boost ecological resilience. The project reduces risks of catastrophic culvert failure. Installed in 1963, the culvert has exceeded its lifespan. The culvert was also installed with ~5,000 to 10,000 cubic yards of fill material, therefore, failure during a flood event would unleash enormous amounts of sediment into the Elk River, with potential to impact spawning, rearing, and foraging habitats for all priority species for 29 miles downstream.