North Santiam Post-Fire Watershed Resource Assessment & Prioritization Guide

With almost 50% of the North Santiam Watershed (NSW) impacted by the 2020 Labor Day fires, significant post fire salvage logging impacts, increased frequency of droughts and heat dome events and now with the imminent impact of invasives such as the Emerald Ash Borer, the North Santiam Watershed Council (NSWC) recognizes the watersheds ecosystems have changed dramatically in areas of the NSW with recent events, and will continue to be altered in others. The NSWC and its local and regional partners need to better understand the “state of the watershed,” specifically in the fire impacted areas. To be effective at restoration implementation the NSWC needs to re-evaluate the new suite of limiting factors and prioritize actions to protect, restore and mitigate future threats. With assistance from River Design Group (RDG), the NSWC will work with the U.S. Geological Survey Integrated Water Science (USGS-IWS) Program, U.S Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the U.S. Forest Service PNW Research to synthesize post fire data and conduct field surveys and modeling to help identify the watershed’s new limiting factors identified in the Recovery Plan and state plans and develop a restoration action plan. This project focus area will be the Little North Santiam and the Breitenbush River subbasins, both containing Upper Willamette ESA listed Winter Steelhead and Spring Chinook.

This project will focus on the fire-impacted subbasins of the Little North Santiam (72,000 acres) and Breitenbush Rivers (69,000 acres), which are home to ESA-listed Upper Willamette Winter Steelhead and Spring Chinook. With assistance from River Design Group and collaboration with partners such as the U.S. Geological Survey Integrated Water Science Program, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and U.S. Forest Service, the NSWC will synthesize post-fire data, conduct field surveys, and use modeling to evaluate limiting factors identified in the Recovery Plan and state conservation plans. The findings will establish new baseline conditions and guide restoration priorities to address critical threats to salmonid habitat. The project will emphasize actions that mitigate elevated stream temperatures, improve floodplain hydrologic connectivity, and enhance in-stream and riparian habitat for native salmonids. These areas are on the Clean Water Act 303(d) list for high summer temperatures, a key limiting factor for salmonid survival, and are undergoing updated TMDLs for mercury, sediment, and shade. By collaboratively addressing natural resource concerns, the NSWC aims to implement targeted, science-based restoration projects that improve habitat for salmonids and support the long-term ecological health of the watershed.