Rapid Bioassessment of Tryon Creek watershed

Tryon Creek Watershed Council (TCWC) proposes to develop a Rapid Bioassessment (RBA) for the Tryon Creek watershed.

Tryon Creek flows through Southwest Portland and Lake Oswego before joining the Willamette River in Clackamas County, where it provides off-channel refuge and temporary rearing habitat for migrating salmon. A uniquely healthy urban stream that is 12 degrees colder than the Willamette River in the summertime, Tryon Creek supports a coastal cutthroat trout population as healthy as those in an undisturbed rural area, yet still is subject to various environmental stressors.

There is no planning document at the watershed scale. A science-based prioritization of restoration actions is needed as a multimillion dollar fish passage restoration project underway will allow salmon and other migratory species to access this habitat for the first time in nearly a century.
The watershed spans a variety of jurisdictions, property ownership, and land use types, and TCWC is able to work across these boundaries by focusing on the full watershed’s health and in-stream habitat quality. This specific scale and perspective was identified by partners as a unique strength and positions TCWC as the most appropriate organization to pursue this project.

TCWC proposes to work with Watershed Action Committee input, to produce an RFP to hire and manage a consultant to produce the RBA.

It will provide comprehensive indications of cumulative impacts of multiple stressors and inform which issues and geographic areas, when addressed, will provide the most ecological uplift and promote long-term high quality native fish habitat. It will prioritize restoration actions to pursue, address data gaps and inform TCWCs first Watershed Action Plan.

Project partners include West Multnomah & Clackamas Soil & Water Conservation Districts, state & local agencies (Oregon Parks & Recreation Department, Cities of Lake Oswego & Portland), and nonprofits (Friends of Tryon Creek, others).

Through this project, Tryon Creek Watershed Council (TCWC) will develop a Rapid Bioassessment (RBA) for the Tryon Creek watershed.

Tryon Creek flows through Southwest Portland and Lake Oswego before joining the Willamette River in Clackamas County, where it provides off-channel refuge and temporary rearing habitat for migrating salmon. A uniquely healthy urban stream that is 12 degrees F colder than the Willamette River in the summertime, Tryon Creek supports a coastal cutthroat trout population as healthy as those in an undisturbed rural area, yet still is subject to various environmental stressors.

There is no planning document at the watershed scale. A science-based prioritization of restoration actions is needed as a multimillion dollar fish passage restoration project underway will allow salmon and other migratory species to access this habitat for the first time in nearly a century.
The watershed spans a variety of jurisdictions, property ownership, and land use types, and TCWC is able to work across these boundaries by focusing on the full watershed’s health and in-stream habitat quality. This specific scale and perspective was identified by partners as a unique strength and positions TCWC as the most appropriate organization to pursue this project.

TCWC proposes to work with Watershed Action Committee input, to produce an RFP to hire and manage a consultant to produce the RBA.
It will provide comprehensive indications of cumulative impacts of multiple stressors and inform which issues and geographic areas, when addressed, will provide the most ecological uplift and promote long-term high quality native fish habitat. It will prioritize restoration actions to pursue, address data gaps and inform TCWCs first Watershed Action Plan.

Project partners include West Multnomah & Clackamas Soil & Water Conservation Districts, state & local agencies (Oregon Parks & Recreation Department, Cities of Lake Oswego & Portland), and nonprofits (Friends of Tryon Creek, others).