Dammerman Meadows Steelhead Habitat Enhancement, P2

The Dammerman Meadow design project completed phase II of the final engineering design, construction cost estimates, ESA consultation with NMFS and USFWS, and environmental permitting. Dammerman Meadow is an 80 acre (0.58 stream miles) wetland complex on private land located in the East Fork Potlatch River, a tributary to Clearwater River. The stream bisecting the meadow has been heavily degraded through historic agricultural use, channel confinement, and removal of the riparian vegetation, which has resulted in soil compaction, stream bank erosion, loss of floodplain and wetland functionality, and degradation of natural channel morphology. Consequently, instream habitat complexity and pool/run/riffle ratios have been diminished and are now limiting factors to steelhead productivity.

The project design includes: reconnecting 2.3 acres of floodplain, installing 12 wood complexes using large trees harvested onsite, constructing a large downstream structure known as a “catcher’s mitt” to create backwater lateral habitat and collect racking material, installing bank roughening wood on one outside meander, narrowing and stabilizing one existing over-widened cattle crossing, excavating 0.4 acres of remnant side channels in strategic locations combined with the LWD to create 0.61 km of side channel improvements, planting native conifers, deciduous trees and shrubs, grasses and forbs across 10 acre within the floodplain and adjacent riparian area, and installing willow waddles to enhance riparian vegetation where needed.

Construction of this project will occur in 2019 through PSCRF project # 007 17 CW.

The goal of this project is to complete final engineering designs and construction cost estimates to enable IDFG to apply for construction funding to implement the LWD project. Photo points will be established and fish snorkel survey data collected to establish baseline conditions prior to restoration. This work will benefit ESA-listed steelhead of the lower mainstem Clearwater population of the Clearwater Major Population Group of the Snake River steelhead Distinct Population Segment.