Columbia River Remediation & Restoration Phase III

Salmonid Restoration Planning and Assessments

Salmonid Habitat Assessment / Inventory
Project ID19-Yaka-03
Recovery DomainsMiddle Columbia River, Snake River
Start Date03/01/2020
End Date06/30/2024
Year2019
StatusOngoing
Last Edited02/27/2024
 
1 - 1

Description    


The Columbia River Remediation & Restoration (CRRR) Phase III project builds upon the work completed in Phase I & II. During the CRRR – Phase I project, we inventoried, evaluated, and ranked contaminated sites along the

Columbia River using our screening criteria and methods which included prioritization criteria considering proximity of a contaminated site to critical salmon habitat, wildlife refuges, and Lower Columbia River Estuary Partnership (LCREP) restoration projects (See January 2014 Lower Columbia River Restoration Plan Chapter 5.1). Through these efforts, 68 priority sites were identified across the Lower, Middle and Upper Columbia River geographic area from the mouth of the river to Chief Joseph Dam. The 68 sites are within a half mile of the River’s banks and have indications of impacting Columbia River resources. Contaminants from these sites are being released to the Columbia River system through deposition, runoff, groundwater mixing, direct and indirect discharge, or a combination of them all. Once contaminants enter the aquatic environment, salmonids can experience sub-lethal or lethal effects 6 through direct contact or uptake through the food web which can result in bioaccumulation and bioconcentration in tissues.



Specific work under CRRR – Phase II included focusing on a smaller subset of the 68 priority sites for immediate engagement. Our engagement included working with federal and state agencies to: initiate the planning and investigation of contaminated sites; review cleanup decisions to promote adequate protection of aquatic resources; and discuss the establishment of site specific monitoring requirements to support a regionally based toxics monitoring network for the Columbia River. This work supports efforts to determine the amount of acres that are contaminated by the specific sites and the amount of acres that require restoration.



YN has had many success in Phase I and & II of the CRRR but there are still many contamination issues that remain in the Columbia River Basin. One of the major concerns identified is the lack of understanding of amount of contamination attributable to hydroelectric dams on the Columbia River mainstem and Lower Snake River. Between 1999 and 2012 there were 22 individual oil spills at hydroelectric dams on the Columbia River and Lower Snake River reported to Washington Department of Ecology. During this time the operators were still using PCB laden hydraulic oil in there turbines. Which is listed as a priority pollutant by EPA in the Columbia River State of the River report. In addition to the oil spills, investigations at Bradford Island have revealed that the resident fish in the Bonneville Pool have the highest concentrations of PCBs in fish tissue.



This project will continue the efforts of Phase I and II and will focus on contaminants behind dams in the mainstem Columbia River and Lower Snake River and the effect on fish. Project staff will review existing data, reports, and information pertaining to contamination in dam pools in the Columbia River mainstem and the Lower Snake River. The information will be synthesized to provide a conceptual understanding of the information, identify key data gaps, and outline the merits of conducting an environmental assessment at dams on the mainstem Columbia River and Lower Snake River.



Worksite #1 Proposed Work:

Columbia River Mainstem and Lower Snake River Dams- There is currently no compiled information on contamination, releases, cleanups, and water quality for the Columbia River mainstem and Lower Snake River dams. This information will be crucial for regulators and co-managers to target priority cleanup and restoration actions associated with contaminant releases from dams.

Project Benefit    


The goal is simple: protect and restore the Columbia River and its tributaries. The CRRR - Phase III project has the potential to benefit every salmonid stock in the Columbia River by building on the foundational work conducted to identify 68 priority sites in the Columbia River. This is an important step forward in contaminant reduction and will help address toxics as a limiting factor for some ESA listed stocks; reach goals for toxic reduction as laid out in the revised Wy-Kan-Ush-Mi Wa-Kish-Wit and the Northwest Power Conservation Council Fish and Wildlife Program; and address the widespread contamination as identified in the 2009 EPA “Columbia River Basin: State of the River Report for Toxics” that describes the known issues with mercury, DDT, PCBs, and PBDE while outlining the lack of toxics reduction action on the river.

Accomplishments

Metric Completed Originally
Proposed

Funding Details

SourceFunds
PCSRF$197,218
Report Total:$197,218


Project Map



Worksites

Columbia River Mainstem    


  • Worksite Identifier: Columbia River Mainstem
  • Start Date: 03/01/2020
  • End Date: 06/30/2024
Area Description

No Area Description data was found for this worksite.

Location Information

  • Basin: Middle Columbia (170701)
  • Subbasin: Middle Columbia-Hood (17070105)
  • Watershed: Mill Creek-Columbia River (1707010504)
  • Subwatershed: Town of Murdock-Columbia River (170701050406)
  • State: Washington
  • Recovery Domain: Middle Columbia River
  • Latitude: 45.613
  • Longitude: -121.133

ESU

  • Mid-Columbia River Spring-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Deschutes River Summer/Fall-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Columbia River Chum Salmon ESU
  • Upper Columbia River Steelhead DPS
  • Snake River Sockeye Salmon ESU
  • Okanogan River Sockeye Salmon ESU
  • Upper Columbia River Spring-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Snake River Spring/Summer-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Snake River Fall Chinook Salmon ESU

Map

Photos

Metrics

Metrics
  • B.0 Salmonid Restoration Planning and AssessmentsY (Y/N)
    •      . . B.0.a Planning And Assessment Funding .00
    •      . . B.0.b.1 Area Encompassed
    •      . . B.2 Salmonid Habitat Assessment / InventoryY (Y/N)
      •      . . . . B.2.a Habitat Assessment Funding
      •      . . . . B.2.d Habitat surveysY (Y/N)
        •      . . . . . . B.2.d.1 Type of habitat survey/assessment (LOV)
        •      . . . . . . B.2.d.2 Amount of habitat assessed

Lower Snake River Dams    


  • Worksite Identifier: Lower Snake River Dams
  • Start Date: 03/01/2020
  • End Date: 06/30/2024
Area Description

No Area Description data was found for this worksite.

Location Information

  • Basin: Lower Snake (170601)
  • Subbasin: Lower Snake (17060110)
  • Watershed: McCoy Canyon-Snake River (1706011004)
  • Subwatershed: Dalton Lake-Snake River (170601100403)
  • State: Washington
  • Recovery Domain: Snake River
  • Latitude: 46.25
  • Longitude: -118.878

ESU

  • Mid-Columbia River Spring-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Deschutes River Summer/Fall-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Columbia River Chum Salmon ESU
  • Upper Columbia River Steelhead DPS
  • Snake River Sockeye Salmon ESU
  • Okanogan River Sockeye Salmon ESU
  • Upper Columbia River Spring-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Snake River Spring/Summer-run Chinook Salmon ESU
  • Snake River Fall Chinook Salmon ESU

Map

Photos

Metrics

Metrics
  • B.0 Salmonid Restoration Planning and AssessmentsY (Y/N)
    •      . . B.0.a Planning And Assessment Funding .00
    •      . . B.0.b.1 Area Encompassed
    •      . . B.0.b.2 Stream Miles Affected
    •      . . B.2 Salmonid Habitat Assessment / InventoryY (Y/N)
      •      . . . . B.2.a Habitat Assessment Funding
      •      . . . . B.2.d Habitat surveysY (Y/N)
        •      . . . . . . B.2.d.1 Type of habitat survey/assessment (LOV)
        •      . . . . . . B.2.d.2 Amount of habitat assessed