East Fork Potlatch Large Wood: Jackson to Rogers Creek

Clearwater Soil and Water Conservation District (Clearwater SWCD) partnered with Idaho Department of Lands (IDL) and others to restore and enhance 0.60 miles of instream habitat complexity and floodplain connectivity by adding large wood to the East Fork of the Potlatch River. Complex wood structures and individual logs were placed using a small excavator. Local trees were felled by IDL crews and trees with root balls were harvested and placed instream. Logs already in the stream or on the banks were also used.



It was anticipated that there would be more ground disturbance and a revegetation component was part of the original proposal. The contractor that got the bid used a mini-excavator, with a winch, for the work adjacent to the stream. Access trails were not constructed and very little riparian vegetation was removed or damaged. All disturbed sites, including tree acquisition sites, were rehabilitated by using the excavator to transplant shrubs and spread duff. Thus, the revegetation phase was eliminated.



The contract cost came in much lower than anticipated, resulting in cost savings to the PCSRF funds. The contract package left little risk to the contractors, who generally bid up unknown factors. The contractor was paid by the structure, the wood was available locally, and the concept was simple and well defined.

The Potlatch River has been identified as a high priority watershed for steelhead restoration and the East Fork Potlatch subwatershed has been identified as a “Tier 1” stream for implementation of Restoration Projects in the Potlatch River Watershed Management Plan 2019 Amendment (Latah SWCD draft, Latah SWCD 2007, NMFS 2017). The 2019 Plan Amendment identifies instream habitat complexity and low winter water temperatures as limiting factors for steelhead production in the mainstem of the East Fork Potlatch. This project increased stream channel complexity, created refugia and hiding cover, improved pool habitat, added sediment heterogeneity and reconnected channel to the floodplain and the many side channels. The structures and single logs have increased the complexity in their immediate vicinity and offer hiding cover for fish. There is already some scour and deposition, creating localized sediment heterogeneity and pools. In November, following construction, some of the side channels were backwatered and point bars were somewhat inundated. IDFG initial monitoring shows that juvenile salmonids and at least one adult steelhead appear to be utilizing the structures.