Potlatch River Steelhead Monitoring and Evaluation (PRSME)

Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG) will continue the long-term umbrella monitoring effort within the Potlatch River basin under the Potlatch River Steelhead Monitoring and Evaluation (PRSME) project. The PRSME provides effectiveness monitoring of



habitat restoration actions at the watershed scale in the Potlatch River. Limiting factors and



steelhead population metrics identified through the project inform recovery actions of ESA listed



Snake River Basin steelhead identified in the NOAA recovery plan (NMFS 2017).



Previous work has been funded through PCSRF and NOAA Intensively Monitored



Watershed (IMW) Funds.





The PRSME framework provides: 1) Potlatch River steelhead production and



productivity data on multiple scales, 2) effectiveness monitoring for numerous habitat



restoration projects, 3) an effective method for identifying additional high priority habitat



restoration projects in the basin, and 4) valuable trend monitoring in the Lower Mainstem



Clearwater River steelhead population (Clearwater River Major Population Group).





The PRSME monitoring objectives are:



1. Assess steelhead production and productivity within the index watersheds



a. Determine abundance of juvenile steelhead emigrants



b. Estimate adult steelhead escapement



c. Estimate freshwater productivity (juvenile recruits per spawner)



d. Examine juvenile steelhead rearing distribution and habitat use within the index



watersheds



2. Monitor juvenile steelhead density, survival, and growth in habitat treatment areas



relative to control areas with no habitat treatments within upper and lower Potlatch River



watersheds



3. Monitor change in habitat variables associated with restoration projects in the treatment



and control tributaries within the upper and lower watershed study areas





The PRSME represents the monitoring and evaluation component of the Potlatch River



Watershed Management Plan 2019 Amendment (Latah SWCD 2019). Monitoring is



conducted annually at four primary worksites: East Fork Potlatch River (56.5 miles



monitored), Big Bear Creek (63.0 miles monitored), Pine Creek (6.1 miles monitored), and



West Fork Potlatch River (77.3 miles monitored).

The goal of the PRSME project is to evaluate fish and habitat responses to habitat restoration projects in the Potlatch River basin. The project will assess responses at multiple scales: 1) a broad-scale monitoring effort to document steelhead population



response within index watersheds (Big Bear Creek and East Fork Potlatch River), 2) a finer scale



effort to assess fish and habitat response to restoration projects at the tributary level,



and 3) reach-scale monitoring to assess whether individual projects produced the intended



outcome. The design allows managers to better understand the relationship between a habitat



action and fish response and how localized responses to restoration propagate up to a higher,



management-scale level.