East Fork Potlatch River Large Wood: Downstream from Jackson Creek

The Latah Soil and Water Conservation District in partnership with the Idaho Department of Lands will implement in-stream and riparian restoration actions along 0.6 miles of the East Fork Potlatch River (EFPR) in Latah County, ID. The EFPR subwatershed has been prioritized as Tier I for restoration treatments in the Potlatch River Watershed Management Plan’s 2019 Amendment (Latah SWCD 2019). Factors limiting steelhead production within the subwatershed include a lack of in-stream habitat complexity, high summer and low winter water temperatures, and excess sediment.



The goal of this project is to promote self-sustaining stream processes to address limiting factors and improve spawning and rearing habitat for ESA-listed steelhead. Project actions include: 1) placement of non-engineered channel structures including unanchored large wood structures and beaver dam analogues (BDAs) to increase habitat heterogeneity through sediment sorting and pool formation, 2) riparian seeding and plantings to improve shading, future natural tree recruitment, and resources for beaver, and 3) protection of sensitive riparian areas from recreationalists and cattle through fencing.

The primary limiting factor for ESA-listed steelhead in the EFPR subwatershed is a lack of habitat complexity. The project will address this limiting factor by improving the quality and quantity of in-stream habitat complexity for spawning and rearing steelhead through the placement of large wood and BDAs. Expected benefits for steelhead include: increased sediment sorting, pool formation, cover, and access to high flow velocity refugia near large wood and through increased floodplain connectivity and access to side channels. A secondary limiting factor is high summer and low winter water temperatures. The additions of large wood and BDAs will also help promote hyporeic exchange during both summer and winter to ameliorate temperature extremes and improve survival during these critical time periods. Revegetation efforts will also address high summer water temperatures through increased shading. The addition of large wood and BDAs coupled with riparian plantings has the potential to extend beaver habitation from established colonies downstream leading to potentially increase steelhead productivity (Bouwes et al. 2016). Plantings will also ensure a future reliable source of food, dam building material, and wood for future recruitment.