South Santiam Watershed Council Capacity_23-25

The Council Capacity grant provided operating capacity support for the South Santiam Watershed Council (SSWC). Key watershed issues addressed by the SSWC during the granting period included water quality, water quantity, degraded habitat, reduced access to aquatic habitat and drinking water protection, and wildfire risk reduction. The Council Capacity grant also played a significant role in allowing the SSWC to with engage community members and elevate their awareness of and interest in watershed health. From July 1, 2023 through July 31, 2025, the SSWC participated in 5 regional restoration partnerships; continued 2 monitoring projects; secured funding for and initiated 4 fish passage projects; and completed 1 instream project and 2 riparian restoration projects. Council staff provided site visits to 12 landowners to discuss potential restoration and 1 staff member obtained their certificate in River Restoration from PSU.

The goal and purpose of the OWEB Council Capacity grant is to provide operating capacity support for the South Santiam Watershed Council. This support can also be leveraged to secure additional funds for projects that benefit salmon and steelhead. The South Santiam watershed contains 250 miles of stream habitat for spring Chinook salmon and winter steelhead. Limiting factors include high stream temperatures due to a lack of riparian vegetation, over-appropriation of stream flow in the summer, fish passage barriers, erosion and sedimentation, invasive plant species, wetland degradation, lack of floodplain connectivity and reduced aquatic habitat complexity. The council’s 2015 action plan and 2017 strategic plan focuses largely on fish recovery actions. In the next biennium, the council plans to implement 3 instream projects, 5 riparian projects and 4 upland project that address salmon and/or steelhead and their associated habitats. These projects all engage a variety of partners including private landowners, industrial timber managers, state and federal agencies and tribal parters, achieving a suite of common goals to protect and restore habitat to the benefit of salmon and steelhead.