Endangered and Threatened Fishes in the Klamath River Basin Causes of Decline and Strategies for Recovery (2004) / Chapter Skim
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2. Land Use and Water Management
2. Land Use and Water Management
Pages 46-94
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From page 46... ...
DESCRIPTION OF THE KLAMATH RIVER WATERSHED Geologic Setting The physiography of the Klamath watershed records the oblique convergence between the North American tectonic plate ancT the plates that unclerlie the Pacific Ocean. The luan cle Fuca ancT Gorcia Plates, which lie 46
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From page 47... ...
Tectonic Setting of Klamath Watershed motion with Plate 1> ~~ ~ OREGON / ~ North America ~ ) - ~ r ~ ~ ~ ~ O large voIcano ~ ~ ~ :~' ~ - _| 7/- 1—-~ = — ~ ~ E$~NE~V~ FIGURE 2-1 General tectonic setting for northern California and southern Oregon illustrating the Cascadia subduction zone, the Cascade volcanic arc, the Basin and Range Province, and the Oregon fore-arc and Sierra Nevada blocks.
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From page 48... ...
The Oregon fore-arc block extends from the Cascaclia subduction zone on the west to the Basin anti Range on the east. Its southern boundary occurs at the transition to the Sierra Nevada block, roughly in the vicinity of the California-Oregon border.
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From page 49... ...
The Shasta River watershed is at the junction between the Basin anti Range Province, in the Sierra Nevada block within the Cascaclia volcanic arc. Its watershed, which originates at Mount Ecicly, encompasses about 800 mi2.
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From page 50... ...
The watershed is locatecI entirely within the Cascaclia fore-arc region on the Sierra Nevada block. The high uplift rates ancI the lack of extensional tectonics have prevented the formation of any important alluvial valleys, such as those of the Scott ancI Shasta drainages.
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From page 51... ...
The confluence of the Trinity ancI I(lamath rivers is locatecI 43 mi upstream of the mouth ancI exerts consiclerable influence over conditions in the lowermost I(lamath River ancI its estuary. The Trinity watershed is locatecI entirely within the Sierra Nevada block, west of the Cascade volcanic arc.
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From page 52... ...
For example, one relatively small tributary, the Salmon River, supplies runoff about equal to that of the entire upper watershed, but from less than onefifth of the area (Table 2-1~. TABLE 2-1 Runoff, YielcI, anti Basin Areas for the I(lamath Watershecia Ratio of Average Average Annual Runoff to Runoff, Drainage 1,000 Drainage Runoff, Drainage Area, Location acre-ft Area, mi2 % Area, % acre-ft/mi2 Klamath River below Iron Gate Dam 1,581 4,630 12 38 341 Shasta River near mouth 136 793 1 7 172 Scott River at mouth 615 808 5 7 761 Other tributaries 615 709 5 5 867 Klamath River below Scott River 3,020 6,940 23 57 435 Indian Creek at mouth 360 135 3 1 2,667 Salmon River at mouth 1,330 750 10 6 1,773 Other tributaries 1,350 650 10 5 1,500 Klamath River at Orleans 6,060 8,475 47 70 715 Trinity River at Hoopa 3,787 2,950 29 24 1,283 Other tributaries 3,021 675 23 6 4,476 Klamath River at mouth 12,868 12,100 100 100 1,109 aData compiled from reports of the California Division of Water Resources 2002, representing average current conditions (including depletion caused by consumptive use)
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From page 53... ...
Unlike the upper basin, the lower Klamath basin exhibits two potential flow peaks, clepencling on the water year. Subtropical storms strike the Klamath watershed with high frequency from late December to early March anti are responsible for all peak ciaily discharges in the Klamath main stem anti its tributaries.
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From page 54... ...
11. Today, connectivity between Lower I(lamath Lake ancI the rest of the basin is limitecI to water pumped through Sheepy Ricige from Tule Lake ancI water from irrigation channels that leacI to the I(eno impoundment (USFWS 2001, Figure 1-21.
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From page 55... ...
Siltation causecI by agriculture ancI loss of wetiancI productivity has occurred in the last several clecacles, however, ancI waterfowl populations have cleclined (ILM 20001. Historically, suckers in Tule Lake ancI the Lost River were abundant enough to support cannery operations along the Lost River (USFWS 20011.
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From page 56... ...
To hoicI back flooc~waters from Tule Lake ancI store seasonal runoff for irrigation later in the season, a clam was constructed at Clear Lake in 1910, impounding the waters of the Lost River ancI creating a larger lake. Where Gerber Reservoir now stancis (Figure 1-3)
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From page 57... ...
, some of which penetrated into the heacIwaters of tributary streams ancI into the rivers feeding Upper Klamath Lake. Four major tributaries to the Klamath River the Salmon, Scott, Shasta, ancI Trinity rivers were major salmon ancI steelheacI producers.
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From page 58... ...
Suckers in general became known to settlers as mullet. Lost River suckers in particular were once a staple foocI of the Mocloc ancI I(lamath tribes; they proviclecI important protein in the spring, when foocI reserves hacI been clepletecI (Cope 1879, USFWS 20021.
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From page 59... ...
They were unique in believing in incliviclually owned lancI; a family's wealth was measured by the amount of lancI that it owned, ancI lancI couicI be soicI. The Hupa were strictly a river people, whereas the Yurok were cliviclecI between river ancI coastal villages.
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From page 60... ...
Miners also reclucecI freshwater resources by overfishing, ciamming, anti diverting streams (Malouf ancI FincIlay 19861. The goicI rush brought extensive changes to the Scott River watershed, particularly the main stem anti South Fork anti Oro Fino, ShackleforcI, anti French creeks.
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From page 61... ...
Along the Salmon River, cluring the late 1800s anti into the 1990s, extensive placer goicI mining ancI some hyciraulic goicI mining were concluctecI in the main stem ancI the South ancI North Forks. The main stem of the Trinity River was severely impaired by placer mining within the channel ancI by hyciraulic mining ancI extensive cireciging.
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From page 62... ...
ancI Hamilton 19901. The cleleterious effects of mining on salmonicI habitat were so rapicI ancI intense that in 1852, only 4 yr after Sutter's discovery of goicI in the foothilis of the Sierra Nevada, California enacted its first salmon statute, which required "'all goocI citizens ancI officers of justice' to destroy man-macle obstructions to salmon migration, except those erected by Indians." That statute clicI little to stem habitat destruction.
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From page 63... ...
in the upper basin, anc! white immigration to the basin increased.
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From page 64... ...
" Government inspectors who were sent to the region warnecI that overgrazing was ruining the very source of the region's prosperity. The inspectors recommenclecI that the only solution was to provide more grass by draining wetiancis ancI planting them with hay so that there wouicI be less competition for a c~wincIling resource (Griffiths 1902~.
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From page 65... ...
in some of the Sprague River watershed. Season-long grazing in the past probably contributed to recluction of spawning habitat for trout anc!
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From page 66... ...
In the lower I(lamath basin, timber harvesting began in the 1850s in the Scott River watershed commensurate with the growth in mining. As in most northern California watersheds, logging activity reachecI a peak in the 1950s (Sommerstram et al.
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From page 67... ...
The government wouicI then construct two new lakes to hoicI water for irrigation Behind Clear Lake ancI Gerber clams, Figure 1-31. A clam anti canal wouicI clivert the Lost River to the I(lamath River.
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From page 68... ...
It was to be one of the largest wilcIlife refuges ever authorized, one of the first on lancI of any agricultural value, anti the first to be establishecI in a watershecI being transformed by USBR. In 1911, President Taft establishecI the Clear Lake National Refuge ancI in 1928 President Coolicige establishecI Tule Lake National WilcIlife Refuge.
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From page 69... ...
Farmers wanted the lancI uncler the sump for farming, but the Tule Lake Sump was overflowing with irrigation return flows as more ancI more farmers irrigated reclaimecI lancis. A reclamation engineer, I
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From page 70... ...
In the Shasta River watershed, after the goicI rush in the late 1800s, most of the lancI cover of the Shasta Valley was converted for agriculture anti range. About 28% of the watershed is irrigable lancI that supports a mix of alfalfa, irrigated pasture, anti some grain (CDWR 19641.
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From page 71... ...
In the upper I(lamath basin, tribal harvests of suckers for family consumption were augmented by commercial harvests beginning in the 19th century, including a cannery that processed Lost River suckers captured from the Lost River near Olene, Oregon, in the late 1890s (53 Fed.
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From page 72... ...
The drop in cirainecI wetiancI acreage after 1990 reflects wetiancI restoration efforts in the upper basin. In Tule ancI Lower I(lamath lakes, original wetiancis were estimated at 187,000 acres; about 25,000 acres remain (Gearheart et al.
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From page 73... ...
A total of 17~553 acres of former wetiancis behind clikes is now being reclaimecI, but subsidence has meant that, even after being restored, these areas remain clisconnectecI from the lake ancI clo not function as the littoral wetiancis once clicI. Once clikes are removed, subsiclecI areas become open-water habitat rather than littoral wetiancis (Geiger 20011.
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From page 74... ...
It is cliviclecI into discussions of the upper anti lower basin economies, which differ substantially. Special attention is given to sectors of the economy oriented toward natural resources, inclucling agriculture in both the upper ancI lower basin ancI commercial fisheries in the lower basin.
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From page 75... ...
75 o 1 ~9 o o · c~ At At of At an Q Q A ._ A Cal o o Q Cal \ o be)
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From page 76... ...
. Table 2-3 presents estimates of some basic economic indicators of the regional economy anti their distribution among sectors for 1998.
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From page 77... ...
77 C Cat ~ ho \ ~ o of ¢ ° ~ ~ _ ·C~^ Cat ~ Cut ~ C E E ¢ 5 5 Q 5 o ¢ _ ~ o en sit C C ~ C Cat Cat ~ ~ ~ Cat X Qua ~ Cat A <: _ ~ ~ bc sit ~ o ~ =2 C4 5 ° c; b;> ~ o 5 ,= I'= :~: ~ ~ ~ .~ .
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From page 78... ...
78 oo _ Cal Cad Cad Cad so an Q Q At o Q At Cal Cad o Kid rid - o Q Q o Q X s~ O O Q t)
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From page 79... ...
Table 2-4 indicates the clepenclence of the basin's regional employment on two natural-resources sectors. Agriculture (agriculture ancI relatecI plus foocI-proclucts manufacturing)
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From page 80... ...
80 Cal so Cal so an Q a Cal Cal Cal so Cal _ Cal Cal Cal Cal so an Q Q a Cal .o Cal ._ so Cal so Cal Cal o Em sit ~ A ._ Q |
From page 81... ...
The regional value of total agricultural production in 1998 was estimated to be $283 million. Cattle, hay, ancI pasture accounted for 58% of the value of production, but potato production was also important (15%~.
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From page 82... ...
the value of agricultural sales in the region. Lower Basin Except for regulation of releases at Iron Gate Dam, USBR's I(lamath Project is clisconnectecI from the lower basin, but the economic implications of measures that may be necessary to facilitate the recovery of coho ancI benefit other fishes alone the I(lamath main stem may be consiclerable for the lower basin.
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From page 83... ...
Norte, Humboicit, anti Trinity. The I(lamath River flows from the upper basin in I(lamath County, Oregon, into Mocloc anti Siskiyou counties, California, anti then to the lower basin in northern Humboicit County.
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From page 84... ...
As in the upper basin, the composition of the regional economy changed substantially over this time. A summary of the changes is proviclecI in Table 2-8.
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From page 85... ...
85 be At o Q 1 ~9 _ Cal Cad Cad Cad so At At ._ A Cad C~ so 5 5 so ~0 o o Q \ o 1 \ o No or so o U)
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From page 86... ...
86 of _ Do _ Cal Cal Cal Cal so an o ._ an o Q Cal A ¢ At 5 5 Q 5 a so Cal U)
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From page 87... ...
87 - o Q Q sit O Q ..
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From page 88... ...
For example, the retail-trade sector's share of sectoral employment is 12.8%, and it provides just 3.8% of the export employment base. The lower basin's employment, like the upper basin's, depends heavily on income to households.
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From page 89... ...
The average annual pay per hirecI farm worker was $6~754. Thus, the number of farm workers in the lower basin is about one-thircI the number in the upper basin, but the average pay per worker is greater in the lower basin.
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From page 91... ...
Using the cletailecI multi-sector version of the Lower I(lamath Basin Input-Output Moclel, which is basecI on the 1998 IMPLAN moclel, to be consistent with the upper basin analysis, the effect of removing all the salmon catch in 2001 ($107,887) , assuming that the catch is exported from the region, is a total loss to the regional economy of $164,507.
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From page 92... ...
. In summary, the economics of the upper anti lower basins clisplay characteristics common to many rural economies, inclucling heavy reliance on natural resources sectors, such as agriculture ancI woocI products.
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From page 93... ...
Reliance on such sectors is slowly cleclining across both the upper ancI lower basins. OVERVIEW The I(lamath basin is exceptionally diverse geomorphically because it has been strongly influencecI by both crustal movement ancI volcanism.
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From page 94... ...
94 FISHES IN THE KLAMATH RIVER BASIN continue to cause, severe physical impairment of aquatic habitats. Although aquatic habitats now are regarclecI as valuable for the maintenance of native species, remecliation of ciamage to habitat presents great clifficulties because of the extent anti diversity of changes that have occurred in the basin over the last century.
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