Environmental Assessment for Aquatic and Riparian Habitat Enhancement

Document Details:

Title: Environmental Assessment for Aquatic and Riparian Habitat Enhancement
Category: Technical Report
File: USDI_2014_0024_Environmental-Assessment.pdf
Updated Date: 09.01.2017
Author(s)/Source(s): US Department of the Interior
Publication Date: 2014
Focal Topic: Habitat Restoration, Aquatic Habitat / Invertebrates / Insects, Salmon, Riparian Species & Wildlife, In-Stream Flow / Flow Regime, Dam Removal, Steelhead/Rainbow Trout, Suckers, Sediment & Geomorphology
Location: United States, Klamath Basin
Abstract:

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Medford District, plays a key role in aquatic and riparian enhancement activities presently underway in the Rogue, Umpqua and Klamath River Systems. Because of the interspersed, checkerboard ownership pattern of the revested Oregon & California Railroad lands, the District works closely with public and private partners to plan aquatic and riparian enhancement projects that benefit resources across ownership boundaries. This Programmatic Aquatic Habitat Enhancement Environmental Assessment (EA) addresses a suite of activities to maintain and restore watershed conditions, establishes the scope and sideboards of the activities, and provides an analysis of the environmental consequences of the typical projects. All proposed activities are consistent with actions identified by NOAA Fisheries / National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in the Programmatic Biological Opinion for Aquatic Restoration Activities in the States of Oregon, Washington and portions of California, Idaho and Nevada (ARBO II). (FWS reference: 01EOFW00-2013-F-0090). The USFWS, NMFS and BLM identified these programmatic activities because they have predictable effects to species and habitat regardless of their location of treatment. Restoration activities that did not have predictable effects (e.g., channel reconstruction projects) or which had uncertainty were not included.

The purpose of the aquatic and riparian enhancement activities proposed in this EA is to maintain or aid recovery of aquatic habitat, riparian habitat, and water quality where a tangible benefit would accrue to resources on public lands.