ITEM:		INFORMATION ITEMS / STAFF REPORTS
26.	CARMEL RIVER FISHERY REPORT
Meeting Date:			March 15, 2004	Budgeted: N/A
Staff Contact:			Dave Dettman/ Beverly Chaney	Program/Line Item No.: N/A Cost Estimate: N/A
General Counsel Approval: N/A
Committee Recommendation: N/A
CEQA Compliance: N/A

AQUATIC HABITAT AND FLOW CONDITIONS: During February 2004, Carmel River streamflow conditions were good to excellent for smolt out-migration, adult in-migration, and fish rearing. In February, mean daily streamflow recorded at the District’s Carmel River Sleepy Hollow Weir gaging station averaged 236 cubic feet per second (cfs) and ranged from 29 to 1,280 cfs.

In February 2004, 6.88 inches of rainfall were recorded by Cal-Am at San Clemente Dam (SCD). The long-term February average at this site is 4.40 inches. For Water Year 2004 through the end of February, the total rainfall is 17.34 inches, or 111 % of average.

The Carmel River Lagoon filled several times in February 2004 as storms, combined with high tides and large waves, built up the sand bar at the mouth and blocked river outflow. The Monterey County Public Works Department breached the sand bar several times to prevent flooding of neighboring houses.

Carmel Lagoon Water Level February 2004

SLEEPY HOLLOW FISH REARING FACILITY: The Facility is currently closed for the winter. Staff expects to begin the Facility start-up procedures in May 2004. Between March and June 2004, staff plans to construct the bird-netting framework over two of the large holding tanks (Tank 1 and 3) and retrofit the third (Tank 2) to perform like a flow-through channel.

Staff prepared and sent an annual report on the use of formalin at the Facility to the Regional Water Quality Control Board in San Luis Obispo. The report described use of formalin, levels in the discharge and recommendations on techniques to further modify treatment protocol to minimize use of formalin in the future. Staff is examining different technologies to treat formalin-laden water and plans to reduce treatment dosage ten-fold in this year’s quarantine operations.

ADULT STEELHEAD COUNTS AT SAN CLEMENTE DAM: The District’s automatic adult fish counter at the San Clemente Dam Ladder was installed in early January 2004. As of February 29, 2004, 211 counts had been recorded. A digital surveillance camera is being installed that will be used to calibrate the counter, assess the condition of the fish and possibly the sex of each individual.

TOTAL THRU
02/29/2004
211

MONTH	NUMBER OF ADULTS
JAN 2004	14
FEB 2004	197
MAR 2004
APR 2004
MAY 2004

*Visual counts are steelhead observed above the counter during maintenance activities.
**Discharge measured at the MPWMD gaging station at Sleepy Hollow Weir or San Clemente Spillway.

SAN CLEMENTE DAM 2004 DRAWDOWN PROJECT: On February 23, 2004, staff was scheduled to attend a drawdown coordination meeting at Cal-Am’s office, but had to decline in order to develop materials for the upcoming meeting on the April-June 2004 Quarterly Water Supply Strategy and Budget. Staff called Cal-Am’s representative to coordinate on use of Sleepy Hollow to hold any kelts that are caught in traps at San Clemente Dam and offered to transport the kelts to the ocean or lagoon, pending direction from NOAA-Fisheries and CDFG. In addition, staff has offered use of District’s trap-fence for screening downstream migrants in the San Clemente inundation zone, pending the need to use this equipment for conducting smolt rescues in the lower river. Staff made this offer after reviewing the materials and methods available from Cal-Am’s consultant, which in

staff’s opinion is not adequate for the task-at-hand, if inflows exceed 30-40 cfs.

SPAWNING GRAVEL RESTORATION PROJECT: Staff wrote a letter to the United States Army Corps of Engineers (COE) regarding re-issuance of the District’s permit for injecting spawning gravel into the Carmel River. The COE has requested additional information on this project, prior to issuing a new Public Notice on the District’s application to increase the amount of material injected from 300 tons per year to 4,500 tons per year and to change the source of material. Staff is proposing to obtain gravel by dredging material from the inundation zone of San Clemente Reservoir and then to inject it via a pipeline into the plunge pool below the dam. Following receipt of the District’s letter, the COE initiated consultation with the USFWS and NOAA-Fisheries regarding potential impacts on red-legged frogs and steelhead and on any additional required mitigation measures to avoid or minimize take of these species.

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