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ITEM: |
INFORMATIONAL
ITEMS/STAFF REPORTS |
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24. |
CARMEL RIVER FISHERY REPORT FOR DECEMBER
2017 |
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Meeting Date: |
January 24, 2018 |
Budgeted: |
N/A |
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From: |
David J. Stoldt, |
Program/ |
N/A |
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General Manager |
Line Item No.: |
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Prepared By: |
Beverly Chaney |
Cost Estimate: |
N/A |
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General
Counsel Review: N/A |
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Committee Recommendation: N/A |
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CEQA Compliance: This action does not constitute a project as defined by the
California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines Section 15378. |
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AQUATIC HABITAT AND FLOW CONDITIONS: December 2017 was one of the driest on record and flow releases from Los Padres
Reservoir were reduced by three cfs in response to the lack of rainfall and
dropping reservoir elevation. Despite the reduction, river conditions for
juvenile steelhead rearing remained good to fair all the way to the lagoon.
Mean daily streamflow at the Sleepy Hollow Weir ranged from 16 to 18
cfs (monthly mean 16.8 cfs) resulting in 1,030 acre-feet (AF) of runoff
while mean daily streamflow at the Highway 1 gage ranged from 9.2 to 12 cfs
(monthly mean 10.3 cfs), resulting in 631 AF of runoff.
There were 0.05 inches of rainfall in December as recorded at
Cal-Am’s San Clemente gauge. The rainfall total for WY 2018 (which started on
October 1, 2017) is 1.02 inches, or 15% of the long-term year-to-date average
of 6.81 inches.
CARMEL RIVER
LAGOON: During December,
the lagoon mouth remained closed and the water surface elevation (WSE) continued
to rise from approximately 12 to 12.5 feet above mean-sea-level as higher
seasonal inflows filled the lagoon (see graph below).
Two lagoon water quality
depth-profiles were conducted at five sites on December 14th and 28th.
Salinity level (0.5 ppt) and temperature (48-49
degrees F) remained low while dissolved oxygen (DO) levels were good (6-10
mg/l) resulting in generally excellent steelhead rearing conditions down to 3.0
meters depth.
SMOLT AND ADULT STEELHEAD COUNTS: The District and National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS) have been collaborating on a steelhead tagging and monitoring
program since late 2013. In December,
staff from both agencies worked together to install two new tag reading arrays
systems in the lower river to complement the existing one located near the
lagoon, and have plans for a forth set-up near Sleepy Hollow to track the
migration of tagged out-migrating smolts and previously tagged returning
adults.
U:\staff\Boardpacket\2018\20180124\InfoItems\24\Item-24.docx