|
ITEM: |
INFORMATIONAL
ITEMS/STAFF REPORTS |
||||
|
|
|||||
|
18. |
CARMEL RIVER FISHERY REPORT FOR JANUARY
2018 |
||||
|
|
|||||
|
Meeting Date: |
February 22, 2018 |
Budgeted: |
N/A |
||
|
|
|||||
|
From: |
David J. Stoldt, |
Program/ |
N/A |
||
|
|
General Manager |
Line Item No.: |
|||
|
|
|
|
|||
|
Prepared By: |
Beverly Chaney |
Cost Estimate: |
N/A |
||
|
|
|||||
|
General
Counsel Review: N/A |
|||||
|
Committee Recommendation: N/A |
|||||
|
CEQA Compliance: This action does not constitute a project as defined by the
California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines Section 15378. |
|||||
AQUATIC HABITAT AND FLOW CONDITIONS: Despite two modest storms in early January that
brought the water level at Los Padres Reservoir up to just shy of the spillway
crest, it failed to spill. River conditions below the dam remained relatively dry
for this time of the year with only a brief spike to 70 cfs at the Near Carmel
Gage. Lower river rearing conditions for juvenile steelhead remain fair
to good all the way to the lagoon, but low flows continue to limit upstream migration
opportunities.
Mean daily streamflow at the Sleepy Hollow Weir ranged from 13 to
63 cfs (monthly mean 24.2 cfs) resulting in 1,490 acre-feet (AF) of runoff
while mean daily streamflow at the Highway 1 gage ranged from 7.2 to 39 cfs
(monthly mean 18.0 cfs), resulting in 1,100 AF of runoff.
There were 3.95 inches of rainfall in January as recorded at
Cal-Am’s San Clemente gauge. The rainfall total for WY 2018 (which started on
October 1, 2017) is 4.97 inches, or 45% of the long-term year-to-date average
of 11.12 inches.
CARMEL RIVER
LAGOON: On January 8th, as the
lagoon’s water surface elevation (WSE) rose to approximately 13.0 feet above
mean-sea-level, threatening local flooding (see graph below). Monterey
County Public Works crews began mechanically cutting a narrow, shallow
channel along the southern bluffs to allow the lagoon to gradually breach. The District’s
fisheries staff, working under contract with the county, was on-hand to survey
and monitor the lagoon and surrounding area for any steelhead that could be
affected by the work. The lagoon did breach on the 9th, but due to
the low river inflows and high waves the sandbar reformed and the lagoon filled
back up to 13.5 feet by January 20, requiring the County to re-cut the south
channel. Staff was on-site again during the work as well as the next morning to
see the river reach the ocean. Several
hours later the sandbar had been washed away and the lagoon started emptying at
~3,000 cfs (see photo below). We estimate that the river mouth was open enough
for steelhead passage over approximately eight days as it opened and closed
with the tides the remainder of the month.
Water quality
depth-profiles were conducted at five sites on January 18, in-between the two
main breaching events. Waves were overtopping the sand berm and the lagoon was
filling with seawater at the time of the sampling. Salinity level varied with
depth (1-25 ppt), temperature had increased six
degrees since December (54-56 degrees F), and dissolved oxygen (DO) levels were
fair (2.1-8.7 mg/l) resulting in generally good steelhead rearing conditions in
most of the lagoon.
LOS PADRES DAM ADULT
COUNTS: Cal-Am maintains a
fish ladder and trap at the Los Padres Dam site. Any adult steelhead captured
in the trap are trucked to the reservoir and released. On January 25th,
a resident adult trout was captured and moved upstream. No sea-run steelhead
adults have been observed yet.
Carmel
River Lagoon mouth, January 21, 2018, 5 pm.
U:\staff\Boardpacket\2018\20180222\InfoItems\18\Item-18.docx