ITEM:		INFORMATIONAL ITEMS/STAFF REPORTS
18.	CARMEL RIVER FISHERY REPORT FOR OCTOBER 2018
Meeting Date:			November 19, 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:  Releases from Los Padres Reservoir were held steady in October at 7.0 cubic-feet-per-second (cfs), while the reservoir’s water surface elevation dropped to ~1,018 feet (783 acre-feet storage) by the end of the month.  Most sections of lower Carmel River below the Schulte Well remain dry. A short section in the DeDampierre reach is also transitional. One day of steelhead rescues were needed this month (see details below) as rearing conditions for juvenile steelhead remained generally “poor” below the narrows.  All lower valley tributaries are dry at the confluence.

Mean daily streamflow at the Sleepy Hollow Weir ranged from 5.5 to 6.9 cfs (monthly mean 6.21 cfs) resulting in 382 acre-feet (AF) of runoff, while it was dry at the Highway 1 gage.

There were 0.32 inches of rainfall in October as recorded at Cal-Am’s San Clemente gauge. The rainfall total for WY 2019 (which started on October 1, 2018) is 0.32 inches, or 41% of the long-term year-to-date average of 0.78 inches. 

CARMEL RIVER LAGOON:  The lagoon mouth is closed and the water surface elevation rose two feet from 5.5 to 7.5 feet (North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88) due primarily to seawater overtopping the beach berm (see graph below).

Water quality depth-profiles were conducted at five sites on October 22 while the lagoon was closed with no river inflow. Steelhead rearing conditions at all sites were generally “fair” with low salinity (4-18 ppt), water temperature ranging from 61-69 degrees F, and dissolved oxygen (DO) levels of 3-10 mg/l. A large school of striped bass was observed at the entrance to the south arm.

LIFE CYCLE MONITORING: 

Mainstem Carmel River Steelhead Rescues – One rescue was conducted in October in an isolated pool near Schulte well, 73 1+ and YOY fish were captured and moved upstream.

As of October 31^st a total of 2,794 fish have been rescued in 2018 including: 1,396 YOY, 1,383 1+, 1 adult, 14 mortalities (0.5%), 2,271 fish were tagged, and there were 18 recaptures of previously tagged fish (0.64%).

Tagging – Rescued fish larger than 65 mm are now being tagged with Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tags. District staff is currently operating four PIT tag arrays (tag number readers) on the Carmel River in a partnership between the District and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Data is being collected for future analysis and reporting.

Juvenile Steelhead Fall Population Surveys – The District and NMFS are partnering up for a third year of an expanded steelhead population survey program that covers more sites over a larger portion of the watershed while PIT tagging additional fish. This year more than 20 sites were sampled between the lower valley and above LPR, as well as several in the tributaries. Results will be described in future reports. 

SLEEPY HOLLOW STEELHEAD REARING FACILITY:  General contractor Mercer-Fraser Company of Eureka, CA, was hired for the Intake Upgrade Project and started construction in September on the $2 million project. The main features of the project include installing a new intake structure that can withstand flood and drought conditions as well as the increased bedload from the San Clemente Dam removal project two years ago, and a new Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS) that can be operated in times of poor river water quality to keep the fish healthy. During October, the new intake structure and screen were installed while the old existing structures were removed.

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