Last week, River Garden Farms completed its project to install 25 habitat structures for juvenile salmon in the Sacramento River around the South Bonnyview Bridge in Redding. The structures were made by anchoring tree rootwads to massive boulders and then carefully placing them in the river upstream, under and downstream of the bridge. The project will now be monitored for the next three years to determine the value it is providing for the salmon. If successful, the project will be expanded in upcoming years. These structures addresses a need by juvenile winter-run Chinook salmon for refuge from predators as they rear in the upper portion of the Sacramento River. Additional information on the project is available in the press release below.
Click on the image to view the full press release:
The habitat structures are the thirteenth Sacramento Valley Salmon Recovery Program (SVSRP) project to be completed in the past couple of years. The SVSRP is a collaborative effort of water management entities, conservation organizations and state and federal fishery and water management agencies to promote salmonid recovery in the Sacramento Valley through the identification, prioritization and completion of habitat improvement projects. These projects will help implement the National Marine Fisheries Service’s Recovery Plan for the Sacramento Valley and Governor Brown’s California Water Action Plan, and thus provide a comprehensive framework to advance the next generation of salmon projects.
There was considerable media interest in the project. Below is a sampling of the media coverage and additional videos on how the habitat structures were constructed.
KRCR – Fish habitats strategically dropped into the Sacramento River.
Action News Now – New river project aims to help endangered salmon recovery in Redding.
Redding Record Searchlight – Salmon recovery effort takes root in Redding
CBS Sacramento – Boulders and tree trunks could help save Winter-run chinook
AgDaily – California Farmers Help Struggling Salmon
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