The Russian River an Assessment of Its Condition and Governmental Oversight
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The Russian River An Assessment of Its Condition and Governmental Oversight Sonoma County Water Agency By Robert F. Beach Santa Rosa, California August 1996 Preface Statements that the Russian River has been allowed to decline to the point of crisis have been made for many years and are becoming increasingly common. The asserted decline is often attributed to a lack of both vision and action on the part of local, state and federal agencies having jurisdiction over the Russian River's natural resources. More recently, these concerns have been accompanied by a call for the development of a comprehensive management plan to address the perceived ills of the Russian River, and for state and federal action to assist in financing the preparation of the plan. The following "ecographic" by Richard Charter graphically expresses the view held by a number of people of how the Russian River has been abused. i American Rivers, Inc., a national river conservation organization, in their list of "North America's Twenty Most Threatened Rivers of 1996", ranked the Russian River as the 15th most threatened river in North America. The Natural Heritage Institute, a law and consulting firm in resource conservation, in a June 5, 1996 letter to Gray Davis, Chairman of the State Lands Commission, James M. Strock, Secretary for Environmental Protection, and Douglas P. Wheeler, Secretary of the California Resources Agency, acting on behalf of the Friends of the Russian River, which is another river conservation organization, asked the State to adopt a plan for long-term management, including restoration, of the Russian River fisheries and their habitat. The preparation of this document was commissioned by the Board of Directors of the Sonoma County Water Agency, by Resolution No. 95-0456 adopted on April 18, 1995, to synthesize the existing data, studies and reports on various aspects of the Russian River into a single document which summarizes the current condition of the river. The purpose of this document is to provide a factual basis for the Board of Directors and other public policy makers 1) to describe, as completely as available information permits, the current condition of the Russian River; 2) to define the jurisdiction, and generally describe the most significant programs that various local, state and federal government agencies are currently involved with in addressing problems affecting the Russian River; 3) to determine the need for a comprehensive planning effort, or other means to improve interagency communication, coordination and cooperation; and 4) to identify any problems which are not currently being adequately addressed in order to facilitate the rational allocation of the resources which are available, or which may become available in the future. The areas of concern which are examined include 1) water supply, from both the main stem of the Russian River and Dry Creek, and their tributaries; 2) water quality; 3) recreation and public access; 4) gravel mining; 5) the abundance of the anadromous and warm water fishery, including both hatchery and naturally propagated fish; 6) barriers to fish migration; 7) riparian habitat; and 8) flood and erosion control activities. Footnotes are utilized in this paper, rather than the more commonly used endnotes or parenthetical references, to allow the reader immediate access to the reference without having to search for it. In the case of the work of one author as found in that of another, particularly where the secondary source is a report prepared by or for the Sonoma County Water Agency, the citations of the works do not include the original source (or more often, multiple sources). In these cases, the reader is referred to the Sonoma County Water Agency reports themselves for a full list of references. ii Table of Contents Part 1, Condition of the Russian River Chapter I, Water Supply 1-I-1 Introduction 1-I-1 Russian River Service Area 1-I-3 Water Demands 1-I-5 Curtailment Criteria 1-I-13 Streamflow Maintenance 1-I-14 Model Study Results 1-I-16 Chapter II, Water Quality 1-II-1 Introduction 1-II-1 Nutrients 1-II-2 Bacteria 1-II-4 Dissolved Oxygen 1-II-8 Total Dissolved Solids 1-II-10 Hydrogen Ion Concentration 1-II-11 Toxic Chemicals 1-II-11 Endocrine Disruptors 1-II-12 Turbidity 1-II-13 Chapter III, Recreation and Public Access 1-III-1 Introduction 1-III-1 Russian River 1-III-2 Lake Mendocino 1-III-4 Lake Sonoma 1-III-6 Chapter IV, Gravel Mining 1-IV-1 Introduction 1-IV-1 Russian River Geomorphology 1-IV-1 Instream Mining 1-IV-4 iii Chapter V, Fishery 1-V-1 Introduction 1-V-1 Coho Salmon 1-V-4 Chinook Salmon 1-V-6 Steelhead Trout 1-V-6 American Shad and Striped Bass 1-V-8 Salmonid Abundancy Determinants 1-V-9 Geomorphology 1-V-9 Ocean Productivity 1-V-10 Hatchery Planting 1-V-11 Flow and Water Temperature 1-V-12 Sport and Commercial Fishing 1-V-13 Barriers to Migration 1-V-14 Watershed Practices 1-V-14 Inadequate Water Diversion Screening 1-V-14 Chapter VI, Barriers to Fish Migration 1-VI-1 Introduction 1-VI-1 Dams 1-VI-1 Coyote Valley Dam 1-VI-1 Warm Springs Dam 1-VI-2 Small Dams 1-VI-3 Barriers Caused by Streambed Degradation 1-VI-4 Seasonal Dams on the Mainstem 1-VI-5 Estuary Bar 1-VI-6 Chapter VII, Riparian Habitat 1-VII-1 Introduction 1-VII-1 Historic Condition of Riparian Zone 1-VII-1 Habitat Fragmentation 1-VII-2 Riparian Habitat Survey 1-VII-3 Vegetation and Wildlife 1-VII-5 Chapter VIII, Flood and Erosion Control 1-VIII-1 Introduction 1-VIII-1 Coyote Valley Dam 1-VIII-3 Warm Springs Dam 1-VIII-4 Central Sonoma Watershed Project 1-VIII-7 Laguna de Santa Rosa 1-VIII-9 Russian River Channel 1-VIII-9 Bank Stabilization and Erosion Control 1-VIII-11 Flood Control Zones 1-VIII-14 iv Part 2, Governmental Jurisdiction Chapter I, General Purpose Local Governments 2-I-1 Introduction 2-I-1 Cities 2-I-2 Counties 2-I-3 Planning and Zoning Law 2-I-4 California Environmental Quality Act 2-I-6 Surface Mining and Reclamation Act of 1975 2-I-8 Chapter II, Special Districts 2-II-1 Introduction 2-II-1 Special Act Water Agencies 2-II-2 Sonoma County Water Agency 2-II-3 Mendocino County Water Agency Water Districts 2-II-3 MCRRFC&WCD 2-II-4 Potter Valley Irrigation District 2-II-4 County Water Districts 2-II-4 Community Services Districts 2-II-6 Agricultural and Open Space Districts 2-II-6 Public Utility Districts 2-II-7 Recreation and Park Districts 2-II-8 Resource Conservation Districts 2-II-8 Sanitation Districts 2-II-9 Joint Powers Authorities 2-II-10 Santa Rosa Subregional Sewerage System 2-II-11 Mendocino County Inland Water and Power Commission 2-II-11 Chapter III, State Agencies 2-III-1 Introduction - The Resources Agency 2-III-1 Department of Parks and Recreation 2-III-1 State Park and Recreation Commission 2-III-2 Department of Conservation 2-III-2 Division of Mines and Geology 2-III-2 State Mining and Geology Board 2-III-3 Division of Resource Conservation 2-III-3 State Resource Conservation Commission 2-III-4 Department of Forestry and Fire Protection 2-III-4 State Board of Forestry 2-III-5 Forest Practice Act 2-III-5 v Department of Water Resources 2-III-7 California Water Commission 2-III-8 Division of Supervision of Safety of Dams 2-III-8 State Water Resources Control Board 2-III-9 North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board 2-III-9 Department of Fish and Game 2-III-10 Fish and Game Commission 2-III-11 Wildlife conservation Board 2-III-11 Stream Alteration Agreements 2-III-12 State Lands Commission 2-III-13 California Coastal Commission 2-III-13 State Coastal Conservancy 2-III-14 Chapter IV, Federal Agencies 2-IV-1 Introduction 2-IV-1 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2-IV-1 National Marine Fishery Service 2-IV-3 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2-IV-4 Environmental Protection Agency 2-IV-5 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 2-IV-7 United States Geological Survey 2-IV-7 National Resource Conservation Service 2-IV-10 Part 3, Current Programs Chapter I, Water Supply 3-I-1 Introduction 3-I-1 Water Supply and Transmission System Project 3-I-2 SWRCB Russian River Water Rights Process 3-I-7 Chapter II, Water Quality 3-II-1 Chapter III, Recreation and Public Access 3-III-1 Introduction 3-III-1 Steelhead Beach Park 3-III-1 Cloverdale River Park 3-III-2 Healdsburg River Access 3-III-3 Windsor Riverfront Park 3-III-4 vi Chapter IV, Gravel Mining 3-IV-1 Introduction 3-IV-1 Regulation of Instream Mining 3-IV-2 Chapter V, Fishery 3-V-1 Introduction 3-V-1 Russian River Basin Planning and Restoration Project 3-V-1 Sonoma County Water Agency Fisheries Restoration Project 3-V-3 Chapter VI, Barriers to Fish Migration 3-VI-1 Introduction 3-VI-1 Matanzas Creek Fishway 3-VI-1 Russian River Estuary Management Plan 3-VI-2 Healdsburg Dam Fishway 3-VI-4 Chapter VII, Riparian Habitat 3-VII-1 Introduction 3-VII-1 Santa Rosa Creek Master Plan 3-VII-1 Prince Memorial Greenway 3-VII-2 Santa Rosa Creek Greenway 3-VII-3 Santa Rosa Waterways Plan Brush 3-VII-3 Creek Restoration Project 3-VII-4 Laguna de Santa Rosa Park Master Plan 3-VII-5 Chapter VIII, Flood Control 3-VIII-1 Part 4, Analysis and Recommendations Chapter I, Current Planning Efforts 4-I-1 Introduction - Public Law 100-653 4-I-1 Russian River Salmon and Steelhead Trout Restoration Plan 4-I-2 SWRCB Russian River Strategy 4-I-3 California Resources Agency Framework Agreement 4-I-4 Natural Heritage Institute Request 4-I-5 vii Chapter II, Need for Comprehensive Management Plan 4-II-1 Chapter III, Need for Interagency Communication, Coordination and Cooperation 4-III-1 Chapter IV, Program Needs 4-IV-1 Introduction 4-IV-1 Water Supply 4-IV-1 Water Quality 4-IV-2 Recreation 4-IV-2 Gravel Mining 4-IV-2 Fishery 4-IV-3 Barriers to Migration 4-IV-3 Riparian Habitat 4-IV-4 Flood Control 4-IV-4 viii Part 1, Condition of the Russian River Chapter I, Water Supply INTRODUCTION In 1980 the California Department of Water Resources funded a study by the University of Arizona's Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research.