St. David Cienega Restoration Plan Community Watershed Alliance

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St. David Cienega Restoration Plan Community Watershed Alliance St. David Cienega Restoration Plan Community Watershed Alliance Thomas R. Biebighauser October 17, 2019 St. David Cienega Restoration Plan Contents Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................3 Introduction ................................................................................................................................3 Background .................................................................................................................................4 Purpose and Need for Proposal:................................................................................................. 19 Wetland Restoration Design ...................................................................................................... 21 Invasive Species ........................................................................................................................ 29 Invasive Native and Nonnative Plant Control ............................................................................ 30 Mosquitoes................................................................................................................................ 30 Heavy Equipment Requirements ............................................................................................... 31 Engineering Design – Service or Construction Contract?........................................................... 32 Construction Monitoring ........................................................................................................... 33 Buried Utilities .......................................................................................................................... 34 Climate Change ......................................................................................................................... 34 Project Implementation ............................................................................................................. 35 Budget ...................................................................................................................................... 35 Summary................................................................................................................................... 35 Funded by: ................................................................................................................................ 36 Prepared by: .............................................................................................................................. 36 About the Author: ..................................................................................................................... 36 Appendix 1: Photos Showing Wetlands Constructed in Arid Regions by the Author ................. 37 Appendix 2: Wetland Construction on Saturated Soils ............................................................... 63 2 St. David Cienega Restoration Plan Executive Summary Actions are outlined for restoring the St. David Cienega to provide habitat for the Federally listed Desert pupfish, Gila chub, Gila topminnow, Chiricahua leopard frog, Northern Mexican gartersnake, Huachuca water umbel, Canelo Hills ladies’ tresses (Spiranthes delitescens), and Arizona eryngo (soon to be listed). The restored wetlands may also provide habitat for the other aquatic/wetland species such as lowland leopard frog, Mexican Duck (and other waterfowl), Sonora mud turtle, various shore and wading birds. Areas of open water and the elevation of groundwater would be restored by filling ditches and by excavating naturally appearing and functioning wetlands that do not use pipes, pumps, or diversions to maintain water levels. The project would improve wildlife viewing and hunting opportunities, and be designed to require little, if any maintenance, except for the periodic control of nonnative plants, and possibly cattails and bulrushes. Introduction The St. David Cienega is a 386-acre unit of land administered by the United States Bureau of Land Management. St. David Cienega is an extensive wetland within the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (SPRNCA). The Cienega contains large areas of bottomland grasses, mesquite bosques, and net-leaf hackberry trees with areas of sedges and open water choked by bulrushes. The author examined the St. David Cienega for restoration opportunities on June 1 and 2, 2018 at the request of the Community Watershed Alliance. The following individuals assisted the author in the investigation of the St. David Cienega: Catie Armstrong (Community Watershed Alliance) Tom Bousman (Community Watershed Alliance) Howard Buchanan (Community Watershed Alliance) Kali Holtschlag (Community Watershed Alliance) Mike Holtschlag (Community Watershed Alliance) Mary McCool (Community Watershed Alliance) Carmen Miller (Community Watershed Alliance) David Murray (Bureau of Land Management) Jeffrey Simms (Bureau of Land Management) Kristin Terpening (Arizona Game and Fish Department) Laura White (Community Watershed Alliance) John Windes (Arizona Game and Fish Department) 3 St. David Cienega Restoration Plan The author worked to identify and design management actions for the St. David Cienega that would: 1. Restore areas of open water 2. Restore the elevation of groundwater 3. Increase the area of wetlands 4. Provide habitat for Federally listed Endangered and Threatened species of animals and plants, as well as, a wide variety of species that require aquatic and wetland habitats. 5. Increase opportunities to view and hunt wildlife Efforts were made to identify and map all ditches affecting the St. David Cienega. Constructed features such as railroad embankments, culverts, and pipelines were examined to determine if they were affecting the St. David Cienega. Soil texture, and the presence or absence of groundwater at potential project locations was determined using a 48-inch long tile probe, and a 52-inch long open-face soil auger. The texture of the soil at each location was determined using the ribbon test. Portions of the St. David Cienega were surveyed using a laser level and survey rod. Elevation locations were recorded. The perimeter of designed projects was recorded using a GPS. Background The St. David Cienega once contained large pools of open water1. Rancher Carmen Miller remembers visiting these areas of open water within the St. David Cienega as a child.2 Anecdotal records collected by members of the Community Watershed Alliance report that the open water was maintained by ranchers using fire, grazing, dredging, blasting, and herbicide application. The presence of an extensive network of ditches constructed prior to the BLM purchasing the land in 1988 shows that actions were taken to protect El Paso gas pipeline, which was installed in 1935, and to spread water from the St. David Cienega to irrigate grassland. Approximately 8,206-feet of ditches were identified that are now affecting the St. David Cienega. The ditches that were constructed within and around the St. David Cienega, which are visible on a 1956 aerial photograph, are still functioning today. These ditches affect the St. David Cienega by removing standing water, and by lowering the elevation of groundwater. The St. David Cienega has been modified by the following activities: 1 Brown, D.E. 1985. Arizona wetlands and waterfowl. University of Arizona Press, Tucson. 2 Carmen Miller personal communication with T.R. Biebighauser on June 2, 2018. 4 St. David Cienega Restoration Plan 1) A 4-foot deep x 40-foot wide ditch was dug to channel water to the south, under the El Paso gas easement via a culvert to Headcut Creek. 2) A series of irrigation ditches were dug to move water from the St. David Cienega to grasslands located downhill (north) from the Cienega. 3) Several low dams were built to impound water. These dams are no longer functioning or leak. 4) Ditches are drying the Cienega by diverting runoff, removing surface water, and by lowering the elevation of groundwater. The ditches provide poor habitat for fish and wildlife because they only periodically contain water, lack pools, riffles, woody debris, and some are eroding. 5) The ditches lowered the elevation of groundwater in the Cienega, providing conditions where shrubs and trees may now dominate areas that once supported sedges, grasses, and aquatic plants. 6) The ditches reduced the depth of water in open water wetlands, allowing bulrushes to fill open water. The annual growth and die-back of bulrushes and cattails have created mats of organic material that are over 4-feet thick, filling areas that were once open water. 7) Within the Cienega, water from springs once flowed in a sheet-like pattern, saturating soils and supporting a diversity of wetlands, pools and streams. The dug ditches have concentrated runoff into narrow channels that are now eroding in some cases. 8) Deep and long ditches were dug to remove water from the Cienega. This may have been done so that pasture fields may be irrigated, and other fields managed for hay. The ditches eliminated water standing in wetlands and lowered the elevation of groundwater. 9) Head-cuts have formed in some of the ditches. These head-cuts have caused a deepening and widening of ditches, eliminating surface water, and lowering the elevation of groundwater. The ditches and head-cuts are responsible for draining many acres of natural wet-meadows. 10) The ditches that were dug are no longer being used. These ditches continue to divert runoff, lowering the elevation
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