Calapooya Creek Watershed Assessment and Action Plan
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Watershed Assessment and Action Plan N W E S Umpqua Basin Calapooya Creek Watershed Prepared by Nancy A. Geyer for the Umpqua Basin Watershed Council July, 2003 UBWC Calapooya Creek Watershed Assessment and Action Plan Umpqua Basin Watershed Council 1758 NE Airport Road Roseburg, Oregon 97470 541 673-5756 www.ubwc.org Calapooya Creek Watershed Assessment and Action Plan Prepared by Nancy A. Geyer July, 2003 Contributors Robin Biesecker Jenny Allen, Tim Grubert, Barnes and Associates, Inc. and John Runyon BioSystems Consulting Brad Livingston David Williams and Loren Waldron Oregon Water Resources Land and Water Environmental Department Services, Inc. Reviewers Umpqua Basin Calapooya Creek Watershed Watershed Council Assessment Group Board of Directors Publication citation This document should be referenced as Geyer, Nancy A. 2003. Calapooya Creek Watershed Assessment and Action Plan. July, 2003. Prepared for the Umpqua Basin Watershed Council, Roseburg, Oregon. This project has been funded in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under assistance agreement CO-000451-02 to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Environmental Protection Agency, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use. 2 UBWC Calapooya Creek Watershed Assessment and Action Plan Table of Contents Lists of Photographs, Figures, Maps, and Tables......................... 4 Acronym List .................................................................................... 7 Forward ............................................................................................. 8 1. Introduction ................................................................................ 9 1.1. Purpose and development of the watershed assessment..................................... 9 1.1.1. The Umpqua Basin Watershed Council............................................................ 9 1.1.2. The watershed assessment and action plan....................................................... 9 1.1.3. Assessment development ................................................................................ 10 1.2. Watershed description....................................................................................... 10 1.2.1. Location, size, and major features .................................................................. 10 1.2.2. Ecoregions....................................................................................................... 11 1.2.3. Topography ..................................................................................................... 12 1.2.4. Geology........................................................................................................... 14 1.2.5. The Calapooya Creek stream network............................................................ 18 1.2.6. Climate............................................................................................................ 20 1.2.7. Vegetation....................................................................................................... 23 1.3. Land use, ownership, and population ............................................................... 24 1.3.1. Land use and ownership.................................................................................. 24 1.3.2. Population and demographics ......................................................................... 26 2. Past Conditions ........................................................................ 30 2.1. Pre-settlement: Early 1800s.............................................................................. 30 2.1.1. Indian lands..................................................................................................... 30 2.1.2. European visitors ............................................................................................ 32 2.2. Settlement period: Late 1840s to the 1890s..................................................... 33 2.2.1. Early settlement .............................................................................................. 33 2.2.2. Gold mining .................................................................................................... 34 2.2.3. Mercury mining .............................................................................................. 35 2.2.4. Nickel mining.................................................................................................. 35 2.2.5. Agriculture ...................................................................................................... 35 2.2.6. Commercial fishing......................................................................................... 35 2.2.7. Logging ........................................................................................................... 36 2.2.8. Transportation ................................................................................................. 36 2.3. Onset of the modern era: Early 1900s to the 1960s.......................................... 37 2.3.1. Transportation ................................................................................................. 37 2.3.2. Logging............................................................................................................. 38 2.3.3. Mercury mining .............................................................................................. 39 2.3.4. Nickel mining / copper and zinc mining......................................................... 40 2.3.5. Hatcheries ....................................................................................................... 40 2.3.6. Agriculture ...................................................................................................... 41 2.4. Modern era: 1970s to the present...................................................................... 41 2.4.1. Logging ........................................................................................................... 41 2.4.2. Mining............................................................................................................. 42 1 UBWC Calapooya Creek Watershed Assessment and Action Plan 2.4.3. Dam construction............................................................................................ 43 2.4.4. Tourism ........................................................................................................... 43 2.4.5. Settlement patterns and urbanization .............................................................. 43 2.4.6. Douglas County population growth................................................................ 44 2.5. History of the Calapooya Creek Watershed ..................................................... 44 2.5.1. Calapooya Creek historical timeline............................................................... 44 2.5.2. Calapooya Creek population........................................................................... 47 2.5.3. 1900 forest conditions..................................................................................... 48 2.5.4. Historical fish use ........................................................................................... 49 2.6. Historical references ......................................................................................... 50 3. Current Conditions................................................................... 53 3.1. Stream function................................................................................................. 53 3.1.1. Stream morphology......................................................................................... 53 3.1.2. Stream connectivity ........................................................................................ 62 3.1.3. Channel modification...................................................................................... 65 3.1.4. Stream function key findings and action recommendations ........................... 66 3.2. Riparian zones and wetlands............................................................................. 67 3.2.1. Riparian zones................................................................................................. 67 3.2.2. Wetlands ......................................................................................................... 72 3.2.3. Riparian zones and wetlands key findings and action recommendations....... 76 3.3. Water quality..................................................................................................... 77 3.3.1. Stream beneficial uses and water quality impairments................................... 77 3.3.2. Temperature .................................................................................................... 79 3.3.3. Surface water pH............................................................................................. 83 3.3.4. Dissolved oxygen............................................................................................ 84 3.3.5. Nutrients.......................................................................................................... 85 3.3.6. Bacteria ........................................................................................................... 86 3.3.7. Sedimentation and turbidity............................................................................ 89 3.3.8. Toxics...........................................................................................................