The South Fork Clearwater River and Slate Creek watersheds lie within the 1855 ceded territory of the Nez Perce Tribe (NPT). Local oral histories refer to the once significant steelhead and salmon runs found throughout the Clearwater Subbasin. These runs were the backbone of an entire culture and were revered as such. The health of entire watersheds, from ridge-top to ridge-top, is important because watersheds contain an interconnected web of life comprised of many elements that support these fish species.  Because of a long history of anthropogenic land uses in these watersheds, the health has been compromised and therefore threatening the health and productivity of the fish species; restoration in these areas in needed to improve the fish populations.

The Lower South Fork Clearwater (LSFC)/ Slate Creek Watershed Restoration project (2010-003-00) is an on-going project of the Nez Perce Tribe Department of Fisheries Resources Management Watershed Division (NPT DFRM) that originated in 1996. This unique and successful restoration partnership is implemented through agreements between the local partners, NPT, and Bonneville Power Administration. The NPT works with a variety of regional collaborations, primarily the USDA Nez Perce – Clearwater National Forest (NPCNF), to implement high value restoration projects using a process-based approach. The overarching goal of the project is to restore lost fishery resources, which are of cultural significance to the NPT.

The LSFC/ Slate Creek watersheds are important to several fish species including Snake River steelhead and spring/summer Chinook as well as bull trout, Snake River fall Chinook (LSFC alone), westslope cutthroat trout, rainbow trout, Pacific lamprey, and western pearlshell mussels.

The goal of this project is to restore the aquatic ecosystems with process-based restoration in these watersheds, addressing limiting factors so that the physical habitat no longer limits recovery of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) threatened steelhead and Chinook salmon populations with associated benefits to several other focal and secondary species.   As part of ongoing partnerships, the NPT proposes to implement habitat improvement projects to address primary limiting factors that will increase the productivity and viability of the LSFC/ Slate Creek watershed populations.  This proposal’s primary focus is to implement habitat improvement and protection projects to address limiting factors identified in regional guidance documents including: Clearwater Subbasin Plan (2003), Salmon Subbasin Plan (2005), South Fork Clearwater River Landscape Assessment (USFS 1998), NOAA Recovery Plans (2017a and 2017b), and USFWS Bull Trout Recovery Plan (2015).

Specifically, the types of actions the project is proposing are to restore habitat access, floodplain connection, sediment transport, storage and routing of water, plant growth and successional processes, input of nutrients and thermal energy, and nutrient cycling in the aquatic food web.

In FY 25, the NPT will be replacing two undersized culverts in Sally Ann Creek, replacing both an undersized private driveway culvert and a failed, undersized Idaho County culvert. The designs call for replacement with structures designed for aquatic organism passage and include open bottom channels with continuous native substrate and streambanks inside of the crossings to create near-margin passage opportunities.  The finished crossings, a modular driveway bridge and a structural steel plate arch, will allow for passage of all stages of fish with native substrate, an at-grade channel, and sediment reduction allowing for upstream migration to an additional over 1 mile of habitat to the next crossing barrier, which is scheduled to be replaced in FY 26. All together, the Sally Ann Creek drainage crossing replacements will open approximately 5.21 miles of accessible habitat to ESA listed steelhead.

In FY 25, the Lower South Fork Clearwater River Mainstem Designs, a continuation of work from FY 24, will be also be completed.  An approximate two miles of land adjacent to the mainstem South Fork Clearwater River, within the lower portion of the river, has been identified for upcoming floodplain and instream habitat restoration work.  This project will first identify areas within the two mile stretch where restoration will be most effective and prioritize those areas for design and implementation, providing final designs and cost estimates during this contract. The design firm will then work with agency partners and landowners to design restoration projects within the site. Implementation funds were sought and awarded through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) grant in partnership with the NRCS to fund the subsequent implementation in 2027-2028 with potential to begin construction as early as 2026. This project, when implemented, will benefit the habitat of all anadromous and resident fish species in the mainstem South Fork Clearwater River, including steelhead, spring/ summer Chinook, fall Chinook, bull trout, and westslope cutthroat trout by reducing instream sediment and providing habitat diversity.  This stretch of river serves as a migration corridor for A- and B-run steelhead as well as spawning and rearing habitat for Chinook salmon, bull trout, and westslope cutthroat trout.  

In FY 26, the remaining two Sally Ann Creek barrier culverts will be replaced. Both crossings, owned and managed by Idaho County Roads, will be replaced with structures designed for aquatic organism passage and include open bottom channels with continuous native substrate and streambanks inside of the crossings to create near-margin passage opportunities.  The finished crossings will allow for passage of all stages of fish with native substrate, an at-grade channel, reduced failure risk, and sediment reduction allowing for upstream migration to an additional 3.55 miles of habitat, crossing private land to the headwaters found on NPCNF. All together, the Sally Ann Creek drainage crossing replacements will open approximately 5.21 miles of accessible habitat to ESA listed steelhead.

Over the FY 25-26 contract, The NPT and NPCNF will continue to install and maintain BDAs and PALS in streams including, but not limited to, Castle Creek and Sill Creek. BDAs aid in creation of habitat features and allow the stream to access its natural floodplain. Work in this contract will apply these low-tech structures to improve habitat conditions in the straightened channel. The BDAs take some time to accumulate sediment and restore habitat as they are a form of process-based, passive restoration.  The BDA projects will improve habitat conditions for steelhead and Chinook in the SF Clearwater drainage.

The NPT and the NPCNF also propose to replace Forest Trail #385’s ford at Mill Creek with a bridge and hardened approaches to improve habitat for the anadromous and resident fish populations by increasing cover and stream depth and reducing the turbidity and physical disturbance caused by forest visitors. The current, unimproved crossing has created ongoing erosion which has increased sediment in Mill Creek, compounded by the adjacent campground, negatively affecting anadromous fish spawning and rearing habitat. The partnership has completed designs in FY 24 and will install the new trail bridge upon the NPCNF's completion of the environmental compliance.

In FY 25-26, work also includes fence maintenance along with continued planning and coordination for next year's projects and out-year habitat improvements. PIT tag arrays will be maintained as they monitor fish passage through a suspected partial velocity barrier site in the South Fork Clearwater River in preparation for a potential velocity barrier removal project in partnership with the NPCNF in out years.