This statement of work represents a project that is part of a collaborative effort in the Upper Salmon River Watershed with the purpose of benefiting ESA-listed salmonids.  The project focuses on developing and implementing restoration actions in the Upper Salmon River sub basin on both public and private land to address salmonid limiting factors in support of the Northwest Power and Conservation Council’s Sub Basin Management Plan (2004), Fish and Wildlife Program (2014), and meeting NOAA recovery plan goals for Upper Snake River Basin Salmon and Steelhead (NOAA 2017).  The area covered under this project in the Upper Salmon River includes the what is known as the 12-Mile Reach from Ellis, Idaho on the Salmon River and its tributaries; East Fork of the Salmon River and its tributaries, and the Upper Salmon Basin from East Fork to the Headwaters of the Salmon and its tributaries. This area has been identified as critical to the recovery of the Snake River Spring/Summer Chinook Salmon ESU (NOAA 2017). The Integrated Reach Assessment (IRA) (OSC 2019) and Upper Salmon Multiple Reach Assessment (MRA) references biological benefits to include increased resting opportunities, provide cover for juvenile Chinook salmon, maintain current summer stream temperatures that are suitable for juvenile Chinook salmon growth for both winter and summer stream temperatures, and increase pools. Although the MRA does not cover the entire are of work within this proposal, the principles of the MRA can be applied to the entire Upper Salmon. This statement of work includes numerous individual projects that address the limiting factors identified in this region.
WE I - Morgan Creek/S22: - Morgan Creek, a tributary to the Salmon River near Challis Idaho that has been identified as important for the spawning, migration and rearing of ESA-listed steelhead and bull trout and supports the rearing of ESA listed juvenile Chinook salmon. Morgan Creek was historically de-watered below the SMC2-4 diversion during the irrigation season, blocking access to those fish species. Since 2005, the Idaho Water Resource Board has worked with two water users on Morgan Creek to maintain a 3 cfs minimum flow below the SMC2-4 diversion and maintain full season connectivity in the lowest one-mile reach of Morgan Creek. New infrastructure was installed in 2021 under contract number 86099 to address the Morgan Creek section of the project identified as phase one and the top priority. The S-22 head-gate is problematic for water control and a new head-gate in for the S-22 diversion would ensure the Salmon River water would be more controllable and provide more consistent delivery of water to users. This would reduce the requirement for the Morgan Creek water during low flows. This project was ranked as part of the Morgan Creek juncture project on 6/3/2020. The combined projects received a ranking score of 66 by the Upper Salmon Basin Tech Team, which puts it in the "high" category
WE J - Custer SWCD holds an easement in behalf of BPA in along the Salmon River and includes the Warm Springs Channel. A culvert crossing on Warm Springs is failing and causing the channel to backup and become stagnate. The easement allows for the crossings to remain in place for hay harvest on the other side but is currently not functional. This culvert replacement was one of the original goals developed with this easement. Due to changes in funding priorities from the Corps of Engineers the easement remains in place, however no habitat or passage work has been completed to date. This year’s SOW would address design of the project and purchase of the bridge to be installed in the next year’s contract.
WE K - Pole Creek Engineering: The goal of this project is to increase the hydraulic connectivity, structural diversity, and complexity of Pole Creek. It is important to build upon the successful results of the completed Pole Creek projects, since the resulting increase in flows will encourage adult chinook spawners to move up the creek. The new strategy for IDFG includes releasing chinook smolts and adults at the County Line Bridge, and possibly adults at the Pole Creek Bridge.  This project has the ability to improve the stream channel to support recolonization and fish numbers in Pole Creek. The original Pole Creek project (Ranked at 75 (high) by the Tech Team) was a multi-year, multi-agency project that took place in 2014 through 2016. This project will complement the original project goal to facilitate a restored hydrologic cycle within Pole Creek. During the late-summer irrigation period, the previous project reduced the trend of from 75 percent of flows being removed from Pole Creek to 75 percent of flows remaining within Pole Creek.  Long-term agreements were developed with landowners and the Idaho Water Board to secure and maintain at least 15 cubic feet per second (cfs) in-stream and ensure resiliency and sustainability of the system. We propose the development of a plan, by an engineering firm, to improve the habitat complexity starting with Phase I in the lower reach of Pole Creek.
WE E - Other work in this contract addresses monitoring previously installed projects predominantly fencing to extend the life of the projects. There are approximately eight miles of fencing in the Upper Salmon Basin near Stanley that have been installed in previous contracts and may require repair. Similar opportunities exist in the East Fork. Most of the fence in need of repair is jack post and pole fence, log worm fence and some wire fence. Within this contract, the district proposes developing agreements with landowners to address maintenance and extend the life of the fence for an additional 5-7 years depending on the condition of the fence. This includes, but is not limited to, main Salmon River log work fence, Williams Creek jack post and pole fence and some wire fence. New landowners on the Lower Stanley property have requested assistance to improve the function of the log worm fence in the upcoming year.

The project benefits have been identified in the NOAA Recovery Plan (2017) as well as using methodology developed within the IRA.

Reference: NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) 2017. ESA Recovery Plan for Snake River Spring/Summer Chinook Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) & Snake River Basin Steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss). NOAA West Coast Region. November 2017. Accessible at: https://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov/protected_species/salmon_steelhead/recovery_planning_and_implementation/snake_river/snake_river_sp-su_chinook_steelhead.html

OSC Team (Idaho Governor’s Office of Species Conservation and partners). 2019. Upper Salmon Subbasin Integrated Rehabilitation Assessment. Assessment prepared for and with the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation. June 2019. Available at https://modelwatershed.idaho.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/91/2019/12/Upper_Salmon_IRA_20190620.pd_.pdf.