72 



All other major river systems in our area, with the exception 

 of the Smith River, have similar problems to those described above. 

 The Eel River is the fourth largest salmon and steelhead producer 

 in California, but there is some prospect that these species may be 

 lost from the river. Erosion problems in the Eel watershed are 

 immense, with an estimated 60 feet of material deposited over the 

 old river bed from past flood events. According to U.S. Fish and 

 Wildlife Service reports, the main stem of the Eel River as 

 recently as 1959 could support 140,000 pairs of spawning salmon but 

 today the main stem of the river is no longer suitable for 

 spawning. The river relied primarily on its healthy tributaries to 

 support anadromous fish after past floods, but those have recently 

 been severely damaged by logging. 



All smaller coastal river basins in the region have had 

 similar problems with sedimentation due to extremely unstable 

 geologic conditions in our region coupled with disturbances related 

 to industrial timber practices. The high sediment load of almost 

 all northwestern California Rivers has caused estuaries to fill. 

 The estuary of the Eel River for example has shrunk by over 50 

 percent since 1950 (Higgins 1991) . These important habitats serve 

 as nursery areas for salmonid juveniles, such as Chinook salmon, 

 and marine species such as Dungeness crab. 



The ecological changes in the rivers of our region result in 

 conditions under which introduced exotic, warm water fish species 

 may thrive. Green sunfish were found to be successfully reproducing 

 in the South Fork of the Trinity River during the recent, prolonged 

 drought. There is some evidence that these fish are predating upon 

 juvenile steelhead. Sacramento squawfish were introduced to the Eel 

 River a decade ago and have since spread throughout the entire 

 river basin. These fish are predacious and have experienced almost 

 an exponential cycle of growth. Plunging salmon and steelhead 

 populations in areas of the basin first colonized by squawfish 

 suggest that they have had a devastating impact. 



In areas further south or in interior river basins, impacts 

 may come largely from agricultural activities. The Shasta River, 

 which has always been a substantial contributor to Klamath Chinook 

 salmon production, is now almost unsuitable for these fish. Lack of 

 riparian cover and depletion of flows for irrigation have caused 

 the river to rise to 90 degrees F in summer. Lack of riparian 

 fencing also allows livestock direct access to the river resulting 

 in excessive nutrient loading. Dissolved oxygen in summer has been 

 measured at 2.4 ppm, which is lethal to salmonids. The Russian 

 River to the south has a complex set of problems related to flow 

 depletion for farming and vineyards, sub-urban development, and 

 excessive gravel extraction. 



2) What are the essential attributes of healthy watersheds and fish 

 habitat? What is role that riparian areas play in promoting 

 "ecosystem health" as well as providing high quality fish habitat? 



