115 



production, the USFS and BLM currently have a substantial surplus 

 of workers that h.ave been associated with timber harvest. These 

 agencies must resist the temptation to use the resources allocated 

 for watershed restoration to retain staff that is not capable of 

 contributing to a successful watershed restoration program. 



Both the USFS and BLM need time for accurate inventories and 

 staff development so that watershed restoration can be done 

 properly. Budget allocations should not set unrealistic targets 

 that would lead to a lack of quality control. Congress should 

 stipulate that money allocated for this ambitious watershed 

 restoration program is "no year money." This will allow a flexible 

 time frame for various National Forests or BLM Districts to build 

 a quality program and not be pressed into meeting arbitrary budget 

 deadlines. 



The work of pulling culverts and obliterating sections of road 

 can be done by displaced timber workers and equipment operators. 

 Some stipulation should be made in enabling legislation to favor 

 small local contractors. If fisheries restoration creates local 

 jobs, then the community as a whole will support it. In addition to 

 short term benefits of job creation, rural economies will 

 ultimately be revitalized by tourism related to increased fishing 

 opportunities. 



Key Habitats For Salmon and Steelhead in 

 Northwestern California 



Discussions regarding refuge habitats for salmon and steelhead 

 have largely centered on the work of Johnson et al. (1991). I 

 believe that some watersheds critical to the preservation of salmon 

 and steelhead stocks in northwestern California have been omitted. 

 Conversely, some watersheds included as key habitats are too 

 degraded to serve as centers of restoration. On the Klamath 

 National Forest, Grider Creek needs to be protected as critical 

 habitat because its watershed is almost completely intact. Juvenile 

 Chinook salmon of stocks that are at high risk of extinction, such 

 as the Shasta River, may currently take refuge in lower Grider 

 Creek because of its cool water temperatures. Because of its 

 healthy watershed and stream conditions, Grider Creek may offer a 

 unique opportunity as a control in future monitoring programs or 

 studies. Beaver Creek, on the other hand, may be too degraded to be 

 considered as a key watershed at this time. 



Six Rivers National Forest has jurisdiction over critical 

 salmon and steelhead habitat in the Mad River drainage which needs 

 to be included in any key watershed designation. This river once 

 produced over 5,000 chinook salmon annually but today the number is 

 only several hundred. The majority of the watershed below the Six 

 Rivers holdings is on private timber land and has been extensively 

 clear cut in recent years. The last viable population of fall 

 Chinook salmon now spawn in the main river alluviated canyon 



