San Mateo County Participation in FishNet 4C
FISHERY RESTORATION ON THE SAN MATEO COAST
The creeks flowing into the ocean along the lovely coastline of San Mateo County provide important habitat for endangered coho salmon and threatened steelhead trout. Since 1998, the county has been working to remove fish migration barriers in these creeks, and to take actions that improve their maintenance practices and improve water quality.
PESCADERO CREEK—Two Major Fish Barriers to be Removed.
Thanks to grants from the Department of Fish and Game’s Fisheries Restoration Grant Program, San Mateo County Parks Department will restore fish passage at two barriers on Pescadero Creek–an important coho salmon and steelhead trout stream.
Memorial Park Campground Crossing
Renovation of the low water crossing on Pescadero Creek in Memorial Park campground includes constructing an arched culvert and removing an existing fish ladder. This project will be constructed in fall 2008.
See
large photos of Memorial Park Crossing
Historic Swim Dam Removal
Removal of the historic swim dam in Memorial Park was preceded by an effort to replace existing water supplies with new wells for park use. Construction is pending, dependent on grant funding, but will likely take place in fall 2009. This project will remove the last barrier to juvenile salmonids in Memorial Park, and will open up 60 miles of habitat along Pescadero Creek.
See
large photo of Memorial Park Dam
GAZOS CREEK EMERGENCY SLIDE REPAIR: A BIOENGINEERED APPROACH
In times gone by, an emergency slide off of a road would have simply been repaired with rip rap. Today, in our sensitive salmon watersheds, it is an opportunity to implement bioengineering techniques to improve habitat while protecting the road. View the San Mateo County Public Works photo series (pdf) of a bioengineered emergency streambank repair project using rootwads, rock and revegetation. The work was done in Gazos Creek, an important coho salmon stream.
GAZOS ROAD “BUTTONED UP” BY PUBLIC WORKS
County Public Works, plagued with erosion problems on Upper Gazos Creek Road, implemented major road restoration by installing numerous rolling dips and outsloping sections of the road. This series of projects will prevent over 124 cubic yards of sediment from entering Gazos Creek, improving water quality and protecting spawning habitat for fish.
HISTORIC LOGGING ROADS PRESENT A CHALLENGE FOR COUNTY PARKS
Many of San Mateo’s parks are criss-crossed by historic logging roads that were developed before concerns over sediment and fish were known. The County must now manage and maintain these roads, which serve as trails and access roads in their parks. As these roads age and unravel, they threaten to deliver huge amounts of sediment to important salmonid streams, choking habitat and degrading water quality.
In 2003, County Parks completed a Sediment Assessment Report for the Pescadero Park complex. A total of 74 miles of road (39.4 miles) and trail (34.4 miles) were surveyed to identify sediment reduction opportunities in the Pescadero County Park complex made up of Memorial, Pescadero and Sam MacDonald Parks. The improvements identified would prevent sediment delivery of 38,000 cubic yards from reaching Pescadero Creek - important habitat for Coho salmon and Steelhead trout. As a result, three additional Fish and Game grants were secured to implement sediment reduction improvements to 6 miles of Old Haul Road in 2003, and 9 miles of Tarwater and Camp Pomponio Roads in 2006. Future projects identified in the assessment could prevent hundreds of thousands more cubic yards of sediment from reaching Pescadero Creek.
OBSTACLE FOR STEELHEAD TROUT REMOVED IN SAN MATEO'S HUDDART PARK
Steelhead trout once hindered by a rusting culvert now have an easier swim to their historic spawning grounds in the headwaters of San Francisquito Creek, thanks to a project paid for in part by the Bay Bridge seismic retrofit project.
The culvert was replaced during the summer of 2007 with one that maintains the creek’s natural character. In addition to the funds from the Bay Bridge East Span Seismic Safety Project, the County Parks Department received funds from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to replace the culvert. The culvert was originally identified as a steelhead barrier in an assessment by the San Francisquito Creek Watershed Council.
An added benefit of the project is the improved access for fire and other vehicles to the Phleger Estate, part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. GGNRA scientists contributed to the project by assisting with environmental reporting.
“This project involved a lot of partners and shows the benefit of agencies and community groups working together”, said David Holland, San Mateo County’s Parks Director.
Contact Us
Supervisor Rich Gordon; 3rd District
(650) 363-4569
rgordon@co.sanmateo.ca.us
Other Helpful Links
NOAA Fisheries Database for San Mateo and Santa Cruz
http://www3.csc.noaa.gov/salmonid/
San Mateo County Public Works–Watershed Protection Services
http://www.co.sanmateo.ca.us
San Mateo County Resource Conservation District
http://www.sanmateorcd.org
NOAA—National Marine Fisheries Service Southwest Region
http://swr.nmfs.noaa.gov/
California Dept. of Fish and Game
http://www.dfg.ca.gov/
California Resources Agency
http://resources.ca.gov/
Cal Fish—California Cooperative Fish and Habitat Data Program
http://www.calfish.org/
State Coastal Conservancy
http://www.coastalconservancy.ca.gov/
State Water Resources Control Board / Regional Boards
http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/
http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/regions.html
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