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Big Hole River Foundation
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BHRF Newsletter | spring 2005
Welcome to our Spring Newsletter
"After winter comes the summer. After night comes the dawn. And after every storm, there comes clear, open skies." Samuel Rutherford
Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark on the 1803-1806 journey to learn more about the land he acquired in the Louisiana Purchase. They also were assigned to learn about the inhabitants, seek a water route to the Pacific and catalog plants, rocks, soils and animals.
This summer will be marked by many adventurers traveling throughout the state following the expedition of Lewis and Clark. Once the expedition entered Montana, in April 1805, the men began to encounter new fish species. As the expedition moved past Three Forks, Lewis worried his men might soon go hungry for they would be leaving buffalo country. They often became frustrated by seeing fish and not catching them.
Tom Dickson wrote in Montana Outdoors that "Much has changed in the rivers traversed by the Corps of Discovery over the past two centuries. Yet much is the same.
What would likely surprise expedition members most are the seven major dams on the Missouri River, from St. Louis to the headwaters. Dams have also altered the Columbia River system.
What expedition members would have found familiar is the appearance of many Montana rivers. Lengths of many of our rivers and even a few small stretches of others, sill look the same as they did 200 years ago."
Board member, Pat Munday, offers us a photo essay in this issue in remembrance of Lewis and Clark.
Thank you, Sheila
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Director's Message- Spring
Two Endangered Species
If we look at local extinctions in the Big Hole River watershed we have at least two threatened or near endangered species: ranchers and Arctic grayling. While we know they both need water for survival, I am convinced that we need to look beyond just water issues for an effective way to combat their mutual endangerment.
Like all of us, ranchers in the Big Hole need to make a living which is becoming harder and harder to do. As it gets even harder to make a living from the land one has to make sacrifices. No one likes to sacrifice the environment, but neither do they want to sacrifice bringing an income home to their families. This is not from lack of understanding that such intensive use is detrimental in the long-run; it's just that there are limited economic choices.
In the close to one year of working with the Foundation, I have heard how very hard ranching is. From descriptions by BHRF Board member Ray Weaver speaking of March calves popping out with ten gallons of water to follow, I am amazed at the tenacity of these folks. But the difficulty of ranching is even more related to the low and wild variation in prices hard working ranchers receive for their efforts.
The United States has a cheap foods policy. What that means is that we have externalized the true cost of beef onto consumers, the environment and tax payers. Despite being almost perfectly edible off of Big Hole grass, the greater value of the Big Hole cattle is captured by the highly integrated monopolized feedlot, processing and retail system. That system provides taxpayer subsidized grains to finish the cattle, externalizes the environmental costs of feed lots to our ground and surface waters and allows monopolization to continue in the processing and retail sectors of our economy*. When society asks ranchers for water, remember they are also in a position in a system that gives them little room to sacrifice more.
The Foundation began an effort in April by co-sponsoring a forum with the National Center for Appropriate Technology on grass-finished livestock production in Montana. Though just a beginning, it may lead to a path out of a system of cheap food that limits choices, cheapens our environment, threatens species and ultimately endangers us all.
Jeff Schahczenski Executive Director
* Read Fast Food Nation by Eric Shlosser for a general overview of the commodity beef system and see "Multinational Concentration in Food Processing and Marketing System and the Farm Crisis" by William Heffernan and Mary Hendrickson, available at http:/foodcircles.missouri.edu
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First Annual Arctic Grayling Symposium Scheduled MARK your Calendars!
The Big Hole River Foundation and our partners in the Conservation Partnership Initiative will be holding an Arctic Grayling Symposium, August 26th and 27th, 2005 at the Jackson Hot Springs Lodge, in the upper Big Hole River watershed. Full program plans are still being finalized, but we can confirm that four international Arctic grayling experts will be visiting and providing public lectures as part of the symposium. These scientists will be arriving a few days in advance of the symposium and will be touring and providing their assessment of the grayling situation. Over 75 Arctic grayling researchers from Alaska and Canada have been invited. The event will host a scientific forum on Friday, August 26th and a public meeting on August 27th. While the focus is on Arctic Grayling, the public forum will include general issues regarding cooperative solutions to conservation of threatened and endangered species in the Big Hole watershed. The four scientists confirmed for the symposium are: · Jim O'Neil, Senior fisheries biologist with Golder Associates in Alberta, Canada. Jim has over 30 years of experience with grayling recovery efforts in Canada and has published a number of studies concerned with Arctic grayling, particularly regarding their population decline since the global warming trend beginning in the early 1980's. · Nicholas Hughes, University of Alaska in Fairbanks. Dr. Hughes' research seeks to develop and test general theories that explain interactions between stream salmonids and their habitats. He has done quite a bit of work on patterns of grayling distribution and abundance in Alaska and will summarize this work, which should generate some discussion about how this Alaskan work relates to our situation in Montana. · Brian Blackman, Senior fish biologist with the British Columbia, Canada based Peace/Williston Fish and Wildlife Compensation Program (PWFWCP.) Dr. Blackman worked on enhancement/research projects on Vancouver Island for ten years before joining the compensation program in 1988. One of his key projects is to determine why Arctic grayling have disappeared from so many streams, how to prevent further declines in the remaining stocks and how or if Arctic grayling can be reintroduced back into streams that historically supported populations. · Adrian Clarke, Fishery Biologist, Environmental Stewardship Branch, Ministry of Water, Land & Air Protection, British Columbia, Canada. Mr. Clarke has examined migratory patterns and stock structure using elemental signatures correlated to water chemistry. His research is in the process of refining population structure using genetic markers. Please respond with your interest in attending by returning the bright green pre-registration form inserted in this newsletter. We welcome suggestions for other educational opportunities we can provide for watershed residents. Please complete the survey on back of the pre-registration form. We have limited space but will try to accommodate as many as possible. The scientific forum will be directed to the broader fishery scientific community. Spread the word about the event.
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17th Anniversay Celebration!!!
The Big Hole River Foundation is seventeen years old this summer. Once again, we will be hosting an Open House at the Salmon Fly Access Site in Melrose. Mark your calendars for June 4th and 5th from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Come out and visit with our board members, learn about our current and upcoming projects or just relax by the river and enjoy a complimentary burger and soda. We look forward to seeing you there.
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Historic Milestone Passed
On April 20th Anaconda-Deer Lodge county commissioners approved the four county Big Hole River Conservation Development Standards and Permitting Process ordinance. With their approval the ordinance is now in effect throughout the watershed.
With the completion of the Big Hole River floodplain mapping project in April we now have set in place the means to carefully plan development along the Big Hole River. In particular, no residential building is permitted within 150 feet of the ordinary high water mark. County planning offices will now have the results of the flood plain mapping data and maps which will enable them to carefully review each proposed structure for compliance with the 150 setback, state and local sanitation requirements, protection of riverbank stability, compliance with floodplain regulations, protection of riparian and natural resource functions, and protection of public health and safety.
We all need to note this historic moment and congratulate all who have worked very hard in this effort for many years. The citizens of the Big Hole River watershed have now "officially" made an important step in the self-governance and preservation of their watershed for many years to come. This effort will be a model for other watersheds in Montana and the nation. Congratulations and thanks to all.
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Potential New Mine in the Big Hole -by Andrea Day
There is the potential for a new mine to be opened in the Pioneer Mountains southeast of Wise River. The mineral rights to Cannivan Gulch have been purchased by United Bolero, a company based in Vancouver, BC, for $10 million plus 500,000 shares of stock in the company. Molybdenum was discovered there in 1968 by the Cyprus Exploration Company, and from 1969-1982, Cyprus spent over $5 million surveying the area, drilling holes totaling 90,000 feet and completing a 2514 foot adit. When Cyprus stopped work on the claims, molybdenum prices were around $2 per pound; they are now approximately $34 per pound. The deposit lies on U.S. Forest Service land, and includes an additional 30 mineral claims covering 600 acres contiguous to Cyprus' original unpatented 15 claims.
United Bolero also has a molybdenum claim at Bald Butte, located 28 miles northwest of Helena, and plans to begin exploratory drilling there this month (May 2005.) After drilling is completed there, the company plans to move equipment to Cannivan Gulch around July 1st to begin drilling 10 exploratory holes to verify historical drill data and more accurately establish the extent of the deposit. In order to facilitate this operation, several reclaimed roads will be reopened, and a new 1,100 foot stretch of road will be constructed.
At this point, the mine is only a proposal. If United Bolero does decide to pursue further action, there are many steps that the company must go through, and there will be the opportunity for public input on the process. From the data collected thus far, United Bolero has stated that this mine - if it ever comes to be - will be mined using an open-pit process to begin, possibly followed by underground work or block caving to reach higher grade ore below the main deposit. The minable reserves at this site have been estimated at 300 million tons, and several sources have stated that this has the potential to be a massive project. Molybdenum is a sulfide mineral, and therefore would generate large amounts of acid mine drainage. A tailings pond would also need to be constructed, and would be a perpetual liability. All of this would have extensive detrimental impacts on the surrounding areas, which include roadless areas and the proposed East Pioneer Wilderness Area. The U.S. Forest Service and Montana Department of Environmental Quality are both involved in the procedural process, and the Board of Directors will be keeping informed of any updates regarding this issue.
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WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
High flows often occur on the Big Hole during the early part of June. Flows are dependent upon the drainage basin, precipitation, snow pack and temperature. Terms associated with high flows and runoff events are defined below.
Flash flood The result of heavy or excessive amounts of rainfall within a short period of time, usually less than six hours, causing water to rise and fall quite rapidly. Flood. An overflow or inundation that comes from a river or other body of water and causes or threatens damage. Any relatively high streamflow overtopping the natural or artificial banks in any reach of a stream. Flood frequency Refers to a flood level that has a specified percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year. For example, a 100-year flood occurs on average once every 100 years and thus has a one percent chance of occurring in a given year. Recurrence interval The average interval of time within which the magnitude of a given event, such as a flood, will be equaled or exceeded one time. Flood stage The stage at which overflow of the natural streambanks begins to cause damage in the reach in which the elevation is measured. Overbank flows are of sufficient magnitude to cause considerable inundation of land and roads and/or threat of significant hazard to life and property.
Information found at: http://ks.water.usgs.gov/Kansas/waterwatch/flood/definition.html
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Species Spotlight - Raccoons
RACCOONS CAN BE AN EARLY WARNING TO CLEAN UP BEFORE BEARS AWAKEN THIS SPRING - by Diane Tipton, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Statewide Information Officer
Raccoons, with their ringed tails and little bandit masks are unmistakable. Unlike bears, raccoons don't hibernate, so Montanans may experience a raccoon raid winter or summer.
These industrious creatures are intelligent, inquisitive, very adaptable and are excellent climbers. They eat fish, insects, small mammals, fruit, berries and corn-but like bears-they will seek out the easiest meal. If that meal is being offered on your back porch, around a barn or outbuilding or in your summer garden-a raccoon is sure to find it. Like a bear, raccoons will also eat pet food.
A raccoon can be a useful early warning system. If raccoons are giving you trouble now, they are pointing out areas that could also easily attract bears coming out of hibernation in late March and early April. Where a raccoon is feasting today a bear could be feasting in a month or two, so now is the time to make changes.
Another quality a raccoon shares with a bear is persistence. Take the visits campers and floaters on the Smith River sometimes experience. In one case, Aaron Berg, now a Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks warden in Fort Peck, was working as a ranger on the river. Nightly visits by a raccoon at Camp Baker were becoming a real nuisance. Even after he showed floaters and campers how to properly clean up their sites and secure food, a raccoon still worked its way into coolers, tents, and dry bags and boxes. Berg tried using a standard trap baited with corn on the cob smeared in peanut butter, an irresistible combination to a raccoon. After losing his bait three nights in a row and failing to trap anything, Berg wondered if the raccoon was too big to be trapped in a standard raccoon and skunk trap with its 12-inch opening.
He borrowed a trap for larger animals like coyotes, domestic dogs, and critters of like size and set it with his popular bait. That night he caught the largest male raccoon he'd ever seen-easily 35 to 40 pounds. The creature was thriving all season on granola, sweets, and other high energy, fattening items that taste so good on a float.
Berg's solution was to drive the raccoon across the river into the mountains about 30 miles away. He painted its backside with some orange paint so he could identify it if it returned to Camp Baker. Three days later, it was back.
It took Berg two tries before he once again trapped the husky raccoon. This time he drove it at least 50 miles away from Camp Baker. The rest of the summer Camp Baker was raccoon free.
At the end of the summer Berg camped down river. That night he heard a noise, opened his tent door and shined his flashlight on a large male raccoon with bright orange paint on his behind.
The moral of the story? It is easier to avoid nurturing a masked bandit than it is to discourage one after it has taken a liking to you. Taking action now will also ensure you are prepared when Montana's bears begin coming out of hibernation the end of March.
For tips on living with raccoons, bears and other species, go to the FWP web site at fwp.mt.gov, look under Wild Things and click on Living With Wildlife.
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River Recreation Management Plan Renewed
On May 12th the Fish, Wildlife & Parks commission voted 4-1 to renew the Big Hole and Beaverhead River Recreation Management Plans for five more years. Only minor changes to the plans were made including closing the grayling sensitive reach above the Squaw Creek Bridge to all outfitting and opening the reach below the Notch to outfitting every day. Additionally, there is a new provision allowing a limited number of new single-boat outfitters into each river; for the Big Hole this amounts to a maximum of 300 new client days. On the Beaverhead, everything remains the same including the Tash-Trash section remaining closed to outfitters. Commissioners also opened a new six-month rulemaking process to clarify the rule making leasing of client days illegal and to institute penalties for infractions.
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BHWC Forms Weed Committee
Invasive plant species are one of the greatest threats to native rangeland and riparian communities in Southwest Montana. At nearly every public forum held by the BHWC over the past year, the weed issue has come up as one of the most pressing problems landowners face. The BHWC dedicated its monthly meeting in April to weeds which resulted in the formation of a Weed Committee.
Some of the concerns and frustrations people in the watershed face are the invasion of weeds along the river, from public roads, waterlines, rail lines and other rights-of-way; lack of understanding about the seriousness of the problem and how to respond to weeds; lack of a coordinated effort among different weed management districts, county efforts, and landowners; timeliness of control and management; and increasing difficulty in accessing funding opportunities for weed management.
The first meeting of the BHWC Weed Committee was held in Melrose on April 28th. The Weed Committee consists of nine Landowners in the Big Hole basin. In addition, there is a representative from the Big Hole River Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, county weed supervisors, Mile High RC&D, and BLM participating in advisory and support roles.
A $24,000 NRCS-funded grant is available as seed money for a weed control program on the Big Hole. Requirements of the grant are that the number of landowners involved in weed control doubles (from the current 175) and the number of treated acres doubles (from the current 6,000.)
The Weed Committee decided to pursue two goals for the first year. A full-time seasonal Weed Coordinator will be hired to organize and facilitate those goals. The Weed Coordinator is anticipated to become a permanent position for someone who will provide vision, stability, and guidance to the weed management program.
The first goal to be achieved this year will be to develop an education and outreach effort aimed at all constituents on the Big Hole. The second area of focus will be to organize a major fundraising event to help fund the new basin-wide weed management efforts. The Nature Conservancy will support this effort by dedicating a weed intern to the BHWC Weed Committee to facilitate those efforts.
The fundraising event is already scheduled for September 17th to be held in Wise River. We hope this event will turn into a wonderful annual gathering offering a chance for neighbors to get together, and provide an enjoyable way to raise money for our weed management efforts.
Next on the agenda for the Weed Committee will be to develop strategies for both an immediate and long-term weed management plan. If anyone is interested in participating on the Weed Committee, please contact Noorjahan (782-3682 or nparwana@bhwc.org.)
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BIG HOLE RIVER FOUNDATION WELCOMES TWO NEW BOARD MEMBERS
Susan Riedel was born in Minnesota and raised on a dairy farm with five sisters. She graduated from Staples High School and earned a B.S. degree in liberal arts at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, in 1965. She moved to Michigan and taught English in St Clair Shores and Roseville for 21 years, earning a M.A. degree in English and French in 1970 and a Ph.D. in Curriculum Development in 1983 at Wayne State University, Detroit. She also served as an elementary teacher and later principal for 16 years prior to retirement in 2002.
Susan credits her sister, Ellen, a Methodist Minister for many years in Wyoming and Montana, for introducing her to the West in the early 90's. Still a Michigan resident, she spends part of each year in Montana with her children participating in many projects and outdoor activities. In addition to the BHRF, Susan is a member of the Montana Wilderness Association, the Great Bear Foundation, Glacier Institute and the French Alliance in Bozeman.
Susan participated in data collection as part of the TMDL Clean Water Act work in the Big Hole River watershed in the summer of 2004. She looks forward to further projects to preserve the river and its surrounding habitat for the Arctic grayling recovery.
Andrea Day is excited to be a new board member of the Big Hole River Foundation. Originally from upstate New York, she earned a Bachelor's degree in Biology from the University of the South in Sewanee, TN. After college, she worked at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station for several years, studying the diseases of apples, grapes and other crops. In 2001, she entered the Master's of Environmental Management program at Duke University in Durham, NC. While working toward this degree, she spent a summer working on the Big Hole Watershed Weed Project with The Nature Conservancy, and fell in love with this part of Montana, particularly the Big Hole Valley. After completing graduate school, she returned for a second summer with the Big Hole Watershed Weed Project before heading off to Seattle for a year. Andrea had a chance to experience the weeds of the Pacific Northwest while working for the King County Noxious Weed Control Program. At the end of the season however, she was happy to return to southwest Montana.
As a board member, Andrea looks forward to being involved with the many projects of the Foundation. In particular, she is interested in fundraising, education and outreach and weed management. When she is not busy volunteering, job searching, or working with the Big Hole River Foundation, Andrea enjoys hiking, horseback riding, fly fishing, skiing, kayaking and photography.
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Restoring Grayling: The Importance of "Wetted P" -by Pat Munday
Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (CCAA) and in many other documents aimed at Big Hole grayling (a distinct population of fluvial Arctic grayling) survival and restoration. Wetted Perimeter is simply a physical measure of how wet the streambed is-see the illustration below. While it is intuitively obvious that fish need water - i.e. a wet streambed - to survive, measurements of Wetted Perimeter tell us much more than this.
Studies of the Wetted Perimeter show that it is directly proportional to the standing crop of food available to fish, and thus it is directly proportional to the carrying capacity of the stream. In this way, Wetted Perimeter is analogous to the amount of grazing land available for cattle: all things being equal, if you double the amount of land, then you double your carrying capacity.
Wetted Perimeter is measured as a variable that changes with the flow rate of water. Again, this is intuitively obvious: the more water flowing in a stream, the more streambed that is wetted. Because streambeds come in complex shapes, however, Wetted Perimeter does not increase in a simple, linear way as the flow of water increases. Instead, a graph of Wetted Perimeter vs. Stream Flow will show inflection points-points where the Wetted Perimeter changes abruptly with small changes in flow (see the illustration below).
For riffle-pool-run streams such as the Big Hole River, two inflection points are common. Though the Wisdom area of the river is just one slice of a very large grayling habitat pie, it serves as a good example of what the CCAA is trying to achieve. For more than a decade, we tried to meet the flow targets of the Drought Management Plan (DMP), which called for a 20 cfs minimum "survival" flow at Wisdom. That flow, it was hoped, would keep a little of the stream wet and allow grayling to migrate to better, cooler habitat. The CCAA, using inflection point targets, replaces the DMP.
According to wetted perimeter data, the lower inflection point - labeled point 1 - occurs on the Big Hole River near Wisdom at 60 cfs. Based on wetted perimeter alone, 60 cfs is the rock bottom needed to provide a survival flow. Below this flow, habitat rapidly dries up. Many studies indicate that, in practice, a flow greater than this lower inflection point - 60 cfs for the Big Hole at Wisdom - is actually needed for fish to thrive.
The upper inflection point - labeled point 2 - occurs at 160 cfs. At flows greater than 160 cfs, the Big Hole at Wisdom offers a high level of habitat potential. This is why the draft CCAA specifies that 160 cfs should be the minimum flow. As the draft CCAA states, "For a sensitive species such as grayling, the minimum flows should be based on the upper inflection point (Leathe and Nelson 1989)."
Other factors complicate using the Wetted Perimeter method alone as a guide to stream flows. Riparian vegetation has been lost along much of the upper Big Hole. In addition to loss of shade, this has led to widening and shallowing of the stream channel. Together these result in a rise in water temperature, especially at low flows. Every year since 1999, water in the Big Hole has warmed above 70°F for more than 30 days. This is a stressful level for grayling, with 77°F being considered a lethal temperature.
In the past weeks, we have already seen flows at Wisdom dip below 60 cfs several times. While temperature is not a problem this time of year, it is a critical time for grayling spawning and recruitment. As grayling fry emerge from their eggs, they are particularly sensitive to low flows. Since 2000, grayling have nearly disappeared from the Big Hole River watershed-biologists can't even find enough fish to derive a population estimate.
Our effort to restore Big Hole grayling is complicated by global warming. The streambed of the Big Hole River and the grayling developed during a period when the climate was wetter and cooler than it has been in recent years. As the draft CCAA points out, there may be times of the year when inflows above Wisdom are only 70 to 90 cfs-so this does not leave much water for both agriculture and fish. The Big Hole River Foundation is doing what it can to support the CCAA through programs such as the Conservation Partnership Initiative, and we hope it is not too late for the Big Hole grayling.
Jim Magee, FWP's grayling biologist, is also optimistic. Whatever the fate of grayling, Jim is convinced that, "Absolutely we can sustain healthy fisheries while also maintaining viability for the ranching community."
Sources: · Draft CCAA (April 2005). · Wayne Hadley (10.May.2005). Retired FWP Fisheries Biologist. Conversation. · Peter Lamothe (17.May.2005). US FWS Fisheries Biologist. · S.A. Leathe and F.A. Nelson (1989). "A literature evaluation of Montana's wetted perimeter inflection point method." Montana FWP. · Jim Magee (17.May.2005). FWP Fisheries Biologist. Conversation. · Christopher L. Randolph and Robert G. White (April 1984). "Validity of the Wetted Perimeter Method." MSU: Montana Water Resources Research Center.
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Foundation Co-Sponsors Grass Finished Livestock Forum
The BHRF teamed with the National Center for Appropriate Technology to sponsor a grass-finished livestock forum on April 19th in Butte. Fifteen attendees included a rancher, a local livestock processor, state officials and several state-based nonprofit organizations. The purpose of the forum was to have an informative and open discussion of on-going and future efforts to further develop a grass-fed livestock industry in Montana. The BHRF goal in this effort was to keep clear our support for improving sustainable livestock industry in the Big Hole and economic improvement tied to conservation efforts.
Grass finished beef is an important new marketing opportunity for livestock producers because of potential environmental, economic and health benefits. Cattle can be harvested without going through the highly concentrated and environmentally damaging feedlot processing system that is detrimental to animal welfare, clean water and air. There are possibilities of garnering improved return to the rancher because the grain-finishing step is avoided and the market "distance" between producer and consumer could be shortened. Grass-finished beef is lower in fat, higher in Omega 3 fatty acids and CLA's (good fats) and higher in vitamin E.
Participants at the meeting were aware of the difficulties of creating new grass-finished markets for livestock. Challenges include: limited local processing, finding buyers who will purchase the whole animal (not just the steaks), and meeting volume and quality consistency of potential buyers. Grass-finishing of cattle means that the cattle must be fattened on fresh grass, causing limits to the timing of production and providing sufficient product year round.
Some "next steps" for forum participants included continuing sharing of information through an Internet list serve. If you are interested in "joining" the sharing and discussions on line, contact us at the Foundation at bhrf@ncat.org.
