RIVER PROJECTS
Healthy Waters, Healthy Future Project
A free-flowing river with world-class fishing, the Big Wood River is a defining feature of our valley. The Healthy Waters, Healthy Futures project guides Wood River Land Trust’s efforts to protect and restore the Big Wood River and its fish populations.
The project’s initial research shows:
- The health of the fishery is determined by the quality and amount of fish habitat and, in some stretches, the amount of water in the river;
- Riprapping, diking, channelization, and development in the floodplain negatively impact fish habitat; and
- The Big Wood River from Warm Springs Creek to just below Bellevue is the most productive and most altered section of the fishery and therefore holds the greatest opportunity for Wood River Land Trust’s protection and restoration efforts.
Further GIS mapping of land use changes over time, field work and a qualitative geomorphic assessment show that:
- Between 1948 and 2004, the Big Wood River (BWR) system lost approximately 750 acres of riparian area and nearly 1.7 miles of stream length;
- Land use practices such as road-building, flood control, and development have impacted the shape of the river and how the river responds to flooding
- These land use practices have also cut the river off from its floodplain in certain areas and reduced the available fish habitat;
- Conservation and restoration work should occur in areas where the river still interacts with its floodplain and where the river can pull cottonwood trees in to the system during flood events to form new fish habitat.
Using the information we have gathered as part of the Healthy Waters, Healthy Future project, Wood River Land Trust is now working to:
- Restore a wetland and riparian area at the confluence of the Big Wood River and Croy Creek.
- With grant funding from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, Wood River Land Trust will remove a portion of the old town dump and replant the area with native wetland and riparian vegetation; and
- Secure voluntary conservation agreements on private properties along the river that provide the greatest opportunities to improve fish habitat, water quality, and the health of the river.
Project Data & Publications
Trout Friendly Lawns Brochure
Floodplain Homeowners Brochure
Healthy Waters, Healthy Futures Report
Biological Units and Data Reaches
Biological Unit 2
Historical Photos
Idaho Statesman Article on 05/24/05
Geomorphic Assessment Summary
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