[env-trinity] Trinity Journal: Joint river project benefits fish, water district customers

[Tom Stokely]

http://www.trinityjournal.com/news/local/article_249de63a-a98e-11e3-ab0a-0017a43b2370.html 

Joint river project benefits fish, water district customers
Contributed | Posted: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 6:15 am
The Trinity River Restoration Program partnered with the Weaverville Community Services District this past summer to develop a joint project to meet the objectives of creating more juvenile fish habitat and reducing the water district’s dependence on Weaver Creek water.
The restoration program supports conservation of Weaver Creek water to maintain dynamic alluvial properties within the Weaver Creek delta, and to enhance habitat for coho salmon and steelhead, the restoration program said in a news release.
Most of the community’s water comes from Weaver Creek but the community also uses Trinity River water during the summer when Weaver Creek is low. Reducing the reliance on Weaver Creek water gives the district the flexibility to conserve water from Weaver Creek when necessary, without disrupting service to consumers, and at the same time benefiting local fish populations.
Together the restoration program and water district reconfigured the existing infiltration gallery along the Trinity River to provide a more efficient and fish-friendly gallery during construction of the restoration program’s channel rehabilitation project at Douglas City. The rehabilitation project created new juvenile fish habitat features and also placement of boulders for adult fish holding.
The water project involved removal of existing infrastructure along the Trinity River and reconfiguring it to improve the district’s ability to deliver water from the Trinity mainstem to Weaverville and surrounding communities.
“Tests showed that the existing infiltration system installed in 1996 and consisting of 367 feet of infiltration pipe was not effective in collecting the amount of water it was designed to convey,” said Wes Scribner, general manager for the water district. “This jeopardized the district’s ability to pump enough water to meet demand when the flows in Weaver Creek are too low to service the gravity flow system. This work was completed just in time for this year’s drought.”
The benefits to the coho and steelhead populations of Weaver Creek and the Trinity River will take longer to realize.
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