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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
August 13, 2020     Shelton Mason County Journal
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August 13, 2020
 
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Page A—12 Shelton-Mason County Journal — Thursday, Aug. 13, 2020 sisal. Bredam /sabel/a@masoncounty. com Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group is seeking construction funding for its Big Quilcene River Lower One Mile project to reduce flooding, im- prove fish passage and return natural sediment transport to benefit nearby shellfish beds. “The flood risk will be reduced when we allow the river to access its historic floodplain,” said Mendy Har- low, executive director of Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group. “It’s also beneficial for salmon to have a straight channel to spawn in — right now they don’t survive as well long term the juveniles are washed out to saltwater before they’re ready.” Big Quilcene River, near Quilcene, has levees along the river that inter- rupt the natural flow, making the Big Quilcene River flowing from the Olympic Mountains to Quilcene Bay is prone to flooding. Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group will remove levees to let the river return to its historical floodplain. Photo courtesy of chum, coho, winter steelhead and sea- run and resident cutthroat trout. “This is big because it will benefit Hood Canal summer chum and we’re hoping the project will be compatible with shellfish in Quilcene Bay,” Har- low said. According to the Puget Sound Near— , shore Ecosystem Restoration Project design, existing levees have changed the natural sediment transport and other natural geologic processes, re- sulting in accelerated prog‘radation expansion —. of the delta into Quilcene Bay as a result of high levels of sedi- ment input. Reducing these high levels of sedi- ment Will benefit shellfish populations such as clams, oysters and mussels, and the local Olympia oyster. Project design was completed by Anchor QEA, an environmental engi- neering firm out of Seattle, in partner- ship with Engineering Services Asso- Hoping to better go with the flow river channel higher than the natu- ral floodplain and causing the river to flood. The project will work to remove and address constraints including levees, bridges and roads, allowing the river to access its historic floodplain and returning natural flow and sedimen- tary processes. By removing levees, the community of Quilcene will see less flooding and have fewer barriers sussr Anchor QEA to travel, increased access to fishing and recreational opportunities, Har- low said. With project design complete, the Salmon Enhancement Group is now applying for construction funds through the state Recreation and Conservation Office and aims to move forward over the next few years. The project proposal is searchable in the RCO’s PRISM database as project #20-1497. ' Big Quilcene River flows east from the Olympic Mountains into Hood Ca- nal through Quilcene Bay. The river is home to multiple species of salm- on, including -Endangered Species Act threatened Hood Canal summer ciates out of Belfair. I , “We try to keep our dollars local when we can,” Harlow said, “I want people in our community to be able to make a living here. A big reason we get really involved with education is because we want to make sure kids know that when they grow up they can make a living wage working in Hood Canal.” ’ ' General insights forfishing Big Quilcene River hatchery manager at Quilcene National Fish Hatchery since January 2008, and thus have been here long enough to share some general insights about fishing the Big Quilcene River for our adult hatchery coho run. , We usually observe the ‘ ' very first adult hatchery coho of the season entering our re- ceiving channel around Aug. 1 each year. By Aug. 31, rough- ly one-third of the entire adult hatchery coho run has entered the hatchery. But this is not evenly distributed during the I’ve been the assistant course of August: the closer to» Aug. 31 the more the run will have built up. Turn the page of the calen- dar over to the month of Sep- tember, and about two-thirds of our adult hatchery coho run will have returned to our receiving channel by Sept. 18. The run generally remains fairly strong throughout the month, with 80 perent of the adult hatchery coho run in to the hatchery by Sept. 30. By Oct. 15, 90 percentof the fish have arrived and by Hal- loween, it becomes very close 'to 100 percent and is then rapidly winding down. I would rate overall fishing opportunity and fish quality as being best in August and September, although in early October there is still a sizable component of nice silver speci- mens that slowly diminishes into mostly colored-up fish as October wears on. For quality of the expe— ' fience, however, I choose October: the ranks of other anglers on the river are pro- gressively thinning out and leaving one with more elbow ENVIRONMENTAL BRIEFS peared thereafter. That year, both Quilcene Bay and the Big Quilcene River were closed to further fishing on Oct. 2. Precipitation can also affect movement of the re- turning adult hatchery coho. room, the leaves are turning color and during clear weather there are those crisp mornings and wonderfully warm blue- sky afternoons. As far as timing, this an- nual run is not stamped out cookie-cutter style and can vary sometimes widely — from year to year, which I at— tribute to natural factors such as prevailing ocean conditions and weather patterns. For example, the 2010 sea- son was not nearly as drawn out through October as nor- mally experienced. That year, the vast majority of the fish showed up in a much more compressed fashion during August and September, and as it turned out, was largely over with by the middle of September. Only a relatively small but rather steady trickle of adult hatchery coho ap- raising the water level/flows and water clarity simultane- extremely active in making . their way upstream. But just exactly when the precipitation happens also has an effect: on Aug. 29, 2015, we had a ? storm that occurred that was unusual early in the season in terms of wind and rain. It was likewise accompanied by an unusually strong surge of fish at the hatchery given the early date, but it was still so early in the run there just weren’t so many fish to be running. Had that storm come When it rains enough to start ously reduces, the fish become . two or three weeks later, it would likely_have involved an absolutely enormous showing of fish relative to the calendar date. , After all these years of observation, my advice is to simply go fishing when time allows. Spend too much time trying to dial' in the perfect date(s) to a T and something like emergency home or auto repairs can come up and nix the whole thing. I think we’ve all encountered the adage that “the worst day fishing beats the best day working,” so just going fishing when the oppor- tunity presents itself is prob- ably the best fishing advice that there is. I Dan Magnussen is the, assistant hatchery manager at Quilcene National Fish, Hatchery. __‘.__.__ ___4_. .7..." a.-. 1.“. ,._.A__‘. w .w..__.___.. . ._ _.____,AAA . vi..v.-____. ._. . Don’t plant unsolicited seeds A suspected “brushing” scheme where a compa- ny sends unsolicited packages to verified customers to boost reviews of new products on Amazon -— is sending packets of seeds to resident’s mailboxes across the county. Individuals who receive seed packages should not open the package or plant the seeds. The pack- ages may be labeled with “socks” or “jewelry” on the exterior shipping package. Washington residents should place the seeds and their packaging in a plastic bag and mail them to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for investiga- tion at USDA-APHIS-PPQ — Attn: Jason Allen, Seattle Plant Inspection Station, 835 South 192nd Street, Bldg D, Suite 1600, Seatac, WA 98148. “Our volunteers are often the state’s first line of defense in identifying and stopping invasive species and threats to the environment,” Jennifer Marquis, Washington State University master gardener pro- gram leader, wrote in an email. “It’s important for all of our volunteers and part- ners to know the potential dangers, understand where to seek help and information, and to share this information with their neighbors.” Spill prevention for boaters Washington boaters are invited to join Sea Grant’s Clean Bilge Project to help prevent oil spills and keep the state’s waterways clean. “Boaters are the first line, they are the de facto pollution managers,” Aaron Barnett, Washington Sea Grant boating specialist, said in a video release. “All boaters need are the tools to make that hap- pen.” , Boaters can contact Barnett at 206-616-8929 or V aaronb5@uw.edu to receive small spill prevention materials. The small spill kit includes a fuel absorbent bib and absorbent pillow that may be placed beside bilge pumps to prevent pollutants from entering the waterways. According to a state Department of Ecology study, nearly 6,000 gallons of diesel and gasoline were spilled by recreational vehicles from 2011- 2015. Watershed committee meets The Kennedy-Goldsborough Watershed Resto- ‘ ration and‘Enhancement Committee will convene Aug. 13 from 9 am. to 12:30 pm. to continue devel- oping a 20-year watershed plan. Meeting links, minutes and agendas are avail- able at ezview.wa.gov/site/alias_1962/37326/wa- tershed_restoration_and_enhancement_-_wria_l4. aspx. I Compiled by Isabella Breda