Habitat

Issues and Challenges

Prioritizing Fish Passage

The region continues to make removing barriers to fish passage a priority. Many dams and culverts (pipes and other structures that carry streams under roads) block fish passage in the Pend Oreille River and its tributaries. The Kalispel Tribe of Indians and U.S. Forest Service continue to prioritize culvert removals in the LeClerc Creek watershed.

In addition, the water in many streams often is too warm and doesn’t have enough dissolved oxygen to support salmon. And there are too few areas of suitable or accessible habitat.

Habitat Quality is at Risk

In this region, it is estimated that the habitat has declined. While restoration of all lost habitat is neither practical nor necessary, success in recovering salmon runs will require both restoring degraded habitat and protecting functioning habitat.

Excess fine sediment from logging roads causes many problems for bull trout, including the following: smothering fish eggs, insects, and plants; clogging fish gills and impairing breathing; increasing water temperature; and decreasing light, which can affect plant growth and the ability for bull trout to see their prey. Worse, too much fine sediment in rivers impairs natural processes, reduces stream bank stability, traps unwanted nutrients and toxins, and reduces floodplain connectivity and floodwater storage.

There is not enough large wood, such as trees and root wads, in many watersheds due to past logging and stream cleaning. To solve this problem, streamside forests are being protected, and areas where forests have been removed are being replanted with native trees and shrubs.

For more information about habitat project actions, visit the Recreation and Conservation Office’s Salmon Recovery Portal and Project Search public databases.