The Monthly Hatch: Better News for River Flows

August 2013

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Friday, November 8, 2013
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Better News for River Flows

July rains, conservative use of irrigation water, and good planning on the part of water managers have combined to produce a much better outlook for Island Park Reservoir than had been predicted back in June. Reservoir content is currently about 42 percent of capacity, its long-term average at the end of irrigation season.

Storage water will continue to be delivered from Island Park Reservoir until mid-September, when it will reach a projected 22 percent of capacity. Earlier in the summer, end-of-season content had been expected to fall even lower. As a result, average winter flow below Island Park Dam will be 25-40 cubic feet per second (cfs) greater than we had anticipated back in June.

Through its participation in the Island Park Reservoir Drought Management Planning process, we'll continue to monitor reservoir management and river flows and use the latest biological and hydrological information to ensure water is available during critical winter months when young wild trout need it most. We also began checking water quality below the dam. See the article and photo below.

We'll be monitoring sediment concentration in the river above and below Island Park Reservoir.

Monitoring Water Quality During Low River Flows

In anticipation of below-average levels in Island Park Reservoir during the last few weeks of irrigation season, we began working with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to measure water quality in the Henry's Fork downstream of Island Park Dam. HFF staff, volunteers, and interns will collect water samples four days per week from August 12 through September 17. Although we don't anticipate the reservoir to reach levels low enough to mobilize large amounts of sediment, data collected this year during below-average conditions will help inform management of the reservoir in future dry years.

We will measure turbidity in-house and send samples to Reclamation's regional laboratory in Boise for analysis of suspended sediment concentration and total phosphorus. Samples will be collected below and above the dam to determine how reservoir level affects sediment concentration in the river downstream.

Monofilament Recycling Now Available

We've installed monofilament recycling stations at various river access ways along the Henry's Fork in efforts to keep our river "tangle free." Fly fishing line is becoming an increasing problem for wildlife who can get tangled in the non-biodegradable line.

This effort was inspired by our local Henry's Fork naturalists who built the recycling stations as well as installed them at the following sites: Mack's Inn, Last Chance, the HFF satellite office, Stone Bridge, and Ashton Reservoir. Line collected in the Henry's Fork will be sent to Berkley Conservation Institute where it will be recycled and reused.

Watershed Tour Highlights Basin Study

The Henry's Fork Watershed Council's annual field trip highlighted issues relevant to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's Henry's Fork Basin Study. The tour focused on two primary themes-irrigation canal seepage and management of storage water.