DESCRIPTION
This project will be Phase 1 of restoration on the Skookum Ranch property, a conservation site previously acquired by the Squaxin Island Tribe for conservation and restoration in the Skookum Valley adjacent to SR 108, near Shelton, in Mason County.
A 60% restoration design for comprehensive restoration along ~2,200 feet of Skookum Creek and the surrounding floodplain, wetlands, and tributaries was completed in 2023 under a design phase with funding contributed by the Tribe. Restoration is proposed to occur in phases due to the large-scale nature of the proposed restoration and to accommodate likely funding scenarios.
Phase I is labelled Schedule A on the design plans.
Phase I of restoration covered under this proposal will include approximately 2,600 feet of channel realignment and enhancement, removal of a fish passage barrier, installation of over 50 log structures, placement of a hyphoreic channel, and other restoration elements. Expected outcomes of the project include restored floodplain connectivity, stream channel complexity, improvements to pool quantity and quality, new hyphoreic connections, and fish passage.
The property was acquired as part of the Skookum Valley Acquisition project with funds under RCO grant #18-1887.The 60% design was completed as part of the Skookum Valley initiative using funds contributed by the Squaxin Island Tribe.Skookum Creek is a Tier A, high-priority watershed and the site falls within a high priority restoration strategy area.Proposed project treatments will include up to 1,530 feet of stream channel improvements within a 30-acre area, removal of a fish passage barrier, adding wood for increased complexity, re-alignment and enhancement of incised stream channels, riparian enhancement, and a net increase in side channels.All salmon species that use Skookum will benefit from the project which include coho and chum salmon, steelhead trout, and cutthroat trout. Projected benefits to salmon include increased rearing capacity for juvenile salmonids of all species, improved gravel sorting and retention for spawning salmonids, reduced flood scour for improved egg and juvenile life stages, and benefits to ecological functions including floodplain connectivity, improved habitat complexity, hyporheic groundwater exchange, a net increase in channel length, and side channel connectivity.
