In 2009, Chelan County Natural Resources Department (CCNRD) removed 17 culverts in Chumstick Creek and installed 16 bridges that meet WDFW fish passage criteria. These culvert replacements are part of a larger project, the Chumstick Creek Restoration Project, which will provide passage to 78 square miles of spawning, rearing and overwintering habitat for steelhead, spring chinook and bull trout. The project would improve fish passage and water quality in the private land portion of the Chumstick Watershed.

All disturbed areas were revegetated with native riparian plant species beneficial to fish and wildlife, such as ponderosa pine, black cottonwood, water birch, alder, hawthorn, red-osier dogwood, and several willow species. These plants would provide shade, in-stream large organic diversity recruitment, overhanging cover, leaf litter and other detritus for aquatic food chain development in the project area. The overall purpose of this project was to improve fish passage, prevent streambank and roadbed erosion, facilitate natural sediment and wood movement, and eliminate or reduce excess sediment loading. Also to eliminate or reduce dynamic changes in stream flow patterns through culverts that cause streambank erosion, undermining of roadbeds, and the washout of culverts.

Related projects:
In 2009, Chelan County Public Works Department replaced the North Road culvert on Chumstick Creek (See project page for more details). In 2001, Cascadia Conservation District replaced 8 fish barrier culverts in Chumstick Creek (see project page for more details). In 2010, CCNRD removed one more fish passage barrier, an irrigation diversion dam, located just north of the confluence with Sunitsch canyon (see project page for more details). In 2011, CCNRD will remove 3 more fish passage barriers in Chumstick Creek.