StreamWise

Bear Creek Bear Creek
- Big Bear Flat Lassen Creek Pit River
- Mason/Monchamp Pit River - Shaw Pit River
- Rose Creek Putah Creek
- Winters Park Trout Creek California - Proposed

Ash Creek Pleasants Creek Putah Creek
- Winters Park

Lockes Ranch - White Pine County, NV

An hour south of Big Warm Springs / Little Warm Springs lies Lockes Ranch, a historic cattle ranch that was purchased by NV Dept. of Wildlife for the protection of four spring systems containing Railroad Valley springfish (federally endangered). Past agricultural alterations to the spring systems has caused a decline in populations and a continued threat to the survival of the species. USFWS and NDOW placed a high priority on restoration of the four spring channels to improve habitat conditions for the endangered species.

The project was designed by StreamWise to eliminate most of the agricultural alterations to the spring systems, including past catfish breeding ponds, irrigations diversions, headwater pool impoundments, channelized sections, and fish passage barriers. Construction was completed in fall of 2008.

One of the major challenges of the project was removal of thousands of invasive Russian olive trees that choke the spring systems and replace native vegetation. Large piles of Russian olive were formed with extracted trees from along the spring channels. Much more work remains to be done to control the invasive species, but the initial effort opened the landscape and springs.

Irrigation ditches were filled and alterations to the springs were removed. Native sod and mulch were used to cover the fill areas, supplying seed source for vegetative recovery. The following photos were taken during project construction in fall of 2008.

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Hay Coral spring following Russian olive removal. Sept. 2008