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Twin Creeks Enhancements at Fishlake.
Region: Southern
ID: 7337
Project Status: Current
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Project Details
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Need for Project
In 2017, it was recognized that people watching kokanee spawn in Twin Creeks were having extreme impacts on the stream banks along Twin Creeks. Numerous people were spending hours every day walking up and down the stream to observe the fish. Many areas of the stream bank were reduced to mud as the vegetation was trampled out by hundreds of feet. It became clear some upgrades were needed for people to view the kokanee spawning in Twin Creeks. A boardwalk was constructed that follows the course of the stream. This was constructed of cement piers that hold the boardwalk above and near the water. Visitors have a birds eye view of the fish in the stream. It took several years to design and obtain materials to build a very nice boardwalk along Twin Creeks. This boardwalk was built by Forest Service personnel and a number of volunteers. The boardwalk allows people to walk along the stream and observe the salmon with minimal impacts to the stream. Because the boardwalk is so nice most people don't leave it and the stream side vegetation has recovered. Originally gravel paths connected the parking areas at the group site and the marina to the boardwalk. In 2023 these gravel paths were upgraded to cement sidewalks. The sidewalks connect the group site pavilion and the parking areas to the boardwalk to make them all ADA accessible. The boardwalk was originally built on a fast timeline and went through several modifications as it was constructed. This resulted in using treated lumber in the original design that would normally have been discarded. This sub-par lumber is now in need of being replaced. In addition, the lake end of the boardwalk doesn't extend close enough to the lake that wheelchair bound people can enjoy seeing the majority of the lake from an accessible location. Finally, stream banks have eroded in several locations to the point that abutments of the boardwalk are now jeopardized.
Provide evidence about the nature of the problem and the need to address it. Identify the significance of the problem using a variety of data sources. For example, if a habitat restoration project is being proposed to benefit greater sage-grouse, describe the existing plant community characteristics that limit habitat value for greater sage-grouse and identify the changes needed for habitat improvement.
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Objectives
Replace the damaged lumber on the boardwalk. Perform maintenance on the the boardwalk to ensure it's longevity by armoring abutments that are now exposed in the stream. The abutments would be armored with locally sourced rock, placed by hand into the stream. As part of the abutment work, rock structures will be constructed in the stream with the same rock to help direct streamflow away from the abutments and further protect them. These structures will also create resting areas for spawning fish. Stream work designs will naturally move some sediment from the stream bed through the action of the running water. We will also manually move some sediment from the stream bed. Sediment removals will create more spawning habitat in the stream. We will add to the lake end of the boardwalk with an additional cement sidewalk containing a landing pad, a steel bench near the lake high water line and a cement ramp to the ADA parking area at this location.
Provide an overall goal for the project and then provide clear, specific and measurable objectives (outcomes) to be accomplished by the proposed actions. If possible, tie to one or more of the public benefits UWRI is providing.
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Project Location/Timing Justification (Why Here? Why Now?)
If the project work is not completed soon, there is the risk that portions of the boardwalk may need to be closed, which would limit the ability of the public to view the spawning kokanee and greatly increase the likelihood that the public would return to trampling vegetation and causing erosion and vegetation loss issues that were present prior to the boardwalk construction. The boardwalk also serves an important function for transportation of spawning kokanee from the stream to live cages where the fish are stripped of eggs and milt, a critical effort in maintaining the important kokanee fishery in Fish Lake and throughout kokanee fisheries in Utah. If the boardwalk were to be closed because of disrepair or jeopardized abutments, the vital kokanee collection work would be significantly hampered or at least made much less efficient.
LOCATION: Justify the proposed location of this project over other areas, include publicly scrutinized planning/recovery documents that list this area as a priority, remote sensing modeling that show this area is a good candidate for restoration, wildlife migration information and other data that help justify this project's location.
TIMING: Justify why this project should be implemented at this time. For example, Is the project area at risk of crossing an ecological or other threshold wherein future restoration would become more difficult, cost prohibitive, or even impossible.
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Relation to Management Plans
Meets goals and objectives in Fish Lake Fishery Management Plan, 2014, by increasing shore angling opportunities. Satisfies DWR Resource goal of meeting management plan objectives and expand quality fishing and hunting opportunities. Satisfies DWR Constituency goal to achieve broad-based support for division programs and budgets by demonstrating the value of wildlife to all citizens of Utah; and expand programs to recruit and retain young hunters, anglers and wildlife watchers. The DWR is currently developing a statewide kokanee management plan, likely to be published in early 2025, and this project will almost certainly help to achieve goals and objective in that plan. Meets recreational goals in the Fishlake National Forest Plan.
List management plans where this project will address an objective or strategy in the plan. Describe how the project area overlaps the objective or strategy in the plan and the relevance of the project to the successful implementation of those plans. It is best to provide this information in a list format with the description immediately following the plan objective or strategy.
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Fire/Fuels
N/A
If applicable, detail how the proposed project will significantly reduce the risk of fuel loading and/or continuity of hazardous fuels including the use of fire-wise species in re-seeding operations. Describe the value of any features being protected by reducing the risk of fire. Values may include; communities at risk, permanent infrastructure, municipal watersheds, campgrounds, critical wildlife habitat, etc. Include the size of the area where fuels are being reduced and the distance from the feature(s) at risk.
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Water Quality/Quantity
Moving foot traffic off the banks onto the boardwalk has improved streamside vegetation and decreased trampling of the streambank. Healthy streamside vegetation effectively stabilizes the soil and reduces sedimentation into the stream and Fish Lake. Maintaining the boardwalk by replacing warped/rotted lumber along with stabilizing the boardwalk abutments will increase the longevity of the structure and continue to ensure that streambanks are protected, thereby maintaining and/or improving water quality. Twin Creeks receives heavy visitation. Improving paths from gravel to cement from the board walk to nearer the lake will decrease sediment inputs into the stream and lake. Rock structures to help protect boardwalk abutments and create resting areas for spawning fish will also help to reduce sediment and nutrient inputs into Fish Lake as the stream banks in the project area are currently actively eroding.
Describe how the project has the potential to improve water quality and/or increase water quantity, both over the short and long term. Address run-off, erosion, soil infiltration, and flooding, if applicable.
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Compliance
Maintenance to protect the boardwalk and extending paved ADA access nearer to the lake shore within the marina parking area aligns with the goals of the project that was authorized under the Fish Lake Marinas and Recreation Improvements Project Decision Notice and Finding of No Significat Impact signed July 2019, Fremont River Ranger District. Stream alteration permitting will be aquired prior to implementation as required.
Description of efforts, both completed and planned, to bring the proposed action into compliance with any and all cultural resource, NEPA, ESA, etc. requirements. If compliance is not required enter "not applicable" and explain why not it is not required.
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Methods
Locally-sourced (Forest Service supplied) rock would be stacked by hand along the eroding banks and in the stream to form structures (see design drawings in "Images/Documents" section of this project for details on how the boardwalk abutments would be protected and resting areas for spawning fish will be constructed in the stream). USFS, UDWR and volunteers would repair boardwalk and install cement sidewalks and etc.
Describe the actions, activities, tasks to be implemented as part of the proposed project; how these activities will be carried out, equipment to be used, when, and by whom.
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Monitoring
Annual inspection and maintenance work will occur by USFS personnel and volunteers.
Describe plans to monitor for project success and achievement of stated objectives. Include details on type of monitoring (vegetation, wildlife, etc.), schedule, assignments and how the results of these monitoring efforts will be reported and/or uploaded to this project page. If needed, upload detailed plans in the "attachments" section.
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Partners
DWR, USFS
List any and all partners (agencies, organizations, NGO's, private landowners) that support the proposal and/or have been contacted and included in the planning and design of the proposed project. Describe efforts to gather input and include these agencies, landowners, permitees, sportsman groups, researchers, etc. that may be interested/affected by the proposed project. Partners do not have to provide funding or in-kind services to a project to be listed.
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Future Management
The Fishlake Basin recreation plan is currently being developed. This plan will have a section pertaining to the Twin Creeks area and visitation impacts.
Detail future methods or techniques (including administrative actions) that will be implemented to help in accomplishing the stated objectives and to insure the long term success/stability of the proposed project. This may include: post-treatment grazing rest and/or management plans/changes, wildlife herd/species management plan changes, ranch plans, conservation easements or other permanent protection plans, resource management plans, forest plans, etc.
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Sustainable Uses of Natural Resources
Moving foot traffic off the banks onto the boardwalk has improved streamside vegetation and decreased trampling of the streambank. Healthy streamside vegetation effectively stabilizes the soil and reduces sedimentation into the stream and Fish Lake.
Potential for the proposed action to improve quality or quantity of sustainable uses such as grazing, timber harvest, biomass utilization, recreation, etc. Grazing improvements may include actions to improve forage availability and/or distribution of livestock.
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