The newly constructed Gibbons Creek channel, seen looking Northwest with the Columbia River to the South. Photo/Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership
Heavy construction at the Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge is winding down as fall rains set in and earthwork wraps up. Primary contractor, Rotschy Inc., has finished constructing the east and west setback levees and fully removed the elevated canal and fish ladder that had constrained Gibbons Creek for decades. With Gibbons Creek and the Columbia River now fully reconnected to the site, the team is anxiously awaiting the return of winter/spring floods and salmon and steelhead
The photo above (shot using a drone) shows the first step of the diversion structure removal. Before the structure could be demolished, Gibbons Creek was temporarily diverted into this large black tube around the site. Once the structure was removed and the new Gibbons Creek channel was completed, the creek was released into its historic channel and floodplain.
The Gibbons Creek diversion structure during removal, looking South from SR14.Photo/Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership
Gibbons Creek after the removal of the diversion structure and elevated channel. Large woody debris have been placed along the channel and water can be seen flowing under SR14 towards the Columbia River. Photo/Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership
Habitat restoration subcontractor, LKE, has completed the installation of large wood habitat structures in more than a mile of new channels and across more than 100 acres of new wetlands. Rotschy finished removing rip-rap and regrading half a mile of Columbia River bank in addition to the complete removal of 2.2 miles of the existing levee and full reconnection of the site to the Columbia River. Crews will spend the winter months building trails (as weather allows), installing new trail signage, and beginning this year’s 170-acre planting effort.
Gibbons Creek with water flowing over the newly installed woody debris in September. Photo/Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership
Many thanks are due to what has turned out to be a truly exceptional project team – USFWS, the Port of Camas-Washougal, WSDOT, Wolf Water Resources, Murraysmith, Cornforth, Rotschy, and many others. Large construction projects rarely go exactly as planned, and this group has functioned as a cohesive team in working through the project’s inevitable challenges.
The newly constructed West Levee looking Southeast. Crews will be working on installing trail signage and features on top of this levee, including a new overlook. Photo/Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership
In addition to all of the heavy construction accomplishments, a lot was also accomplished supporting plants and wildlife. During the fish salvage efforts in the old Gibbons Creek channel and other areas that were de-watered, almost 60,000 individuals were rescued and moved away from the work site. This includes 45,000 lamprey, 11,758 bony fish (including 274 coho salmon), and 512 mussels.
In addition to protecting aquatic species, Estuary Partnership staff conducted a seed collection effort over the summer. They collected 28lbs of wapato and 31lbs of giant burreed from both Ridgefield and Steigerwald. The wapato cost to purchase is about $100/lb and the giant burred is about $90/lb, so a value of about $6000! The Estuary Partnership will be seeding the Steigerwald Lake wetlands with this seed in the next few weeks (along with additional species that they have purchased). In depth articles highlighting this project were featured on OPB and the Columbian.
Finally, volunteers have played a large role in starting the planting portion of the project noted above. During the last week of October and through November, the Estuary Partnership hosted field trips for local 5th grade elementary schools, a planting event for the Blueprint Foundation, and several public plantings with the goal of planting thousands of willows along the new Gibbons Creek south of Hwy 14.
Volunteers help plant willow stakes along Gibbons Creek with the Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership during a work party. Photo/Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership
Volunteers help plant willow stakes along Gibbons Creek with the Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership during a work party. Photo/Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership
Steigerwald Lake NWR is planned to re-open May of 2022. Work will continue throughout the winter and continue through the Summer of 2022. If you need a mental escape from the dark wet winter, remember the Estuary Partnership created this virtual tour to bring viewers into the refuge to see construction activities that happened during August and September. Check it out, along with other project videos and updates on our project page.