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Title: Rainwater Wildlife Area Habitat Evaluation Procedures Report; A Columbia Basin Wildlife Mitigation Project.

Abstract

The 8,768 acre Rainwater Wildlife Area was acquired in September 1998 by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) through an agreement with Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to partially offset habitat losses associated with construction of the John Day and McNary hydroelectric facilities on the mainstem Columbia River. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Habitat Evaluation Procedures (HEP) were used to determine the number of habitat units credited to BPA for acquired lands. Upland and riparian forest, upland and riparian shrub, and grassland cover types are evaluated in this study. Targeted wildlife species include downy woodpecker (Picoides pubescens), black-capped chickadee (Parus atricopillus), blue grouse (Dendragapus obscurus), great blue heron (Ardea herodias), yellow warbler (Dendroica petechia), mink (Mustela vison), and Western meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta). Habitat surveys were conducted in 1998 and 1999 in accordance with published HEP protocols and included 65,300, 594m{sup 2}2 plots, and 112 one-tenth-acre plots. Between 153.3 and 7,187.46 acres were evaluated for each target wildlife mitigation species. Derived habitat suitability indices were multiplied by corresponding cover-type acreages to determine the number of habitat units for each species. The total baseline habitat units credited to BPA for the Rainwater Wildlife Area and its seven target speciesmore » is 5,185.3 habitat units. Factors limiting habitat suitability are related to the direct, indirect, and cumulative effects of past livestock grazing, road construction, and timber harvest which have simplified the structure, composition, and diversity of native plant communities. Alternatives for protecting and improving habitat suitability include exclusion of livestock grazing, road de-commissioning/obliteration, reforestation and thinning, control of competing and unwanted vegetation (including noxious weeds), reestablishing displaced or reduced native vegetation species, allowance of normative processes such as fire occurrence, and facilitating development of natural stable stream channels and associated floodplains. Implementation of habitat enhancement and restoration activities could generate an additional 1,850 habitat units in 10 years. Baseline and estimated future habitat units total 7,035.3 for the Rainwater Wildlife Area. Habitat protection, enhancement and restoration will require long-term commitments from managers to increase probabilities of success and meet the goals and objectives of the Northwest Power Planning Council's Fish and Wildlife Mitigation Program.« less

Authors:
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), Portland, OR (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
947118
Report Number(s):
P104926
R&D Project: 200002600; TRN: US200905%%73
DOE Contract Number:  
000000515
Resource Type:
Technical Report
Resource Relation:
Related Information: [HEP Report] HEP Report 2002 Rainwater
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
13 HYDRO ENERGY; 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; BONNEVILLE POWER ADMINISTRATION; COLUMBIA RIVER; COMMUNITIES; CONSTRUCTION; DOMESTIC ANIMALS; EVALUATION; HABITAT; IMPLEMENTATION; MITIGATION; PLANNING; PLANTS; RANGELANDS; TARGETS; US FWS; WEEDS

Citation Formats

Childs, Allen B. Rainwater Wildlife Area Habitat Evaluation Procedures Report; A Columbia Basin Wildlife Mitigation Project.. United States: N. p., 2004. Web. doi:10.2172/947118.
Childs, Allen B. Rainwater Wildlife Area Habitat Evaluation Procedures Report; A Columbia Basin Wildlife Mitigation Project.. United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/947118
Childs, Allen B. 2004. "Rainwater Wildlife Area Habitat Evaluation Procedures Report; A Columbia Basin Wildlife Mitigation Project.". United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/947118. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/947118.
@article{osti_947118,
title = {Rainwater Wildlife Area Habitat Evaluation Procedures Report; A Columbia Basin Wildlife Mitigation Project.},
author = {Childs, Allen B},
abstractNote = {The 8,768 acre Rainwater Wildlife Area was acquired in September 1998 by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) through an agreement with Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to partially offset habitat losses associated with construction of the John Day and McNary hydroelectric facilities on the mainstem Columbia River. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Habitat Evaluation Procedures (HEP) were used to determine the number of habitat units credited to BPA for acquired lands. Upland and riparian forest, upland and riparian shrub, and grassland cover types are evaluated in this study. Targeted wildlife species include downy woodpecker (Picoides pubescens), black-capped chickadee (Parus atricopillus), blue grouse (Dendragapus obscurus), great blue heron (Ardea herodias), yellow warbler (Dendroica petechia), mink (Mustela vison), and Western meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta). Habitat surveys were conducted in 1998 and 1999 in accordance with published HEP protocols and included 65,300, 594m{sup 2}2 plots, and 112 one-tenth-acre plots. Between 153.3 and 7,187.46 acres were evaluated for each target wildlife mitigation species. Derived habitat suitability indices were multiplied by corresponding cover-type acreages to determine the number of habitat units for each species. The total baseline habitat units credited to BPA for the Rainwater Wildlife Area and its seven target species is 5,185.3 habitat units. Factors limiting habitat suitability are related to the direct, indirect, and cumulative effects of past livestock grazing, road construction, and timber harvest which have simplified the structure, composition, and diversity of native plant communities. Alternatives for protecting and improving habitat suitability include exclusion of livestock grazing, road de-commissioning/obliteration, reforestation and thinning, control of competing and unwanted vegetation (including noxious weeds), reestablishing displaced or reduced native vegetation species, allowance of normative processes such as fire occurrence, and facilitating development of natural stable stream channels and associated floodplains. Implementation of habitat enhancement and restoration activities could generate an additional 1,850 habitat units in 10 years. Baseline and estimated future habitat units total 7,035.3 for the Rainwater Wildlife Area. Habitat protection, enhancement and restoration will require long-term commitments from managers to increase probabilities of success and meet the goals and objectives of the Northwest Power Planning Council's Fish and Wildlife Mitigation Program.},
doi = {10.2172/947118},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/947118}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2004},
month = {Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2004}
}