Bring on freshet.
The Little Shuswap Indian Band has been hard at work restoring stream bank on Scotch Creek and installing log groins to redirect the water away from the banks
On Feb. 2, a group of four workers from the band began by collecting 1,300 willows for two restoration projects on the Scotch Creek Forest Service Road.
On Feb. 9, two workers helped a machine operator place rocks and cut bigger trees where needed.
“Part of the project was to install log groins in the creek so that the water flow would change direction,” says LSIB fisheries co-ordinator Aaron Arnouse, noting the fast-flowing creek was eroding the bank. “And the main purpose of the project was to deflect the water away from the bank so that it wouldn’t cause problems to the highway in the future.”
Once the log groins were installed, rip rap was placed along the bank of the creek to repair an area already damaged by erosion.
“There were 38 loads of big boulders used to do this project,” says Arnouse.
Willows were planted into the log groins to give support and strength to help keep them in place in the future. Willows were also planted in the ground to provide strength and stabilization, and prevent further erosion at the site.
Some 600 willows were planted in total.
“No spawning areas were harmed or damaged in any way,” assures Arnouse.
