PERMITTING

One of the things that makes doing a gravel augmentation difficult is figuring out how to get the needed permits and approvals.   Permitting for adding spawning gravel to a river has become increasingly complex as floodplain and water-quality requirements evolve and are different based on where you want to do your project.  

Our two Boise River gravel augmentations gave us some experience in the process, but the process in Oregon is different, and the FEMA requirements are constantly changing.  Oregon also has some restrictions on when you can do in-water work in different rivers. For the Owyhee below the dam, the in-water work period is November 1 – March 31.

Here is a general description of what we had to do for our recent Owyhee Gravel Augmentation.

1) Landowner Permission

The Owyhee river is on BLM land, so we needed to get permission from them for the augmentation. Initially this was straightforward because we had worked with Dan Thomas from the Vale BLM office on Owyhee trash cleanups. Later, when we came back for the final signature there was a new person in the role, and it took time to work through the permitting requirements to their satisfaction.

2) Floodplain / Planning & Zoning approval

Approval from the local P&Z department depends on the flood zone designation.  The Owyhee river is in an undeveloped area in Malheur County, OR and is designated as Zone A, which is less restrictive than a river in an urban area like the Boise River, but we still had to hire an engineering firm to show the augmentation would would not raise water levels beyond their local threshold.  Something that was expensive and took us a good year to figure out.  Our thanks to Mike Schubert, PE at HDR Engineering for his help getting over this hurdle.

3) Joint Streamflow Permit 

There were many similarities between the information needed on the Idaho and the Oregon Joint Permit Application, but the process in Oregon was different.  Thankfully the people at Oregon permitting agencies were very helpful in helping us navigate the process. My thanks to Alexandra Holeček (Regulatory Project Manager U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Portland District) and Delia Negru (401 Program Project Manager Oregon Department of Environmental Quality) for their help.

We worked with Halie Endicott, a Regulatory Branch Project Manager at the Portland District of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to review the permit and work through questions from the Malheur County BLM.  For future reference, here is the Nationwide Permit Handbook 20230720 2021_Nationwide_Permit_User_Guide NWP (All NWPS).pdf and NWP 27 terms and conditions Encl 2 NWP 27 Terms and Conditions (2021).pdf.

Once we had all of the details worked out, we submitted a joint streamflow permit to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Oregon Department of State Lands and Oregon Department of Water Quality in May of 2024. Here is our   OwyheeAugmentationSignedJointApplication.pdf 

At that point, the USACE was the lead permitting agency and coordinated discussions with the others, which took most of a year. Digital applications were sent to PortlandPermits@usace.army.mil.

We received a provisional Nationwide Permit in October of 2024 20241008 NWP Provisional Ltr 401-only NWP-2024-237.pdf

Next we submitted paperwork to the Department of State Lands:  a Voluntary_Exemption_Notice form BVFF_Signed_Voluntary_Exemption_Notice.pdf and Project Description DSL-ProjectDescription.pdf and confirmed that the project conformed to Oregon's Guide to Placing Large Wood and Boulders Materials_Guide-to-Placement-of-Wood-Boulders-and-Gravel-for-Habitat-Restoration.pdf .  After that we submitted a (401) Dredge and Fill Certification Application at the Oregon DEQ website.

WHEW! (I think that's about it...)

4) Clean Water Act §401 Water Quality Certification

Our project required a 401 Water Quality Certification to ensure we managed turbidity and other water-quality impacts. We measured water turbidity monitoring every 2 hours and adjusted our work pace based on the results.  I am pleased to say that the shoot/pause-reload sequence of gravel kept our water well within the DEQ requirements.

FUNDING

Gravel augmentations are an expensive endeavor, and the Owyhee River's remote location added to the cost.  In addition to submitting for permits we applied for several grants to help pay for the project.  Jon Fishback and Forrest Goodrum helped scope the initial project to figure out the costs and look for possible grants. The initial project cost estimate was $7,000. In 2021 BVFF member Forrest Goodrum submitted for a Fly Fishers International conservation grant and we received $3,000 towards the project in August of 2022.  Luckily FFI was patient and understood the time it takes to get permitting in place! Here is a copy of the FFI Grant Proposal Owyhee River FFI Grant ApplicationFinal.pdf.

In 2022 we submitted for an ODFW Steelhead Trout Enhancement Program $2,000 grant, which received that Fall. Unfortunately we had to turn it back in because of the delay in permitting.  After getting the permit we resubmitted and received it again in Fall of 2024 only have to turn it back in due to the project being delayed due to high water.  The third time was a charm and we received it again for the in October, just in time! Phew!  My thanks to the STEP coordinator Marty Olsen for his help and patience. 

Early in 2023 we did a club fundraiser called "Greenbacks For Redds" which raised over $1,000 for the project. To everyone who purchased a Greenback or donated directly to the club for this projects, I thank you, and dey fishies Thank You!

In Spring of 2023 Brian Martin and Deborah DeSousa organized the club's first Idaho Give Campaign which was a spectacular success and raised over $3,000 for the project. THANKS BRIAN AND DEBORAH!

I also want to thank our Fly Fishing Expo Committee and Volunteers who put on BVFF's Fly Fishing Expo each year, which is BVFF's main fund raising engine for projects like these. We couldn't do this without you.  Please consider volunteering for this year's Expo! For more information, check out the Expo Website.  Lastly I want to thank our Treasurer Kent Christensen who had to keep track of the project funding and spending over multiple budget years.