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CapitalPress.com
Friday, February 7, 2020
Rancher gets a hand with creek project
By HEATHER SMITH THOMAS
For the Capital Press
YAKIMA, Wash. —
Mike Tobin, manager of the
North Yakima Conservation
District, works with ranchers
throughout the area, includ-
ing a recent project along
Ahtanum Creek.
This stream has several
resource challenges, includ-
ing Endangered Species Act-
listed fish species, flooding,
erosion, loss of farmland and
limited riparian habitat.
The district coordinated
with several stakeholders on
a project to address environ-
mental challenges.
By bringing together land-
owners, the Yakama Nation
and state and federal partners,
the district was able to design
and implement a project that
would enhance more than 26
acres of flood plain.
They constructed 63 wood
structures to stabilize eroding
banks, 4,700 riparian plants
were established and 6,530
feet of riparian management
fencing built. These efforts
improved in-stream habi-
tat and water quality, averted
flood damage, and are bene-
ficial to the landowners’ agri-
cultural use.
The first part of the project,
on Jack Field’s ranch, was fin-
ished several years ago.
“He was starting a feed-
ing operation on ground he
hadn’t run cattle on before,
and that land had a riparian
water right,” Tobin said. “Jack
was using the creek as a water
source for cattle in winter but
it had down-cutting and steep
banks; it was hard for cattle to
reach the water. Jack needed
an alternative water source.”
A series of projects began
after communicating with
Field to find out how he
wanted to operate, be eco-
nomically viable and protect
natural resources at the same
time.
“The land he was leasing
was in poor shape, but he’s
now improved it 10-fold,”
said Tobin.
“Jack has a unique situ-
ation; the ground is leased
from the Yakama Nation and
Courtesy photo
Instream bank protection is seen along the Autahnam
Creek near Yakima, Wash.
Ahtanum Creek is steelhead
and bull trout habitat. As a
conservation district we are
often the go-between/middle-
man in assisting landowners
in becoming environmentally
compliant in securing permits
necessary to do the work,”
Tobin said.
The preferred alternative
was to drill a livestock water
well in a location central to
the cattle operation, and away
from the stream.
“That permit was granted
by the Yakama Nation
because they knew this project
would move cattle away from
the stream and protect that
resource,” Tobin explained.
It would also make better
utilization of the land.
“Not only would Jack no
longer have to fight ice and
watering problems (and losing
cattle in the stream in winter)
but this led into complemen-
tary projects for pasture man-
agement,” Tobin said. “We
built fences to divide pastures,
using the centralized water to
serve several pastures.”
Ahtanum Creek lacked
certain elements necessary for
good fish habitat. There were
no large trees to provide shade
— and shade is necessary for
the proper water temperature
in summer. It also needed a
buffer.
This meant a managed
fence.
“Forage in the riparian area
can be used by cattle, but we
must be specific about when
and how long they use it. We
also created a unique pasture
that was connected with the
floodplain. Jack can get multi-
ple grazing periods because it
is very wet early in the spring
— almost sub-irrigated,”
Tobin said.
“We looked at this creek
in terms of what we might
do to improve it for steel-
head, and connected the idea
of a healthy riparian area with
halting erosion on the ground
that was producing Jack’s for-
age,” Tobin said. “We could
strategically place wood debris
and irrigate longer on that
floodplain pasture.”
Jack could then get more
forage by repeated grazing
throughout the year.
This was accomplished
by placing a simple log jam
to back up the water to sheet-
flow across the 27-acre flood-
plain repeatedly during the
spring. This created more for-
age without having to build an
irrigation system.
For the offsite water source,
solar panels provide power for
the pumps, and water troughs
are large recycled tires, which
helps keep water from freez-
ing during winter.
“Several projects, over
several years, built a larger,
more comprehensive action
that everyone was happy with.
Jack was using adjacent prop-
erties along this stream, and
as the lessee was able to get in
the door with those landown-
ers and get them involved in
the stream restoration,” said
Tobin.
The end result was a
great partnership for a farm-
friendly project that also
improves fish habitat.
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The water is also used for
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The water district’s under-
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Most farmers call to order
water. Evans said they are
extremely conscious of water
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The Coachella Valley
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than 1,200 ag customers
on 65,000 acres in a desert
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By JULIA HOLLISTER
For the Capital Press