The project will occur on private lands in the tailings reach of the scott river, located in the klamath basin ecoregion

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Department of the Interior, Region 8, awarded a Cooperative Agreement totaling $187,945 to the Scott River Watershed Council under the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program (CFDA 15.631), effective October 1, 2025, with completion targeted for January 31, 2029. The award funds habitat restoration activities on private lands in the tailings reach of the Scott River, located in the Klamath Basin ecoregion of Etna, California. The primary products delivered include the construction of ten engineered log structures along a 500-foot river section and the planting of native willow and cottonwood vegetation to restore salmon habitat and improve riparian conditions.

The engineered log structures are designed to create scour pools and low-velocity resting areas that improve fish passage for migrating and spawning Chinook and coho salmon, while also sorting streambed substrate to enhance spawning habitat and increasing floodplain connectivity through improved channel roughness. The native vegetation plantings will increase river shading, improve water quality, and provide primary food sources for salmon populations. This project implements two recovery actions identified in the Southern Oregon Northern California Coast Coho Salmon Recovery Plan and supports DOI strategic objectives related to species and natural resources protection and public-private collaborative conservation partnerships.

The tailings reach provides habitat for migrating chinook and coho salmon and spawning chinook salmon. However, the tailings reach lacks channel complexity, floodplain connectivity, and riparian habitat. To address these issues, this project will construct a series of ten engineered log structures and plant native willow and cottonwood along a 500 foot section of the scott river. The log structures will create scour pools and low velocity habitats that will provide resting areas and improve fish passage during migration, and sort streambed substrate, improving spawning habitat for chinook salmon. The log structures will also increase roughness on the river margins, improving connectivity with the floodplains. The plantings will increase river shading and improve water quality, and provide primary food sources for salmon. This project will implement two recovery actions identified in the southern oregon northern california coast coho salmon recovery plan and will achieve DOI proposed strategic objectives 3.4 species and natural resources are protected and 4.2 work collaboratively with states, partners, and governments by supporting species populations and health and by supporting public-private partnerships.