Public invited to meeting on Johnson Creek Dam fish passage waiver

May 21, 2012

SALEM, Ore. – The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will hold a public meeting on Thursday, May 31 on a fish passage waiver for a proposed  new  in-stream dam on Johnson Creek near Bandon.  The meeting will be from 7-9 p.m. at the Bandon Community Center at 1200 11th St. SW in Bandon, Oregon.

A primary purpose of this meeting is to solicit public comment that the Fish and Wildlife Commission can consider when it makes a final decision regarding a fish passage waiver, said Greg Apke, ODFW Fish Passage Program Coordinator. ODFW staff has recommended granting the waiver.

The meeting will begin with a presentation by the project proponents on the proposed project.  ODFW staff will provide an overview of the fish passage waiver process and a summary of the reasons why ODFW staff has concluded there would be a net benefit to fish by granting the waiver.

Plans by the Bandon Cranberry Water Control District to build a new in-stream dam on Johnson Creek triggered a state requirement to consider fish passage as a part of the project. Currently, the proposed dam site does not present a barrier to the upstream passage of native migratory fish; however, there are other artificial obstructions below the project site that preclude fish passage.

The water control district has requested the waiver and has proposed replacing four culverts on Blair Creek, a subwatershed of the Coquille River, to mitigate for the loss of passage on Johnson Creek. ODFW has made an initial determination that the four new culverts in Blair Creek would result in a net benefit to migratory fish by opening approximately 2.08 miles of additional habitat for salmon, steelhead, cutthroat trout and Pacific lamprey.

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