Fires along the fringes of the Central Valley are impacting water quality for downstream watersheds that supply critical habitat for native salmon species.
Last month the State Water Resources Control Board held off on curtailing diversions along the Scott River due to the Shelly Fire. While the 15,000-acre conflagration is now 92% contained, board staff said at a hearing this week that it continues to impact the area.
Staff at the regional water board for the Central Valley are looking into potential impacts at the Butte Creek, Feather River and Mill Creek watersheds in Northern California. Executive Officer Patrick Pulupa called the region “the last holdout” of spring-run Chinook salmon.
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“We’re really hoping the impacts will be minimal, but we’re bracing for the worst,” said Pulupa.
Board chair Joaquin Esquivel plans to dig deeper into the findings at a future hearing.
Why it matters: Local water agencies are taking a proactive approach to wildfire prevention. While watershed restoration projects in the Sacramento Valley aim to protect salmon, they also build fire resilience, according to Todd Manley, who directs government relations for the Northern California Water Association.
The nature-based solution is part of a portfolio approach that seeks to move beyond the fish vs. farm dynamic in water management.
