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"Blue Ribbon" Trout Stream here in WNC!
For more information please click on one or more of the following links.
We had 13 TUers show up at Watermill Landing on Valentine's Day
and all that is left to do is grading the parking lot. I
personally want to tell all of you that helped make this project
a success that this showed us how much you care about the the
Catawba River. This is the first of more to come up and
down the River system.
We at Table Rock Trout Unlimited thank you
Rick Pons
Watermill Access Project: A cooperative project between Table Rock TU (TRTU),
Burke County and the city of Glen Alpine to provide a boat launch and recovery
site on the Catawba River, 8 miles below the Bridgewater Dam on Lake James. In
an effort to provide public access to the Catawba River, without having to wait
for the relicensing process to be finished, I initiated this cooperative
venture. I wish to extend my sincere thanks to NCTU Council, the many NC
Chapters and individuals from all over the country who have donated funds and
time to this project. We have ‘broken ground’ and two workdays have been
scheduled for volunteers to ‘get their hands dirty’. I would like to thank all of you who came out and helped with this project. It would have never gotten done if we didn't work so well together. We still need to pour the ramp and have one more workday on the 7th of Feb. We will meet at the same time. Watermill Landing 9:00am. If you need directions feel free to contact me through the TRTU web page. Thanks again Rick Pons (TRTU) Click on the following thumbnails for full picture.
by Squeak Smith For many years, TU members statewide have pondered the question: What potential does the Catawba River have as a tailrace fishery? Several groups working cooperatively on the issue are now seriously addressing that question. Specifically, Duke Power, NCWRC, the Foothills Conservancy, US Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Burke County, McDowell County, the City of Morganton, NRCS, NCTU and others have joined forces to tackle the river's major limiting factor -SILTATION! Recent NCWRC and Duke Power sampling studies estimate Muddy Creek is currently depositing over 30,000 tons of silt per year directly into the Catawba River, with over 80% of the siltation coming from the North Muddy Creek tributary. Stream studies have identified 10-12 specific sites causing the majority of the siltation. We are currently establishing project priorities for site-specific activities with local landowners and the above mentioned project cooperators. The Foothills Conservancy will provide administrative oversight to the initial $150,000 project, funded by grants from the USF&W Foundation, Duke Power, NCWRC, NCTU and others determined to significantly reduce siltation entering the Catawba River from Muddy Creek. Administrative and organizational meetings have been ongoing since June 98, with an official project start date of 1 Jan 99. This project represents the first step toward a comprehensive process aimed at addressing WQ,
The Rocky River Chapter and other chapters statewide have shown a keen interested in making the Catawba River a significant tailrace fishery. Now is your chance to get involved. As your NCTU WQ Chairman, I am soliciting donations from chapters to provide matching grant monies, to be used in conjunction with in-kind labor from TU volunteers statewide for the project. We are currently $13,000 short of full funding for the project and I am exploring with TU National the potential of a matching grant to fully fund this initial phase. I am attempting to raise $6,500 locally from chapters interested in making this a reality. Your chapter's monetary participation now, and volunteer labor in the near future, are critical factors in making the Catawba River the "Blue Ribbon" tailrace fishery of the Southeast. Please call Squeak Smith NRB Director SE Region IV (828) 584-2848 or
Squeak's Follow-up letter! “Catawba River: “Blue Ribbon ” Tailrace Fishery of the Southeast?” A good idea whose time has come gets put into action, and spawns:
Through a cooperative funding and implementation effort between Duke Power, NCWRC, the Foothills Conservancy, US Fish and Wildlife Foundation, NCTU, Trout and Salmon Foundation, Burke and McDowell Counties, the City of Morganton, NRCS, and others, significant stream restoration efforts are currently in progress on Muddy Creek, a sub-basin of the Catawba River, NC’s largest and highest water quality watershed. This project is a first step in a comprehensive process aimed at addressing WQ, fisheries, and future FERC issues throughout the entire Catawba watershed. NCWRC and Duke Power sampling studies estimate Muddy Creek is currently
depositing over 30,000 tons of silt/year directly into the Catawba River, with
over 80% of the siltation coming from the North Muddy Creek tributary. Stream
studies have identified 10-12 specific sites causing the majority of the
siltation. Progress Update: Stream-site restoration engineering is complete, pre-project
insect, fish/aquatic population, water quality, and pebble count studies have
been completed. Sediment load monitoring sites are in place and operating, and
restoration of three project sites has been completed.
We've re-printed it here for your reading pleasure. If you have any comments or questions please forward them to Bob Satterwhite By Bob Satterwhite POSTED: Sept. 8, 2002 12:22 a.m. For years, the Catawba River below Lake James in Burke County was a silt-filled muddy stream, capable of sustaining trout only in a small section of tailwater below the Lake James dam.
Today, thanks to a joint restorative project initiated by the Wildlife Resources Commission, 17 miles of the river below the Lake James dam has been transformed into a prime brown trout fishery. The brown trout are fat, sleek and healthy, with some running larger than 22 inches.
Doug Besler, the cold-water research coordinator for the wildlife commission who led the restoration effort, recently released results of the three-year project. Besler said anglers had been asking the wildlife commission to develop a viable trout fishery below the dam since the early 1990s.
"Their increasing interest gave rise to the restoration initiative," he said.
"Since 1999," Besler said, "more than 3,000 linear feet of streams in the Muddy Creek watershed have been restored, revegetated and protected," an effort that involved thousands of volunteer hours from a variety of agencies and organizations, both public and private. Groups and agencies involved were Duke Power Co., which owns the lake; area Trout Unlimited chapters; the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina; Burke and McDowell county governments, the N.C. Cooperative Extension Service, and the wildlife commission.
"Since 1971, the commission had stocked a one-mile stretch of the tailwater with catchable trout averaging 10 inches," Besler said, "but we didn't actively manage the lower 16 miles river."
When the sediment reduction program was put into effect, Besler said, the wildlife commission began stocking fingerling brown trout in the upper 12 miles of the tailwater.
The brown trout fingerlings, which average 3 inches, have been stocked annually since then, Besler said.
The wildlife commission began evaluating the expanded stocking program in 2000.
"In May 2000 and 2001, brown trout fingerlings were tagged with a tiny piece of surgical stainless steel, known as a coded wire tag," Besler said.
The wire tags were implanted in a different body location each year to enable biologists to discern wild fish from hatchery fish and to further identify hatchery fish by the year they were stocked.
In September 2000 and 2001, biologists captured trout from 23 sites along the tailwater. The trout were measured, weighed, and checked for tags using a metal-detecting wand. All trout were then released back into the river.
More than 150 brown trout, ranging from 4 to 22 inches, were captured each year during the sampling, Besler said.
"The presence of brown trout of various sizes indicated that the population was becoming established in the tailwater," he said.
"Overall, between 75 and 88 percent of the young trout collected in this study were tagged. Young brown trout collected without tags were wild fish born in the river," he said.
Besler said, however, the high percentage of tagged young trout indicates that the trout population is still largely dependent upon stocking.
Tagged brown trout grew about 0.72 inches per month during the summer of 2000 and about 0.63 inches per month during the summer of 2001.
Additionally, Besler said, 34 brown trout from the 2000 stocking were recaptured in 2001.
"These fish had grown approximately 0.48 inches per month during the 18 months they were in the tailwater," Besler said.
He attributed the high growth rate to an excellent food base.
The success of the program also means trout fishers in Burke and McDowell counties won't have to travel to the high country to find excellent brown trout fishing.
The following was printed in the Charlotte Observer and is reprinted here for your information. Any questions, comments or concerns please contact Bruce Henderson (his address is at the end of the article) Process allows chance to alter Catawba's look Throughout this century, Duke Power's chain of hydroelectric dams has transformed the Catawba River and the red-clay heart of the Carolinas.
But Duke's grip on the Catawba isn't forever.
The utility has to renew a federal license for its hydropower operations in 2008 -- the existing license is 41 years old -- and the rules have changed profoundly.
For the first time, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will balance producing electricity on the Catawba with its impact on the environment. Duke will have to justify its diversion of a public resource, the river, for corporate gain.
That gives wildlife agencies and conservation groups a once-in-a-lifetime shot at forcing Duke to slow shoreline development, improve fish habitat or -- unthinkable until recently -- even tear out some of those dams.
Duke, government agencies and conservation groups are laying the groundwork for a new license that will shape the river for an additional 30 to 50 years. Duke controls 13 hydro dams on 220 miles of the Catawba in a basin that is home to 1.5 million people. Relicensing what was once called the "world's most electrified river'' is a massive undertaking.
"It is the largest project of its kind that FERC will relicense'' in the next decade, said George Galleher, Duke's point man on the Catawba relicensing.
"It's probably the most important opportunity to restore fish and wildlife in our professional careers,'' said Kevin Moody, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist.
Demolition of dams 'remote'?
The agency and Duke already have one fundamental difference. Fish and Wildlife wants Duke to begin the process as if the Catawba had never been dammed. Stepping back in time, it says, would allow a clearer view of how Duke's dams and reservoirs have altered the basin -- and whether they're worth keeping. Duke's hydro plants, some dating to the turn of the century, produce less than 3 percent of the utility's overall power.
"The very question of whether the dams should remain is fair game,'' Moody said. "With all the development out there, I think they will probably remain, but the question should be raised.''
Duke's Galleher calls the likelihood of FERC demolishing any dams "very remote.'' A federal appeals court ruled this month against the no-dams scenario in an Oregon relicensing, saying it "defies common sense.''
More likely to get serious scrutiny, Duke officials say, are narrower issues: the amount and quality of water released from dams; recreation; and public access.
Duke's is not the only hydro relicensing in the Carolinas during the next decade. Two licenses expire on the Yadkin River, 50 miles east of Charlotte. South Carolina Electric & Gas' Lake Murray license and the S.C. Public Service Authority's Santee-Cooper project will also expire.
In the upper Catawba basin, from the river's headwaters near Mount Mitchell to Lake Rhodhiss east of Morganton, environmental and conservation groups are assessing their priorities.
High on their list: protecting the cold water, clear as glass, that surges from the 80-year-old Lake James dam near Morganton. The 17 miles beginning there are the longest stretch of free-flowing Catawba left in North Carolina.
That run of river also illustrates the potential sweep of relicensing.
Duke's license covers its hydro plants and a boundary just above the high-water line of its reservoirs. But FERC also will consider other effects of the dams, such as the water released downstream.
"Water quality and development, and issues regarding open space and recreation, those potential ramifications are enormous,'' said Mike Struve, water-quality administrator for the Western Piedmont Council of Governments in Hickory. "And I really don't think that the public nor a lot of government nor nongovernment agencies have any clue in terms of how they may be affected.''
Waterfront development
Area environmental and conservation groups will fight for undisturbed buffer zones along the Catawba and its tributaries, says Catawba Riverkeeper Donna Lisenby. They want to improve life for brook trout and other native wildlife, and better water-quality monitoring and enforcement.
Waterfront development is likely to be a major issue, especially where building had been limited for decades, such as on Mountain Island Lake and Lake James.
In documents filed in May with FERC, Duke increased the percentage of its total shoreline that can't be developed from 21 percent to 30 percent. Those include environmentally sensitive and public recreation areas.
That leaves about 1,120 miles of shoreline for potential development, including the already densely packed shores of Lakes Norman and Wylie.
Duke Energy's land-management arm, Crescent Resources, has been busily developing the waterfront.
Crescent said last week it will develop one of Mecklenburg's largest planned communities, 4,000-home Evergreen near Lake Wylie. It will manage the development of a 16,000-home community along the Fishing Creek Reservoir in Lancaster County, S.C. Work or planning is under way for StoneWater Bay on Mountain Island Lake, SailView on Lake Norman and SouthPointe on Lake James.
FERC doesn't control property owned by Crescent or other developers because it isn't used to produce electricity.
The commission has the authority to make Duke buy land -- perhaps from Crescent -- for buffer zoners or to set aside land for conservation or recreation. But FERC is unlikely to intrude on developed property, officials say.
Don Clark, general counsel to the National Hydropower Association, a trade group, said "the commission is not terribly inclined to expand boundaries like that.''
FERC encourages collaborative relicensing in which hydro owners negotiate terms with the environmentalists, land trusts, sporting groups and government agencies with an interest in the river.
Duke may have to make expensive concessions to those groups, which can make relicensing relatively quick and congenial or hostile and tedious.
Duke says it hasn't decided whether to take the collaborative approach. In some other relicensings, officials note, too many constituents bogged things down.
Federal law gives some players more say than others. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Forest Service and federally recognized Indian tribes, such as the Catawbas south of Lake Wylie, may dictate some terms of renewed licenses.
Lisenby says Duke Energy refused her request for a moratorium on Crescent development. She believes Duke Power will eventually need to buy back land to satisfy local groups.
"We're going to aggressively seek every . . . thing we can because they're so intent on developing everything,'' she said.
For conservation's sake
Duke's environmental work is likely to help substantiate its claim of being a good steward of the Catawba. The company is working with the state and conservation groups to stanch the flow of silt that fills Muddy Creek, a tributary in Burke County.
"My hope is that (relicensing) is very congenial,'' said Charlotte's Kirk Otey, Southeastern vice president for Trout Unlimited, which is working on Muddy Creek. "I've always found it very easy to work with Duke Power when you have a clearly defined goal, one that's not contrary to their own goals.''
Negotiated settlements are tailored to offset the negative impacts of dams. Some recent examples submitted to FERC:
On the Tuckasegee and Nantahala rivers in the N.C. mountains, Duke subsidiary Nantahala Power and Light agreed last year to increase water releases from its dams to improve fisheries.
On the Connecticut River in New Hampshire and Vermont, New England Power agreed to conserve 12,000 acres, create a river-enhancement fund of $10 million to $16 million and increase water releases from its dams.
On Montana's Clark Fork, Avista Corp. agreed to a "living license'' whose terms may change as river conditions warrant. The license will be managed by a collaborative group of river interests.
Only once has FERC removed a dam -- on Maine's Kennebec River. The dam, which produced a trickle of power while blocking upstream runs of Atlantic salmon, came down last month.
Carolina Power & Light last year voluntarily took down a low dam on the Neuse River, also to aid fish migration.
Duke officials say their hydros are irreplaceable, quickly spinning out electricity at peak periods and leveling out voltage fluctuations. "Don't ask us to get through a day without using them,'' Oakley said.
But amid relicensing settlements, rigid court rulings and electric-industry deregulation, it's a mistake to assume any hydropower reservoir is permanent, said Moody of the Fish and Wildlife Service.
"Selling a house and saying it's shoreline property is pretty . . . misleading,'' he said. "That's going to be a shock for a lot of people who may be sinking their life savings into something that may not be there.'' Reach Bruce Henderson at (704) 358-5051 or
bhender@charlotte.com .
APPLICANT INFORMATION Muddy Creek Restoration Project Organization/Agency (to be named as Grantee) Project Contact: Larry Olmsted, Director Scientific Services Address: City: Huntersville State: NC Zip: 28078 Phone: (704)875-5411 Fax: (704)875-5032 e-mail: lolmsted@duke-energy.com Who are the federal agencies involved with this project: (contact &
phone) PROJECT INFORMATION Project Name: Muddy Creek Watershed Restoration Project Project Location: Muddy Creek Watershed State: NC Project Start Date: 11/1/98 Project End Date: 12/31/99 Acres of Land Directly Affected by this Project: Additional Notes: Project Category - Restore Our Southern Rivers Muddy Creek Watershed Restoration Project A Proposal to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, by North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, I. Project Summary The Muddy Creek Watershed Restoration Initiative (MCWRI) seeks, through innovative partnerships, technology, and funding, to reclaim the Muddy Creek watershed. The primary partners in this initiative are Duke Power Company, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, The Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina, and Trout Unlimited (Table Rock Chapter). The Muddy Creek watershed is a major source of sediment loading to the Catawba River. The objective of the MCWRI is to significantly reduce this sediment load to the Catawba River thereby improving fish habitat and water quality. These goals are to be accomplished through partnerships with local landowners, citizen education, and on-the-ground riparian corridor and stream habitat and restoration projects. II. Abstract The 98 square mile Muddy Creek watershed is in Burke and McDowell Counties in North Carolina. Muddy Creek is formed by the confluence of North Muddy and South Muddy Creeks 4.7 miles before entering the Catawba River. The confluence of Muddy Creek and the Catawba River is about 1 mile downstream of Bridgewater Hydroelectric Station. North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission has a fish management plan for the Catawba River that calls for the development of natural reproducing brown trout and smallmouth bass populations in the 17 mile section of the Catawba below the Muddy Creek confluence. Cold water from the hypolimnion of Lake James enters the Catawba River through the turbines of Bridgewater Hydroelectric Station and providing generally good water quality suitable for trout and smallmouth bass in the Catawba River. However, sediment loading from Muddy Creek is impacting the trout and smallmouth bass habitat in the river. Restoration of the Muddy Creek watershed has the potential to allow the Catawba River to be a significant regional fishery resource. Muddy Creek is a typical Piedmont stream with substrates varying from silt, sand, and gravel with occasional boulders and rock outcrops. Muddy Creek typically has turbid water even during low flows. The two major tributaries of Muddy Creek are North and South Muddy Creeks. Muddy Creek is approximately 15.7 miles in length and is the primary source of sediment load to Muddy Creek and the Catawba River (Duke Power Company, unpublished data). North Muddy Creek has a typical sinusoidal stream channel configuration and would probably best benefit from several site specific improvement projects. Most of North Muddy Creek is incised and disconnected from the flood plain, although there is a relatively good riparian corridor. There are several sites along North Muddy where stream restoration efforts and installation of Best Management Practices would reduce sediment loading. South Muddy Creek is approximately 13 miles in length and appears to have been straightened a number of years ago likely to facilitate agricultural practices. The stream channel is also severely incised and is not currently connected to the flood plain. Restoration of South Muddy Creek would likely be a significant, long term effort involving land acquisition, conservation easements, and natural channel reconstruction and restoration. In order to provide significant trout habitat improvements to the Catawba River, a partnership consisting of Duke Power Company, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina, and Trout Unlimited, proposes to undertake the Muddy Creek Watershed Restoration Initiative. This initiative will form partnerships with landowners and provide education for them and other citizens regarding the effects of land disturbing activities on water quality and fish habitat. This initiative will also look for innovative ways to address sedimentation to Muddy Creek which will ultimately improve fish habitat and water quality in the Catawba River. This project will actively demonstrate the effectiveness of Best Management Practices in improving water quality and fish habitat in streams. III. Proposal A. Project Need Muddy Creek is a typical Piedmont stream draining gently sloping foothills South or Morganton and Marion, NC. Land ownership in the Muddy Creek basin is largely by private citizens and/or business. There are no national or state forests or parks and there is only one park that is owned by McDowell County, NC. The Muddy Creek watershed is approximately 98 square miles with two major tributaries, North and South Muddy Creeks. Muddy Creek is ungaged and very few discharge measurements are available. Based on limited suspended sediment sampling, about 63% of the Muddy Creek discharge is from North Muddy Creek with the remaining 37% coming from South Muddy. These two tributaries differ with regard to habitat degradation. In North Muddy Creek, the channel has retained its original sinuosity while meandering through relatively wide and apparently alluvial bottom lands. Most of North Muddy Creek is fairly deeply incised and disconnected from the flood plain, although there is a fairly substantive riparian corridor. There are several sites along North Muddy where stream restoration efforts and installation of Best Management Practices would provide reduced sedimentation. In some areas the stream banks can approach 10 to 12 feet in height and regularly collapse adding thousands of tons of sediment directly to the stream. On the other hand, South Muddy Creek was apparently straightened and channelized several decades ago and then snagged in the early 1970's to facilitate farming of the bottomlands. The South Muddy Creek stream channel is also deeply incised and is disconnected from the flood plain, which contributes to further incising of the stream channel. Most of the sediment impact to the Catawba River is coming from North Muddy Creek (Duke Power, unpublished data). Mean Total Suspended Solids (TSS) for North Muddy Creek is 29 mg/l at baseflow and 2840 mg/l during stormflows. TSS in South Muddy Creek average 16 mg/l during baseflow conditions and 867 mg/l during stormflows. Bedload sediment transport has not been estimated for Muddy Creek. Historical land use and management practices in the Muddy Creek watershed have not yet been researched but appear to be typical for this area of North Carolina. Sediment loads in the Muddy Creek watershed have probably been increased by practices like: stream channelization, timber harvesting, loss of riparian vegetation and buffers due to agriculture, draining of bottom lands and/or wetlands, residential development, road construction, and hardening of stream channels. The morphology, soil types and other characteristics and of the Muddy Creek basin along with these land management practices have resulted in a number of detrimental effects in the Muddy Creek basin, as well as the Catawba River. These effects include: soil erosion and increased sedimentation, losses of wetland and riparian habitats within the Muddy Creek basin, decreased water quality, and a loss of streambank stability in the Muddy Creek basin. In turn these effects have likely resulted in an overall reduction in biological diversity of the Muddy Creek System. Existing sediment loading is certainly detrimental to the streams in the Muddy Creek basin from the water quality, habitat quality, and biological standpoint. The sedimentation in the Muddy Creek watershed contributes to sub-optimal trout and smallmouth bass habitat downstream in the Catawba River. Upstream of the Muddy Creek confluence, the Catawba River is clear and cold year round. This water and comes from the bottom of Lake James through the turbines Bridgewater Hydroelectric Station. Other than seasonal (August - October) low dissolved oxygen concentrations, this water is excellent in quality and retains cool temperatures year round. Because of these characteristics, the Catawba has the potential to be an good quality trout and/or smallmouth bass fishery. The NCWRC is currently developing a fish management plan for the river that would provide 17 river miles of brown trout and/or smallmouth bass fishing, where there has been no such fishery in years. While Duke Power will be working to resolve dissolved oxygen issues at the hydro, the major impact to fish habitat in the Catawba River is due to the sediment entering from Muddy Creek. Restoring the Muddy Creek watershed will produce benefits for the Catawba River by allowing self-sustaining brown trout and smallmouth bass fish populations to thrive in the Catawba River. The Catawba River basin is experiencing tremendous growth and development pressure (North Carolina Division of Water Quality - Darlene Kucken, personal communication). This demand on natural resources in the basin make it essential that restoration and protection initiatives like MCWRI be planned and implemented. B. Objectives A watershed restoration initiative in the Muddy Creek basin would meet
the following conservation objectives: This proposal will be administrated by a project management team composed of representatives from Duke Power Company, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Trout Unlimited, and The Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina. The MCWRI will seek to recruit funding to match National Fish and Wildlife Foundation funding at 2 to 1 ratio in cash contributions and in-kind services. In addition, this initiative will seek to involve as many stakeholders as possible in Muddy Creek watershed and effected areas of the Catawba River downstream. Involvement of diverse stakeholders will help to guarantee the long term success of the Muddy Creek Watershed Restoration Initiative. C. Methodology 1. Identify Project Steering Team (by 12/31/98) A. Management Implications The MCWRI seeks to use the following land use practices and strategies:
B. Project Evaluation The short term (two year) success of this project will be measured by the
following benchmarks: The MCWRI will also contribute to the long term success of the protection and
enhancement of natural resources in the Muddy IV. Use of ___________ funds for project | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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