From April 6-9, 2016, Salmonid Restoration Federation (SRF) produced the 34th Annual Salmonid Restoration Conference in Fortuna, CA. The theme of the 2016 conference was “Salmonid Restoration in Working Watersheds” since the conference highlighted efforts to restore ecological processes in productive watersheds that still retain a high level of ecological function. The conference agenda explored efforts to address legacy impacts in a changing climate.
The Annual Salmonid Restoration Conference has become the largest salmon restoration conference in California. The 34th Annual Salmonid Restoration Conference featured over 100 presenters, six field tours to exemplary restoration projects from the Lower Klamath River to the Mattole Estuary, four intensive habitat restoration workshops, and 10 concurrent sessions. All-day workshops included Instream Flow Enhancement and Groundwater Recharge Planning; Design and Engineering of Off-channel Habitat and Large Wood Projects; Evolving Science and Policy to Restore Streams Using Instream Obstructions and Beaver Dam Analogues; and a workshop focused on tools for encouraging meaningful public input and participation to achieve salmon recovery goals.
Field tours included a tour of Arcata’s community-based urban/wildland restoration program; a tour of the Lower Mattole River and Estuary to see heliwood placement, riparian planting, and off-channel slough restoration; and a tour of upland restoration in the Headwaters Forest Preserve and tidewaters projects at Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Additional tours included one of the Eel River Delta and estuary, Lower Klamath and Redwood National Park projects, and fish passage and tidegates restoration in Humboldt Bay and the Mad River watershed.
Concurrent sessions included a biology track with sessions focused on life-cycle modeling, Eel River biology, salmonid health, and Spring-run Chinook salmon genetics. The habitat restoration track explored incised stream channels, off-channel ponds, floodplains, and beaver-influenced habitats. Additionally, a landscape track features sessions on climate change, Gold Country legacy impacts and restoration strategies, impacts of cannabis cultivation on fisheries, and a session on innovative approaches to understanding and improving salmon-habitat relationships.
The Plenary session highlights the elements that comprise ecosystem function, including a keynote address by Mike Furniss entitled “Homage to the Interface: Coastal Deltas, Estuaries and Floodplains.” Mary Power from UC Berkeley will present on “Drought, Floods, and Alternate States of Algal-based Food Webs in the Thirsty Eel.” Merv George Jr., Forest Supervisor of Six Rivers National Forest, made a presentation on “Ridges to River—Ecological Restoration,” and renowned fisheries scientist Peter Moyle of UC Davis presented, “Climate Change, Drought, and the Future of California Salmonids.”
Other conference events included the SRF Annual Meeting and membership dinner on Thursday evening with a special screening of the film A River Between Us, a poster session and reception on Friday night, and a festive banquet with an awards ceremony and live dance band on Saturday evening.
To inquire about co-sponsorship or presenter opportunities at future SRF Conferences, please contact us at info@calsalmon.org.
