Other important benchmarks are maintaining lower Sacramento River water temperatures at and upstream of Red Bluff (RM 240) at <56o<\/sup>F and at <68o<\/sup>F downstream of Red Bluff (RMs 100-240).\u00a0 Reclamation has exceeded these temperatures in the three most recent wet years (Figure 2).\u00a0 Reclamation has not met summer water temperatures in the lower Sacramento River below 56o<\/sup>F at Red Bluff (RM 240) and below 68o<\/sup>F at Wilkins Slough (RM 120), because water diversions leave flows too low in summer (Figure 3).\u00a0 In fact, Reclamation has given up trying to meet those temperatures.\u00a0 The 2023 TMP evaluates maintaining 56o<\/sup>F at Balls Ferry, 36 miles upstream of Red Bluff, but concludes, without any supporting data or evidence, that maintaining that objective would be too uncertain and risky.<\/p>\n Analyses of flow and water temperature data for Wilkins Slough indicates it generally takes 6,000 to 10,000 cfs flow at Wilkins Slough to maintain water temperatures below 68o<\/sup>F in June, depending on air temperatures.\u00a0 Note the water temperature in early June 2023 reached above 68o<\/sup>F (Figure 2) as flows fell below 10,000 cfs (Figure 3).<\/p>\n Table 1 shows optimal temperatures for adult migration, holding, and spawning.\u00a0 Adult salmon migrating, holding, or spawning are stressed by water temperatures above 60o<\/sup>F.\u00a0 Water temperature above 68o<\/sup>F are considered \u201clethal\u201d for migrating salmon \u2013 such temperatures occurred in June of three wet years (Figure 2).\u00a0 Stressful water temperatures occurred during the spring in the lower Sacramento River in all four wet years (Figure 3).\u00a0 Spawning and egg incubation water temperatures exceeded the target 53o<\/sup>F for spring-summer spawning winter run salmon in all four wet years (Figure 1).<\/p>\n The 2023 Sacramento River Temperature Management Plan<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cSignificant uncertainties exist within the forecast that will require intensive real-time operations management throughout the summer to achieve the various goals and targets throughout the system.\u201d <\/em>(2023 TMP, p. 3)\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n Comment:\u00a0 <\/strong>Reclamation\u2019s repeated strategy of staying close to 56\u00ba in a limited stretch of the Sacramento River, even in a year like 2023 when there is really no reason to adopt such a conservative strategy, unnecessarily compromises the salmon and sets a course for failure to meet permit requirements.\u00a0 At the beginning of June, there were still endangered adult winter-run and spring-run salmon migrating up the lower Sacramento River.<\/p>\n As in 2023, Reclamation made overt decisions in 2017 and 2019 to drop flows below 7000 cfs in the lower reaches of the lower Sacramento River, knowing water temperatures would exceed their permitted upper limit and water quality standard of 68o<\/sup>F.\u00a0 Flows closer to Keswick Dam in Redding also dropped, allowing Red Bluff water temperatures to exceed their limit of 56o<\/sup>F.<\/p>\n \u201cThe strategy of meeting 53.5 at CCR will likely result in average daily temperatures at or near 56 degrees F at BSF. Reclamation does not propose to operate the TCD explicitly to meet 56 degrees F at BSF under conditions that may require changes to TCD operations that could risk cold water pool resources for use later in the temperature management season. This would cause an unreasonable risk to other goals and objectives\u201d.\u00a0 <\/em>(2023 TMP, p. 4)<\/p>\n Comment:\u00a0 <\/strong>The TMP acknowledges from the start that Reclamation has no intention of meeting the 56o<\/sup>F standard at Balls Ferry (RM 276), let alone Red Bluff (RM 240).\u00a0 With CCR maintained at 53o<\/sup>F, it takes more dam releases to keep the 60-mile upper river reach below 56o<\/sup>F and the 100+ miles of lower river below 68o<\/sup>F.\u00a0 The 2023 Plan thus plainly ignores these other license and water quality standard requirements important to salmon survival. \u00a0Lower river water temperatures above 68o<\/sup>F through late summer will also compromise the fall-run salmon migration up the river.<\/p>\n Update<\/strong><\/p>\n Water temperatures in the Sacramento River downstream of Red Bluff steadily increased through June (Figure 4).\u00a0 In over 100 miles of the Sacramento River from Red Bluff downstream to the mouth of the Feather River, Reclamation is operating in violation of federal\/state water quality standards, the federal\/state Endangered Species Acts, and state water rights permits.\u00a0 Water temperatures have reached lethal levels for migrating adult and juvenile salmon blocking their migrations up and down the river, respectively.\u00a0 Stress, disease, and predation are compromising two brood years of salmon production in a wet year!\u00a0 <\/strong>Water diversions from the river below Red Bluff are approaching 6000 cfs (Figure 5) not counting diversions upstream or from tributaries.<\/p>\n In Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n In conclusion, the Sacramento River Temperature Management Plan should cover all of Reclamation\u2019s obligations under its permits and all applicable water quality standards, not just water temperatures in the upper 10 river miles of over 200 river miles used by salmon.<\/p>\n Table 1. Water temperature objectives for adult Central Valley salmon. (Sources: San Joaquin River Recovery Plan). Note that the temperatures cited in this figure are the maximum<\/strong> daily temperatures. The 2023 TMP target for winter-run Chinook spawning is an average<\/strong> daily temperature of 53.5\u00baF.<\/p><\/div>\n Figure 1, Water temperature (daily average) at the Clear Creek gage in the Sacramento River above the mouth of Clear Creek (RM 290) in wet years 2011, 2017, 2019, and 2023.<\/p><\/div>\n Figure 2. Water temperature (daily average) at the Red Bluff (RM 240) and Wilkins Slough (RM 120) gages in the Sacramento River in wet years 2011, 2017, 2019, and 2023.<\/p><\/div>\n Figure 3. Lower Sacramento River flow at the Wilkins Slough gage (RM 120) in wet years 2011, 2017, 2019, and 2023.<\/p><\/div>\n Figure 4. Water temperature and streamflow at Bend Bridge (RM 250) and Wilkins Slough (RM 120) in May-June 2023. Note 68o<\/sup>F water quality standard and critical water temperature for salmon is exceeded.in late June at Wilkins Slough gage. The 56o<\/sup>F standard was exceeded at Bend Bridge for much of May and June.<\/p><\/div>\n Figure 5. Streamflow at various gages in the Sacramento River from Keswick Dam (RM 300), Bend Bridge (RM 250) downstream to Wilkins Slough (RM 120) in May-June 2023. Note: tributary inflows in the reach below Bend gage in mid-June were approximately 5000 cfs in mid-May. Keswick Dam releases were increased in late June to maintain deliveries and sustain 5000 cfs at Wilkins Slough gage.<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It is that time of year again for another Sacramento River Temperature Management Plan.\u00a0 You know, the plan adopted to protect Sacramento River salmon from the operation of the Shasta\/Trinity Division of the federal Central Valley Project of US Department … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/calsport.org\/fisheriesblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/image1.png\")
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