Project Details

The Weber River Restoration project is needed to improve the stream health in approximately two miles of the Weber River, which has been degraded due to previous channel alteration and habitat simplification. This reach of the Weber River is currently listed on the Utah 303(d) list of impaired waters for not meeting the biological standard for cold water fish and their aquatic food chain. Additionally, this reach is one of the most urbanized rivers along the Wasatch Front. The Lower Weber River from the mouth of Weber Canyon to the confluence with the Ogden River is being studied to determine how improvements will benefit aquatic life. State fish biologists have hypothesized that there is a recruitment bottleneck in this location for juvenile Bluehead Sucker and studies are currently being conducted to identify key habitats in the area. The specific need that this funding request will address is the fish passage at the 24th Street Kayak Park, which is assumed to be a fish passage barrier due to vertical plunging water with high water velocities.

Provide evidence about the nature of the problem and the need to address it. Identify the significance of the problem using a variety of data sources. For example, if a habitat restoration project is being proposed to benefit greater sage-grouse, describe the existing plant community characteristics that limit habitat value for greater sage-grouse and identify the changes needed for habitat improvement.

The specific objectives of the FY21 proposal are to provide funds for mobilization, materials, and care of water for the implementation of the fish passage channel proposed for the west side of the river at the 24th Street Kayak Park. A contractor was selected through a competitive bid process in 2020-2021 and began work in late FY21 on the river. The Care of Water phase of the project was implemented in April-May of 2021, where Best Management Practices were installed to reduce the potential for sediment and pollution to leave the site during construction. This involved setting up large sand bags in the river to divert the flow away from work zones for short periods of time. The water was diverted into a temporary bypass channel and work was completed on the river right and the center island, which is one side of the stabilized fish passage channel. Additionally, rock and other construction materials were purchased and the contractor mobilized into the project. Work will continue through the end of 2021 to complete both sides of the river and final grading on the fish passage channel. Some site revegetation will occur in fall of 2021 and the majority of final revegetation and reclamation will occur just after runoff in 2022.

The invoice for the work completed in FY21 came to Ogden City at the end of June.  The Swift building demolition delays [from finding more hazardous materials in the project area], balancing out internal funding sources and change orders, and with staff turnover within Ogden City, the State was not invoiced in time to cover the FY21 work before the year end books closed.  The $30,000 FY21 ESMF funding did pay for the Mobilization of equipment and materials for the fish passage channel. These items were a $45,000 lump sum item paid out in this first invoice, so the ESMF grand covered $30,000 worth of that item.  The objective of this FY22 ESMF proposal is to cover the $30,000 work on the project with FY22 ESMF funds.

Provide an overall goal for the project and then provide clear, specific and measurable objectives (outcomes) to be accomplished by the proposed actions. If possible, tie to one or more of the public benefits UWRI is providing.

LOCATION: Justify the proposed location of this project over other areas, include publicly scrutinized planning/recovery documents that list this area as a priority, remote sensing modeling that show this area is a good candidate for restoration, wildlife migration information and other data that help justify this project's location.

TIMING: Justify why this project should be implemented at this time. For example, Is the project area at risk of crossing an ecological or other threshold wherein future restoration would become more difficult, cost prohibitive, or even impossible.

The Utah State and Western Weber County Resource Management Plans have identified the preservation and enhancement of rivers and floodplains as important objectives to consider when planning projects.
Additionally, wetlands and riparian areas have been identified as key resources to provide both environmental and economic benefits to Utah communities. Recreation has also been called out as essential to Utah ecological and economic vitality into the future. This project addresses these RMP objectives and also will help to bring the community together around this rare resource, the River.

The Weber River is listed on the Utah 303(d) list for impairment of the cold water fishery and has been identified as a degraded reach. The Weber River Watershed Plan (USU 2014) identified Habitat Restoration as a key strategy to improve the river function and the City of Ogden developed a specific watershed plan to detail opportunities for habitat improvement and community engagement along this reach and this plan is included
as a document in the WRI database.

Lowland Riparian areas including Aquatic-Forested, Aquatic-Scrub/Shrub, Emergent, and Riverine Habitat types were identified as a Key Habitats in the Utah Wildlife Action Plan (2016). Many species rely on these habitat types for all or parts of their life cycles. The proposed project will improve all of these habitat types and will also increase the effectiveness of the vegetative buffer by removal of material and enhancement of riparian areas and floodplains adjacent to the river.

Restoring the Weber River, which is in a moderately densely populated area will help the UDWR achieve Resource Objective 2 (Increase fish and game populations to meet management plan objectives, and expand quality fishing and hunting opportunities) and Constituency Objective 1 (Increase public awareness of wildlife as a quality-of-life issue in order to expand our support base and achieve stable funding). A map and narrative of priority reaches on the Weber River is included in the attached documents. In addition, restoring the Weber River will meet city master plan objectives.

List management plans where this project will address an objective or strategy in the plan. Describe how the project area overlaps the objective or strategy in the plan and the relevance of the project to the successful implementation of those plans. It is best to provide this information in a list format with the description immediately following the plan objective or strategy.

If applicable, detail how the proposed project will significantly reduce the risk of fuel loading and/or continuity of hazardous fuels including the use of fire-wise species in re-seeding operations. Describe the value of any features being protected by reducing the risk of fire. Values may include; communities at risk, permanent infrastructure, municipal watersheds, campgrounds, critical wildlife habitat, etc. Include the size of the area where fuels are being reduced and the distance from the feature(s) at risk.

Describe how the project has the potential to improve water quality and/or increase water quantity, both over the short and long term. Address run-off, erosion, soil infiltration, and flooding, if applicable.

Description of efforts, both completed and planned, to bring the proposed action into compliance with any and all cultural resource, NEPA, ESA, etc. requirements. If compliance is not required enter "not applicable" and explain why not it is not required.

Describe the actions, activities, tasks to be implemented as part of the proposed project; how these activities will be carried out, equipment to be used, when, and by whom.

There have been several efforts in recent years to characterize the habitats and water quality in this reach of the Weber River. These include riparian vegetation surveys, water quality sampling, and fish surveys. An assessment of riparian areas was conducted in 2015 and 2017. The Utah Division of Water Quality conducted a targeted sampling for water quality at site #4920220 in 2015 and this will be repeated on a 6 year cycle. The Weber Basin Water Conservancy District conducts regular sampling of chemical water quality parameters at the project location and will continue to sample in the future. A Bluehead Sucker recruitment bottleneck study was conducted by Utah State University in 2014-2016 and the final report was completed in 2018 concluding that habitats and connectivity is limited. The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources conducts population monitoring for Bluehead Sucker in the Weber River on a three year rotating basis with the next survey planned for 2018. Additionally, we are working with Utah Water Watch at USU to develop a citizen science monitoring program and working to include students and professors from Weber State University.

Describe plans to monitor for project success and achievement of stated objectives. Include details on type of monitoring (vegetation, wildlife, etc.), schedule, assignments and how the results of these monitoring efforts will be reported and/or uploaded to this project page. If needed, upload detailed plans in the "attachments" section.

List any and all partners (agencies, organizations, NGO's, private landowners) that support the proposal and/or have been contacted and included in the planning and design of the proposed project. Describe efforts to gather input and include these agencies, landowners, permitees, sportsman groups, researchers, etc. that may be interested/affected by the proposed project. Partners do not have to provide funding or in-kind services to a project to be listed.

Detail future methods or techniques (including administrative actions) that will be implemented to help in accomplishing the stated objectives and to insure the long term success/stability of the proposed project. This may include: post-treatment grazing rest and/or management plans/changes, wildlife herd/species management plan changes, ranch plans, conservation easements or other permanent protection plans, resource management plans, forest plans, etc.

Potential for the proposed action to improve quality or quantity of sustainable uses such as grazing, timber harvest, biomass utilization, recreation, etc. Grazing improvements may include actions to improve forage availability and/or distribution of livestock.