In Johnson Creek (Metro Portland) Coho Salmon Found 15 Miles Upstream After Yrs. Of Restoration Work

[hatrack]

Years of work to restore Johnson Creek, a 26-mile stream that winds from the foothills of Mount Hood near Boring to the Willamette River near the Sellwood Bridge, are paying off.

In a breakthrough last month, three dead coho salmon were discovered 15 miles upstream -- the farthest in memory, said Matt Clark, executive director of the Johnson Creek Watershed Council, a nonprofit that works to protect the creek.

"This is another sign that the creek is responding to decades of work," said Laura Guderyahn, Gresham's watershed restoration coordinator. "We've done numerous surveys and seen an increase in birds and reptiles. What all this shows is that the creek is becoming healthier for wildlife." Wild salmon used to be found throughout the creek but vanished in many areas because it was unable to sustain them, said Robin Jenkinson, the Watershed Council's restoration coordinator.

But in the past 20 years, 300 reclamation projects have been launched, according to a Watershed Council database. The next one will be a volunteer effort Monday to plant 520 trees and shrubs along about 450 feet of creek banks in Milwaukie's Mill Park. "The trees will help keep the creek cool in the summer," Jenkinson said. "If the water gets too hot, the fish die."

EDIT

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/01/johnson_cr.html

[DoBotherMe]

1. Fantastic!

K&R. Dana ; )

[shireen]

2. were they spawners?

that is awesome news!