Fish Passage Technical Working Group

Welcome

• Fish-Stream Crossing Guidebook, Revised Edition, Sept. 2012 (Web version, pdf, 4 MB, posted Sept 25, 2012) | Print Version (pdf, 4 MB)

Between 1995 and 2006, industry and government staff highlighted the need for action associated with the many historic closed bottom structures on fish streams that had become full or partial barriers to fish passage. Federal and Provincial government staff along with forest industry staff worked on the development of a guidance document (Fish-Stream Crossing Guidebook, 2002) and improvement of methods to assess and set priorities to fix fish passage problems. Government executive and industry supported continued work on dealing with these problem structures through more complete assessment and remediation of priority problem structures. (See the attached Reference Letter). The Fish Passage Technical Working Group was formed to coordinate and advance the work done to date by government (Federal and Provincial) and industry staff.

The 2009 Forest Practices Board report highlighted the need to remove barriers to fish passage at fish stream crossings. The Fish Passage Technical Working Group (FPTWG) has responded to this report, and continues to use this and other data sources to identify and implement solutions to improve fish passage.

The FPTWG oversees the Fish Passage Program under the Land Based Investment Strategy (LBIS). The FPTWG oversees the Fish Passage Program under the Land Based Investment Strategy (LBIS). The FPTWGA published a summary of the last four years of fish-passage activity in February 2012. Further details on this program can be found on the LBIS Fish Passage website.

With funds provided through the Forest Investment Account and the LBIS, fish passage has been restored at 93 stream crossings that were constructed prior to the introduction of the Forest Practices Code in 1995, resulting in hundreds of kilometres of previously inaccessible stream habitat being made available to fish populations. In addition, over 10,000 stream crossings have been assessed to better understand the scope and distribution of the fish passage problem across British Columbia.

Background Information

• “Resource Roads in BC: Environmental Challenges at the Site Level”: Eighty people attended a workshop put on by the Columbia Mountains Institute of Applied Ecology, on November 7–8, 2012 at the Rocky Mountain Prestige Inn in Cranbrook, BC. Participants heard 18 speakers, and viewed 7 posters and displays. The summary for the workshop is now available at: http://www.cmiae.org/Events/past-events.php#ResRd2012 5.3 MB PDF, 154 pages.

  Within British Columbia, paved and unpaved road length increased by 82% between 1988 and 2005. In 2000, there were over 420,000 road-stream crossings in BC; over the subsequent five years, road-stream crossings increased by about 13,000 per year (BC Ministry of Environment 2007). Estimates of unpaved roads vary from 400,000 to 550,000 km across the province (BC Forest Practice Board 2005). Many more backcountry roads have been built since. The environmental effects of backcountry roads are diverse, and include impacts on aquatic and terrestrial wildlife and habitat, soils, and water. At this event we addressed both the site-level environmental impacts of backcountry roads and management responses.

  Presentations and Papers:

  • Fish Passage in BC – Status, Issues and Solutions – Ian Miller
    Presentation  (ppt)| Paper (MS Word)
  • Assessing Fish Passage at Culverts – Richard Thompson
    Presentation (ppt)| Paper (MS word)
  • Habitat Modelling and Culvert Assessments – Craig Mount
    Presentation (ppt)| Paper (pdf)
     
• Towards Restoring Fish Habitat Connectivity in BC – The Fish Passage Technical Working Group Progress Report February 2012
• Strategic Approach to Fish Passage
• Fish Passage at Stream Crossings: Special Investigation Report, Forest Practices Board, January 2009
• GIS Modeling of Fish Habitat and Road Crossings from the Prioritization of Culvert Assessment and Remediation, Published in Streamline Watershed Management Bulletin
• Presentation:  Modeling for Prioritization of Culvert/Fish Passage Remediation
• Terms of Reference Letter from JSC and JMC (2007)

Identifying Priorities

• Criteria for selecting watersheds for assessments (Work in progress, March 2012)
• Criteria for selecting stream crossing sites for remediation (Work in progress, March. 2012)

Training Resources

• Field Assessment Methodology for Determining Fish Passage at Culvert Sites - On line Training
• Fish Passage Poster
• Training Presentations for Culvert Assessment Methodology (May 2008)
  • Protocol for Fish Passage Determination of Closed Bottom Structures
  • Field Assessment for Fish Passage Determination of Closed Bottom Structures

Design and Construction of Fish Stream Crossings – BC References

• Guidance to C&E Program staff and delegated decision makers on interpreting the words “material adverse effect” and “material adverse impact
• Fish Stream Crossing Guidebook (pdf 4 MB, posted Sept 25, 2012) | Print Version
• Fish Stream Crossing Guidebook 2002 Version (pdf 2.3 MB)
• FLNRO Bridge Design Standards, Manuals and Guidelines
• Guidelines for Professional Services in the Forest Sector – Crossings (Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists) (pdf 0.4 MB)

Restoration References

• Fish Habitat Rehabilitation Procedures WRP Technical Circular 9
• Hillslope Restoration in BC, Best Management Practices Guidebook (pdf 18.3 MB)

Case Studies

• US FishXing – US website with general information and case studies
• FP Innovations (FERIC) Case Studies (posted with permission from FERIC):
  • Installation of an embedded pipe culvert: Hotfish Creek
  • Installation of an embedded pipe culvert: Stuart Lake tributary
  • Closed-bottom corrugated-steel embedded culverts in British Columbia: overview of twelve sites
  • Installation of an embedded pipe culvert: Lewis Lake tributary
  • Closed-bottom corrugated-steel embedded culverts in British Columbia: overview of seven sites
  • Replacing wooden-box culverts with aluminum arch culverts: two case studies
  • Installation of a structural-plate corrugated-steel round culvert along a fish-bearing stream in Alberta

Preferred Work Timing Windows in British Columbia

Each Ministry of Environment Region develops timing windows for reduced risk.

• Vancouver Island
• Lower Mainland
• Thompson
• Kootenay
• Cariboo
• Skeena
• Omineca
• Okanagan
• Peace

For salmon species not listed, please contact your local DFO office.