Restauración de Colorado Gulch:
Mejora del hábitat. Mejora de la experiencia.
BY REVERSING DECADES OF CHANNELIZATION, WE WERE ABLE TO OFFER MORE HABITAT FOR FISH AND ACCESS FOR HUMANS. NOW WE CAN GET BACK TO ENJOYING THE BIG WOOD RIVER IN PEACE.
PROBLEMS AND LIMITING FACTORS AND HISTORY
The 2017 water year for the Big Wood River was above normal. The snow water equivalent (SWE) for the basin on April 1st, 2017 above the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) stream gauge at Bullion Bridge (#13139510) in Hailey, Idaho was at 178% of normal. This led to a 50 year flood event for the Big Wood River which compromised the structural integrity of the Colorado Gulch Bridge. The previous road bridge length was too short to allow proper river function and connectivity to the floodplain; which led to the road bridge’s infrastructure to be compromised and unsafe for travel during the high flow event of 2017. In the last 20 years the road bridge’s infrastructure was compromised three times due to its short length and restricting the river to the main channel and not allowing connectivity to the floodplain . The bridge was deemed unsafe for travel in early spring of 2017 and removed on January 5th, 2018. What remains is the bridge abutments, rip rap along the banks, and the bridge approach fill material. Because of this, the area around Colorado Gulch has been channelized, and disconnected from legacy side channels and floodplain habitat.
PROJECT GOALS & BENEFITS
El proyecto de restauración del río Colorado Gulch (COG) ofreció una oportunidad única para mejorar el hábitat de la llanura aluvial y reconectar 1,200 pies de canales laterales históricos al eliminar aproximadamente 1,300 yardas cúbicas (cy) de escollera y relleno artificial que históricamente protegieron la carretera y el puente de COG. El principal factor limitante para el hábitat de los salmónidos en el río Big Wood (BWR) se ha abordado con éxito mediante la reconexión de su llanura aluvial. Esta iniciativa estratégica ahora permite que el río cree naturalmente un hábitat complejo y proporciona un acceso crucial a las áreas de cría durante eventos de alto caudal.
A non motorized bridge will be constructed in the fall of 2025 to open access to Colorado Gulch on the west side of the river. This project is a great example of how we can reverse decades of bad practices such as channelization, bank hardening, and disconnecting habitats through infrastructure, and enhance salmonid habitat and recreational access.