Projects
Major improvements for fish on Auburn Ravine that SARSAS has brokered, and the work still ahead.
Fish passage at the Lincoln Gauging Station
Working with former Nevada Irrigation District General Manager Ron Nelson and several other organizations, SARSAS brokered fish passage at the Lincoln Gauging Station, giving fish two additional miles of marginal spawning gravels upstream to Hemphill Diversion.
Dual cone fish screens
Working with former Family Farm Alliance Executive Director Ashley Indrieri and South Sutter Water District General Manager Brad Arnold, SARSAS arranged for dual cone fish screens, installed in 2016 on the Pleasant Grove Canal, which formerly entrained up to 90% of the smolt returning to the Pacific Ocean.
Fish screen near Highway 65
A fish screen on the Albert Scheiber property, immediately downstream of the Highway 65 Bypass, has been installed. The cumulative effect of these improvements is to remove all flashboard diversion points up to Hemphill Dam from October 15 to April 15 each year for the salmon and steelhead spawning runs.
Citizen Science Program
Volunteer scientists on Auburn Ravine gather data to monitor water quality and fish runs from Auburn to Lincoln. Learn about the program. Contact Coordinator Glen DelSarto at glen.delsarto@gmail.com or 530-217-7076.
North Ravine restoration — volunteers wanted
North Ravine is the largest tributary of Auburn Ravine, and its restoration will benefit endangered steelhead. Coordinator Robert Hane has worked with numerous volunteers and contractors to remove invasive plants such as Himalayan blackberry and plant dogwood and redwood trees along its four-mile length. His motto: “Where shade exists, fish persist.” Volunteers from Sierra Native Alliance and the California Conservation Corps, and many landowners along North Ravine, are helping, including the Taylor Family, owners of Mt. Vernon Winery, but more hands are needed.
To volunteer: call Robert Hane at 530-885-3005. More about North Ravine.
Robert Hane, SARSAS “North Ravine Hero”