North Clackamas Watersheds Council
$28,223.99  Willamette Valley Ecoregion  Addresses drought

The North Clackamas Watersheds Council will use newly-available drone-based aerial thermal infrared (TIR) imagery to identify and locate cold-water refugia in key habitat areas vital to salmon, steelhead and lamprey within the Lower Willamette River Conservation Opportunity Area. We will identify the specific locations of cold water inputs known to exist at Elk Rock Island/Spring Park on the Willamette River side channel, in the Kellogg Lake Impoundment that will be restored to Willamette River floodplain habitat when Kellogg Dam is removed (planned 2026). At Minthorn Springs, we will identify sources of heat input that turn some of the coldest water into our region into excessively warm. These locations will then be integrated into restoration designs underway to maximize the ecological value of cold water, reduce heat inputs and steer outdoor recreation use at these sites away from these sensitive areas.

Project Report