East Canyon Watershed

The Snyderville Basin Water Reclamation District, on behalf of the East Canyon Watershed Committee, applied for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) funds in order to conduct stream restoration work along East Canyon Creek.  The Utah Water Quality Board fully funded their $300,000 proposal.  Actual stream work utilizing these funds will commence in the spring of 2010.

Synopsis:  East Canyon Creek Restoration Project

Snyderville Basin Water Reclamation District

The class 3A cold water fisheries in East Canyon Creek and Reservoir are impaired due to low dissolved oxygen (DO) and are on Utah’s 303(d) list of impaired waters.  The most recent TMDL water quality study (2009) demonstrated that the DO impairment in East Canyon Creek is due to poor physical stream conditions.  These include wide and shallow stream reaches, degraded riparian habitat, and eroding banks.  Wide, shallow streams with minimal riparian vegetation allow excess light and heat input from the sun, yielding overabundant macrophyte and algae growth.  Degrading streambanks contribute sediment and nutrient loads to both East Canyon Creek and East Canyon Reservoir.

This project will address these conditions along several reaches of East Canyon Creek.  Planting of riparian vegetation will increase shading, reduce temperatures, and stabilize streambanks.  Bank stabilization projects will reduce sediment and associated nutrient inputs to both East Canyon Creek and East Canyon Reservoir.

The TMDL study has shown that improving physical stream conditions and shading will reduce primary productivity by 25%, which is crucial to improving the DO levels in the creek.  Reducing streambank erosion through bank stabilization will reduce sediment loading to the reservoir by 32 tons/year/mile and reduce organic matter and nutrient inputs by 2.3 to 7.2 tons/year.  This project is integral to implementing the East Canyon Creek and Reservoir TMDLs and achieving identified water quality endpoints.