Ecological Concerns:

Mechanical Injury

Pacific Lamprey Project

The Yakama Nation is working to restore natural production of Pacific lamprey to a level that will provide robust species abundance, significant ecological contributions and meaningful harvest within the Yakama Nations Ceded Lands and in the Usual and Accustomed areas.

Smartlowit Ditch Fish Screen

Yakama Nation fisheries staff developed a plan to install fish screens on three irrigation diversion ditches in Simcoe Creek Watershed, which is home to multiple freshwater life history stages of  ESA listed Mid-Columbia River steelhead. These unscreened diversions had historically diverted streamflow and ultimately caused  juvenile Steelhead to be stranded in the canals at the end of the irrigation season. 

South Fork Simcoe Creek Feeder Ditch Fish Screening

A major limiting factor affecting the healthy function of the watershed/habitat is the presence of an unscreened surface water diversion located on South Fork Simcoe Creek. There has been a continuous effort since 2009 to identify three unscreened surface diversions that need to be screened. The Smartlowit diversion was screened in 2010. The feeder ditch on South Fork Simcoe Creek is the second to be screened of the three identified diversions.