Yakima River Delta/Bateman Island
Sockeye kills in the Yakima River confluence area due poor water quality and temperatures caused by illegally constructed land bridge to Bateman Island
High summer water temperatures in the lower Yakima River pose a migration barrier to sockeye and Chinook salmon, and warm spring temperatures increase the predatory activity of bass and catfish just as juvenile sockeye, Chinook, steelhead, and coho are outmigrating. Bateman Island, owned by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers and managed under agreement with the City of Richland, sits at the confluence of the Yakima River and Columbia River, in Richland, Washington. An earthen causeway connecting the shoreline to the island completely blocks river flows on the south end of the island, creating elevated water temperatures in the Delta and risking the millions of dollars already invested in salmon recovery in the Yakima Basin.
After years of assessment and modeling, project partners have determined that opening the causeway would reduce spring and summer water temperatures, improve water quality for fish, wildlife and human recreational activities, and reduce predation on already challenged out migrating smolts.
And now to the hard part…with salmon and steelhead restoration a key objective in the Yakima Basin, improving thermal conditions in the Delta, while balancing community interests, is more important than ever. Beginning the fall of 2016, a local stakeholder group consisting of the City of Richland, federal and state fisheries managers, environmental and commercial interests, the USACE Walla Walla District, and the Yakama and Umatilla tribes came together to jointly develop balanced options to address this critical resource issue. Mid-Columbia Fisheries is working with these stakeholders to craft a flow restoration scenario that optimizes fisheries benefits, maintains public access, and protects cultural and private interests.
To date, this project has been supported by the Salmon Recovery Funding Board, the Yakima Basin Integrated Plan, and the Department of Ecology, and in 2018, through the efforts of numerous local, regional, and national partners, the project was accepted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as a section 1135 Habitat Restoration project. The Corps saw the project as necessary to ameliorate impacts from their actions in building the McNary Dam and filling the McNary Pool. The Corps is now in the final stretch of the first phase of the now Corps-led project, with WDFW representing a diverse group of Stakeholders as the Non-Federal Sponsor, and the Corps should complete its comprehensive feasibility study with an identified preferred alternative by the summer of 2022.
What's Happening
For the past several years, collaborative work has been done to improve fisheries, habitat and water quality in the Yakima Basin. Continuation of this work relies on getting salmon and steelhead past Bateman Island, which sits at the mouth of the Yakima Delta at the confluence of the Yakima and Columbia rivers. A man-made causeway on the south side of the island completely blocks flows, leading to very warm water temperatures west of the island.
The warm water provides ideal conditions for exotic species that prey on juvenile salmon in the spring and makes it difficult for adult salmon to swim upstream in the summer. Elevated water temperatures also encourage algal blooms, Water stargrass growth, pathogen growth, and encourage mosquitoes, degrading water quality. Beginning in 2016, the current stakeholder and rights holder partners joined forces to further develop a workable plan to address these issues and in 2019, the project was chosen by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers as a Ecological Restoration project under its authority to restore degradation caused by their activities. More information can be found here.
Next Steps
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife have partnered on an ecosystem restoration feasibility study along the Lower Yakima River in Richland, Washington. This project is being conducted under the Continuing Authorities Program, Section 1135.
The purpose of this project is to restore ecosystem structure, function, and processes necessary for fish migration (particularly juvenile salmonids) that was degraded or lost following the construction and continuous operation of McNary Lock and Dam and the Tri-Cities Levees. The project goal is to restore riparian and aquatic habitat and ecosystem functions for the benefit of Endangered Species Act-listed salmonids, other fish, birds, and wildlife in the study area at the Yakima River Delta and, where possible, provide education and recreation access.
USACE conducted the public review from January 30 to April 10, 2023. All comments have been addressed and incorporated into the final report. Links to the final feasibility report and integrated environmental assessment, appendices, and signed Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI), are at the right-hand side of this page.
The next phase will be Design and Implementation, with anticipated co-sponsorship of Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife along with Yakama Nation.
Local partners will also be working to develop new opportunities with local support to determine next steps on this and other recreational interests. At the core of the project is a commitment to public engagement. We recognize that there's a broad community invested in the outcomes of this project and we share their commitment to the long-term health of the Yakima River delta. We will continue to engage with the local community to determine next steps!
Partners
A project of this scope is made possible through the active dedication of the following organizations including the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, acting as the non-Federal sponsor of the project, the Yakama Nation, the Confederate Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the City of Richland, NOAA Fisheries, US Fish and Wildlife Service, the Washington Department of Natural Resources, the Washington Department of Ecology, the Yakima Basin Integrated Plan, and the owners of the Columbia Park Marina and a diverse group of community members dedicated to environmental and community development issues in the region.
Want to Get Involved?
The Corps of Engineers is currently accepting public comment on its Draft Feasibility Study published on January 30, 2023 through March 10, 2023. Visit this external link to learn more:
https://www.nww.usace.armymil/missions/projects/yakima-river-delta-ecological-restoration/Want to reach out?Contact Merritt Mitchell at merritt@midcolumbiafisheries.org for more information.