The quarterly newsletter of the EBTJV DECEMBER 2008 Southeast Division Editor s Notes Sorry for stealing Page 1 for my editor s notes. I wanted to use it to inform everyone about the changes to the newsletter, procedure and new tools that will help us work and share our efforts more efficiently and professionally. The past 6 weeks have been busy for me. I started by getting the mailing list into a database format so I can make updates easily, email the newsletter and requests for submissions and keep in touch with everyone. If you have council elections or changes in positions or I ve missed someone, please let me know. I plan to keep this as up-to-date as I possibly can. I then designed the new look for the newsletter. I tried to make it look professional, informative and easy to read. I m hoping that all of you will see it the same way and it will inspire you to submit more of the great information I ve seen in our newsletter before. You ll also notice that I ve added links to all the url s and email addresses contained in the newsletter. You just need to click on them to send an email or visit a website. As always, I m open to suggestions and new ideas so feel free to send them to me at williamo@maine.rr.com. I also took the advice of NLC reps and created a Google Group for the EBTJV. In This Issue: Editor s Notes... Page 1 Georgia... Page 2 South Carolina...Page 3-6 Tennessee... Page 7-9 Virginia... Page 10-12 It s a site where we will have a forum for discussions, a place to upload and post files/documents/newsletters and send a reminder to the entire group. Hopefully this open up broader lines of communication throughout the EBTJV. You can easily apply for group membership by clicking the tab on the right side of http://groups.google.com/group/ebtjv. I urge you to visit it often I have a feeling that this will be a useful tool for the EBTJV. Enjoy the Newsletter and our Google Group Happy Holidays! by Bill Oleszczuk www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 1
Georgia Steam Projects in 2009 We expect that Back-the-Brookie, GA DNR and USFS will concentrate on multi-chapter projects in 2009. We were very successful in 2008 fielding large volunteer crews to build stream structures. We are committed though our Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture (EBTJV) grant to focus on habitat enhancements in several watersheds. Plans are being made to build structures on the following stream utilizing both interns and GA Trout Unlimited volunteers. Restoration Two barriers were constructed in 2008 one on Tate Branch and the other on Stover Creek. These barriers will prevent rainbow and brown trout from migrating upstream into brook trout habitat. Restoration work is planned for these streams. Hiawassee River Watershed: Gurley Creek, Joel Creek, Henson Creek, Big Net Branch, High Shoals Creek, Mossy Cove Branch, Gizzard Branch Little Tennessee River Watershed: Thomas Creek and Ramey Creek Chattooga River Watershed: Holcomb Creek, Ammons Creek, Walnut Fork Creek, and Bailey Branch Tallulah River Watershed: North Fork Moccasin Creek, Howard Creek, Little Persimmon Creek, and Persimmon Creek Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture For the third time, GA Trout Unlimited, GA DNR and USFS have teamed to submit for EBTJV grant funding. This time for $25,000 from the EBTJV matched by $85,000 of inkind contributions from GA TU and its partners in Backthe-Brookie. The grant continues enhancement of stream habitat and restoration of wild brook trout. Stover Creek Stover Creek is our primary restoration project. GA TU Back-the-Brookie to supporting Gold Rush and Oconee River TU s lead on this initiative. The Chapter s were awarded a TU Embrace-A-Stream grant for the project. To date, a natural barrier on the lower end of the creek was enhanced with a raised cap to prevent rainbow and brown trout from moving upstream into brook trout territory during high water events. A total of over forty stream structures are planned to improve habitat. Fifteen were completed in 2008. by Kevin McGrath btb@giergiatu.org www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 2
South Carolina Conservation: 1) A SC Department of Natural Resources team and several Trout Unlimited volunteers electroshocked Carrick Creek in Table Rock State Park in early November to determine if wild mixed-strain brook trout were still present after an initial stocking in September, 2006. Both adult and young-of-the-year brookies were found in the upper flats of this small creek where the stocked brookies were released. The upper reaches of Carrick Creek are suffering badly from the severe long-term drought that has plagued the northwestern portion of South Carolina for years. The good news on Carrick Creek is that we discovered that some of the stocked brookies (fish up to 9-10 inches were found) had moved downstream into the steep gorge and were reproducing in this section of the stream. We feel that, if the drought continues as predicted, the brook trout that were introduced two years ago will have a better chance to survive in the gorge pools than in the smaller water upstream in the flats. The South Carolina partnership (SCDNR; US Forest Service; SC Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism; SC Wildlife Federation; and SC Council of TU) is encouraged that Carrick Creek is capable of supporting wild brook trout in the presence of a severe long-term drought. Carrick Creek flows beside a Nature Center where we plan to display brochures and posters about the status and restoration of brook trout. Now that there is a selfsustaining population of wild brook trout within easy walking distance, the Nature Center will be an excellent site for distribution of educational material about brook trout. 2) The SC Council of TU submitted an Embrace-A-Stream proposal to National TU, in partnership with SCDNR, to evaluate habitat of potential brook trout streams in the Jocassee Gorges of South Carolina. The Jocassee Gorges is a wild and scenic 43,000 acre tract in the mountains of South Carolina. The area contains a dozen or more streams that once supported brook trout but which now are believed to be devoid of the species. The idea behind the proposal is that streams that have suitable brook trout habitat, or which can be made to have suitable habitat, will be stocked with southern Appalachian strain brookies. When this is accomplished, the native brook trout will occupy headwater streams of all major drainages where they originally occurred in the state. 3) The SC Council of TU submitted a final report to National TU in November on brook trout restoration in Crane Creek (see attached report), the second stream that the SC Partnership restored as part of the Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture Program. Briefly, southern Appalachian strain brookies were established in Crane Creek after non-native trout were removed. The introduced brookies were monitored for two years and both adult and youngof-the-year brookies were found. The Partnership now has restored the southern Appalachian brook trout to King Creek and Crane Creek, and wild mixed-strain (northern x southern hybrids) brook trout to Tamassee and Carrick Creeks. Education and Partnering: Landowners who own property adjacent to brook trout streams in the state is being prepared so they can be invited to a field trip on a brook trout stream in the spring of 2009. During the field trip, landowners will hear information about the status of the brook trout and efforts to bring the southern Appalachian strain of the species back to some semblance of its former extent. The goal of the meeting will be to make private landowners aware of land-use practices that could hurt brook trout populations and to encourage them to be partners in the brook trout restoration program in South Carolina. FINAL REPORT OF PHASE 2 RESTORATION OF NATIVE EASTERN BROOK TROUT TO CRANE CREEK, SUMTER NATIONAL FOREST, SOUTH CAROLINA INTRODUCTION In Phase 1 of the restoration of brook trout in South Carolina, our partnership (South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, U.S.D.A. Forest Service, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Clemson University, South Carolina Wildlife Federation, and South Carolina Council of Trout Unlimited) restored the native strain of brook trout, i.e., the Southern Appalachian brook trout, to King Creek. www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 3
South Carolina continued This headwater stream is a tributary of the Chattooga River, a major recreational trout fishery on the border between South Carolina and Georgia. Electroshockings that followed the initial stocking and a later supplemental stocking of brook trout have shown that King Creek now has a sustainable population of adult and young of the year native brook trout and that there are no nonnative trout species competing with the brook trout in the restored stream. Phase 1 was financed, in part, through an Embrace-A-Stream grant of $9,050 from National Trout Unlimited and we judge it to have been highly successful. Now, in Phase 2, the Chattooga River Chapter (#556) of Trout Unlimited, acting on behalf of the South Carolina Council, has used a second Embrace-A-Stream grant ($6,250) from national TU in February, 2006 to support federal and state agency efforts to restore native brook trout in Crane Creek, another creek on the Sumter National Forest. The goal of this two-year funded project was to restore native brookies to about 2.5 miles of a stream where native brookies had been extirpated by improper land-use practices and introduction of nonnative trout (including a northern strain of brook trout) in the last century. METHODS Crane Creek once had a population of native southern Appalachian brook trout, but this was no longer the case in recent years. To restore this stream to the native brook trout, it would be necessary to remove non-native species and reintroduce native brookies. Crane Creek was severely overgrown by rhodendron, mountain laurel, doghobble, and other species in 2005. This over-hanging brush had to be removed before the stream could be electroshocked to determine the distribution and extent of non-native species. Brush removal was accomplished by 5 to 10 TU volunteers using bow saws, axes, and lopping shears during six work days in March May, 2006 (Fig. 1). Figure 1. TU volunteers and SCDNR employees take a break after a morning of brush clearing on Crane Creek. After brush removal, about 2.5 miles of the creek was electroshocked by SCDNR and USFS crews, with assistance from six TU volunteers. The mixed-strain brookies, i.e., offspring of crosses between stocked northern strain brookies and the native brookies that originally occupied the stream, were captured and placed in stream cages. These wild brookies were then transferred by TU volunteers and SCDNR technicians to two other streams where they were released. Brown and rainbow trout were removed from Crane Creek using techniques developed and refined by Steve Moore, Chief Fisheries Biologist in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. After non-native species were removed, about 250 pure strain Southern Appalachian brook trout from northeast Georgia were captured and stocked in Crane Creek. It was believed that they would spawn in Crane Creek later that season. Another stocking of native brookies was conducted a year later to supplement the population. The creek was electroshocked about a year after each stocking of Crane Creek to determine if the stocked fish were still present and if they were reproducing. The brook trout restoration process was publicized in various media during the past two years. www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 4
South Carolina continued RESULTS Brush Removal and Electroshocking In March - May, 2006, TU volunteers put in over 300 manhours clearing brush in and around Crane Creek (including both forks of the creek above Big Bend Road) so that the stream could be electroshocked. Electroshocking was needed to determine the extent and distribution of non-native trout (rainbows, browns, and northern and mixed strain book trout) in Crane Creek so they could be removed prior to stocking pure Southern Appalachian brook trout. High waterfalls (Fig. 2) at the lower end of Crane Creek served as a natural barrier to upstream migration of nonnative fish. Crane Creek is stocked with rainbow and brown trout below these waterfalls, and if these species could reach the restored section, they would become dominant. Figure 2. Waterfalls at lower end of Crane Creek prevent upward migration of non-native trout into restored section. Removal of Non-Native Fish In July, 2006, TU volunteers assisted SCDNR, USFS, and Fish and Wildlife Service crews when they electroshocked the creek to remove the non-native brook trout. About 150 of these mixed-strain brookies were transported to Carrick Creek, a small stream in Table Rock State Park. TU volunteers toted these wild, but not native, brookies up the Pinnacle Mountain Trail to a flat stretch of Carrick Creek, which was barren of fish of any kind for unknown reasons. Previous examination of the stream by both fishermen and biologists had indicated that native brookies could probably survive and establish a sustainable population here. Additional TU volunteers carried the remaining wild brookies from Crane Creek to Tamassee Creek, a stream that already had a small population of wild mixed-strain brookies. Subsequent electroshockings will enable biologists to evaluate the status of brook trout in those creeks. After the non-native brookies in Crane Creek had been removed by electroshocking, an antibiotic (antimycin, trade name Fintrol) was used by fisheries professionals to remove brown trout from the creek. Potassium permanganate was used to neutralize the antibiotic at the downstream limit of the restored section of the creek. No TU volunteers were used on this phase of the restoration procedure. Stocking of Southern Appalachian Brookies In early Fall, 2006, 250 Southern Appalachian strain brookies were collected from northeast Georgia and stocked in Crane Creek. Many of the transferred fish were in spawning condition and, in fact, did spawn. Electroshocking the next year (July, 2007) showed that both adult and young of the year native brookies were in the creek. In October, 2007, SCDNR stocked more native brookies to supplement the initial stocking of Crane Creek. In June, 2008, another electroshocking of Crane Creek was conducted by SCDNR, assisted by TU volunteers. More young of the year brookies were found indicating that there were now at least three age classes of native brookies in the creek. And this is in spite of extremely low flows in Crane Creek. A severe long-term drought has been affecting the upstate region of South Carolina for over three years and all streams and lakes in the area are near or below record low levels. www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 5
South Carolina continued The partners in this brook trout restoration project now consider Crane Creek to have been successfully restored to native brook trout (Fig. 3). This conclusion is reached because: 1. The stream now has three distinct age classes of native brookies. 2. Reproduction of native brookies has been documented for two consecutive years, and 3. Trout habitat and especially nursery habitat has been improved by the addition of large quantities of coarse woody debris. This second phase of the brook trout restoration program in South Carolina has raised awareness of the brook trout s status in the state and demonstrated that the Southern Appalachian strain of the species can be restored where the habitat is suitable. This successful project has demonstrated to the conservation community that Trout Unlimited is a committed partner that is serious about protecting our cold-water resources. SCDNR and TU volunteers met with conservation/environmental leaders from Upstate Forever, Sierra Club, SC Wildlife Federation, Nature Conservancy, and SC Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism on a restored creek to discuss the brook trout restoration program in the state. TU volunteers wrote an article published in the Jocassee Journal in the Spring/Summer issue about the brook trout restoration program in SC. The Alliance for Clean Energy produced a DVD about global warming effects on South Carolina in which a TU volunteer briefly discussed the effects of a warming climate on the brook trout. A TU volunteer maintains our website (http://scbrookie.org). Quarterly updates on South Carolina s BTB program are published in The Eastern Brook Trout Newsletter Partners and Financing In addition to the $6,250 Embrace-A-Stream grant from Trout Unlimited, this project received support from the various partners totaling over $24,000. Support included consulting and personnel expenses from the National Park Service, and contracting services to Clemson University scientists. It also included volunteer labor from the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Forest Service. The South Carolina Wildlife Federation donated $500 to assist the project. Trout Unlimited volunteers contributed over 500 man-hours in labor and report writing and other duties in 2007 and 2008. Figure 4. A Southern Appalachian brook trout, courtesy of Richard Bernabe Photography. PUBLICIZING THE PROGRAM TU volunteers wrote an article for South Carolina Wildlife Magazine about SC s brook trout restoration program which will be published in the Spring of 2009. Developed a poster about South Carolina s brook trout restoration efforts that was shown at a legislative reception at Table Rock State Park and at a meeting of the Chattooga Conservancy in Clayton, GA. Prepared by BACK THE BROOKIE COMMITTEE OF SC John Garton... Education Committee Chair Vance Baird... Conservation Committee Chair Mark Szymanski... Advancements Committee Chair Tom McInnis... Immediate past SC Council Chair David Van Lear... SC Coordinator by David Van Lear, BTB Chair www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 6
Tennessee Troutfest The Little River Chapter is planning a huge TROUTFEST this spring with national speakers in conjunction with the 100 yr anniversary of the National Park System. They have been great financial and volunteer supporters of the Brook Trout programs in the National Park. Details will be available in the next Newsletter. The Tennessee Council along with the Great Smokey Mountain Chapter donated matching funds to the National Forest Service to purchase a new electro shocker for use in monitoring Brook Trout populations in the Cherokee National Forest. Several chapters assist the Forest Service in their annual stream monitoring. TU Plate Goal Achieved We ve Presold 1,000 + Plates! November 14, 2008 over the past few days, our database has confirmed that Trout Unlimited has reached its goal of 1,000 presold plates. Many thanks to those individuals and businesses who have worked incessantly over the past 15 months to bring the TU plate into existence. This will bring at least $17,500 to Trout Conservation projects in Tennessee this year and we congratulate Dick Davis of the Cumberland Chapter for his efforts in this effort. Conservation effort to preserve good ole Rocky Fork Coalition acquires property for $40 million The Rocky Fork watershed is pictured from Whitehouse Rock. At 9,624 acres, the Rocky Fork tract in northeast Tennessee is only a fraction the size of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, but advocates say the property s ecological value rivals anything in the Southern Appalachians. For years, a coalition of conservation groups and local residents have been working to acquire the privately owned tract located near the Tennessee-North Carolina line in Unicoi and Greene counties. This week, The Conservation Fund and the U.S. Forest Service purchased the property from New Forestry LLC for $40 million. As part of the overall acquisition, the Conservation Fund will eventually transfer its share of the purchase - 7,387 acres - to the state of Tennessee. The U.S. Forest Service acquisition of the remaining 2,237 acres will permanently protect 1.5 miles of the Appalachian Trail that either crosses or borders the property. Located 30 miles from Johnson City, Tenn., the Rocky Fork tract is surrounded by national forest. The property s rugged mountains surround the headwaters of Rocky Fork Creek, a blue ribbon trout stream that affords 16 miles of habitat to Appalachian brook trout within the boundaries of the property. For generations, the Rocky Fork tract has been privately owned but open to public hunting through a cooperative agreement with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Owners of the property recently began marketing the land for ridge-top development, prompting a last-ditch campaign to move the land into public ownership. Over the last few years, the U.S. Forest Service has ranked Rocky Fork as its No. 1 priority for land acquisition in the United States. The tract is home to six salamander species not even found in the Smokies and serves as one of the most important black bear refuges in upper East Tennessee. The tract adjoins more than 30,000 acres of public lands. It s the last large piece of land left that s surrounded by the Cherokee National Forest and still undeveloped, said Bob Nichols, Region IV manager for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. To get it into public ownership where it can remain intact is very important to the people of East Tennessee. The Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy and the Appalachian Trail Conservancy were leaders in local conservation efforts to protect Rocky Fork. About 5,000 www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 7
Tennessee continued acres of the tract can be seen from the Appalachian Trail. The project drew strong political support from U.S. Sens. Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker and U.S. Rep. David Davis, all Tennessee Republicans who secured funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund for the U.S. Forest Service s share of the acquisition. On the North Carolina side, the project was supported by U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., and U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C. On the state level, the Tennessee Heritage Conservation Trust Fund contributed $6 million toward the purchase. As part of the deal, The Conservation Fund hopes to negotiate a land exchange in which the U.S. Forest Service would release some of its less strategic properties into private ownership in exchange for additional Rocky Fork property. This is a local project, but one that has regional implications, said Rex Boner, vice president and southeast representative for The Conservation Fund. For me, it s significant to see how support crossed state lines and political parties. This is a project for all people. Visit http://www.conservationfund.org for maps and more information. by George Lane Lynn Camp Project Overview Treatment with antimycin was initiated September 8, 2008 and was completed September 19, 2008. During the project personnel from TN Wildlife Resources Agency, N. C. Wildlife Resources Commission, N.J. Division of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Park Service staff from the regional office and Yellowstone and Volunteers from the Little River Chapter of Trout Unlimited assisted Great Smoky Mountains NP fishery staff with the project. The project successfully removed non-native rainbow trout from 8 miles of Lynn Camp Prong. A population of native black nose dace inhabited about the first two miles of the project area. This presented a unique challenge to project managers because the project could not eliminate these fish. Prior to treatment fishery staff and their assistants collected as many black nose dace as possible and placed them in holding cages in another stream until treatment was completed. Once the treatment phase was completed these fish were returned to the stream section from which they were taken. Aquatic insect data was collected by graduate students from Tennessee Technological University prior to during and after treatment. Additional samples will be collected in March, June and August to evaluate the immediate, short term and long term affects on the aquatic insect community. Results from previous studies have demonstrated completed recovery of the community within four to six months. In May 2009 Park staff with assistance from TN Wildlife Resources Agency and TU volunteers will survey Lynn Camp Prong to insure all rainbow trout were removed during treatment. In June, 2009 Park staff plans to collect approximately 1,000 brook trout and return them to Lynn Camp Prong. www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 8
Tennessee continued Treatment Area Map of Lynn Camp Prong watershed, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, including barrier falls and current brook trout distribution within the watershed. Red lines indicate pure rainbow trout, blue pure brook trout, and green mixed rainbow and brook trout. Natural barriers are noted by dumbbell bars at lower Lynn Camp Prong, Marks Creek, and lower Indian Flats Prong. Antimycin was applied to all areas marked in red or green. by Steve Moore www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 9
Virginia Brook Trout Conservation Shenandoah National Park (SHEN) crews received help from many TU members throughout the summer as we needed help with our regular monitoring schedule. We were short staffed in Jim s absence and had one crew member out with a hernia and another with a tickborn disease. - Thank You! The SHEN fisheries crew and Paul Bugas (VDGIF) provided electrofishing demonstrations and fish identification in warm and cold waters for the TU Tri-State Fishing Camp at Graves Mountain Lodge in June. The FWS Wild Fish Health Lab from Lamar, PA collected fish health samples from five SHEN streams this year. Most of the fish sampled were brook and brown trout but also included blacknose dace and other non-game species. Typically they sample eight to ten streams for us but funding is drying up for them. We had a short stream clean up with the Winchester Jr. B.A.S.S. club and collected almost a pickup load of trash from Happy Creek in Warren County within the park in an hour with 4 kids and 2 adults walking the streambed. Most of this trash appears to be washing into the stream from the Rt. 522 corridor. No wild brookies in this stream due to high summer temperatures. An important note that needs more analysis... In our highest monitoring site in the Rapidan River drainage we have never captured anything but brook trout in the 17 years I have worked here until this past summer. We ended up capturing five species in the site this year. I speculate this is due to a rise in water temperatures. Hemlock mortality is widespread in the drainage as a result of hemlock wooly adelgid. The result has been widespread riparian loss and fairly severe bank erosion as these huge trees tear out of the banks when they fall. Additional scour is being caused by huge debris dams created by the finer hemlock branches becoming lodged behind the massive trunks. And, sad news... This year, I consider brook trout to be extirpated from Lower Lewis Run in Rockingham County. 2004 was the last time brook trout were seen (two adult females in one mile of stream) and extensive surveys conducted in 2006 and again in 2008 in Lower Lewis Run. No brook trout were seen or captured in 2006 or 2008 although blacknose dace, and macroinvertebrate populations have remained stable throughout the period. The reason for this species loss is unknown. A few leads are: trout over population and disease; drought; high water temperature; 2003 fire reducing canopy cover thereby increasing temperature; and the following fire suppression tactics fire retardant dropped in stream (at least 2/3rds of a air tanker load and possibly a second drop hit the stream as well), water drawn from the stream for bladder bags could have reduced the stream flow to zero (I have not determined if the fire crews had pumps set up or not), chainsaw bar oil in stream after removal of all in-stream woody debris hampering oxygen transfer in an already drought stressed aquatic environment. Lower Lewis Run lacks connectivity with Upper Lewis Run due to a large alluvial fan and subterranean flow, and to the Shenandoah River due to a quarry. Brook Trout Restoration Shenandoah National Park (SHEN) employees electroshocked and donated close to 430 brook trout out of Jeremys Run and the Conway River to reintroduce to four project streams on private and state owned lands. Fish were bucketed out of the park over one mile and transported to other streams in large aerated tanks. This work was carried out by TU members and SHEN and VDGIF employees. Invasive Species Reduction Good news! Exotic trout eradication efforts were re initiated in 2006 on three park streams for the first time since 1998. After electrofishing Brokenback Run for brown trout reductions in 2006, no brown trout were found in Brokenback Run the summer of 2008. It was hard to coordinate in 2008, but we were able to keep captured brown and a few rainbow trout alive in holding pens and transfer them to VDGIF and TU to augment other warmer water brown trout populations outside of the park. Of 468 exotic trout captured, approximately 370 were transferred to other existing brown trout populated waters. Young of the year fish mortality was high in the pens, FWS personnel from the Wild Fish Health Lab in Lamar, PA sampled approximately 50 whole brown trout, and it was not practical to transport less than 50 www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 10
Virginia continued fish so fish captured on slow days were euthanized and disposed of by protocol. Actual # s were Hughes 169 browns, 3 rainbows, and 2 tigers. Rose - 279 browns, 15 tigers. Brokenback - 0 browns. Special thanks to all the TU members from many chapters who helped net, bucket, and transport fish and Paul Bugas other VDGIF staff and Front Royal TU for picking up live fish. Please note the new phone number. (540) 999-3500 will now get you to anyone in the park, you can either voice in the name or enter the extension. David Demarest Acting Fisheries and Wildlife Biologist Shenandoah National Park 3655 U.S. Hwy. 211 E. Luray, VA 22835 Phone: (540) 999-3500 x3439 VA Game and Inland Fisheries in collaboration with the USFWS harvested 100 brook trout from Dry River near Harrisonburg as the first step in creating brook stock and fingerlings for the eventual restoration of brookies in the upper Shenandoah Valley. VCTU is taking the first steps in developing a Southern Brook Trout Restoration Strategy for the Roanoke, New, and Upper Tennessee river systems. We expect to hold a stakeholders planning session in Marion, Va. in January. The Thomas Jefferson and our new Mountain Empire Chapter installed two information kiosks at Grayson Highlands State Park. Kiosks were funded jointly by Churchill Homes and Appalachian Power. by John Ross Shenandoah Home Rivers Initiative TU national has received a $174,000 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to fund the Shenandoah Home Rivers Initiative. The SHRI coordinator was offered and accepted the job last week. Virginia Trout Stream Sensitivity Study Planning the third regional survey in 2010 The Virginia Trout Stream Sensitivity Study (VTSSS) is designed to track the effects of acidic deposition and other factors that determine water quality and related ecological conditions in Virginia s native trout streams. The VTSSS began in the spring of 1987 when water samples were collected from 450 (about 80%) of the mountain headwater streams in Virginia that support reproducing brook trout. Chemical analysis revealed that about 10% of the sampled streams were acidic and about 50% were sensitive to acidification. Following the 1987 survey, a representative subset of streams was selected for longterm monitoring. This component of VTSSS now includes 65 streams that have been sampled on a quarterly basis for 22 years. The current concept for going forward with the VTSSS is to maintain the quarterly data collection to support research and trend analysis, while periodically conducting sampling surveys of the larger population of streams to provide regional context and assessment capability. A second survey was conducted in the spring of 2000. We are now proposing a third survey to be conducted in the spring of 2010. The VTSSS program has proven critical for development and implementation of public policies that will determine www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 11
Virginia continued the future of native brook trout streams in western Virginia and the surrounding mountain region. The need for further reductions in acidic emissions, for example, was substantiated by the 2006 Acid Rain Program Report released by EPA in late 2007. Recent emission reductions have been followed by recovery from acidification in sensitive lakes and streams in the northeast, but not in western Virginia brook trout streams. This finding is based on trends in surface water composition for the 15-year period following passage of acid rain controls in 1990, and it is consistent with a 2003 EPA report to Congress that flagged continuing stream acidification in the area that includes western Virginia. For both reports, EPA relied on the VTSSS program as its primary source of information on stream acidification and recovery in the southern Appalachian region. The VTSSS program provides that critical capacity. We are actively seeking resources both to sustain the current long-term monitoring program and to resurvey the larger population of native trout streams in the mountains of Virginia in 2010. Locations of 450 native brook trout streams sampled for water quality in 1987 and 2000. Quarterly sampling is conducted on a subset of 65 streams. A third survey is scheduled for the spring of 2010. Current federal regulations promise additional reductions in both the sulfur and nitrogen emissions that contribute to acidic deposition. Emissions will still exceed natural levels, however, and a number of assessments and model projections suggest that even with substantial reductions in future acidic deposition, recovery of southern and central Appalachian streams will be limited by soil damage associated with past acidic deposition. Although it remains to be seen if acidification impacts to Virginia s native trout streams can be reversed, it is clear that recovery will be less certain if we lose the capacity to evaluate the effectiveness of emission control programs. The VTSSS program is a cooperative effort involving the Department of Environmental Sciences at the University of Virginia, Trout Unlimited, the National Park Service, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the USDA Forest Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, and the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. The VTSSS program is coordinated with the Shenandoah Watershed Study (SWAS). For more about the VTSSS and SWAS programs, including access to the cited EPA reports, see http://swas.evsc.virginia.edu or contact Rick Webb at rwebb@virginia.edu. by Rick Webb www.easternbrooktrout.org Page 12